Fox Chapel Golf Club - Raynor 1923 - Photo Tour (All 18 holes posted!)

[Bill McKinley]

10th Hole
Par 4 409/403

Springhouse

The 2nd nine begins far away from the clubhouse.  Here's a picture of the halfway house.  It had a very old feeling to it tucked back in the trees.  It almost felt like a military bunker or something inside.  Pretty cool.


The 10th hole is a straight away par 4 with the property boundary on the left and a few trees on the right, which makes for kind of a tight driving hole.
From the tee...


The approach is a tricky one again because of the fact that there is nothing framing the hole behind the green.  It has the feeling that if you hit your approach too long, you won't like where you'll find it.  As a result I hit my wedge well short and had a tough two putt from about 50 feet.

[Mark McKeever]

The tour looks awesome!  Thanks for sharing and I can't wait to see the rest!

Mark

[JNC Lyon]

Raynor could not make a hole like 8 any easier...he begs you to stay left, yet so many go for the green in two and make 6 or 7. I had forgotten this hole and I cannot imagine how. There may not be a better half-shot-plus hole on the course than 8, to go with the half-shot-minus hole that is #2.

Like many courses, Fox Chapel's best holes are its half-shot holes (2, 4, 7, 8, 9, 17).  The 8th hole is really an incredible golf hole.  It's routed over one of the most rugged parts of the property, and the greensite is downright gothic.  This begs the question: which long four is better, 8 or 9?  The "dustpan" green at 9 is pretty incredible.  It's one of those non-template Raynor holes that really gets the juices flowing.

Unlike most Raynor courses, Fox Chapel has three excellent short par fours: 5 (hug the creek for the best angle into the green--that doesn't really show through in the photos), 7, and 12 (the Leven hole).

Fox Chapel is a really special golf course.

[Bill McKinley]

11th Hole
Par 3 156/135

Short

The 11th hole is the 3rd one shotter on the course and another Raynor template par 3.  The hole played shorter than the 156 tipped yardage but was a tricky shot to get close.  Its a short iron shot that was pretty much level, maybe a little downhill but not as downhill as many of Raynor's Short holes.  The green has that island green feel because it pretty much is an island, surrounded by bunkers and the green is perched above the sharp runoff areas.

From the tee...


Edge of the green from behind...

[Mark Saltzman]

WOW!!

Bill, great tour, really enjoying it.


Added to: http://www.delicious.com/golfclubatlas/Pennsylvania

and the great collection of Raynor photo tours: http://www.delicious.com/golfclubatlas/raynor

[Bill McKinley]

12th Hole
Par 4 344/329

Leven

The 12th hole is a really good short 4.  Raynor gets a lot of credit for his one shot holes, but in my one Raynor course that I played there are a couple par 4s that really stood out.  The 8th, as I had mentioned earlier and now this hole.  Leven is a short 4 that is uphill all the way and comes back to the clubhouse.  You actually get a glimpse of the 12th and 8th green complexes as you're going out to the practice range and it gets you really excited to play.  Very bold and severe, you think, this is going to be fun!

The goal for the tee shot on 12 is to stay out of the right side bunker, but if you go left, you have no angle into the green due to a couple bunkers and a big mound that will almost make it a blind shot.

Here's from the fairway behind the bunker.  2 of us were unable to avoid the bunker!


This is taken from 13 tee, showing the left side bunkers and mounding.  That is 18 in the distance


One more look at the 12th

[JNC Lyon]

The angles on the 12th hole are perfect.  The right bunker guards the best angle into the green, and the farther left one goes the more awkward the approach gets.  I remember that missing right of this green is absolute death.  There's so much to like about this hole.  It's very sporty, and it is a great example of uphill architecture.

[George Freeman]

Great tour Bill, thanks!  Fox Chapel looks really good.

How was the internal green contouring of Short?  Great looking hole.

[Bill McKinley]

Great tour Bill, thanks!  Fox Chapel looks really good.

How was the internal green contouring of Short?  Great looking hole.

George,

There's a good bit of slope in that green.  Three of us hit the green and two of us three putted.  I believe where the hole was that day was in a bit low area.  Putts from the left and right of the hole where both downhill and breaking towards the front of the green.  Great hole.  very fun to play

[Bill McKinley]

I kind of went brain dead on photos for the next few holes.

The 13th is called Corner.  It's a long par 4 432/422 that doglegs to the right around a "corner" of the property.  This was actually my least favorite hole.  It looked much different than the rest of the holes, especially the really strong 12th.  There are no fairway bunkers but if you hit it too far, straightaway, you will be in the trees.  The 2nd shot is generally a hanging lie with the ball above your feet, to a green that is protected by 2 bunkers on the right and one on the left.

14th Hole
Par 4 408/370

Rodgers Field

The 14th hole is a straightaway par 4 that you hit down into the fairway, then back up a bit to the green.  It is a tight driving hole with OB on the right side.  The green is pretty small and well guarded with deep bunkers.

From the fairway.  If you miss left in that bunker, where the flag was that day, it was almost impossible to get it close to the hole.  The bunker is flat and deep, the green is firm, in short; don't hit it in that bunker.

[Bill McKinley]

15th Hole
Par 4 383/371

Step

The 15th is a nice looking par 4 with a downhill tee shot that must stay short of a creek that runs across the fairway.  It's a wide fairway so you pretty much just have to hit something out there about 220 yards, get some roll and have a short iron in for your 2nd. The 2nd is played uphill, onto the "step" of the green.  The green structure is very bold with a giant chasm of a bunker short right of the green.  The green is two tiered and the hole location shown is in the back tier.  Again, the infinity effect of the green comes into play here.  You want to get it in on the proper level, but god knows you don't want to hit it over!  In my humble opinion this is a design trait that really really helps the shorter par 4.  There is always a level of doubt that creeps in when you don't have the safety of trees or a bunker framing the back of the hole.

Here's a look from the fairway.  Love it!

 

[Bill McKinley]

16th Hole
Par 4 422/416

Raynor's Prize

Not a dogleg, for those of you looking for a Raynor's Prize Dogleg hole.  But a very strong par 4 nonetheless.  Straightaway hole, a little uphill on the tee shot and you must avoid a little bunker on the right.  The 2nd is played to an open green, great for runup shots, especially due to the amount of slope from back to front on this green.  There are two long rectangle bunkers, one on each side of the green.  The challenge on this hole is putting.  Any shots past the flag will leave a very very fast putt, anything to the left or right of the flag will leave a putt that you pretty much cannot play enough break no matter how high you play it.

Again sorry for the lack of photos on this hole, but this was taken from the fairway.

[Ronald Montesano]

Corner is a very challenging hole. To reach the prime spot in the fairway, one has to carry an enormous stand of trees on the inside right corner or sling a hard cut around the corner (for righties.) As I recall, the green was open in front, allowing the runner to reach, so that's a plus. I had 8 iron in after the aforementioned tree carry and my fellow coach had three iron...he zipped it to eight feet and I reached a bunker...so much for the advantage.

As I retrace the holes, thanks to Bill, it occurs to me that there are no breather holes beyond # 2...if not for that little course that the Fownes family built up the road, Fox Chapel would be the world-class course in Pittsburgh. As it stands, it's one of two.

[Bill McKinley]

17th Hole
Par 3 231/223

Biarritz

The penultimate hole is the final par 3 of Raynor's set and it is extremely impressive to look at and play.  You get your first glimpse of this awesome green complex as you tee off on the 7th hole.  It is a full length biarritz green and the swail is about 4 feet deep.  Ya know what, I'm just going to stop talking and let the pictures tell the story

The view as you walk off of 7 tee


One more look


From the tee, late in the afternoon


Left bunker.  Deep...


Me posing in the swale

[Ronald Montesano]

After beating me up for 16 holes, FC gave me a respite, since I knew how to play this hole (and that was pre-GCA for me.) Pounded a hard, low 3 iron to the front and ran it up onto the back tier. Every dog has his day. I didn't have the opp to truly compare it to Yale's, as the hole was up front at Yale last summer, but the one at Yale seems to have that one element (the yawning chasm) from the original that FC's lacks.

[John Mayhugh]

An enjoyable tour, Bill.  Thanks for posting it.

[PCCraig]

Awesome stuff Bill, thanks for posting!

[Tiger_Bernhardt]

Thank you Bill, This course is one of my favorite courses I have not played. What a magical place. I was going to try and play there when LSU played West Virginia this year. Then a challenge came up or as they say a fight was set then precluded this trip to western PA. I am still healing but certainly want to see Fox Chapel next season. Oakmont is a brute that beats you up, but Fox Chapel is a gorgeous sexy fun lady you want to dance the night away with.

[Bill McKinley]

18th Hole
Par 5 574/539

Glade Run

The home hole at Fox Chapel is a wonderful par 5 that has a stream running down the right side, then cuts across the fairway at about 80 yards from the green.  The hole gets it's name from the stream that is feeds into the lake, called Glade Lake that you have to hit over on the 3rd hole.  Your tee shot must avoid the creek down the right, then you will most likely have to decide if you will lay up short of the creek, or blast it over.  The approach to the green plays uphill  and you would do well to avoid the bunkers short left and right.

From just behind the green...


Taken from 12 green. Better view of the hole and the glade stream

[Ronald Montesano]

Now THAT'S a Mac Plumart water hazard.

[RDecker]

This course was featured a few years ago on a ladies tournament telecast and it was the first time I'd seen a Raynor course.  Watching the best ladies hit driver into that Biarritz green was entertaining to say the least.  Looks like a wonderful piece of ground.

[Ronald Montesano]

Without doubt, the 2002 Curtis Cup...been that long!

[Bill Brightly]

Bill,

Great photo tour, thanks for posting! I lived in Pittsburgh for four years and I am so mad I never played Fox Chapel. I have two good friends out there who said they will get me on, so your photos just motivated to take them up on their offer and make the drive to the Burg this summer!

[Mike Viscusi]

It was announced today that the Senior Players Championship will be played at Fox Chapel in 2012 (June 28-July ).  Will be great to see the course on TV!

http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golftalkcentral/senior-players-championship-moving-to-penn/

[George Pazin]

Thanks for the news, Mike. It's amazing they can be ready that quickly.

Time to start planning the get together.