Lawsonia update

[Mike McGuire]

Played in a Father Son event at Lawsonia yesterday.

Happy to report it continues to improve.  They continue to actively manage vegetation.

Notably tree removal behind and around the par 3 14th. Shot is even scarier than before.
Also behind 18 green the tree removal makes the green pop a little more.

All the green pads have bent out to the edges.

Greens were stimping around 8-9 and fun to play. They would come alive at 10 but this was doable.
Its been dry so course is firm and fescue is wispy. No balls were lost in it in our alternate shot 3some.

Super Mike Berwick clearly "gets it". Nicely done.

Sorry no images. Too much fun grinding.

[RJ_Daley]

I was informed last year that a different Super was brought in by new management co.  So, I'm not sure about the gentleman you named.

I'm in a back injury mode, but as soon as I can, I want to get down there and see that tree removal.  I heard mixed reviews, but the naysayer aren't tuned into GCA much and probably don't get the principle behind a clean backdrop there.  They are the ones that love the Woodlands course and wonder why I like Lawsonia so much... 

[PCCraig]

Thanks for the update Mike. I've found the rumors of lousy conditioning and slow greens at Lawsonia to be greatly exaggerated. I haven't made it back there yet this year, but might need to make a trip sometime this fall.

[William_G]

the Links were in great condition at the end of May...greens were probably an 11

love the course

[Jud_T]

Anyone who gets up there please post a photo of the 14th.  Should be a nice improvement to an already wonderful course.

[Kalen Braley]

Andy wanted me to post this...I think its the 14th, not sure.

[PCCraig]

Andy wanted me to post this...I think its the 14th, not sure.

Looks great!

[Phil McDade]

Mike:

Good to hear about the tree removal at the 14th. Have they done anything about some of the obtrusive branches near the tee of the 14th?

[Terry Lavin]

Are we to understand that this photograph was taken AFTER significant tree removal?

[Dan Moore]

From a few years ago.





Many years ago.  



And even longer ago and what they should strive for.

[Jason Thurman]

Am I the only one who's not a huge fan of that last picture of 14? To me, it's such a unique and quiet enclave in that course and a really nice respite after that amazing crescendo of the round at 13. I just think there's something nice about playing into the woods on 13, spending one short hole within them, and then hitting out of them on the tee at 15.

I like the recent clearing for the benefits to turf and think the hole had gotten a touch overcrowded with them, but I just don't get this idea that the shot is more visually imposing without the trees behind than it is with them there.

[Morgan Clawson]

That front bunker looks really deep in some of the earlier photos.

[Terry Lavin]

Those spruce trees are an abomination.  Every single one should be felled.  If you look at the old photograph, there are only hardwood trees and they are well off in the distance.  At some point in between, somebody planted all of those "framing" conifers.  Yuck.

I agree with Dan Moore that the earliest photo represents what they should be striving to get back to.

[Dan Moore]

Ron Forse told me the 14th green had been rebuilt at some point in time hence the slightly less deep bunker. 

As you can see in the earliest photo, the 1930 aerial of the course hanging in the clubhouse shows the 14th hole routed through a grove of trees that also framed the 13th green.  Other than the now defunct fairway tree on 13 there were virtually no trees anywhere else on the course.  Hopefully they will continue to widen the corridor on 14 back to what it was-I think it will still give a feeling of isolation Jason likes without the unsightly spruce trees. 

[Michael Baldwin]

I played 54 holes (36 Links, 18 Woodlands) at Lawsonia on July 14th.  The lack of rain clearly had an effect on the Links course.  We were getting more run on shots in landing in the rough than the fairway which seemed to amplify the effect of the severe and exciting slopes.  It was my first time paying there and was truly unlike any other golf course I’ve seen. 

The 14th didn’t feel claustrophobic at all and like Jason T. mentioned, it’s a nice respite after 13. 

The greens were very firm – don’t know what they were stimping but it was plenty fast.  Considering the drought conditions we’ve had in the Midwest, the course was in amazing shape.

I’ve never had so much fun on a golf course as I did playing the Links.  I’m already planning to go back in the fall. 

[Jud_T]

Too bad it's only a Doak 6.

[Link Walsh]

I played 54 holes (36 Links, 18 Woodlands) at Lawsonia on July 14th.  The lack of rain clearly had an effect on the Links course.  We were getting more run on shots in landing in the rough than the fairway which seemed to amplify the effect of the severe and exciting slopes.  It was my first time paying there and was truly unlike any other golf course I’ve seen. 

The 14th didn’t feel claustrophobic at all and like Jason T. mentioned, it’s a nice respite after 13. 

The greens were very firm – don’t know what they were stimping but it was plenty fast.  Considering the drought conditions we’ve had in the Midwest, the course was in amazing shape.

I’ve never had so much fun on a golf course as I did playing the Links.  I’m already planning to go back in the fall. 



I was there sometime in mid July and I would echo would Michael said.  The course was firm and fast.  I will say the trees being gone on 14 didn't really seem to bother me as far as depth perception, although I did have a front pin (low point of the green).  Maybe a back pin might have caused a little more doubt to creep in my mind for fear of going over... which is death 


By the end of my round the wind had picked up some and started to dry out the greens.  In fact, I had a 20 foot birdie putt on 16 to a front right pin that I barely hit- it rolled right off of the green.  On 17, there is a ridge bisecting the green into a right and left section.  I was on the wrong side of the ridge after my approach, and I almost putted off the green again!  Those two greens are probably the highest on the course without much in terms of trees around.  But it was only like 3:00 in the afternoon.  Let's just say I hope they watered those greens later in the day.

The Links is one of my favorite courses to play.  It's just fun, so I definetly enjoyed my round.   

[Mike McGuire]

Ron Forse told me the 14th green had been rebuilt at some point in time hence the slightly less deep bunker.  

As you can see in the earliest photo, the 1930 aerial of the course hanging in the clubhouse shows the 14th hole routed through a grove of trees that also framed the 13th green.  Other than the now defunct fairway tree on 13 there were virtually no trees anywhere else on the course.  Hopefully they will continue to widen the corridor on 14 back to what it was-I think it will still give a feeling of isolation Jason likes without the unsightly spruce trees.  

That's interesting Dan, I had not heard that before. The green does seem a little less elegant, for lack of a better word, than the rest. Why would it have been rebuilt?

The trees around 13-14 are white pines. Still a conifer but 10x better than spruce and native to the area, unlike spruce.

Edit: the tree behind the green to the left looked like a black locust.

[Andy Troeger]

Kalen,
Thanks for posting the photo of #14. It was sent to me by a friend that works with Lawsonia--I sadly haven't seen this newer version! It does look better than I remember with those trees in the back gone, although it looks like even more of the trees on the sides of the hole could come down too. I like having some trees in that part of the property for a change of pace, but a little goes a long way with something like that. Great place!

[Jason Thurman]

Kalen,
Thanks for posting the photo of #14. It was sent to me by a friend that works with Lawsonia--I sadly haven't seen this newer version! It does look better than I remember with those trees in the back gone, although it looks like even more of the trees on the sides of the hole could come down too. I like having some trees in that part of the property for a change of pace, but a little goes a long way with something like that. Great place!

That's really what I'm getting at. With too many trees cleared, 14 could turn into the worst hole on the course by far. With the trees around, it's just a completely unique vibe back in that corner of the course that I think helps pace the routing and give the course routing a beautiful otherworldly moment. I think some trees should be cut for the sake of turf quality, but I just think it turns into a nothing hole if you open it up as much as we see in that last picture posted above.

I mean, it's not like the trees adversely affect playability on a 155 yard hole.

[RJ_Daley]

The thinning out of trees also helps the turf on the 15th tee.  I've often wondered it they took out all the trees that frame the green on 14, and the only backdrop are the trees seen far in the distance behind, past the 15th tee and the spill way from the pond to the right side of tee, I wonder if there is a way to site the tee box just 15 yards further back towards the Woodlands boundary.  One reason, is safety from someone overclubbing the 14 tee shot, flying the green and bonking someone on the 15tee.  I'll make and effort to get over there soon, and take a few more photos.  I like the recent above one now, but I think they can go further, including a couple more up the right side completely opening up the tee box at extreme right side. I think opening that right side only adds to the vagueness of the distance and flight path of the ball, including giving even more emphasis to the steepness of the right side of the green up from the bunker.

[Phil McDade]

RJ:

Sadist! You want to make the 15th harder?!

I get where you are coming from, but if they go that route, the folks there simply have to cut down that dang tree fronting the fairway bunker on 15. Maybe the single most egregious tree out there. (Or maybe they have already? )

[RJ_Daley]

Well Phil, I generally come down against touching a masterpiece of an Old Dead Guy.  But, I confess I have often thought if it were possible to build a back tee to back right corner of existing tee, 15 yards longer, making the shot a bit more acute angle towards the tree into the upslope or top of the hill above the bunker. That tee would have to be perched and contained in a brick or RR ties platform to work above the spillway.  If the tree goes, one more grass gull wing bunker in L&M style winged off and tapered to the right rear behind the first sand one en eschlon, with ideal LZ over the fat of the first bunker, and a penalty into the second grass bunker for the slice or inablility to carry up the bee line straight towards the hole, up right side.  Similar to #6, or 11s right sides.

If the tree dies natural death as 13th died, could you see that architectural adjustment?

[Nigel Islam]

I played LL on Friday afternoon and they were easily stimping 10. They were as fast as the Straits course I played in the morning. Played firm and fast. What a great course (other than the expletives running around in my head when I missed the 7th green  ). How Pinehurst #8 is on that Golf Week Top 100 you can play ahead of this course I don't understand.

[Jud_T]

Nigel, which round was more fun, morning at the Straights or afternoon at Lawsonia?