LuLu

[Rick Sides]

Drove over to PA today to play LuLu for the first time. Wow!  It was a really nice Donald Ross design.  It recently went public and I would really recommend it.  I especially liked the short par 3 quarry hole and the punchbowl green.

[Mark McKeever]

Glad you enjoyed Rick.  Lulu is REALLY cool.

Mark

[Rick Sides]

Yea,I'm sure glad it went public

[Ed Brzezowski]

Played across the street from LuLu yesterday, it looked nice and very busy. Nice to see.

[Rick Sides]

Ed, It was pretty busy. Where did you play?

[Tim Martin]

Drove over to PA today to play LuLu for the first time. Wow!  It was a really nice Donald Ross design.  It recently went public and I would really recommend it.  I especially liked the short par 3 quarry hole and the punchbowl green.

Rick-I loved LuLu and as to the drop shot par 3 quarry hole I agree. No one would build that hole today!

[Rick Sides]

Tim, You're right about that hole; it's great!  I hit a sand wedge and it barely hung on the lip of that rough before falling into the abyss below.

[Ed Brzezowski]

Ed, It was pretty busy. Where did you play?

Rick, I do course rating for GAP, we did Mannys, which is right across the street. Used to sneak onto Mannys that way long ago. We would play a few on LuLu and then go and steal a few holes at Mannys. Shame Mannys didnt buy LuLu, would have been a great complimenting pair of courses, Ross and Flynn next to each other. How cool would that be.

ed

[Mark McKeever]

Was mannies ever interested in buying Lulu?

MM

[Bob Harris]

Was mannies ever interested in buying Lulu?

MM

There were preliminary discussion between the clubs, but no agreement.

[Michael Blake]

Rick-I loved LuLu and as to the drop shot par 3 quarry hole I agree. No one would build that hole today!

Tim,

Isn't that hole uphill?  Not sure how that's a drop shot, unless my definition is way off.

[Rick Sides]

Mike ,
That hole is uphill

Ed,
Is Mannys a nice course?  Havn't played it yet. And there is something fun about sneaking on a course!

[Mark Molyneux]

Hi Michael-

I'm with you. A drop shot is something like #7 at Pocono Manor East or any of a few holes at Hideaway Hills. The fourth at Lulu is a wonderful short par 3 but it isn't (in its typical presentation) a "drop shot". Having said that, I have played the hole at least three times with a drop shot. Maybe because the green needed some healing time or maybe because the members wanted to spice things up, the super placed tee markers on top of the hill and the pin sat on the regular back tee. That was a drop shot!

I figure those quarries (in front of #2 and at #4 plus the quarry hole across the street at Manufacturers) build some of the finer homes in Chestnut Hill. Lulu has a terrific exemplar of a punch bowl hole too at #8. Not too many contemporary designers would build that hole that way either. Lulu is one of the few places (maybe the only place?) where I played a par three in an outing with two pins on the green, either of which was good. Number 6 at Lulu is a three tiered, severely sloping (front to back) green that plays a mid iron (for most) to the front tier (pin #1) and a longer iron to the back. I think people were having sufficient problems with back pins at the hole that they started setting up a front and a back pin. Nothing like cheering someone who was chipping from the back fringe to the back pin with just a little too much steam, while watching the ball roll inexorably down the slopes (and hopefully stopping somewhere near the front pin). That gradual roll can take a full 10 to 15 seconds. In regular play with just the back pin, the hole can wreck a good score.

Really solid par 3s in general at Lulu!

Mark  

[Ed Brzezowski]

Mike ,
That hole is uphill

Ed,
Is Mannys a nice course?  Havn't played it yet. And there is something fun about sneaking on a course!

Hello Rick,
Personally, being a moron, I think it is one of Flynns best. I do have a soft spot for it since I caddied there back in the gutty days. The opening shot is downhill and the closing uphill, it basically is a bowl. They have some of the most difficult par threes in the Philly area. Two required a four wood on Wedneasday, 222 yards flat and 195 very uphill. The short par three plays into a punchbowl green that sits in the bottom of a quarry, played about 115. The quarry is where the stones for the clubhouse were quarried. A very nice mix for par fours, the only soft area is the par fives, while very nice they are a bit plain compared to the balance of the course.

The greens were very true at 12.5 to 13. They have taken down numerous trees and the vistas now are really nice. Every time I go there it just is a great experience.

[Rick Sides]

Ed,
That's neat you caddied there years ago. Sounds like a great Flynn design which I'd love to play one day. 

[Tim Martin]

Rick-I loved LuLu and as to the drop shot par 3 quarry hole I agree. No one would build that hole today!

Tim,

Isn't that hole uphill?  Not sure how that's a drop shot, unless my definition is way off.

The hole is uphill. My apology.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Rick-I loved LuLu and as to the drop shot par 3 quarry hole I agree. No one would build that hole today!

Tim,

Isn't that hole uphill?  Not sure how that's a drop shot, unless my definition is way off.

The hole is uphill. My apology.

I think Tim confused "Dropped shots" with "Drop Shot".   

[Malcolm Mckinnon]

For those not in the Philly lingo loop Mannies is actually Manufacturers Country Club.

This is another very fine Flynn layout which had a lot of land and is today a very "broad shouldered" Flynn design. Right up there in my. Mind with Huntingdon Valley and Rolling Green. There are a couple of very long par threes and a couple of very good short par threes including one quarry hole a la Merion and  Gulph Mills. There is also a second quarry which comes to play on what I believe is the 16th which is a chasm if you should find it short and right of the green.

One of the more interesting features is the two greens on the 18 th hole. One at the bottom and another at the top of a steep hill. The club has an archaic lift to carry you and your clubs back to the top of the hill to the clubhouse.

[Connor Dougherty]

For those not in the Philly lingo loop Mannies is actually Manufacturers Country Club.

This is another very fine Flynn layout which had a lot of land and is today a very "broad shouldered" Flynn design. Right up there in my. Mind with Huntingdon Valley and Rolling Green. There are a couple of very long par threes and a couple of very good short par threes including one quarry hole a la Merion and  Gulph Mills. There is also a second quarry which comes to play on what I believe is the 16th which is a chasm if you should find it short and right of the green.

One of the more interesting features is the two greens on the 18 th hole. One at the bottom and another at the top of a steep hill. The club has an archaic lift to carry you and your clubs back to the top of the hill to the clubhouse.

Malcolm,
I'm with you, I actually found that the use of the quarry on 16 was essential to tying the 8th in with the rest of the course, otherwise it would sit entirely out of place. There's one or two spots they could stand to remove trees IMO but most of them don't actually hurt the integrity of the design, it would merely help with turf conditions and open up one or two vistas.

I do think the upper green on the 18th is played up too severe a hill though. It's fine they have it there, but you wouldn't catch me playing to it that often.

[mike_malone]

I wonder whether Lulu is better than Paxon Hollow

[Chris Mavros]

I wonder whether Lulu is better than Paxon Hollow

That's an interesting comparison.  I think LuLu is better mainly because there's more character and variety, including a lot of nice Donald Ross features I haven't come across before.  Paxon stays interesting and is a fun play, but has to rely on the extreme dog leg a little too much and while some of the green complexes are well done, most are a little bland.  

[Mark Molyneux]

Paxon v. Lulu?

Lulu in a heartbeat! Have to love the finisher (and the ninth) at Paxon but otherwise, Lulu is better conditioned, with more challenging greens, generally better facilities (everything from the practice areas to the clubhouse), longer, with superior shot values. Paxon has been a public venue for decades... that alone tends to pull the club down a bit. Don't get me wrong... I enjoy playing at both places and Paxon has some scenic holes but it isn't Lulu.

If you feel otherwise, maybe it's a matter of taste but from a design standpoint... Lulu.

MMx

[Philip Caccamise]

Quote from: mike_malone on September 08, 2013, 10:36:09 PM
I wonder whether Lulu is better than Paxon Hollow
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Nothing against Paxon Hollow, which is a fun little course, but it's LuLu by a mile.

[Jason Way]

I had the pleasure of getting out to Lulu last week with Jon Cavalier.  We were paired with a member, and it was fun to hear his perspective on the course and feel his pride in it.  Coupled with Jon's tour-guiding, it was a great day.


And I almost forgot, Cavalier aced the 6th.  Helluva shot. 


There have been several other threads on here about Lulu's ups and downs over the years.  The current state of the union is that they are planning and prepping to rebuild the clubhouse.  The story we heard was that it would be more focused on daily use, and less on events like weddings.  They are also working on building tees, expanding fairways, and removing trees.  All good things from my limited perspective.


Here are links to the old threads:


http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,52072.0.html
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,39821.0.html
http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,61991


Perhaps Mike, Joe, or Matt could provide further insight into the prospects for the club.  I sure hope that it comes back all the way.  It is great fun, and a wonderful slice of Ross architecture, nicely preserved from what I can tell.


A few photos that I snapped:





#1 - Par 5





#2 - Par 4




#3 - Par 4





#4 - Par 3





#5 - Par 4





#6 - Par 3





#8 - Par 4





#9 - Par 4





#10 - Par 5





#11 - Par 4





#12 - Par 3





#14 - Par 4





#15 - Par 3





#16 - Par 4





#17 - Par 5





#18 - Par 4

[MCirba]

Nice.