The wonderful 1928 Donald Ross designed course at the Country Club of Asheville is currently undergoing a renovation. For those that have had the opportunity to play the course, I hope you’ll comment on your impressions. For those that will no longer get the chance to see it in its current form, I wanted to publish a tour of the golf course to preserve what was once there.
In recent years, the club has strived to follow many of the tenets espoused here on this website. The fairways average 55 yards wide and the greens have been enlarged by an average of 300 square feet, restoring much of their original size and shapes. The golf course is full of wonderful strategic qualities and I truly believe it is the most under appreciated Donald Ross courses in the nation. Ross once described the course as “equal in rank with the finest courses on earth today”, I hope by the end of this thread you will share his view.History:
In the early part of the 1900’s Asheville, NC found itself in rapid growth. The cool mountain setting became a summer haven who found its moderate winters agreeable enough to call it home. By the 1920 the city was growing well beyond its means and 3 large neighborhood projects we begun to accommodate the growth, Biltmore Forest, Beverly Hills, and Lake View Park. Myers Park designer and Olmstead disciple John Nolan was hired to layout the Lake View Park neighborhood surrounding Beaver Lake. The project was designed to be rather inclusive with a large collection of leisure activities, including a substantial beach club and a 18 hole Donald Ross designed golf course. Ross was give nearly carte blanche as it came to course, being offered nearly 1000 acres of land to choose from. Completed in 1928, The courses first clubhouse was the Lake View Park real estate office across Merrimon ave. Play began on the current par 4 4th hole, and concluded on the current par 3 3rd hole. With the crash of the stock market, the growth of Asheville and the Lake View Park community halted. By 1938 the course had changed hands and names, and was being played as a the public Beaver Lake Golf Course. During the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s the course was a common venue for the PGA tour’s “Land of the Sky” Asheville Open, sharing hosting duties with the Country Club of Asheville (current Grove Park course) and Biltmore Forest. Saddly, the condition and maintenance of the course deteriorated during the mid century. I believe its reputation clearly diminished during this time as a public golf course, which is a reason why no one discusses it among other Ross classics in the Carolinas, even though it was designed to be every bit the equal of others.
In 1976, After the Grove Park Inn purchased their home facilities, the member of Country Club of Asheville purchased the Beaver Lake course. Following the purchase, CCA constructed the current clubhouse on the site originally planned by Ross and began playing the course in its originally intended sequence. Exceptions being given to a period encompassing the 1990’s in which the nines were reversed. Starting around 2010, The maintenance staff began reclaiming much of the cut grass that had been lost over the previous 80 years, increasing fairway widths by an average of 10 yards and green area by an average of 300 sqft. It was also during this time that the bunkers were re-profiled in a flat bottom grass faced style.
Hole: 1
Par: 4
Yards: 370
What initially faces the player off of the first tee is a wonderful view of the western North Carolina mountains. The hole plays significantly downhill and the landing zone is blind from the tee. The hole doglegs slightly to the right with an ample fairway of XX yards to accept ones drive. The ideal line is a shot of 200-230 yards played down the righthand tree line. A ball on this line will land on the full down slope and bound another 40-60 yards down the hill, leaving an approach of 100-120 yards. A ball played safely out to the left will land running more along the hillside, limiting the amount of runout and increasing the approach shot.
The approach into the green is hit from an elevated position on a downhill lie. Even though the player may only have a wedge in their hand, accurately judging distance can be challenging. From this elevated position approach shots are typically played in very high and there is little roll after landing. The front two thirds of the greens slope fairly strongly toward the front left. The downhill approach tending to add distance to the shot, coupled with the fear missing the pin long causes many players to end up with a 40 foot uphill putt.
Visually the left hand bunker appears to be the more difficult recovery of the two, but as the green slopes from back right to front left, the runaway up and down from the right hand bunker is often the harder proposition.
Hole: 2
Par: 5
Yards: 479
The first of three wonderful half par holes on the front nine, the second can be played clear of all the danger for a simple 5 or challenged greatly for a chance at a rare 3. While the road and out of bounds line that runs the right hand side of the hole is very evident, out of bounds also borders the left. This out of bounds line is absent from most playings of the hole, but can become problematic for a longer player who has lost their drive to the left. Two bunkers flank the driving zone at well as a rise in the fairway 270 yards off of the tee. The left hand bunker often acts as a catch for wayward drives bound for the ob line, as blessed as you may feel finding your ball located there rather than across the boundary line it is nearly impossible to advance the ball down the hole with much more than a 7 or 8 iron from the sand. The preferred play off of the tee for the player planning on getting on in two is towards the right hand bunker, while the player choosing to play the hole as a three shotter is wise to play a ball short of the left hand bunker.
From the driving zone, the three shot player must contend with the large fairway bunker that lives 100 yards short of the green. The safest shot is to play short and slightly right of the bunker, but the preferred play would be to play the ball over and right of the bunker. This play is not without its risks, as a ball played too far right will run through the fairway, leaving the player an awkward third shot from a sidehill lie. The first time player that elects to go for the green in two will notice that the green is cut into a hillside that slopes from left to right. They will notice that the fall off on the right is fairly severe and elect to play their long approach towards the left hand side of the green. Unfortunate for them, located just short of the green on the left hand side a small sunken bunker is waiting to swallow up their approach.
Ross cut the green into this hillside in such a way that the left hand portion the green slopes left. Visually this is very hard to read and tricks even the most observant first time players. The middle and right side of the green follows the natural flow to the right, but is often visually disguised do to the larger back to front slope. The low point is off of the front right corner, making playing to a pin in that area rather challenging. The hillside to the right of the green is a very dangerous recovery and if your approach is played too far of line, has the potential to bounce into a hidden creek that sits some 25 yards off of the front right corner.
Hole: 3
Par: 3
Yards: 180
A downhill par three that when played from the very back tee is blind. The green sits at the opening of Beaverdam Creek Valley, the crosswinds that move through the valley suggest that a knockdown approach is prefered as a shot thrown up in the air is subject to the whims of the winds. A collection of three bunkers border the left hand side of the hole, with the tail of this grouping encroaching into the fairway slightly on the right. Originally intended for a run up approach, the last of these bunkers makes the shot a bit more challenging but still an effective approach play onto the green. Beyond and right of the green the turf falls away towards a small creek.
Located just short and right of the green a small bunker is placed to catch those wayward run-up shots that are lost towards the creek, but rarely does this bunker influence the path of a carried ball destined for the middle or rear of the green. A player that aggressively attacks a back pin must be sure of their strike as a ball intended to fly back to that pin can be difficult to judge in both distance and windage. A ball missed long presents a difficult up and down for a back flag as the green is pitched from back to front.