Donald Ross' Belleair West in Clearwater,FL-Fry/Straka to renovate

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Belleair Country Club in Belleair, Florida, has undertaken a massive renovation of its historic West Course. The architects at Fry/Straka Global Golf Course Design, led by Dana Fry and Jason Straka, current president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, broke ground on the project in March. It’s all happening as the Clearwater-area club celebrates its 125th anniversary.
"After a full survey of the members, it was clear they desired and supported no mere run-of-the-mill renovation of the West Course, but a restoration that embraced its historic significance and pedigree," says Ed Shaughnessy, Belleair's COO. "The bunkers and greens definitely required reconstruction. That resolution led to several investigative, illuminating trips to the Tufts Archives in Pinehurst [North Carolina], where we learned just how important this design is, historically, and just how much documentation we have from Donald Ross himself — regarding both his original design effort in 1915 and his redesign in 1924. That information enabled us to make informed decisions culminating in a full and faithful restoration. That is what we’re producing."
Straka is collaborating with Ft. Myers, Florida-based Clarke Construction Group on the $8.8 million project. All 18 greens are being rebuilt to USGA specifications, then restored according to Ross’ 1924 construction drawings. Straka and Belleair superintendent Andy Neiswender have chosen TifEagle ultradwarf for the putting surfaces, with Bimini bermudagrass everywhere else on the 120-acre course.
A prime attraction of the property to what Ross originally called the No. 1 Course is its 30 feet of elevation change, unusual for the west coast of Florida. His course was set beside half a mile of frontage on Clearwater Bay."To have such detailed construction drawings," says Straka, "allows us to eliminate the guesswork. We basically took all the plans from 1915 and 1924 and turned them into modern construction drawings. So if Ross had a cop bunker seven feet high at number 16, we’re building it seven feet high. Ross detailed a lot of ‘cop’ bunkers on this 1924 routing. These are mounds totally in play — what Ross called the ‘fair green’ — with sand faces covered in wiregrass. So that’s what we’re building, because Ross’ own cross-section drawings and notes tell us exactly how to construct them. When we’re finished, this course is going to be an amazing sort of time warp for the members."
Belleair began as a six-hole loop with crushed-shell greens, laid out beside railroad baron Henry Plant’s colossal, new winter hotel, The Belleview. After its 1897 christening, this sprawling structure would come to be known as The Great White Queen of the Gulf.
It was first known as Belleview Golf Club, then morphed into Belleair, then in the 1930s, The Belleview Biltmore. The members reclaimed it in 1987, along with the Belleair moniker. The hotel was largely torn down in 2017.
"Our restoration of the putting surfaces here has been akin to an archaeological dig," Straka says. "Here at the first green and elsewhere, we would excavate a green complex and find not one set of old drainage but two or three — all piled on top of each other. The inverted-saucer green, such a staple of the so-called ‘Ross Style,’ is a bit of a fallacy. Here and elsewhere, those putting surfaces became that way, over time, through multiple rebuilds and decades of top-dressing. Ross’ original plans for Belleair make that very clear. They show all but two of these greens were originally designed and built with entries at zero grade.
]RELATED: Design Notes archive
"It’s a pretty rich irony: Ross returned here in 1924 with the intention to make the West Course much more difficult, and I’m sure he succeeded there. However, in restoring that design in 2022, almost to the letter, we are making the course is far more user-friendly. Yes, we are re-exposing ravines and streams that had been filled in over the years. However, by following the Ross plans, these greens won’t be playing six feet in the air, and we’ll be expanding all the fairways back to their intended width — fully 50 percent wider."
The plan is to reopen all 18 holes by mid-November 2022.                                                                                     

[Steve_ Shaffer]

[Jonathan Cummings]

Steve - where did you get this?  Looks like some local article....

[Steve_ Shaffer]

https://www.firstcallgolf.com/design-notes/feature/2022-05-31/fry-straka-to-reopen-donald-ross-designed-belleair-west

[Rob Marshall]

If I remember correctly the 4th hole is a par 3 back toward the intercoastal with a pretty deep bunker in front and run off area over the green. Tough up and down from short or long.


Jonathan,
Are taking the 4th back to the original design in the picture?

[MCirba]

Not sure this link will work for everyone but here's some very good news about the 4th hole
https://m.facebook.com/groups/722105418132700/permalink/1728698797473352/?notif_t=group_post_mention&notif_id=1654218784494884&ref=m_notif

[Jonathan Cummings]

I think Connor was successful in convincing BCC to restore the iconic #4 as much as possible.  Lawyers and insurance guys won't allow the ladders which would have been beyond cool.  Looking forward to seeing the results!


I'm part of a little internal group (includes the superintendent) that is flying a drone over the project twice a week.  I'm regularly updating time-lapse slide shows on seven locations including #4.  Only being shared internally right now but I'm sure I can share them, if anyone is interested, by Nov when the project is completed.

[Connor Lewis]

After being a passive reader I finally joined the discussion group.


I can’t tell you how happy I am that Belleair’s 4th hole will restored (at the very least) aesthetically restored to Ross’ original. A full restoration was never on the books. Ross’ original 4th was a 150 yard one shotter to a green completely surrounded by a sand bunker.


We made some concessions to that original design, but I think Donald Ross would be proud. The hole will effectively play between the back tees of 175 yards, to forward tees of 80 yards. The once encircled green will be restored, the bunker itself will be roughly 70% restored leaving the back portion of the green open and grassed. This will accomplish two things- 1) This will allow for modern green keeping equipment to have access to the green & 2) It will serve as a bail out long for the higher handicapper to avoid the bunker and still chip up for a chance at par.


Another great idea by Jason Straka was to stagger the forward tees to the right (the South) and then create a zero entry green from the bunker on the front right of the green. Thus allowing an option for the higher handicapper to putt out of the bunker if they so choose.


From the tee, the hole will appear just as Donald Ross intended - a green engulfed by sand with a wonderful backdrop of the Intercoastal Waterway/Gulf of Mexico & Clearwater Beach.


I couldn’t be more happy for the club and the golf community. I truly believe our West Course  will shock people when it’s done. 

[Rob Marshall]

Connor, That sounds awesome. I really liked the West when I played it a few years ago.


When Ross built the course was the intercoastal there or was it the Gulf? It's Sand Key that you are looking at not Clearwater beach per se and I thought that Sand Key was man made by US Steel. That's what I remember being told anyway but I could be wrong.


I'm going to be at Innisbrook in the middle of October. I know it won't be open but if I get a chance I wouldn't mind walking a few of the holes and getting a look at #4 if possible. Hope it all goes well.

[Connor Lewis]

Connor, That sounds awesome. I really liked the West when I played it a few years ago.


When Ross built the course was the intercoastal there or was it the Gulf? It's Sand Key that you are looking at not Clearwater beach per se and I thought that Sand Key was man made by US Steel. That's what I remember being told anyway but I could be wrong.


I'm going to be at Innisbrook in the middle of October. I know it won't be open but if I get a chance I wouldn't mind walking a few of the holes and getting a look at #4 if possible. Hope it all goes well.

The course “should open” in November, but am happy to show you what I can. I think in 1915 it was a sandbar with visability to the Gulf over the sand bar. I have a really cool photo of our original 6th overlooking that view. The 1941 Life Magazine photo that had our 14th hole on our East course ranked as one of the best 18 holes in the US, looks like a full view of the Gulf as well.

[Rob Marshall]

14 must be the downhill par 4. If my non-golfing wife didn’t like Naples so much I would love to retire to Clearwater and be a member at Belleair. Great facility and a great golf staff.

[Rob Marshall]

Met a Belleair member in Clearwater Beach a few days ago. He said he thought the West would be open late November? Any updates on how things are going?

[Connor Lewis]

Met a Belleair member in Clearwater Beach a few days ago. He said he thought the West would be open late November? Any updates on how things are going?

Belleair’s West Course will open for play on December 1st.
I will be hosting an outing for non-members on January 23rd and we will likely max out at 50 golfers. The event will include a round to play our newly renovated West Course, a dinner along with a live podcast of TalkinGolf History on the History and Restoration of Belleair CC with special guests Hal Bodley (who wrote our 125 year history book) and Jason Straka.


Should be a fun event. If you are interested it will take place the Monday of the PGA Show. You can reach me at TheSocietyofGolfHistorians@gmail.com or reach out to Vaughn Halyard.

[Rob Marshall]

Sounds like a great event. Hope some pictures get posted soon.

[Jonathan Cummings]

The current projection is that the course will only be partially ready Dec 1.  Probably limited play for a while (only members).  The grass on a number of the front 9 holes will only be marginally ready.  The plan is to overseed with Rye then close the West for two months in the spring.  A well-conditioned West Course is more like a year away according to the superintendent.