Arthur Ham - A Golf Architecture Enigma

[Mike Bodo]

Before I became a member at Sylvania Country Club I considered joining the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, MI. What appealed to me about the course was that it was built by Donald Ross protege, Arthur Ham, who I wasn't the least bit familiar with, nor had I heard him ever having worked for/with Donald Ross.


To provide some background on Art Ham, he was born in Wells, Somerset, England on April 11, 1891. He would go on to become the proessional at Blackwell Golf Club near Bromsgrove, Worcestershire in 1910. It's purported he moved to become the professional at the North Shore Club in Skegness around 1914. Ham was an accomplished player at the time with a few noteworthy finishes both pre and post WWI. In late 1921, Ham left the North Shore Club to become the professional at Wellington Golf Club at Heretaunga, Wellington, New Zealand. While there, he won the New Zealand Professional Championship in 1922 and finished runner-up in the Australian Open in Aug. 1923. Ham is purported to have left New Zealand for Michigan in late 1923, where he became the professional at Plum Hollow Country Club in Southfield, MI the following year. He was later connected to other clubs in the Detroit area until becoming the professional at Charlotte Country Club in 1930. He primarily worked and lived as a golf professional in the Carolinas the rest of his days - including a stint in Myrtle Beach. Ham passed away in Charlotte, NC in Sept. 1959.


In addition to being an accomplished golf professional, Ham was a noted club designer and was the inventor of the Hamsole Rake (see image below).

Yet, what's little known about Ham was that he somehow had time to design/build the following golf courses.


1. Masterton Golf Club - Landsdowne, Masterton NZ (1923)
2. *Knollwood Country Club - West Bloomfield, MI (1925)
3. Arbor Hills Golf Club (fka Arbor Hills Country Club) - Jackson MI (1925)
4. Country Club of Jackson - Jackson, MI (1926)
5. Rock Hill Country Club - Rock Hill, SC (1934)
6. **Florida Caverns Golf Club (NLE) - Marianna, FL (1939)
7. Oakwoods Country Club - Wilkesboro, NC (1954)


* = Shares design credit with Donald Ross
** = Robert Trent Jones Sr. was listed as the course architect, but published articles point to Arthur Ham having been the course designer.


Ham is said to have done course desgin work in Australia, but I could not find evidence of any work performed there through my research. There are claims he was a field superintendent for Donald Ross, which would make his partnership at Knollwood CC make sense, but how much work could he have possibly done for Ross given 1) he'd only been in MI a year prior to Knollwood being completed and 2) wouldn't this have conflicted with his gig as a golf professional at Plum Hollow?


There are obviously gaps in Ham's byline, such as where and how did he learn to become a course architect and under whose teutalage did he study? What qualified him to design Masterton in NZ if he wasn't learned in golf course architecture? Are there other courses he designed or collaborated on in the U.S. that I'm missing? Reason I ask is because I'm baffled by why Ham didn't build more courses the U.S. seeing those he did were solid tests of golf at the time that have held up nicely over the years. If you didn't know any better you'd swear the Country Club of Jackson was a Ross course.


So little is known about Arthur Ham, yet the guy was an uber-talented club maker, an accomplished professional golfer and an unheralded course architect. Unlike Donald Ross who held similar titles to Arthur Ham when he first came to the U.S., I'm surprised the latter never left the professional golf ranks to pursue design work full-time. Perhaps he felt that wasn't his calling and he was content staying a professional and competing. I read where he qualified for the 1946 U.S. Open at 55 years of age, which is an impressive achievement to say the least.


I'm hoping there are those in the discussion group that can help fill in some of the gaps of Ham's storyline, as I've not been able to find anything written about him in this forum. Yet, his is an intriguing story. While he may not have been a prolific designer, he has courses that are noteworthy and have stood the test of time in their original form.

[Sven Nilsen]

Yet, what's little known about Ham was that he somehow had time to design/build the following golf courses.


1. Masterton Golf Club - Landsdowne, Masterton NZ (1923)
2. *Knollwood Country Club - West Bloomfield, MI (1925)
3. Arbor Hills Golf Club (fka Arbor Hills Country Club) - Jackson MI (1925)
4. Country Club of Jackson - Jackson, MI (1926)
5. Rock Hill Golf Club (fka Arbor Hills Country Club) - Rock Hill, SC (1934)
6. **Florida Caverns Golf Club (NLE) - Marianna, FL (1939)
7. Oakwoods Country Club - Wilkesboro, NC (1954)


* = Shares design credit with Donald Ross
** = Robert Trent Jones Sr. was listed as the course architect, but published articles point to Arthur Ham having been the course designer.

You can add the following courses to the list -


Dothan CC, Dothan, AL
Clinton Valley CC, Utica, MI
Greenwood Municipal GC, Greenwood, SC

Are we sure about CC of Jackson?  There are reports of William Connellan doing the lay out in a June 7, 1925 Battle Creek Enquirer article.

[Mike Bodo]

Yet, what's little known about Ham was that he somehow had time to design/build the following golf courses.


1. Masterton Golf Club - Landsdowne, Masterton NZ (1923)
2. *Knollwood Country Club - West Bloomfield, MI (1925)
3. Arbor Hills Golf Club (fka Arbor Hills Country Club) - Jackson MI (1925)
4. Country Club of Jackson - Jackson, MI (1926)
5. Rock Hill Golf Club (fka Arbor Hills Country Club) - Rock Hill, SC (1934)
6. **Florida Caverns Golf Club (NLE) - Marianna, FL (1939)
7. Oakwoods Country Club - Wilkesboro, NC (1954)


* = Shares design credit with Donald Ross
** = Robert Trent Jones Sr. was listed as the course architect, but published articles point to Arthur Ham having been the course designer.

You can add the following courses to the list -


Dothan CC, Dothan, AL
Clinton Valley CC, Utica, MI
Greenwood Municipal GC, Greenwood, SC

Are we sure about CC of Jackson?  There are reports of William Connellan doing the lay out in a June 7, 1925 Battle Creek Enquirer article.

Thanks for the additional course info! Accurately or inaccurately, all sources I came across attribute the Country Club of Jackson's original 18 hole design to Arthur Ham, including an article publised in the Michigan Golfer in 2002 when the club hosted the Michigan Amateur (http://www.michigangolfer.com/july02/ccjackson.html)


The club's site makes no mention or promotes its course designers. It's one of those private club websites mentioned in a separate topic that does a poor job of giving prospective new members sufficient information about the clubs history and offers little in the way of photos of their courses. The club added a nine hole course called The Marsh in 1992 (Art Hills) and later split the original 18 hole course into two nines - the Pines and Woods.


If you come across the Battle Creek Enquirer artcile attributing the course's layout to William Connellan, please share, as I've found nothing regarding his association with The Country Club of Jackson (MI).


On a separate note, the Michigan Golfer article referenced above mentions Ham having been a field superintendent for Donald Ross. I'd ask the Ross Historians in the discussion group how this is possible or if the claim is dven accurate given the short amount of time Ham had been in Michigan when Knollwood, Arbor Hills and the Country Club of Jackson were built, coupled with the fact he was working as a golf professional at Plum Hollow Country Club concurrent to when these courses were under construction. Little adds up here and makes sense.

[Sven Nilsen]

Ham knew Alex Ross very well.  There is no reason to doubt he worked on projects with Donald.  He just wasn't one of Donald's regular associates.


I'm having problems posting images right now.  Here's the quote from the June 7, 1925 Battle Creek Enquirer article which discusses :


"It [Battle Creek's Masonic CC aka Riverside] was laid out by William Connellan, nationally known as a golf architect, who is also laying out the new course for the Jackson Country Club..."

[Phil Young]

Mike,


Next to Rock Hill Golf Club in Rock Hill SC, in parentheses you show "fka Arbor Hills Country Club." I was wondering what the source of that is. In the May 28th, 1936 issue of the Charlotte Observer, under the headline, "An Evening View of New Clubhouse-And Hamm-Designed Golf Course, a Pip," reporter Jake Wade wrote: "After the meeting my hosts took me to the new Rock Hill Country Club Just then, Walter Reynolds, the young golf professional, and his dad, the veteran professional, who have charge of the club's activities, came up...The senior Reynolds said...'there isn't a finer nine-hole golf course in the country than this one here...And you know who laid it out. Your Arthur Hamm did that. He and I together. And I want to tell you, that Mr. Hamm is one of the best golf course architects in the United States, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

There is no mention in this or any other article that I can find that has RHCC having been the reincarnation of Arbor Hills CC or that there had ever been a club by that name in Rock Hill, SC. In 1916 there had been a prior Rock Hill CC whose 9-hole course was designed by A. W. Tillinghast, but that went out of business in the 1920s and was built on a different location in the city ["Mt. Gallant the old home of the late Col. Cadwaller Jones"].   




   

[Mike Bodo]

Mike,


Next to Rock Hill Golf Club in Rock Hill SC, in parentheses you show "fka Arbor Hills Country Club." I was wondering what the source of that is. In the May 28th, 1936 issue of the Charlotte Observer, under the headline, "An Evening View of New Clubhouse-And Hamm-Designed Golf Course, a Pip," reporter Jake Wade wrote: "After the meeting my hosts took me to the new Rock Hill Country Club Just then, Walter Reynolds, the young golf professional, and his dad, the veteran professional, who have charge of the club's activities, came up...The senior Reynolds said...'there isn't a finer nine-hole golf course in the country than this one here...And you know who laid it out. Your Arthur Hamm did that. He and I together. And I want to tell you, that Mr. Hamm is one of the best golf course architects in the United States, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

There is no mention in this or any other article that I can find that has RHCC having been the reincarnation of Arbor Hills CC or that there had ever been a club by that name in Rock Hill, SC. In 1916 there had been a prior Rock Hill CC whose 9-hole course was designed by A. W. Tillinghast, but that went out of business in the 1920s and was built on a different location in the city ["Mt. Gallant the old home of the late Col. Cadwaller Jones"].

My apologies for the typo, as that was a copy and paste error. I've gone back and corrected/amended it to show Ham as the designer of Rock Hill's second nine in 1949 per the clubs website. They give Tilly credit for the first nine that opened in 1934. Not sure how factual this is given the Charlotte Observer article you came across, but perhaps others in the discussion group have additional intel on this.

[Mike Bodo]

Ham knew Alex Ross very well.  There is no reason to doubt he worked on projects with Donald.  He just wasn't one of Donald's regular associates.


I'm having problems posting images right now.  Here's the quote from the June 7, 1925 Battle Creek Enquirer article which discusses :


"It [Battle Creek's Masonic CC aka Riverside] was laid out by William Connellan, nationally known as a golf architect, who is also laying out the new course for the Jackson Country Club..."

Any idea the origins of Alec Ross and Ham's relationship, i.e. the U.K. or MI? I'm guessing they knew each other through competitive golf and later as club professionals in the Detroit area. That said, I will refer to the timeline of Ham's arrival to the U.S. - specifically, Michigan. If he arrived the winter of 1923 it's likely he didn't begin work as the professional at Plum Hollow until late winter or spring of 1924. Given this, when would he have had time to work as a field superintendent for Ross and when was this connection made given Knollwood was built just one year later? Was this the only course he worked with Ross on in MI or were there others built in 1924 and '25 he helped with? Also, for Ham to do the work he did in Jackson, MI in 1926 required a 90 minute drive each direction from metro Detroit, which wouldn't be conducive to attending to the duties of a club professional.


I suppose it's conceivable Ham held two jobs and Plum Hollow was fine with him doing design/construction work for Ross and soon after on his own, but you'd think the time required for the latter would severely limit his ability to peform in the capacity of a club professional. Perhaps he was a professional at Plum in name only and rarely made appearances, which would have freed him to do the design work he did - both for Ross and himself? I don't know this to be fact and have more questions than answers concerning his time spent working for Ross. IMO, it had to have been brief if he was doing courses on his own just two years after he arrived in Michigan. It's possible he helped Ross build coursess in Michigan all throughout his time in the state until he moved to Charlotte, NC in 1930. I just don't know.


Lastly, as it concerns the Battle Creek Observer article; it's conceivable the CC of Jackson went another direction and dropped any association it had with Connellan in favor of Ham seeing the article was written in June 1925. In other words, there was sufficient time for the club to pivot and make a change in architects. Had the article been published late 1925 or early 1926, it would make Connellan's involvement seem more likely. Would be good to find an article published in a Jackson, MI newspaper from back in the day clarifying this.

[Phil Young]

Mike,

The club has it wrong. Tilly designed the 9-hole course for the original Rock Hill Country Club in December 1916 with construction of the course by the club without Tilly's involvement. It is uncertain when it officially opened for play, most likely though by the late 1917 or early 1918. The club went out of business sometime in the early to mid-1920s.

Arthur Hamm designed the first nine holes of the new Rock Hill CC course in 1934 and Walter Reynolds Sr. over saw the construction of it. I was never able to find exactly who designed the second nine holes in the late 40s, but Lester Reynolds was once again involved. The May 30th, 1952 issue of the Charlotte Observer reported, "Lester Reynolds of the Rock Hill Country Club says his golf game is poor because he has been busy building nine new holes there. He will have one hole, surrounded by a lake, which will beat anything at Augusta National. 'When you shoot for it you shoot for the ocean,' says Les." Evidently he once again oversaw the construction of this nine and might possibly have been the designer if Hamm wasn't.   

[Mike Bodo]

Mike,

The club has it wrong. Tilly designed the 9-hole course for the original Rock Hill Country Club in December 1916 with construction of the course by the club without Tilly's involvement. It is uncertain when it officially opened for play, most likely though by the late 1917 or early 1918. The club went out of business sometime in the early to mid-1920s.

Arthur Hamm designed the first nine holes of the new Rock Hill CC course in 1934 and Walter Reynolds Sr. over saw the construction of it. I was never able to find exactly who designed the second nine holes in the late 40s, but Lester Reynolds was once again involved. The May 30th, 1952 issue of the Charlotte Observer reported, "Lester Reynolds of the Rock Hill Country Club says his golf game is poor because he has been busy building nine new holes there. He will have one hole, surrounded by a lake, which will beat anything at Augusta National. 'When you shoot for it you shoot for the ocean,' says Les." Evidently he once again oversaw the construction of this nine and might possibly have been the designer if Hamm wasn't.

Phil, below is an exceprt from the clubs website



Founded in 1934 on the outskirts of Rock Hill, South Carolina, Rock Hill Country Club was originally a public facility offering residents golf, swimming and fishing. Built using WPA funds during the height of the Great Depression, the original course was constructed across a former dairy farm using local labor and donated materials and equipment.

The original nine holes, now the club's front nine, were designed by famed golf course architect A.W. Tillinghast at the request of transplanted resident A.O. Joslin who had relocated from New York to build the famous Rock Hill Printing & Finishing Co. Tillinghast, who had already designed and built Winged Foot, Baltusrol, and Ridgewood CC, would soon begin construction of the Black Course at Bethpage State Park around this same time. Construction was supervised by Arthur Hamm, head professional at nearby Charlotte Country Club and a former field supervisor for architect Donald Ross, along with assistance from Charlie Reynolds, recognized as one of America's first golf professionals.

In 1949 the second nine holes, were designed and built by Hamm. In 1954 the club was made private and has remained so ever since.

In, 2013, Kris Spence redesigned/renovated the golf course to restore features that were lost over the years and converted the greens from Bent grass to mini-Verde Bermuda grass. Although Rock Hill Country Club is relatively short by modern standards, the green complexes will place a premium on your approach shots and putting ability.

[/size][/color]
[/size]So, is the above false advertising, someone from the club with an incorrect account of history or a combination of both? If none of what the club says is accurate, how do you go about settig the record straight?

[Phil Young]

Mike, I'm well aware of what is on their website. It is incorrect. Tilly was never there in the 1930s and, after his visit in December 1916, he never returned.

On December 9^th, 1916, the New York Times reported, “A. W. Tillinghast, the Philadelphia golf architect, is a busy person these days in which the cold wind keeps most of the courses practically idle. He [Tillinghast] has also drawn plans for nine-hole courses at Charlotte, N. C., and Rock Hill S. C., and will go south shortly to start the construction.”

On December 21^st, the Charlotte News announced, “GOLF COURSE OF ROCK HILL CLUB TO BE EXCELLENT. The Rock Hill Country Club will have one of the best courses in the country when it is completed, according to architect A. W. Tillinghast, of New York City, who has just completed the work of laying out the course. The course will have a distance of around 3,200 yards from beginning to end and runs over hill and dale, across brooks and through woods. The local club is enthusiastic over the prospects for a golfing club and they are hoping to have the course completed within the next few months. After hearing Mr. Tillinghast’s opinion they are congratulating themselves on securing this property.”

On that same day, the Charlotte Observer reported, “A. W. Tillinghast, a noted golf architect of New York City, who is in the city laying off the course for the Rock Hill Country Club, states that he is more than pleased with the natural conditions and expresses the opinion that the course should soon become notable. The entire course is being surveyed and marked off and the work on the course will be commenced at an early date.

“The course will be to the northeast of the club home, the celebrated Mt. Gallant property, located a couple of miles north of the city. The club home will be remodeled and developed into a building especially adapted to the purpose for which it is intended. Tennis courts will also be laid off and provision made for other games, but especial interest will attach to golfing.”

The next day, December 22^nd, The News and Courier also published a story regarding Tilly’s visit to Rock Hill, providing more specific information regarding the golf course. It stated, “The plans for the Rock Hill Country Club, which was organized here recently, are beginning to assume  shape.  For  some  days  past  a  competent  golf  course  architect, A. W. Tillinghast, has been here laying off the course. He has finished his work and returned to his home. His remarks on the natural lay of the land were extremely favorable and, in his opinion, the links of the Rock Hill Country Club should become notable.

"His conclusion is that the property is unusually suitable for the purposes for an up-to-date club and in every way meets the requirements of a modern golf course. Mr. Tillinghast has laid out a nine-hole course, with the following approximate distances: 326, 525, 390, 450, 115, 275, 376, 310, totaling about 3,200 yards and equaling the most noted championship test courses of the country."

Tilly never returned to the course. In his January, 1926 advertising brochure he listed the Rock Hill Golf Club as being a nine-hole original design.

On April 15^th, 1936, the Rock Hill Evening Herald, under the heading, “New Golf Course Is One Of Best In Area,” reported: “What has been described as one of the best golf courses in this section of the south today, will give way for a while Friday evening and take second place among the attractions of the Rock Hill Country Club as the new club house, which will be formally opened at that time, draws all attention.

“Even those who know nothing of golf will appreciate that there is something very definitely good about the greens and fairways of this country club course. Else why should so many followers of the ancient Scottish art of batting little rubber balls into holes in the ground say such nice things about it, they might ask? Golfers don’t just drop in for a round and remark: ‘Right nice little place yu’ got here.’

“No, indeed, some good golfers, used to the finest of golf courses, have paid Rock Hill’s golf links some pretty high compliments…So with Arthur Ham golf course architect of Charlotte, planning the entire layout, and with Charlie Reynolds, who is now in charge, laying out the course, things were changed on the Roddy place on Saluda Road. The course as it stands is 3,330 yards-nine holes- with a par36.”

There can be no doubt that it was Arthur Ham who designed the first nine holes (and possibly the second nine as well years later) of the new Rock Hill Country Club and not Tilly.

[Mike Bodo]

Dothan CC, Dothan, AL
Clinton Valley CC, Utica, MI
Greenwood Municipal GC, Greenwood, SC

Are you positive these are all Arthur Ham courses? There's nothing on Dothan CC's website mentioning the original architect or any architect, for that matter. On Golf Now's website they list Hugh Moore as the course architect. Unless Ham did work there after the club opened, I don't see how he was involved seeing it was built in 1923, which pre-dates his arrival to the U.S.


I can't find any info on Clinton Valley or Greenwood Municipal. I know the former no longer exists. I'm guessing Greenwood Municipal is gone as well.

[Sven Nilsen]

Dothan CC, Dothan, AL
Clinton Valley CC, Utica, MI
Greenwood Municipal GC, Greenwood, SC

Are you positive these are all Arthur Ham courses? There's nothing on Dothan CC's website mentioning the original architect or any architect, for that matter. On Golf Now's website they list Hugh Moore as the course architect. Unless Ham did work there after the club opened, I don't see how he was involved seeing it was built in 1923, which pre-dates his arrival to the U.S.


I can't find any info on Clinton Valley or Greenwood Municipal. I know the former no longer exists. I'm guessing Greenwood Municipal is gone as well.

I wouldn't consider GolfNow as any kind of definitive source on any of this.  Hugh Moore was born in 1920 and wasn't even out of High School by the time Ham had worked at Dothan.



Dothan - Jan. 30, 1939 Dothan Eagle notes construction started on new 3,390 yard 9 hole layout designed by Arthur Ham with work done on the existing 9 holes over the last year to lengthen the course and convert sand greens to grass.


Clinton Valley - Sept. 18, 1938 Detroit Free Press notes club organized in 1924 with 18 holes laid out by Arthur Ham with new land purchased in 1927 after the 15th and 16th holes were lost with course now being 6,442 yards. 


Greenwood Municipal - Aug. 29, 1938 The Index-Journal notes improvements being made to the new municipal course that was planned by Arthur Ham and built as a WPA project.  Sept. 10, 1938 The Index-Journal notes course was designed and constructed under the supervision of Arthur Ham.


As for the Alex Ross/Ham relationship, I'm sure it started from being peers and from playing competitive golf together, sometimes as teammates. 


I probably should have been more clear regarding the relationship between Ham and Donald Ross.  It is entirely possible that Ham supervised work on a Ross project, whether at the behest of Donald or the club itself.  But I have not seen anything to suggest that there was any kind of formalized working relationship between the two men.  It is also entirely possible that the idea that Ham was some kind of foreman for Ross stems from the mistaken attribution regarding Ross at Knollwood as noted in your first post.  I have not seen anything connecting Ross to that project.

[Ronald Montesano]

From someone in the know (not giving up names)

Yes Arthur Ham was the original designer of the 18 holes opened in 1926.

Not to be mistaken by Arthur Hills that designed the other 9 holes in 1991.

Original 18 has been changed numerous times. Front and back nine has been flipped. Current 10th hole used to be a Par 4 and was converted to a Par 3 so they could install a pool behind clubhouse. This is when they flipped the 9s so the opening hole wasn’t a Par 3. Also, they converted the 13th hole from a Par 3 to a 4. So the overall Par didn’t change.

Bunkering style has drastically changed too. Bunkers are now very large and steep flashed faces. There’s some original bunkers on the property that were grassed in and have the bold characteristics of a early 1900 Donald Ross style bunker. They’re beautiful and I don’t think the members realize how their current golf course has lost so much beauty over the years. And I think CCJ originally would have felt a lot like a Ross. I see the old bones of some of these lost bunkers and the use of the topography and I see a lot of Ross style here. Which makes sense since Ham worked for Ross.

[Mike Bodo]

I wouldn't consider GolfNow as any kind of definitive source on any of this.  Hugh Moore was born in 1920 and wasn't even out of High School by the time Ham had worked at Dothan.



Dothan - Jan. 30, 1939 Dothan Eagle notes construction started on new 3,390 yard 9 hole layout designed by Arthur Ham with work done on the existing 9 holes over the last year to lengthen the course and convert sand greens to grass.


Clinton Valley - Sept. 18, 1938 Detroit Free Press notes club organized in 1924 with 18 holes laid out by Arthur Ham with new land purchased in 1927 after the 15th and 16th holes were lost with course now being 6,442 yards. 


Greenwood Municipal - Aug. 29, 1938 The Index-Journal notes improvements being made to the new municipal course that was planned by Arthur Ham and built as a WPA project.  Sept. 10, 1938 The Index-Journal notes course was designed and constructed under the supervision of Arthur Ham.


As for the Alex Ross/Ham relationship, I'm sure it started from being peers and from playing competitive golf together, sometimes as teammates. 


I probably should have been more clear regarding the relationship between Ham and Donald Ross.  It is entirely possible that Ham supervised work on a Ross project, whether at the behest of Donald or the club itself.  But I have not seen anything to suggest that there was any kind of formalized working relationship between the two men.  It is also entirely possible that the idea that Ham was some kind of foreman for Ross stems from the mistaken attribution regarding Ross at Knollwood as noted in your first post.  I have not seen anything connecting Ross to that project.

Thanks for the additional archival information. Wish I knew where to hunt that stuff down.

After doing a little more digging around, it appears Dothan CC was redone in 1960 by Hugh Moore. There are multiple resources that show the course having opened in its current iteration in 1960. I could find nothing on who the original course designer was in 1923, let alone any association with Art Ham. In fact, the course was set to go through another complete overhaul this year by Bill Fuller (https://clubandresortbusiness.com/dothan-ala-cc-will-be-redesigned-overhauled/). Anything Ham did there is effecdtively gone.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Clinton Valley CC went on to become Rammler Golf Club, which was established in 1929, per the courses website. I spent my early childhood years in that area. Rammler was no more than a mile and a half drive from my parents house. The clubhouse on the property was more reminiscent of what you'd expect to see at a private club than a muni or public course. The course itself would routinely flood each spring due to its proximity to the Clinton River and the tributaries that ran through it. This may explain why the 15th and 16th holes were lost and additional land had to be purchased. There is no named architect associated with the course, which is why I lean towards this. The other two courses in the area - Plumbrook Golf Club (also near where I grew up) and Maple Lanes Golf Club, all were built around the same time, but both attribute their course layouts to other architects.

I'm not going to bother trying to hunt down info on Greenwood, but I find it ironic and interesting that Ham had all this "free" time to do design work all the while being employed as a professional at various golf clubs around the the Detroit area and in the Carolina's once he relocated there. I don't know if he has any surviving children, but I'd be interested in discovering how their father managed to find time to do the design work he did given his duties and responsibilities as a club professional and competitive golfer.

[Sven Nilsen]

I'm not going to bother trying to hunt down info on Greenwood, but I find it ironic and interesting that Ham had all this "free" time to do design work all the while being employed as a professional at various golf clubs around the the Detroit area and in the Carolina's once he relocated there. I don't know if he has any surviving children, but I'd be interested in discovering how their father managed to find time to do the design work he did given his duties and responsibilities as a club professional and competitive golfer.

Well, its not the longest of golf seasons in the upper midwest.  And to be honest, it's not like Ham had that big a portfolio of work.

[Mike Bodo]

Well, its not the longest of golf seasons in the upper midwest.  And to be honest, it's not like Ham had that big a portfolio of work.

Correct, but most coruse construction in the region at that time and even today would have been performed the months Ham would be required to attend to his duties as club pro. When he was down in the Carolina's, not so much.

[Sven Nilsen]

Well, its not the longest of golf seasons in the upper midwest.  And to be honest, it's not like Ham had that big a portfolio of work.

Correct, but most coruse construction in the region at that time and even today would have been performed the months Ham would be required to attend to his duties as club pro. When he was down in the Carolina's, not so much.

There were plenty of club pros in the 1920's who spent time on construction projects.  The demand for it was certainly there.  This is not some kind of anomaly.

[Mike Bodo]

There were plenty of club pros in the 1920's who spent time on construction projects.  The demand for it was certainly there.  This is not some kind of anomaly.

This is what I was hoping to get clarity on when I started this topic, but have yet to come across anything definitive. I hoped some of the Ross historians here would know of Arthur Ham and be able to shed some light on his professional relationship with Donald - if, in fact, there was one. All we have is speculation and heresay thus far.


The reason I refered to Ham as an enigma in the topic title is because so little is known about him. Yet, his contribution to the golf architecture community and golfing world in general isn't insignificant or inconsequential. In addition to the dozen or so courses he was involved in the guy made some impressive clubs back in the U.K. Some which have fetched a pretty penny at auction, I might add.