Saucon Valley Old Course and the PennaGA

The venerable Pennsylvania Golf Association (actually little brother to the GAP in a lot of ways) is visiting the Old Course at SVCC that absolute paragon of Country Club envy-ism-wanna be there stuff. Hmmmmm 60 holes, three full courses, more clubhouses than you can count and pastoral beauty everywhere.

The current Tenth Hole Par 4 (they have routing variations of the second nine to boggle the mind at SVCC Old) Fazio bunkers evident.



Is that pastoral or what?

Fourth Hole Par 3 from tee


Fifth Hole Par 4 from landing area



Sixteenth Par 4 Biarritzy Green



Problem is they have uninteresting, if not lousy land for a golf course, let alone three. It is a flat and boring site with a meandering stream here and there to keep it soggy and not much architecture to be seen. The only exception is a few very interesting Maxwell greens they had the good sense to put in, but overall it is a very good stroke play course (Which almost by definition excludes much interesting character).

Sure - in spite of very soft greens (Number nine yesterday on the Old) a par 3 had shot put crater ball marks from these quality players well-struck spinning balls, the scores will be relatively high, but so what?

They took one of the few restore-able Herbert Strong courses around that hasn't been plowed under and plowed it into a Tom Fazio course. So now just like all the others he has done we see his trademarked framing terrifying (nauseating, actually) bunkers and flattened greens (the few remaining) devoid of all of their character in the name of speed.

They could have made an homage to Strong, but chose otherwise. There are a few Maxwell greens, but that's about it. Stylistic homely bunkering, YCCH.

There's so little Strong, why didn't they let him plow under the even more awful parcel that is the Grace? What a boring place that is to play. Florida courses have more elevation changes than the Grace, you can walk that one on your hands if you are so inclined. And yes, to dispel any doubts I am indeed disparaging the (lack of) architecture at SVCC. Even the nice land at the Weyhill was butchered by the know-nothing Gordons. The best Gordon course is Deerfield in Delaware, the only place that gives any clue that they learned anything from their association with Mr.Flynn. Unless you consider that there is any Gordon left at White Manor when Bobby Weed got done with it. Boy that place went up a bunch of notches!



A PAINFULLY FAIR time will be had by all with graduated thick delicious salad for rough and coddling framing to guide the wayward golfer around this utterly simplistic test of golf. Beautiful, pastoral country club golf for the architectural nincompoop. And yes, if you can't tell, I am very bitter that they took the remaining Herbert Strong out to put modern Fazio drivel in.

Yes I am. Honestly, SVCCis a wonderful fantastic club with ordinary pasture pool golf courses.

Now the good stuff!

An interesting rules situation and why I absolutely detest the bunkering of Tom Fazio's Crew. They cannot build a proper bunker, plus they are ugly and will never make www.bunkerfetish.com when I get it up and running. A properly constructed bunker would not have caused this set of circumstances. This is what happens when architectural style trumps function. There are massive overhangs on all of these newly constructed bunkers, and they all look the same - like rolling waves.

Short story:

The player hit in this bunker, struck his second; he and his two co-competitors heard a thump, could not find the ball ahead of the spot where he hit and could not find the ball in the sand (trying to uncover as allowed by the rules). He declared that he was "hitting another ball" rather than "I am hitting a provisional ball", or "I am hitting four" and chose a club with more loft and plugged in the grass face of the bunker. He and his co-competitors were as seen in the photo when my pal and rules maven Tommy Paul and I came on the scene. Digging in the face of the bunker did not yield the original ball. The "next ball" (for lack of a better name) was plugged in the dense bluegrass face of the bunker but out of the hazard - yielding the following scenario which the competitor refused and subsequently WD'd.

Photo of ruling scene


He had the option to drop twice and then place the ball where it was dropped if it did not (unlikely) remain; if it did not remain - he had the mandate to place it in as near as possible a conforming spot to allow a shot to take place (to the right - on the bunker cape I reckon) but chose to go home. I will ask John V of http://wordpress.freedrop.com to rule, but this is what Penna GA Honcho Mark Peterson and Tommy P. agreed was the resolution and know-a-little-to-be-dangerous I concurred).

I thought it was a cool situation/ruling.

Interesting thought - since the margins of a bunker extend theoretically downward but not upward if the ball were found say six inches deeper into the turf (closer to the green), past the margin of the hazard, it I think could have been ruled "Plugged through the green" and entitled to a free drop without penalty. Don't know.

Since it was not found, the other scenario was in effect. These bunkers are so artificial, they make Pamela Anderson look like Catherine Deneuve.

Wie Dominates Again

Well, not in golf anyway.

I am perplexed (and have been called many a name) for criticising the pre-coronation by many of the media of one MW by known associates aka friends in golf. Another crime I have apparently committed is not thinking that Michelle Wie deserves any special treatment. I have however pointed out where she objectively is and has been without extrapolating Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Mickey wright or Annika Sorenstam greatness for her. She hasn't done much except win the USGA WAPL, get mega-hyped, sign a very lucrative Sony multi-millions endorsement and screw up way too many times. I'm not sure much of it is her fault directly, but that's irrelevant to the current situation because this time she is at fault.

She is a golfer with a lot of notoriety, a long-flowing beautiful textbook David Leadbetter swing, good physical attributes, getting a Stan-foo education with a bucket of money in her pocket for an 18 year old. She does not posses a particularly good short game, any history of winning, an obvious understanding of the rules and responsibilities of a tournament golfer and is in the news yet again.

The ugly details of the episode are too well-documented elsewhere for me to regurgitate them here. Many cried foul because she was DQ'ed after completing the third round to remain in competition. Some say that she should not have been so charged after the late discovery of the "technical aspect" violation. It was not in the best interest of her co-competitors to pull her off the course mid-round, I say. There's also that minor technicality that the Competition had not yet closed.


As I posted on John Vander Borght's excellent Free Drop Blog:

John, I was only joking about the pee part, not the rule part; that is very clear and professionals who don’t know the rules really do need to. I do not think this is a stupid rule as many on the internet seem to think it is.

Call me a nerd, OK, I’m a nerd - but when the Roberto De Vincenzo episode did not cause a set of circumstances to change this rule the latest Michelle Wie episode should surely not.

This rule that allows the committee to set up the circumstances that constitute “scoring”. As written it must remain unchanged because it affects every tournament from the Open Championship (the most important of them all) to the Dirt Track Muni Invitational in Dust Bowl, ND.

Rule 33-1
THE COMMITTEE MUST establish the conditions under which a competition is to be played.

Can’t be more clear than that.

That really sums it all up.

-The scorecard rule is well-known
-The Scoring must take place as the Committee determines it will be
-It is the Competitor's responsibility to know the scoring requirements for each tournament
-This rule is Black and White (I admit some golf rules are perhaps less so!)
-This is not a stupid rule, it is a very very good rule that is very well-defined and applicable to the myriad of tournaments that take place world-wide in golf
-It is indeed unchanged since Roberto De Vincenzo lost the Masters - who doesn't know that story that competes?

As I said back in June -

Michelle, please take a break, it really is very sad to watch.

Wyoming Valley Country Club

No, it's not in the Mountain West, it is in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. (The locals pronounce it Wilk's Berry.) Sorry I don't have any photos just yet, HEY! it was pouring!

One Albert Warren Tillinghast designed the current course which opened in 1925 on an existing 9-holer. It currently, albeit a "small course" version at under 6200 yards, is as true to Tillie's designs as about any place you'll find. According to the club's website, "Andrew Derr and John Conyngham were key factors to the establishment and construction of the Wyoming Valley Country Club". I spoke with the club's unofficial club historian "Doc" for a while and he could not remember who was the original designer, more to come later when I get some photos, too. Doc is a Urologist, one of the first and although 92 is spry and has the mind as sharp as any.

The land was owned and leased from the Glen Alden Coal Company and purchased in 1957 by the members according to Doc. Sure, the bunkers have become a little stylized, rounded and clean, but the greens are wild and wicked and even in the rain they are a slippery challenge. The 8th hole has a deep swale in the fairway, a reminder of it coal mining heritage. the par 3's are devilishly good and there is a very solid Hell's Half-Acre hole that stands up even today.

The course was placed where it is to allow trolley line access to the club. Later when the motor car became more prevalent, the original clubhouse burned down and the 18 holes were in place, a new approach to the course was created from the roadway requiring the previous first hole to now become the sixth creating the current routing layout. The original nine was founded as the fifth oldest in PA and the forty-fifth in the USA with the clubhouse opening on October 17, 1896. History seems to indicate creation of 15 holes and even the remaining three of the original were re-designed by Tillie.

It is an absolutely outstanding example of Tillie's work and would likely be a top 100 course if it were over 7000 yards with today's equipment. As it is, it is positively a thrill to play being as scenic as it is challenging and even at 6200 yards, a challenge to all levels of players. But on the other hand, not challenging 1 or 2 out of every 100 golfers due to length and equipment changes is honestly no deficit.

For now you can view its routing by using your favorite map program and searching Wilkes-Barre, PA and then using a little of your noggin.

I'll have some photos later this summer and more to say.

Missed ...

Missed it by that much.

Good on ya Padraig.

Open Sunday

Before I go fight my battle today, I have to say that this has been what golf needs to more often be, a truly testing game with no presuppositions from the media in the USA affecting what we get to see.

As badly as the media is pushing for Norman to win his third, we have gotten to see so much more than usual and that's wonderful.

Three stories today, one a winner.

Norman wins his third, makes history as one of golf's great redemptions slashing and putting his way to victory over every man and nature. The Great White Shark, indeed.

K.J. Choi, a Wee Ice Mon on his mission to become the first Asian man to win a Major Championship. He has the nerve, the tenor, the skills and mental game to do it.

Padraig Harrington, almost considered a fluke winner by the uninitiated with last year's victory at Carnoustie, perhaps the greatest venue that just spits out broken players validates his victory of last year and puts his name in the ring as one of the game's greats.

What choices, and from these will come the champion, I don't see a 63 from curtis or Garcia, the two other best chances if you think that will happen.

Taking a Flyer: Norman has never been one to truly close the deal too many times and won't today. It will come down to Choi and Harrington. Gut tells me Choi, emotion tells me Harrington.

If somehow Norman does it, it will supplant Nicklaus in the 1986 Masters. Choi wins for Asia, Harrington for Europe.

I want it to be Europe's day, but I'm taking the Flyer that it is Asia's day. We'll know in hours if I was right or wrong.