We once had a track meet against Shadyside, and I convinced everyone it was a school for the deaf.
OT: Golf Courses
- Thread starter Zeldas Open Roof
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pheasant ridge continues to pave cart paths. thats a big improvement for older players with bad backs. bouncing on dirt and gravel in a cart was typical of a round at pheasant but they have invested in their course wisely. kudos to them
3 lakes used to be better. Yea that par 5 extraordinarily stupid. They changed that hole and not for the better. Used to play straight up the hill over the hazard. And last time I was there the bunkers were like concrete.
I haven’t been to spring church in a while. Surprised to hear that. That track was always in good shape. Rainy periods it could get a little swampy but otherwise was always nice. Disappointed to hear that.
The Links at Spring Church is a great layout. It's sad they can't maintain it. They took out the tall grass which was probably better for the bottom line, but it took out a lot of character. I'm sure they'd love to sell that to a housing developer, but I can't imagine there is much interest in that area for a big neighborhood.
I don’t ever recall tall grass there. And with the housing - you confusing that with Totteridge?
I’ve been told that like South Park they’ve stepped it up there too. Can’t confirm as I haven’t been there in a while but always enjoyed that course.
When it opened it had fescue in between all of the fairways that intersect. Now it's just wide open and you can miss wherever you want.
I meant the owners would probably love to sell it because it's probably not making money. Maybe it is making money just differently than what it initially opened as.
Wasn’t aware. Maybe pace of play related which can hurt bottom line.
We all know many who take WAY too long looking for their 25 cent TopFlite.
play it all the time, it's in decent shape. they brought an assistant over from oakmont to fix it up. I honestly dont notice THAT much of a difference but it's one of those things were i've played it soo often that maybe it was gradual.
ive talked to people who havent played it in years and they talk about it big time. they cut some trees down, greens are in decent shape as is the course. they finally got tee times instead of the first come, first serve outdated process.
i play it cause it's cheap and close, just a million other local courses i'd rather play over that one..
Is Three Lake's the place in Penn Hills (the Monroeville side)? If so, what was it called before?
Agreed. I used to meet a buddy over there and we would walk 18 on Saturday afternoons in the later 2000s. It was a great way to knock out 18 quickly when we had little ones at home.
Thats correct. It used to be Alcoma C.C. They have been investing into the course. New cart paths, re-routed a couple of holes. You now start on what used to be #3. And former #1 & 2, are now 7 & 8. I believe that the current owners are trying to sell or demolish the old clubhouse.
Pgh National is a much better layout, but Pheasant Ridge has been in much better shape the last couple of years. Seems like Pgh National had cut their maintenance budget to pay for the renovations they have done to several holes. Also, I think they may have had a turf disease a couple years ago and they thought it was better to have the bad patches in the fairway die off and then start over. Conditions seem to be improving slowly but steadily.
This reminded me of a time we played as the first group in the morning at Fripp Island. A maintenance guy came in and told the pro that they found Old Charlie dead on the course last night. Pro says that's terrible, what did you do? Guy says they hooked him to a tractor and dragged him off. We must have looked a little stunned, because the pro looked at us and explained that Old Charlie was a 12 foot gator that had lived on the course for years.
I had heard that they used to capture an alligator and let him loose on the Parris Island course just for low country ambiance. But one time they unknowingly captured a pregnant female. That's why the have so many there now.
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Has anyone ever played the course at Bedford Springs? I'm going with the wife in April. It's not too expensive ($130 offseason), but I'd still like to know if it's worth that. I remember playing the Links at Nemacolin back in the day for like $50 and it wasn't worth it at all.
It is worth it. Back in the 90s before BS was renovated we could T off after 4pm and play for 10 bucks. The renovated course is gorgeous. We usually score a deal for 69 or 79 bucks once a year. Tough but fair.
I like Bedford Springs more than Mystic Rock or Olde Stonewall. I think it's the best public course in the state.
wow, strong statement. sadly i cant confirm nor deny. I was actually at a wedding at olde stonewall and i was talking to the lady who was paying for the wedding (the bride's mom) and i asked her to see if she could get a free round of golf included since she was dropping money with the wedding..
and yeah, guess how that turned out?
As an experience, I would have those three courses in the opposite order. That back nine on Olde Stonewall is visually spectacular. But as someone who is interested in golf course architecture, I think Bedford Springs is the better of the three.
at that wedding i was referring too, the date was in the wedding so i went to the bar after the ceremony (it was on one of the back patios) and before the reception to have a drink. well the bar was spectacular and it had a huge glass wall that overlooked #18..
dude comes in and starts playing accoustic covers, im drinking, staring out at the golf course, was like real early fall, about 7(ish), was so nice that i forgot about the damn reception. i see my date, in her bridesmaid dress storm in looking for me, all pissed off. wondering why the hell i wasnt at the reception..
js, as someone who has played the last 17 golf magazine world top 100 lists (we have a club called g2c2, global golf centurions club for those that have played at least one of the lists) I think the original tom doak course at olde stonewall is pretty special particularly the epic downhill par 4 18th hole with the barn in play down the left side of the greensite
bedford springs is kinda a mixed bag of architectural styles tho ron forse is talented
my favorite 2 underrated courses in pennsylvania are lehigh & lancaster...exceptional rolling topography with tight walkable routings with a lotta strategic shot options that are fun to imagine
the most overrated course in pennsylvania is arnie's laurel valley which is just a really hard course that requires aerial shots on every hole with a disaster of a finishing 18th hole with an awkwardly placed lake because the king wanted a lakeview from the clubhouse...hard pass
bedford springs is kinda a mixed bag of architectural styles tho ron forse is talented
my favorite 2 underrated courses in pennsylvania are lehigh & lancaster...exceptional rolling topography with tight walkable routings with a lotta strategic shot options that are fun to imagine
the most overrated course in pennsylvania is arnie's laurel valley which is just a really hard course that requires aerial shots on every hole with a disaster of a finishing 18th hole with an awkwardly placed lake because the king wanted a lakeview from the clubhouse...hard pass
Laurel's OK, because every time I've played there it's been at an outing that was free. I'd be happy playing at Rose Ridge under those circumstances. But yeah, Laurel is just straightforward too hard. It's very scenic, though.
You are confusing the Old Course at Stonewall, a private Doak course near Philadelphia, with Olde Stonewall, a public Hurdzan/Fry course near Pittsburgh.
I wouldn't necessarily say Bedford Springs is a mixed bag of styles. The holes were put there nearly a century ago by three acclaimed golden age architects. Oldham did two or three holes and two of the most accomplished architects of all time, Ross and Tillinghast split the rest. Forse (who designed Pgh National) did an excellent job restoring three holes and renovating the others. It's not like random holes by amateur architects from different eras. I think having the work of three guys from the first half of the 1900's adds to the course's historical merit rather than detracting from it.
I agree that Laurel Valley is overrated. However, it was designed by Dick Wilson in 1959. Unless Palmer completely rerouted the 18th when he was doing work there in the late 1980s, I wouldn't blame him for that.
They rearranged a few holes at Bedford Springs when they renovated about 20 years ago. But the course remains largely the same. Very nice.
I used to get off the turnpike and play there once in a while in the 80s. Not sure how I heard about it, it was practically deserted and the hotel was abandoned. There is a VFW or Elks Club course up the road that got a lot more play. I played it because I figured I could get a quick 2 hr round in before heading home to Pittsburgh. Much to my surprise, I discovered there was a fantastic course there under the run down conditions. It cost about $20. Now days I'm a little sad that my one time secret course is now a popular resort.
js, the 18th has flip flopped back and forth from being a really awkwardly bad/penal par 4 to a playable but kinda weird par 5 under palmer's overview, not sure what's the configuration right now
of the pga golfers who have designed courses, arnie's company produced the most mediocre designs with zero of them even seriously considered for any us top 100 list...but he did sell real estate attached to his designs which wuz probably always the intent vs great walkable classic designs
ur right, ima confusing old stonewall with olde stonewall (have not played yet, maybe on the fall roadtrip to pitt)
of the pga golfers who have designed courses, arnie's company produced the most mediocre designs with zero of them even seriously considered for any us top 100 list...but he did sell real estate attached to his designs which wuz probably always the intent vs great walkable classic designs
ur right, ima confusing old stonewall with olde stonewall (have not played yet, maybe on the fall roadtrip to pitt)
They say that for most of Palmer's courses, the closest look he ever got of them was from his plane. A few are good, but most are pretty forgettable.
If you do get the chance, however, I think Latrobe Country Club is a real hidden gem. It's over 100 years old, I have no idea who designed the original nine and I would assume his dad did most of the rest (Deacon was the course superintendent when Arnold was growing up there). It's not going to be anywhere near any top 100 list, but I think it's a really cool old fashioned course and surprisingly low key considering that Palmer owned it.
Just as a reference point, some of the other courses I've played that I consider hidden gems are Dooks in Ireland, Boat of Garten in Scotland, and the Addington in England. I just don't want you to think I'm some western PA guy raving about Arnie's course because he's from here. Obviously everyone has different tastes, and I wouldn't suggest going too far out of your way to play it, but if you like old style courses and have the opportunity, you might want to give it a try.
The Elks is a 9 hole course. Not very fancy. I've played it a few times. You would not believe the Bedford Springs Hotel now. Omni pumped millions into it and renovated the whole thing. They even cut into the mountain behind it to reroute old route 220 so it doesn't run in front of the hotel. I try to get there once a year.
Yes, I've stayed there twice and played the course four times since Omni reopened it. I'm amazed they remodeled the old hotel instead of just tearing it down and rebuilding. The place seemed haunted. I remember loose shutters banging in the wind.
They have 7-8 Donald Ross days at Bedford Springs every year TJ celebrate the course architect and play for a discounted rate. Used to be about $80 a round on those dates, but last year jacked it up to $119, with a second 18 for $79 the same day. Haven’t seen the 2024 dates yet.
js, we're on the same page re: latrobe cc, it's got more shot options including the ground game (which is how 95%+ of all golfers play the game) vs the overly penal aerial game requirements at laurel valley
back in day, the course rankings favored "difficult" courses but that's now no longer the en vogue point of view, we appreciated FUN, playability & minimalism (taking what mother nature gives us & not moving 100,000 tons of earth to create unnatural looking designs
absolutely love the addington in south london, so quirky starting with the uphill par 3 1st hole, there are holes there that are not like any other holes in the world
ima gonna play olde barnwell now on my pitt vs cal roadie, how far away is it?...dana fry does all the work in the hurzdan partnership, his best work thus far is calusa pines in naples & shelter harbor in rhode island
looking forward when the acc hopefully schedules a panthers vs bears or cardinals game in the bay area, then i'll make a couple of hidden public gems recommendations...
thx js
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back in day, the course rankings favored "difficult" courses but that's now no longer the en vogue point of view, we appreciated FUN, playability & minimalism (taking what mother nature gives us & not moving 100,000 tons of earth to create unnatural looking designs
absolutely love the addington in south london, so quirky starting with the uphill par 3 1st hole, there are holes there that are not like any other holes in the world
ima gonna play olde barnwell now on my pitt vs cal roadie, how far away is it?...dana fry does all the work in the hurzdan partnership, his best work thus far is calusa pines in naples & shelter harbor in rhode island
looking forward when the acc hopefully schedules a panthers vs bears or cardinals game in the bay area, then i'll make a couple of hidden public gems recommendations...
thx js
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