The course feels quite natural but was in fact designed to within an inch of its life by one Frederic Hood, who had consulted with Donald Ross and worked from some drawings provided by William Flynn. An obvious case is Sherman Briggs on the Conservation Commission. With a carry over fescue and bunker, this green is guarded on either side by deep bunkers and slopes extremely hard back-to-front. Kittansett. I hit my tee shot to 8 feet and drained the putt for my only birdie in 3 days. The Cup was named for the then President of the USGA George Herbert Walker, a banker and businessman. The club has followed through by continuing to fell trees, opening up never-before-seen vistas on the point holes 1, 2, 16, 17 and 18. The Kittansett Club Originally, it was the Native Americans who led the Plymouth settlers and their cattle to the warmer winter pastures on these shores. The left side is fairly open until 280 yards when it too develops forest. Off the tee, to be sure, and on approach shots. The fund-raiser has. Briggs admitted to violating the conflict-of-interest law by voting as a town Conservation Commission member to issue an Order of Conditions authorizing Tabor Academy to install two 2,000-gallon saltwater tanks at its Marine Sciences Center building. This keeps the vibe more chill and low-key, and really allows you to soak in the wonderful setting on the Bay. Amateur champion. The Kittansett Club, a private golf club that fronts the ocean on Kittansett Point, off Point Road, is also located in a flood plain. Tucked away in a sort of nether region between Cape Cod and the Rhode Island coast, it's widely acknowledged as the second best course in Massachusetts (after The Country Club), though few have actually played it and none passes up a chance. The locker room is surprisingly small, but it fits the quaint atmosphere of the club. Darius Oliver, in this short extract from the book Planet Golf USA, writes: "Enjoying scenic outlooks across the water to Cape Cod, Kittansett is a lovely setting for golf and the ever-changing nature of its holes ensure that a round here is constantly engaging. Flynn also broke up several fairways into sections, with cross bunkers protruding into landing areas from different sides of holes and gnarly stretches of rough and sandy waste areas stretching across some of them entirely. His troubles seemed to coincide with the controversy that arose when Tabor Academy, for the purposes of expediency, circumvented the towns building process for the construction of Duffy Field under the Dover Amendment, which allows schools and hospitals to bypass most town boards to perform construction. More often the cross hazards come earlier in the golf hole. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. And so Kittansett remains a bit of a mystery guest, even to Bay State golfers. History:Long thought to be the work of amateur architect Frederic C. Hood, recent discoveries indicate that William Flynn deserves credit for the layout. The right corner of the dogleg is lined by deep bunkers while a hidden pond guards the left. Because Kittansett is a golf club you're not going to find a pool, tennis, or all of the other amenities that you'll typically find at a country club. The 12th is a fantastic strategic dogleg left playing at 380 yards. This approach is a bit more challenging with large bunkers 60 yards short on the left and to the right of the green. Col. Anthony Duncan, supported his players and informed Totton Heffelfinger perhaps the most fittingly named USGA President in history that his team could not accept victory if it should depend on disqualification.. If you had to describe the setting in a word? Had the fortune of playing We-Ko-Pas Saguaro Course last Spring, the first round for me in Arizona. When I visited in late June, a wind-killing fog (thick enough to cancel the first day of the 2006 U.S. Womens Open down the coast at Newport) had settled over the place. But the layout is so much more: a steely, uncommon test on the calmest of days. These include the Massachusetts Amateur Championship in 1958, 1978, 1990, 1999, 2008 and 2020 and the WGAM Edith Noblit Baker Trophy in 1954, 1979, 1989, 1995, 2005 and 2015. Stay up to date on all the latest news from Boston.com. The American team was, in a word, loaded. Briggs worked well with the facilities personnel at both those private entities, he said. For most if not all of us, that includes some very obvious places like Pine Valley, Augusta National, Cypress Point and so on. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); The 337 yard 10th hole at We-Ko-Pa Saguaro is a really fun risk/rewark hole that features two templates: a Reverse Cape on the teeshot and Lions Mouth by the green. From this vantage, at this introductory stage, its perhaps too easy to lump Kittansett in with the dozens of quirky, antique but ultimately docile, wind-dependent tracks that dot the Northeastern coastline. The Club was originally built by founding member Frederic C. Hood who had significant knowledge of other American and British courses of the era. During its memorable history Kittansett has hosted several Massachusetts Golf Association championships over the years. The New England ground produced glacial stone and Hood built mounds to cover these huge boulders. Its not just the length, the lack of elevation on the 11th teebox makes judging the distance even more difficult. And the golfers playing in that event will be every bit as enthralled with the layout which also played host to the 1953 Walker Cup match as those who just teed it up there in the Mass Am. I cant imagine what it would be like if the breeze was up even more. The Americans were still three down after nine but they came home in 33, the best nine posted by any foursome pairing during the competition. Most publications focus on the world-class seaside holes, but I thought the inland holes were almost equally as good, resembling the great heathland courses in England with their sandy soil, whispy fescue, and tall trees. The setting of Kittansett is phenomenal. Back in 1922, when he got things rolling by donating the Cup, Walker had fully intended for the competition to be called by its official name, The United States Golf Association International Challenge Trophy. The first thing I noticed was that the golf course had become overgrown and had suffered from what can best be described as benign neglect, said Hanse. The par 4 2nd also plays 415 yards and is another very difficult hole. Known as one of the top courses in the blossoming Scottsdale golf scene, this Coore/Crenshaw design is thoroughly enjoyable with minimal houses, an easily walkable, intimate routing, and plenty of strategy and variety. After being beat up all day by strategic and difficult par fours, the closing hole at Kittansett offers a great scoring opportunity as a straightaway 460 yard par 5. The reachable 330 yard 10th gets my vote for easiest hole at Kittansett. The Succession actor has yet again voiced support for J.K. Rowling in the wake of controversy surrounding the author's transphobic comments. With a teebox in the middle of a marsh, this is a difficult teeshot with a forced carry of 160 yards and dogleg not coming until 225 yards. The approach to this small undulating green is guarded by a deep bunker on the left. Designed by myThem.es. The 18th with the clubhouse and outdoor patio bar over on the left. Molly was a planner, and while she could easily plan her wedding . By all geographical rights the course should be links-like, but trees line two thirds of the routing and the soil isnt sandy at all, meaning it seldom plays hard and fast outside the dog days of summer. This has to be one of the better and more robust muni systems in America. The high scores tell you something else. Find them!, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Originally only open to high rollers like Shadow Creek, Cascata is now fully public but doesnt receive much play and commands a hefty $400+ pricetag. (LogOut/ The average employee at Kittansett Club makes $0 per year. The soil was quite rocky, and that presented Hood and his construction crew with a couple of problems. At 355 yards, the par 4 13th is the last of a trio of very challenging short dogleg rights. Hundreds of trees have been eliminated revealing the original contouring of the course, and nearly all of the greens and bunkers have been restored to their original design. I thoroughly enjoyed my 25 years working at The Kittansett Club. Members here bleed the right color and the course itself, perched on Butler Point and surrounded on three sides by Buzzards Bay, is surely transformed by a stiff wind. What exactly did the protest stem from? This has led to significant changes in bunkering, and even more notably, the removal of hundreds of trees that have completely reshaped the look and feel of the course. Club records indicate that construction on the course commenced in summer 1922. That scheme called for culling significant numbers of trees and underbrush, largely to bring back panoramas of the bay from different parts of the course and to improve turf conditions by enhancing air flow. This is certainly one of the easier holes out there and one of several holes on the course that provides the golfer numerous options. The senior amateurs are in for a treat in 2022. In some areas its more subtle (like on the 2nd fairway for instance.) Tabor Academy representatives filed a Notice of Intent with the ConCom on June 3, 2011 regarding the project. The land provided well-drained and unusually fine fairways and greens. The 380 yard 9th is one of the weaker holes on the course as a straightaway par 4 lined by tall trees on both sides. Featuring a dazzling set of seaside holes and equally interesting inland holes, an invite to Kittansett is to be cherished. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2012-2022 Location 180, LLC | All rights reserved. The 5th is a strong straightaway 395 yard par 4 that prominently features two large bunkers in the middle of the fairway between 150 and 180 yards. Like the short 4-par at No. Briggs said he had to do that after Marion Conservation Commission member Norm Hills had to recuse himself from the decision because his wife works for Tabor. Here and there these oversized Kisses (more like chocolate-covered cherries really) reside on a holes periphery, seemingly without purposes. You and those before you have made a habit of these tainted appointments for years and years. Sure enough, in the early 2000s plans for the course were found in William Flynns attic. But the discovery of a trove of documents in a Pennsylvania barn in the early 2000s revealed that the actual designer was William Flynn, one of the masters of the so-called Philadelphia school of architecture and a man whose credits include Pine Valley and Shinnecock Hills. George Herbert Walker, great-grandfather to President Bush and founding patron of the international cup series, embodied the spirit of these times. Yet hardy stands of white pine, oak, cedar and tupelo frame the inland holes, creating a extremely stout test when it comes to driving the ball between the trees, over and around these myriad crossing features, and amid a random collection of chocolate drops. It makes for an interesting choice off the tee. The fact that Kittansett was the site of the Mass Am last week for the sixth time in its history speaks to the high regard in which the course is held. Throw in the fact that Gil Hanse has done extensive remodeling over the last 10 years, and that it has one of the most noteworthy par 3s in golf? But the fact is, we hate losing. Theres another bunker 100 yards short and on either side of this small circular green. So now we were faced with a 23o yard tee shot into the wind, with a very tricky green. The collective result of those changes has been nothing short of spectacular. The opening holes provide wide fairways with generous landing areas. 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