Imagine building 26 golf courses at the height of the golf development bubble, with nine figures in public pension money — in an effort that now loses money year after year. Welcome to the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.
In theory, 12-hole designs should be cheaper to play, build, and maintain. But in the staid industry of golf course development, there’s been no rush to test the theory. The minds behind Sweetens Cove are ready to change that.
The geological period from which Cambrian Ridge takes its name was a time of dramatic change and evolution. Cambrian Ridge almost shows some of the same. Almost.
Lincoln Duff explains that, with a variety spanning cutting-edge 21st century designs and Golden Age layouts, not many American cities can match the depth of golf options in Chattanooga, Tenn., both public and private.
Geography, pedigree, and happenstance have positioned a Chattanooga muni to emerge as a star in an area that is already an embarrassment of public golf riches.
For a golf course in south central Tennessee and designed by one of the world’s most famous architects, comparisons between Sewanee and nearby Sweetens Cove are inevitable.
Rob Collins and Tad King's renovation of the Links at Overton Park, a historic nine-hole golf course in Memphis, Tenn., offers a window into the juggling act inherent to golf course construction.
The course is not perfect. It’s not even a perfect representation of what its masterminds were trying to achieve. But Bobby Jones is miles closer to what urban public golf must look like 20 years from now to stay relevant.
Aiken GC in South Carolina is a model for small, aging courses: it can’t compete with pedigreed, championship-length designs, so it doesn’t try. It’s unique, and that’s enough.
“If you want to go over there and play Muirfield and Troon and Carnoustie and Dornoch — I certainly love those places, and I’ve done that. But as I’ve gotten older, I love these off-the-beaten-path places.”
“I think what you see out there is that there’s a lot of reasons we play golf. And it’s not always to shoot the lowest scores. It’s not always to play tournament golf, or to try to improve.”
In theory, 12-hole designs should be cheaper to play, build, and maintain. But in the staid industry of golf course development, there’s been no rush to test the theory. The minds behind Sweetens Cove are ready to change that.
“Two tires off the cart path: why can’t all four tires be on the cart path? Any course in America, the edges of the cart path are always worn out. Nobody can keep all four tires on the cart path.”
“You’ve got to have a push-and-pull dynamic between strategy and penalty. And I think a lot of the modern courses have gotten — it’s like they’re just catering to a 25- or 30-handicap. That’s not really a good golf course, in my opinion.”