Film Review: A Journey To Golf's Past: Creating Old Macdonald

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In this week's Arts Issue of Golf World, I review Michael Robin's film on the making of Bandon Dunes' Old Macdonald.

The film sets a new bar for storytelling in the design world. It also proves that when professionals like Robin--a prominent television producer and director who is also a fine golfer--and his team conveyed the many dimensions of a golf course, it shows just how mediocre network television has been at bringing courses alive.

And don't be fooled by the title, this is more than just a "making of" film about Old Macdonald. Some of the best moments come when the team travels to the world's most famous holes and dissect their attributes, including the Redan, Road and Macdonald's template holes at The National Golf Links.

The extras-loaded DVD is a must for anyone who loves architecture or Bandon Dunes.

You can order the film for all of $10 (!) via the Bandon Dunes shop site.

Tiger Woods Design Is Back, Cabo Edition

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Eamon Lynch reports Tiger Woods Design is back in business! (Thanks reader Chris.)

The long rumored and denied second course at Cabo's Diamante is apparently under construction and will not be a Phil Mickelson design, but instead, a $12 million Tiger effort. Most interesting of all is that it began without a press release, golden shovel event, painfully staged photos and flashy video production. Someone has learned how this design business works!

Woods confirmed via email:

"I want to make it an enjoyable and memorable experience for all players, regardless of skill level," Woods wrote. "I've played in enough pro-ams to know that not every golfer is a scratch player. Creating wide landing areas and avoiding forced carries whenever possible allow all golfers, even beginners, to keep the ball in play and have more fun."

The team at Tiger Woods Design recently made a scouting trip to some courses in Southern California, including Riviera and Los Angeles Country Club. Woods, who is expected to return to the El Cardonal site in a few weeks, has said those classics will influence his work at Diamante.
"I want to be sure that my designs make individuals think their way around the course," Woods explained. "To me, that's an important part of golf and it's what I like to do when I play. I think players like risk-reward opportunities and to feel like they've been challenged in all aspects of the game."

Coore On Cabot Cliffs: "If we don’t build something outstanding, we will have failed."

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Speaking to the unique business and artistic relationship Coore and Crenshaw have to their shapers, Cabot Links architect Rod Whitman will be working on the second course, Cabot Cliffs, which the normally understated Coore has set a high bar for.

Matty G reports:

Coore and Whitman met in the mid-1970s, when the building of new courses had slowed as drastically as it has now; Coore was the superintendent of a course in Huntsville, Texas, and Whitman was a student at Sam Houston State University. Whitman would mow greens in exchange for green fees at Waterwood National and Coore helped the struggling student by buying him dinner at the local Pizza Hut. “We used to talk about how one day both of us would be in the design business,” says Coore, who has since become one of golf’s elite modern architects.

“I used to just want to play golf,” says Whitman. “It was after spending so much time talking to Bill that I got interested in course strategy and design.”

Now Coore and Whitman will be working together on what might be Coore and Crenshaw’s best yet. “I’ll put it this way, and it’s a little like I felt about Sand Hills: If we don’t build something outstanding, we will have failed,” says Coore, the white-haired, soft-spoken, humble minimalist who confirmed Crenshaw has agreed to be a part of this project, even though he doesn't usually like to travel for work outside of the United States.

Holy Cow: A New Public Golf Course Is Opening!

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We knew from previous reports that there were only a handful of golf courses under construction and now Laredo's new public course by Robert Trent Jones Jr. is opening this week. Thanks reader Scott for the reminder.

PGA.com's John Holmes has the news of the first noteworthy course opening in a while, which even PGA.com noted is a bit of a stop-the-press moment.

The Max A. Mandel Municipal Golf Course – already nicknamed "the Max" -- is the first city-owned golf facility in Laredo, as well as one of only a handful of new courses to open in the United States this year.

Designed by Robert Trent Jones II Golf Course Architects, the par-72 layout is routed along bluffs overlooking the Rio Grande and winds through 270 acres of sandy terrain. Encompassing almost a mile of riverfront property, the course presents four holes that play adjacent to and high above the water as it traverses deep arroyos and navigates through 30-foot tall mesquite woodlands and open farmland.

With five sets of tees and wide, inviting fairways throughout, the course can be configured as a tournament test of more than 7,200 yards, yet is still a perfect fit for golfers who desire a more manageable challenge of less than 5,000 yards.

Yada, yada, yada... more importantly:

Green fees for Laredo residents range from $33.50 to $46, while non-residents – including the flocks of snowbirds who winter in south Texas – will pay between $46 and $56. There are also discount rates for seniors and juniors.

More Photos From The Match Re-Match

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GolfDigest.com posted more of Stan Badz and Chris Condon's PGA Tour shots from the Fowler/Watson vs. Love/Watney match for First Tee fatcats last week and it's always fun to look at different views of Cypress Point. But in particular I loved this rear-view of the 9th hole for totally wonky reasons.

Superintendent Jeff Markow has been gradually removing non-native invasive grasses and other junky stuff like iceplant to reveal the dunes again. That's not only better for the environment but also returns a temptation to drive the green lost when the overgrown dunes became an automatic lost ball.

NY's Ferry Point Is Millions Over Budget

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The New York Daily News's Greg Smith reports that Ferry Point, a Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course to be managed by Donald Trump, has been put on notice by New York city controller John Liu due to staggering cost overruns.

On Thursday, Liu informed Parks that the audit “will determine whether the Parks Department carried out or implemented recommendations” from that prior audit.

The recommendations included tracking progress of the project against its start and completion dates, preparing an “itemized breakdown of all required activities” at the project and carefully monitoring all “invoices, canceled checks and other related documentation.”

Parks spokeswoman Vickie Carr did not respond to requests for comment about whether the agency had implemented the 2007 recommendations.

The Parks Department says the project is expected to cost the taxpayers $97 million, although The News found contracts assigned to the Ferry Point golf course totaling $120 million.

As a result, commentaries (here and here) are questioning the wisdom of spending so much while other city services are falling apart.

In a speech last week endorsing Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Nicklaus bemoaned the number of Americans on government funded food stamps and lamented excessive government spending.

Pete Dye On Building Crooked Stick

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Dan McFeely talks to Pete Dye about Crooked Stick's backstory as the PGA Tour visits for the BMW Championship.

Both story and accompanying video include Mr. Dye talking about how the course was created and stories about negotiations with Mrs. Kerns over purchasing her farm for the course.

Fun stuff as only Pete can tell it both in McFeely's written version and in the video.