When the golf course architectural firm Robert Trent Jones II was commissioned to design a new golf course on the vast sandy canvas of an abandoned rock quarry along the shore of Washington state’s Puget Sound, it was handed a unique design brief. First, the course should be capable of testing the world’s greatest players […]
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Rory Plays the White Tees: A Fantasy in 18 Holes
Heron Lakes is a 36-hole golf complex located in the flood plain near where the Columbia River flows into the Willamette, not far from downtown Portland. Oregon’s second-largest city, Vanport, once stood here. Housing migrants who’d come to work in the Kaiser Shipyards during WWII, Vanport was destroyed when the Columbia’s dikes burst in 1948, […]
Frederick Law Olmsted and American Golf
Bill Hawkins of Portland, Oregon has combined a distinguished career as a practicing architect with a parallel life as a writer and champion of historical preservation. The 19th century cast iron buildings which have survived near the Willamette River in downtown Portland owe their existence in part to Hawkins’ advocacy. His most recent book, “The Legacy of the […]
Donald Ross and Jack Nicklaus: Unexpected Kinsmen in Design
Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw deserve kudos for their restoration of Pinehurst #2. Their exertions amount to an extended homage to the genius of Donald Ross. The rejuvenation was overdue. As long ago as 1974, when he was playing in the World Open Championship on #2, Jack Nicklaus said he was “shocked” that the course’s […]
Review of “Faldo/Norman” by Andy Farrell.
Andy Farrell, Faldo/Norman. The 1996 Masters: A duel that defined an era. Elliott & Thompson, March, 2014 in the UK, May 1, 2014 in the USA, distributed by Trafalgar Square. $24.95. As the final round of the 2014 Masters is about to get underway, recalling dramatic finishes past raises hope for similar drama […]
A Look Back at the USGA’s First One Hundred Years
One Hundred Years of the USGA. An Essay Written for Golf, The Greatest Game, published by HarperCollins in 1994. To commemorate its centennial, the USGA sponsored the publication of a coffee table book organized and designed by Brennon Jones and Amy Janello of Jones & Janello. Golf, the Greatest Game […]