Michigan State and Ohio State Earn Co-Golfers of the Week

The Big Ten honors two senior standouts

Feb. 20, 2008

Women's Co-Golfers of the Week

Sara Brown, Michigan State
Sr., Tucson, Ariz. / Salpointe Catholic
Brown guided the No. 23 Spartans to a team title at the Central District Invitational while picking up top individual honors. She out-shot the field by seven strokes and her four-under par three-round total of 212 (70-70-72) is the second-best 54-hole score in school history. Brown is honored with her second career weekly award.

Last MSU Golfer of the Week: Sara Brown (2/22/07)

Carling Coffing, Ohio State
Sr., Middletown, Ohio. / Middletown
At the Central District Invitational, Coffing fired off two rounds of 72 on her way to a tournament average of 73.7. Her stroke count of 221 tied her for third place individually and helped her Buckeye squad to a fourth-place finish. At the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge, the senior captain rattled off a 77.7 three-round average with a low of 74. Coffing takes home her first career weekly accolade.

Camargo Makes Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses

Camargo, OH, USA

The excellence of Camargo's one shot holes help separate the course in quality from most others.
Pictured is the Eden 5th.

What golf course has the best collection of one shot holes?

Harbour Town is often bated around for such distinction but it lacks the key element of variety. For holes of various lengths that ask for a full range of shots, Cypress Point, Royal Melbourne (West), Shinnecock Hills, Merion and Pine Valley are the more obvious candidates. Obviously, these courses are among the greats and yet there is a lesser known gem that deserves to be included as well: Camargo Club located in the rolling countryside outside of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Sterling examples of each of Seth Raynor's four favorite one shotters are found here. That Camargo possesses the finest Eden and Short hole in this country is a defensible argument. The Redan version as well is of alarming excellence with its perfectly canted green. Finally, to the authors at least, perhaps the finest of the bunch is its impressive Biarritz hole. The golfer will be asked to hit (roughly) a five iron, a three wood, an eight iron and a three iron into these four holes, so the balance is exemplary.

Given the advantage of four superlative short holes, Camargo was always destined to be a course apart. Supporting this cast is an admirable group of two shot holes. Four pars like the 3^rd, 9^th, 12^th, 13^th and 14^th attack the valleys that run through the property in different manners. Some like the 3^rd and 14^th play across the valleys, others like the 9^th are at an angle, and still others like the 12^th and 13^th fairways skirt around the top of the valley. Given this land movement, a lesser architect could have well botched the opportunity. Instead, Raynor's inspired routing created holes of immense variety.

And speaking of property, there is a lot to talk about. The course today still occupies 260 acres. The worn out and often inaccurate statement of being oblivious to other games does indeed hold true at Camargo. Of course, with an average of 13,000 rounds a year, the course is not exactly overrun.

The course's only weakness is one often found in Raynor's work: par fives that are not bad but still somehow seem indifferent compared to the other holes.

Holes to Note:

4^th hole, 455 yards; Perhaps the least offensive von Hagge bunkers dot the inside of this dogleg to the left. They serve as a general indication as to the flow of the hole. The prize of the hole goes to the absolutely enormous square green that measures over 12,000 sq. feet. It is bunkered either side but is completely open in front. One of the authors had overdone his tee shot and was behind a tree on the inside of the dogleg. Nonetheless, given what must be a 40 yard wide entrance to the green, he hit a massive hook that took the fairway perfectly and scampered well back into the green (the ensuing sad three putt doesn't warrant narrative). This type of recovery shot is generally only associated with links holes but it serves as a stirring example of the kind of golf on offer at Camargo.

5^th hole, 180 yards; This hole rivals the 11^th at Fishers Island as the finest Eden Hole in the United States. The Club appreciates that the left bunker needs to be restored to a flat bottom, as opposed to its present slight upslope.

The Golf Club of Ohio Named 36th Best Course in America by Golf Magazine

The Golf Club, OH, USA

Some courses represent a landmark in the development of golf architecture. They are so different as to what is being built at the time that they influence the broad direction of golf course architecture. Such courses in the United States include Myopia Hunt and National Golf Links of America. Examples of such designs in more modern times would include Harbour Town and the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass .

However, Pete Dye built a course before either of those two that is far less known and yet was the finest design built from the 1935 until Sand Hills. The course? The Golf Club, which opened outside of Columbus, Ohio in 1967. However, as opposed to Harbour Town or TPC, it was built for the enjoyment of its small membership and their guests only. Also, as part of its charter, The Golf Club could never host an outside tournament. Thus, little is known about this course.

This is a great pity. If The Golf Club enjoyed a higher profile, its impact on the direction of architecture could (and should) have been immense.

Pete Dye broke with the norm at the time by promoting a variety of grasses, including bent in the fairways and fescues in the rough, to give the course an 'Old English' feel, as Dye describes it. Nearby Scioto and the subsequently Muirfield Village would be at the opposite extremes with their perfectly manicured green fairways and dense, forest green roughs. Nonetheless, the owner and founder Fred Jones was quite implicit that he wanted the course 'to feel as if it's been here forever as soon as its finished.' Dye succeeded admirably on this point and his fondness for experimenting with different grasses served him well thereafter, especially at The Honors Course.

The Golf Club is Dye's most natural and low profile design. Pictured here is the approach to the 15th.

Even though the course falls so early in Dye's career, his sense of angles is already well evidenced. Several of the holes such as 2, 12, 13 and 15 feature tee locations which dramatically affect the angle and the challenge off the tee. For instance, from the back markers on the 15th, the strong player must carry a cross bunker to a blind fairway with hidden bunkers lurking long right. For the less accomplished player, Dye provided a tee without the forced carry and with a better view of the hole.

Many critics have tried to stereotype Dye's work as too difficult for the average golfer. This variety of tee positions highlights that the only people who truly believe such nonsense are the same ones who play his courses from the wrong markers.

Much of Pete Dye's philosophy on what constitututes an ideal course is to be found at The Golf Club. In between what would become his favorite opening ploy of a medium length two shotter ala Whistling Straits, The Ocean Course at Kiawah, The Honors Course, Firethorn, Harbour Town, Crooked Stick, TPC Sawgrass, etc. and the dramatic home hole with a water hazard ala Whistling Straits, Firethorn, Harbour Town, Crooked Stick, TPC Sawgrass, Blackwolf Run (River), etc. are to be found the holes that, when taken together, comprise Dye's finest golf course in the United States.

Holes to Note

3rd hole, 185 yards; One of Dye's most original one shot holes, not because of the pond that fronts the green but because of the tiered bunkering that guards the left and rear portion of the green. Dye used pilings to create different levels within this fearsome bunker (or is it bunkers?) but he also gave the golfer a bail-out to the right of the green. Of course, as is later evidenced in Dye's work such as the 4th hole at Blackwolf Run (River), Dye uses the green contours to make an up and down unlikely. The right to left slope of the green does little to encourage any shot from the right bail-out area to get close to the hole. Interestingly enough, the bunker on the 3rd hole draws so much fame to the course that golfers assume the bunkering in general to be both deep and penal. In fact, this is not the case, and many of the bunkers are no more than a few feet deep.

The highly original staggered level bunker that protects the left and rear of the green. Note the color
of the sand: it is more light brown than tan and helps perpetuate the rustic feel of the course.

5th hole, 455 yards and 6th hole, 470 yards; Such an attractive pair of two shot holes is rarely found and they are made by Dye's diverse use of Blacklick Creek. As opposed to the 5th were the creek borders a portion of the right hand side of the fairway and is back from the green, Blacklick Creek snakes its way down the left hand side of the 6th fairway in a similar manner to Rae's Creek at the 13th at Augusta National and hugs the right hand side of the green.

A long iron approach over Blacklick Creek to the 6th green is never a bargain.

The Golf Club of Ohio Named 36th Best Course in America by Golf Magazine

The Golf Club, OH, USA

Some courses represent a landmark in the development of golf architecture. They are so different as to what is being built at the time that they influence the broad direction of golf course architecture. Such courses in the United States include Myopia Hunt and National Golf Links of America. Examples of such designs in more modern times would include Harbour Town and the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass .

However, Pete Dye built a course before either of those two that is far less known and yet was the finest design built from the 1935 until Sand Hills. The course? The Golf Club, which opened outside of Columbus, Ohio in 1967. However, as opposed to Harbour Town or TPC, it was built for the enjoyment of its small membership and their guests only. Also, as part of its charter, The Golf Club could never host an outside tournament. Thus, little is known about this course.

This is a great pity. If The Golf Club enjoyed a higher profile, its impact on the direction of architecture could (and should) have been immense.

Pete Dye broke with the norm at the time by promoting a variety of grasses, including bent in the fairways and fescues in the rough, to give the course an 'Old English' feel, as Dye describes it. Nearby Scioto and the subsequently Muirfield Village would be at the opposite extremes with their perfectly manicured green fairways and dense, forest green roughs. Nonetheless, the owner and founder Fred Jones was quite implicit that he wanted the course 'to feel as if it's been here forever as soon as its finished.' Dye succeeded admirably on this point and his fondness for experimenting with different grasses served him well thereafter, especially at The Honors Course.

The Golf Club is Dye's most natural and low profile design. Pictured here is the approach to the 15th.

Even though the course falls so early in Dye's career, his sense of angles is already well evidenced. Several of the holes such as 2, 12, 13 and 15 feature tee locations which dramatically affect the angle and the challenge off the tee. For instance, from the back markers on the 15th, the strong player must carry a cross bunker to a blind fairway with hidden bunkers lurking long right. For the less accomplished player, Dye provided a tee without the forced carry and with a better view of the hole.

Many critics have tried to stereotype Dye's work as too difficult for the average golfer. This variety of tee positions highlights that the only people who truly believe such nonsense are the same ones who play his courses from the wrong markers.

Much of Pete Dye's philosophy on what constitututes an ideal course is to be found at The Golf Club. In between what would become his favorite opening ploy of a medium length two shotter ala Whistling Straits, The Ocean Course at Kiawah, The Honors Course, Firethorn, Harbour Town, Crooked Stick, TPC Sawgrass, etc. and the dramatic home hole with a water hazard ala Whistling Straits, Firethorn, Harbour Town, Crooked Stick, TPC Sawgrass, Blackwolf Run (River), etc. are to be found the holes that, when taken together, comprise Dye's finest golf course in the United States.

Holes to Note

3rd hole, 185 yards; One of Dye's most original one shot holes, not because of the pond that fronts the green but because of the tiered bunkering that guards the left and rear portion of the green. Dye used pilings to create different levels within this fearsome bunker (or is it bunkers?) but he also gave the golfer a bail-out to the right of the green. Of course, as is later evidenced in Dye's work such as the 4th hole at Blackwolf Run (River), Dye uses the green contours to make an up and down unlikely. The right to left slope of the green does little to encourage any shot from the right bail-out area to get close to the hole. Interestingly enough, the bunker on the 3rd hole draws so much fame to the course that golfers assume the bunkering in general to be both deep and penal. In fact, this is not the case, and many of the bunkers are no more than a few feet deep.

The highly original staggered level bunker that protects the left and rear of the green. Note the color
of the sand: it is more light brown than tan and helps perpetuate the rustic feel of the course.

5th hole, 455 yards and 6th hole, 470 yards; Such an attractive pair of two shot holes is rarely found and they are made by Dye's diverse use of Blacklick Creek. As opposed to the 5th were the creek borders a portion of the right hand side of the fairway and is back from the green, Blacklick Creek snakes its way down the left hand side of the 6th fairway in a similar manner to Rae's Creek at the 13th at Augusta National and hugs the right hand side of the green.

A long iron approach over Blacklick Creek to the 6th green is never a bargain.

Muirfield Village Makes Golf Magazine's Top 50 Courses

Muirfield Village, OH, USA

During the time of its design and construction, the two highly motivated personalities of Jack Nicklaus and Desmond Muirhead disagreed on anything and everything when it came to the design of this golf course. After the opening of Muirfield Village in 1974, their partnership dissolved, Nicklaus began his solo design career, and Muirhead took a ten year sabbatical.

Considering this friction, Muirfield Village remarkably represents the sole bright spot in American design in the 1970s. It made for an important transition between Pete Dye�s early work that was beginning to have a sharp edge to it and the overdone courses of the early 1980s (an era that Nicklaus coincidentally also experienced while employing Bob Cupp).

In fact, it is surprising and disappointing that Muirfield Village did not have more of an architectural influence over other designers of the era. Regrettably, it mostly had a maintenance influence as others saw that it possible for courses to be in comparable condition to Augusta National. The superior conditioning (where else do they actually sod bad divot holes?!) seems almost to overshadow the merits of this first rate design.

With the 'traditional' look of his favorite courses in his mind, Nicklaus directed Muirhead and Jay Moorish (an associate at the time for Muirhead and Nicklaus) to find and design original holes across the rolling Ohio landscape. Muirhead's finesse as a land planner is the real highlight and his routing makes brilliant use of the creeks and terrain. No matter how much the two disagreed, Nicklaus and Muirhead ultimately produced a golf course that was fresh with ideas in a decade that was virtually void of originality.

The short 12th illustrates the differences between the emerging 'style' of Pete Dye and that of Jack Nicklaus. As he did at Crooked Stick, The Golf Club and Harbour Town, Dye would have shored up the edge of the water hazard with railroad ties, while Nicklaus opted for a grass slope. However, Nicklaus's approach is just as penal as there is a sharp slope down to the water, particularly to the right of the green, where a ball could hardly come to rest. The same result as Dye's, just different aesthetics.

In the authors� view, the biggest knock is the name. An original course deserves an original name. However, that can be forgiven given the abundance of fine holes.

Holes to Note:

8^th hole, 175 yards: This exceedingly narrow green that is 95% ringed by sand (a definite Muirhead feature) appears wonderful after the big courses of the 1960s. This hole is a give away that a good player was involved in the design of the course -- professionals miss greens left and right while amateurs miss them short and long.

11^th hole, 530 yards: This par five plays well as both a two-shotter and three-shotter. Note the helping rise at the rear the green that encourages players to go for the green in two.

San Filippo, Logue, Ciampi claim titles in PGA Quarter Century event--Ohio Golfer Wins

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla.; Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio; and Nunzio Ciampi, Palm City, Fla., were the major winners Jan. 15, in the 54th TaylorMade-adidas Golf PGA Quarter Century Championship.

San Filippo, 55, a conditional player on the Champions Tour, fired a bogey-free 5-under par 67, breaking out of the pack to finish at 136, low among age groups 49-under through 60-64 on the Ryder Course at The PGA Golf Club.

On the adjacent Wanamaker Course, Logue, 67, shot a 72, for 142, the lowest score for age groups 65-69 through 90-over. Ciampi, 71, totaled 152, the best among eight players who have been members of The PGA of America for at least 50 years.

The PGA Quarter Century Championship, for PGA Professionals with a minimum of 25 years of membership, drew 194 entries. It is the second of six tournaments that comprise the 55th annual PGA Winter Championships. The PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship follows at The PGA Golf Club, Jan. 22-25.

San Filippo, one of seven players to shoot 69 in the first round, got off to a good start in the final round with birdies on the second and fourth holes. "That was important, because the first four holes played into the wind," San Filippo said. "To be 2-under early was a good start, and I played solid all day," adding birdies at Nos. 6, 11 and 15.

Logue, former PGA head professional at Brookside Country Club, was low for the older divisions for the second year in a row. He shot 67-69--136 on the Ryder Course last year as well. "The wind made a huge difference today," he said after a round of just one birdie, a five-footer at the fifth hole, and one bogey, three-putting No. 8.

Ciampi had just achieved his 50-year PGA membership in April. He had spent 50 years at Glen Head Country Club on Long Island, N.Y., the last 35 as the PGA head professional before he retired in 2002.

These were the fourth Winter Championship victories for San Filippo and Logue, and the second for Ciampi. San Filippo won the PGA Stroke Play Championship in 1992, and the PGA Senior Stroke Play Championship in 2004 and 2006. This was the first year he was eligible for the PGA Quarter Century Championship. Logue was the junior member of the winning PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship in 1971, captured the PGA Senior Stroke Play Championship in 2005 and the PGA Quarter Century Championship last year. Ciampi was the senior member on the winning PGA Senior-Junior Team Championship in 1987.

San Filippo and Logue received $1,500 apiece for their overall victories. The balance of the $52,000 purse was distributed among the 10 age groups. Ciampi was fourth in the 70-74 division, earning $850.

The overall and age group winners:

TaylorMade-adidas Golf PGA Quarter Century Championship
The PGA Golf Club - Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Ryder Course (par-72, 6,626 yards)
Overall -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla., 69-67--136, $1,500
49-under -- Larry Emery, Carterville, Ill., 73-70--143, $500
50-54 -- Gary Robison, Canton, Ohio, 72-68--140, and Bob Boyd, Wilmington, N.C., 69-71--140, $1,050
55-59 -- Mike San Filippo, Hobe Sound, Fla., 69-67--136, $1,850
60-64 -- Bryan Abbott, Stuart, Fla., 71-70--141, $1,500

Wanamaker Course (par-72, 6,037 yards)
Overall -- Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio, 70-72--142, $1,500
65-69 -- Jim Logue, Canton, Ohio, 70-72--142, $1,500
70-74 -- Dick Hendrickson, West Chester, Pa., 71-77--148, $1,500
75-79 -- Bill Erfurth, Northbrook, Ill., 71-80--151, $1,000
80-84 -- Ray Montgomery, Fort Pierce, Fla., 75-79--154, $750
Half-Century -- Nunzio Ciampi, Palm City, Fla., 73-79--152

Wanamaker Course (par-72, 4,941 yards)
85-89 -- Manuel de la Torre, Milwaukee, Wis., 85-88--173, $250
90-up -- Duffy Martin, Guthrie, Okla., 99-96--195, $250