Briggs said he had been doing work for Tabor Academy for 23 years and this was a known fact before he was appointed to Marion Conservation Commission by the then Marion Board of Selectmen. Stay up to date with everything Boston. 18 brings you back to the clubhouse, and again throws off vibes of the opening and finishing holes at Maidstone and Fishers Island. He and Urzetta easily won their foursomes match and the San Franciscan breezed past a beleaguered James Wilson in singles, 9 and 8; Venturis outward round of level-par 70 was the competitions lowest. For most if not all of us, that includes some very obvious places like Pine Valley, Augusta National, Cypress Point and so on. They had to put the rocks somewhere, Demmer says with a smile and a shrug. American weather, if you will. 16 brings you back out towards the water and into the open. 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 approach to this small undulating green is guarded by a deep bunker on the left. But considering, again, there was no water in sight, I had a feeling a still had a little ways to go (The GPS sends you to the halfway house after the 9th hole). 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. Fun work place with very supportative management. This is also one of the best bunkered holes on the course with numerous bunkers running through this fairway forcing the golfer to think carefully on each shot. The trees were here first and the thicket has been reduced, in fits and starts, over time. (Murray later offered to pay for the damaged phones, so no charges were filed.). 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. This hole is extremely open on the left with the 18th fairway but features a lateral hazard on the right with marshland. The setting of the clubhouse is top 10 among the courses Ive visited in my travels. The 126 yard 9th hole is Cabot Cliffs shortest hole. On average, employees at Kittansett Club stay with the company for 6.5 years. But taking out the chain saws was not only about bringing back the vistas. Hanse also called for the relocation of a pair of fairway bunkers farther down the fifth hole, for similar reasons, and restored the sandy waste area between the parallel first and 18th holes. Review: The William J. Devine Golf Course at FranklinPark, Review: Marion Golf Club Worldgolfer's Golf Course Reviews, Follow Worldgolfer's Golf Course Reviews on WordPress.com, #134 Best Course in the World Golf Digest (2018), #84 Best Course in North America Top100golfcourse.com (2018), #77 Best Course in America Golf Digest (2021), #65 Best Course in America Golf Magazine (2022), #73 Best Course in America Top100golfcourse.com (2019), #49 Best Classic Course in America Golfweek (2022), #4 Best Course in Massachusetts Golf Digest (2021), #6 Best Course in Massachusetts Golf Magazine (2023), #7 Best Course in Massachusetts Top100golfcourse.com (2020), #7 Best Private Course in Massachusetts Golfweek (2022). The 470 yard par 4 17th is one of my favorite holes at Cascata as a beautiful sweeping, downhill dogleg left. Actor Bill Murray enjoyed dinner at a Massachusetts seafood restaurant over the weekend, posing for photos with staff and fans. But the layout is so much more: a steely, uncommon test on the calmest of days. But these situations of local trades and business people serving and doing business with the municipalities they serve has confounded small town public government for years. As for Hood, he turned out to be more project manager than anything else, overseeing construction of the golf course while adding his own small touches. But fescue in the rough, some fairway mounding, and bunkers can still punish shots that arent well placed you especially notice this on the par 4, 2nd. I hit my tee shot to 8 feet and drained the putt for my only birdie in 3 days. Kittansett was built in the 1920s and juts out on a peninsula directly into Buzzards Bay in Marion, Massachusetts outside of Boston. Somewhat reminiscent of a place like Humewood in South Africa, the course isn't quite in the same league as the best from Britain, but it does rest comfortably among the premier seaside layouts in this part of the world." Indeed, his passing had the opposite effect. The left side is fairly open until 280 yards when it too develops forest. This is certainly one of the easier holes out there and one of several holes on the course that provides the golfer numerous options. I think it was because the foreman for that job got fired for sleeping on the job and stealing, Briggs said. Selectman Jon Henry recused himself from the discussion because he does some work for Briggs company from time-to-time. Longer hitters can cut the corner over the hills and leave a shorter approach into a back-to-front sloped green. According to Hanse, his initial mission was to restore the unique architecture of the layout while also enhancing its look, conditioning and playability. Kittansett hosted the 1953 Walker Cup, when an American team that featured Ken Venturi, Bill Campbell, Harvie Ward, Dick Chapman, Gene Littler, Charlie Coe, and other notables routed the GB&I team 9-3. Given that the initially wide fairway progressively narrows with swampland on the right, these bunkers force the golfer to think twice about laying up off the tee. All of a sudden the courses you want to play tend to have less to do with prestige, and more to do with your personal preferences, geographic history, and the style of golf you enjoy most. The Kittansett Club is a Please contact the clubhouse For membership rates & information Course Info Location and Contact 11 Point Road, Marion, MA, 02738 kittansett.org update website (508) 748-0148 update phone Have you golfed here? The other dangers on this teeshot include bunkers on either side at 175 yards and marshland for those who go way offline. Since the 1990s the course has gone through a series of redesigns by Gil Hanse, who has been a longstanding consultant with respect to restoration, improvements, and renovations of Kittansett. I believe the individual is entitled to due process, Dickerson said. Littler and Jackson were eventually penalized two holes, placing them three down on the fourth tee. Sure enough, in the early 2000s plans for the course were found in William Flynns attic. The Walker Cup was the beginning of its wider reputation and its significant to reiterate that no one not Gene Littler, Ken Venturi, Charlie Coe, Harvie Ward nor Joe Carr managed to better par that scorching Labor Day weekend 53 years ago when, reportedly, the wind never rose above the wafting level. So check this out for a more detailed retelling of the history of Kittansett Club. 16 that was fashioned in the thickly forested land that made up the interior part of the track. Tucked away in a sort of nether region between Cape Cod and the Rhode Island coast, its widely acknowledged as the second best course in Massachusetts (behind TCC in Brookline) though few have actually played it. Briggs worked well with the facilities personnel at both those private entities, he said. This hole features one of the coolest green complexes Ive played with what I can best describe as a diagonal Biarritz with the left side higher than right. The approach here is fairly straightforward with bunkers on either side about 60 yards short of this green and three guarding both sides of the green. Briggs appointment to Marion Conservation Commission expires June 30, 2015. Free shipping for many products! Originally, it was the Native Americans who led the Plymouth settlers and their cattle to the warmer winter pastures on these shores. 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. The reachable 330 yard 10th gets my vote for easiest hole at Kittansett. Verdict: The charming and exclusive Kittansett Club is one of the most underrated courses in America and might be my dark horse candidate for best course in New England. The 11th with its massive cross bunker gaping in from the left is perhaps the most brutish poser on a course replete with them. Here and there these oversized Kisses (more like chocolate-covered cherries really) reside on a holes periphery, seemingly without purposes. With the U.S. Senior Amateur visiting Butler Point this week, it seemed a fine time to place this story above the fold.]. Out by the 7th tee box theres a 9-foot signpost that shows the high-water marks of the major hurricanes that have blown through here over the years: 1938, 1944, 1954 (Carol), 1991 (Bob). Its a severely sloped back-to-front green with a bit of a swale in the middle separating it into two sections. The locker room is surprisingly small, but it fits the quaint atmosphere of the club. For me, it ended up being the highlight of my entire Boston trip. The Republican Women's Club of South Central Kentucky's Tuesday night dinner buffet planned to feature one of the officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor. Had the absolute pleasure of waiting on the comedic ICON himself, Bill Murray, McCarthy wrote on Facebook. Holes 3 through 8 is my personal favorite stretch of holes on the course. Most critics point to the 16th as the best par 4 at Kittansett and I have to agree. The 6th plays out towards the water and has a sign off the green designating the high water level from previous hurricanes. That prompted us to restore them to their original sizes. This circular green is lined by two deep bunkers on either side and the Ocean long. The view from this teebox is world-class, with 390 fantastic yards separating you from the water. The British non-playing captain, Lieut. 6, 10 and 13 a bit further from the tees. That finish of Ronnie Whites made us all proud to be British.. Change). Sean Ogle helps people build businesses they can run from anywhere in the world. This hole marks a return to the Ocean, as the final three hole play on the tip of the archipelago. A mile later, I arrived at the end of the road. In other cases, its much more prominent, as youll find on 10. A fine hole in its own right, this short one-shotter features a front-to-back sloped green with a giant bunker short and cliffs long. Club's weekly film round up. The par 4 2nd also plays 415 yards and is another very difficult hole. Beverly's clubhouse was only open for a short portion of the year in general but was actually used only on two weeks of official race days. Once again, I cant imagine what this looked like before the tree removal, and at least from my perspective, it seems like this is a big improvement. Member Services Representative (Former Employee) - Marion, MA - November 1, 2015. But there are so many other holes of note. Please remove Mr. Briggs from the Conservation Commission immediately. Donations to this. With his plans and knowledge, the club brought in famed architect Gil Hanse to restore the course to fit Mr. Flynns original designs. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Seasonal work but enjoyable. A giant sandy wasteland bisects the fairway at about 260 yards and is in play off the tee. 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. This is a great closing match play par 5 where birdies will fly. I paid the fine and Im living up to the agreement.. This drive requires a carry of 145 yards and avoidance of dense marshes on the right. Teeing off on the first hole gives you vibes similar to other old-school seaside courses like Fishers Island or Maidstone. Then, they are left with an uphill approach to a slick green backed by the bay, again with bunkers right and left. We are sorry that this post was not useful for you! Another beauty is the 12th, a longer par-4 that doglegs slightly to the left. Playing back towards the clubhouse with a busy road on your right, this hole features a generous fairway especially the further left you go. MARION, MASSACHUSETTS | Competitors in last weeks Massachusetts Amateur had the pleasure of playing one of the Bay States best golf courses at the Kittansett Club. The course held the Walker Cup in 1953, and most recently held the US Senior Amateur in September 2022. Very accomodating to employees' needs. 12 is a fantastic hole that is simplynotone that favors my game. Kittansett can be a brute, but those who can control their distances and work their golf balls in the wind can certainly score. The first tee time isnt until 1 on Mondays, so the course and club was pretty quiet. 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.. 3 sun.com; oracle.com; unionclub.org; 3 617227XXXX; 617227XXXX; 617227XXXX; Steven Mann . Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. More often the cross hazards come earlier in the golf hole. The Master Plan has been updated on a couple of occasions since Hanse and his longtime design associate, Jim Wagner, first started working at Kittansett. Its most celebrated hole is the par-3 third, where a well-contoured, slightly elevated green is surrounded entirely by sand and bordered on the right by the bay. Framed by cedar shake houses and the loveliest view of the Atlantic, Kittansett has a special place in the heart of all who visit. The Kittansett Club - Detailed Maps and Yardage Charts - ProVisualizer.com The Kittansett Club Error: The browser supports WebGL, but initialization failed. 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. But they enjoyed no such luck with the wind or their opponents. I imagine this hole floods or becomes a true island green when the tide is up. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2012-2022 Location 180, LLC | All rights reserved. On the 424-yard 6th, three staggered lines of cross-mounding jut in from the left (the last sits 220 yards from the back tee). This approach plays to a large, flat green lined by bunkers on either side. This approach is fairly straightforward with a narrow green guarded by large bunkers on either side. Designer:William Flynn/Frederic C. Hood (1922), Gil Hanse/Jim Wagner (1998, tree removal and bunker renovation). 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. (LogOut/ Because of the ever-present winds perhaps, Hoods design rarely calls for forced carries into the greens themselves. There are a number of very good golf holes with interesting routing, and a beautiful setting. I really enjoyed the course a lot and the amenities are phenomenal and better than most private courses. As I mentioned, I expected the whole course to be like this, but I enjoyed the changing environment throughout which weaves from open seaside, into the coastal forest, and back out again to finish the round. The opening hole at Kittansett is tied for the longest par 4 on the course at 415 yards. Those elements made Kittansett very much a placement course. They also reinforced the belief that it was indeed a creation of Flynns and a precursor to some of his most celebrated work, for in later years, he included very similar features in his collaboration at Pine Valley with George Crump (think of the fourth, seventh and 13th holes there) and Shinnecock. Selectmen seemed hesitant to act immediately. In addition, he constructed a new, L-shaped back tee on Nos. . The major defense is undoubtedly the wind, which usually whips off the Ocean, but the layout is also difficult, especially off the tee. We were hosting an Eighty Club event at Old Sandwich and Boston Golf Club, and I tacked on an extra day to the trip to make the journey out to Marion and experience a course Ive been excited about visiting for years. Generous benefits and bonuses. When you get your first glimpse of the club on the left-hand side my GPS was telling me Id arrived. (LogOut/ 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. The build-in at Kittansett was an arduous process, especially for the 13-hole stretch from No. This green is large, two-tiered and guarded by deep bunkers on either side. Molly was a planner, and while she could easily plan her wedding . KITTANSETT CLUB MARION, MA 02738-1906 | Tax-exempt since May 1947 EIN: 04-2035017 Nonprofit Tax Code Designation: 501 (c) (7) Defined as: Social and recreational clubs. 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. He was the maternal grandfather of PresidentGeorge H. W.Bush and great-grandfather of PresidentGeorgeW. Bush. Find them!, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. You and those before you have made a habit of these tainted appointments for years and years. Most days, the approach plays dead into a southwest wind, making the most sensible play a punch shot that bores its way to the putting surface. Stay up to date on all the latest news from Boston.com. Using it for golf as well would make it more cost-effective. The A.V. This hole plays 175 yards to a wide yet shallow green surrounded by deep bunkers and fescue. Yet Kittansetts length (6,814 yards, par 70), its smallish, steeply pitched greens, its overall strategic mettle were undiminished. Founded in 1922, the Kittansett Club is one of the region's most historic private golf clubs, and one of only a few seaside courses in New England. The most famous hole at Kittansett comes early in the round in the form of the 167-yard par 3, 3rd hole. 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 high scores tell you something else. It only took a minute, but from the moment I arrived, I knew I was going to like this place. Amateur champion. At just 360 yards, the par 4 4th appears easy on the scorecard but is actually one of several very difficult dogleg rights at Kittansett. A Kittansett club wedding was a dream of Molly's. She grew up spending summers in Marion, surrounded by the sea and spending time with her family. 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. Too long and youre in the bunkers across the fairway. The opening holes provide wide fairways with generous landing areas. Youre driving out on what becomes an increasingly narrow peninsula, but youd never know it. The hole looks pretty innocent from the tee, but there is more to it than initially meets the eye. 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. In 1969, Hal Purdy lengthened the course to a full 18 holes. This undulating green is guarded by tall trees on the left and bunkers on either side. This fairway bends slightly to the left with marshes on either side. The senior amateurs are in for a treat in 2022. Many of the games greats were indeed on hand for the event. Being as exposed as it is, its clear much of the courses defense can come from the elements. The keen golfer was said to be very knowledgeable about course architecture, thanks largely to trips he had taken with his sticks to the British Isles. 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. Located in this sleepy sailing village on Buzzards Bay just west of Cape Cod, it is a Golden Age classic, routed across an exposed, often windswept spit of land and through more sheltered swathes of New England woods. Other times they come off quite strategically. The course needed a facelift, said Jim Osborne, who was green chairman at the time. 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? Kittansett was founded as a way to reduce costs for the local Beverly Yacht Club. Kittansett plays short (not even 7000 yards from the Tips) and even shorter given the firm and fast conditions, but I played horribly here and found the course to be extremely tricky. Like the short 4-par at No. in the minutes leading up to your arrival, you can be forgiven for thinking you might be in the wrong place. 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 is now a much more open course, the sea is visible from many more holes, and the wind has become a significant factor in course management. At just over 5700 yards, this par 70 plays more difficult than youd expect with small greens, tight fairways, and a hilly terrain. We all have our list of bucket list courses. The Kittansett Club, appropriately named from two Native American words meaning near the sea, is situated in the town of Marion at the end of Butler Point, which extends into Buzzards Bay. 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. A cross bunker comes into play from the left on tee shots, and the best move is taking on that hazard with ones drive, keeping the ball on that side of the fairway for a more open approach to the green. Briggs was cleared of wrong-doing in that instance. Once again, golfers must determine just how far they want to hit their tee shots and whether they lay up before that obstacle or try to fly it. Designed by myThem.es. Its a seaside course peninsular for heavens sake; the Aboriginal American name means near (sett) the sea (kittan) but there isnt a proper dune in sight. This has been a habit with you Selectmen for far too long. The British are supposed to be good losers, Duncan said at Saturday nights trophy presentation ceremony, since theyve had plenty of practice at it. In retrospect, the 1953 Walker Cup was a thoroughly fascinating event, but not necessarily because it served as the coming-out party for Kittansett, for a pair of promising young Californians, Ken Venturi and Gene Littler or because E. Harvie Ward managed in the course of the competition, to avenge his 1952 British Amateur loss to the talented Irishman Joe Carr. Located in this sleepy sailing village on Buzzards Bay just west of Cape Cod, it is a Golden Age classic, routed across an exposed, often windswept spit of land and through more sheltered swathes of New England woods. Although the land is flat, Hood and Flynn sculpted numerous mounds and subtle elevations throughout that add to the courses tremendous character. Big hitter? This hole features another demanding teeshot with a narrow fairway lined by marshland and trees on either side.
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