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Golf on Cape Cod - Golf TravelA Visit To Cape CodLast February at a reunion of golfers in Florida my friend, Bob Johnson, told me that he was selling ad space for Golf on Cape Cod. His next words were: "If you come for a visit, I could probably get us on some" I interrupted him with two words - "Eastward Ho!" He was amused, but not surprised. He knows that I'm the historian at a 1926 club in Rochester, NY and that I enjoy studying golf course architecture. I'm also a member of the Donald Ross Society. I explained to Bob that twenty-three years ago while in Chatham, I had been driving along when I spotted what looked like spectacular golf holes on a peninsula. Someone told me that the course was called Eastward Ho! - and that I'd never get on. I never forgot the view of those holes. In addition to the Herbert Fowler, Eastward Ho!, Bob said he would try for some Ross courses, like Plymouth and Hyannisport. My wife, Leslie, who refers to these junkets as going to "golf boot camp," made arrangements for us to stay at the Green Harbor Resort in West Yarmouth. We thought we'd try for the third week in May, while off-season rates were still in effect and there would be fewer players. We prayed that the weather would cooperate. Mr. Ross begins in earnest at #4. Par at Plymouth is 69 and, at 6,228 yards, it is all the course you could want. What never ceased to amaze us on this Cape Cod golf trip were the wonderful, often dramatic, changes in elevation. Anyone who knows Ross knows that he was a master at using elevation changes to defend par. I don't believe I've ever seen a more interesting set of par fours than those at Plymouth. My favorite holes were #6 & #7, maybe the best back-to-back short par 4's ever. The dogleg left 17th is an exhilarating par 4 that clearly shows Ross's genius for building dramatic and dangerous holes without moving any earth - just by using the awesome lay of the land as he found it. The cold and wind that day only made the round more memorable. We walked into the clubhouse where friendly folk were enjoying their Friday evening. Instead of hot coffee, we ordered a couple of beers and toasted the Pilgrims and Donald Ross, the man from Dornoch, Scotland. Saturday was our only non-golf day. We enjoyed visiting myriad antique shops along Route 28, where my first question to the proprietors was always, "Anything golf related?" My wife just rolled her eyes, but I did find a couple of interesting old golf advertisements. We watched the Preakness and had a very nice dinner at Skippy's Pier One in South Yarmouth. The Green Harbor Resort provided pleasant accommodations, and its central location proved ideal. I spent Sunday morning reading William Martin's novel, Cape Cod. At 12:30pm we arrived at Cape Cod National to visit the seals and to play some golf. It was a warm, sunny day, and the very nice guys in the pro shop said that we could head out anytime. I never like to see an open tee go to waste, so we hustled right out. We had the whole place to ourselves! What a dream! The National is a muscular course in excellent condition. It is also fair, I think, except for #6 and #17 (a particularly brutal and unforgiving hole). Brian Silva built a great short par 4 at #7 - uphill and dotted with bunkers with a hidden green that slopes away from the player. After our round, I remarked to the two pro shop assistants, " You could make anywhere from 2 to 8 on that hole." They answered immediately, in unison, " We have!" I also thought #3, #10, & #12 were standout holes. Early on Monday morning I arrived at the Hyannisport Club. Waves of nostalgia rolled through me, as they would all day. Nostalgia for the Kennedy era; my youth; my hero of PT-109; the first President I remembered; the tragedy. The golf seemed almost secondary. I'm always conscious of famous people who golfed on ground that I'm now privileged to play, and it was never more so than that day at Hyannisport. The Course starts out at the top of a great hill where the clubhouse and a waving American flag dominate the course-scape. As the round went on, I found my eyes repeatedly gazing up into the distance to the top of that hill, and the water view was wonderful too. I thought the two best holes on the course were #3 and #4; both par 4 dogleg lefts, over and around tidal inlets. Number 8 green must be the smallest I've ever seen to receive a 200-yard tee shot. I was told a number of high wind stories by my host. He recalled the time that #17, a wonderful 141 yard par 3 at the edge of a marsh, with a severely sloped back to back to front green, had to be closed during a big tournament. No ball would remain on the putting surface that gale-force day. Number 18 is a severely uphill par 4 of 310 yards that quickly brings you home. Later in the day, we thoroughly enjoyed a visit to the Kennedy Museum, where we say both familiar and unfamiliar photographs. I purchased a photograph of three caddies with the President, putting on his golf glove before he teed off on #1 at the Hyannisport Club. Tuesday was the day I'd been anticipating for over two decades. The forecast was warm and sunny, and I was soon to be teeing it up at Eastward Ho! Early in the morning, Leslie (my corporate sponsor) and I spent several glorious hours walking on Nauset Beach in Orleans. Then, when I could wait no longer, we got in the car and reached the course well before our scheduled tee time. Again, a friendly assistant said, "Fire when ready," and we did not hesitate. There was no one else around. Tremendous! We took off on the beautiful, uphill 1st. I've played golf in Scotland, Ireland, France, Canada, the Caribbean, and around America. I don't think I've played a better nine holes anywhere than the front nine at Eastward Ho! I love holes where imagination and creativity are needed to get in successfully. What a design by Englishman Herbert Fowler! There was only a moderate wind that day, but it certainly was a factor. The beautiful scenery of Pleasant Bay was ever-changing as you worked your way around the peninsula. What was required of the golfer? Full-bore shots, knockdown shots, creative pitching and chipping around and over greenside slopes. The ground game was in play, and it was very exciting. This is unlike so many of today's courses that require only the air game (I call it splat ball), where thick rough strangles narrow fairways and greens creating a boring, unimaginative type of golf. Eastward Ho required a perfect combination of the air and ground game. The changes in elevation throughout the course were amazing, most memorably at the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 11th, 12th and 14th. But perhaps the most monumental roller coaster ride was saved for #17 and #18. After our round, I wondered aloud in the pro shop if anyone had ever named the par 5 17th, "Three Blind Mice". Each of my three shots was indeed blind, due to the severely sloping terrain. As a matter of fact, a number of the holes played on this Cape Cod journey were blind. As I recall those shots, I find myself daydreaming of maybe making millions by outfitting golf carts on the Cape with navy surplus periscopes. The roller coaster trip at Eastward Ho! ends at the top of the ride. A well-struck tee shot on #18 ends in a tiny valley. From there it's an X-treme uphill second - a semi- blind shot. With the wind, I chipped a 5 iron 140 yards up that precipice to the green. Joe, the bartender, clapped as I two putted for par. The 19th is conveniently and necessarily hard by Fowler's Finish. This day of heavenly golf concluded with purchases in the pro shop and an interesting conversation with Brian Hamilton, one of the most welcoming golf professionals I've met. Thanks for making a golfer's dream possible, Brian! Leslie and I looked around the charming, historic clubhouse and had our restorative beers on the patio looking back on the 18th. Joe the Bartender suggested that we have a nice sunset dinner at the Mattakeese Wharf in Barnstable, where his daughter Rachel worked as a waitress. Eastward Ho! was one of those rare golfing days that you don't want to end. While driving out of the parking lot, I was reminded of the day Leslie had to take me kicking and screaming from Prestwick in Scotland. On Wednesday morning, reveille blew early at Cape Cod Golf Boot Camp! It was windy and cool as we layered up for a midmorning round at the Ocean Course at New Seabury. We were there early, of course, and the starter must have detected the slightly glazed eyes of golf junkies about to play a course for the first time. He told us to head right out. Again we were grateful to be able to walk and work off the previous night's lobster roll. The wind was noisy at the par 5 1st and howling and buffeting by the 2nd. The first three holes were dead into the wind, but they were the most thrilling holes of the opening nine. We walked around the clubhouse a good ways before reaching the 10th tee. We were rather startled by the contrast in nines, as the Ocean nine was followed by a parkland-style nine. Number 10's tee shot is a bit awkward for the first-timer. There are several good par 4's at #13, #16, & #17. While the Ocean Course makes for a fine game of golf, we couldn't help wondering why the nines aren't reversed. We had just put our clubs into the car trunk and headed into the bar when a deluge worthy of Noah began outside. We sat out the later afternoon showers at Tugboats in Hyannisport, watching the sailboats and ferries move in and out as we worked our way through the appetizer menu and a few bottles of Samuel Adam's finest lager. Lights out by 10pm at Cape Cod Golf Boot Camp! Since arriving at the Cape, anyone who knew that Donald Ross was not Diana's brother, had been speaking in reverential tones about the Oyster Harbors Club. My now best friend ever, Bob Johnson, who arranged for me to play there through the kindness of Tim Wick, the club's professional, kept using the term "pure" to describe Oyster Harbors. This is the most sanctified word for Ross Society members. As I peruse Roget's Thesaurus, I wonder, "Are we talking about a golf course or a man's bride-to-be: perfection, sinlessness, immaculacy, unadulterated, undefiled, etc.? I reported for play at 6:45am on Friday. (Leslie the Corporate Sponsor was golfed out and opted for forty more winks.) Camera and clubs at the ready; off I went down the first aisle of this Donald Ross cathedral. What impeccably prepared ground for golf! Perfect fairways, rough, greens, and bunkers. The firmness issue? Just right. I think this is one of Ross's best bunkering efforts. The greens have wonderful undulations. I was told that Ross spent more time than usual at this site and focused a lot of attention on the greens. They are magnificent! The membership should be proud of the chipping areas around the greens, which bring back a variety of shots to the short game. These areas are aesthetically pleasing and lend a sense of openness at Oyster Harbors, a pleasing width to the holes as you stand on the tee. This is in sharp contrast to those many courses that have become claustrophobic, tree-lined alleyways. Oyster Harbors is gently rolling land with the greatest elevation changes on holes 6 through 9. Every hole is a straightforward, excellent golf hole. Number 18 is a strong finish, a slightly uphill dogleg right par four. The folks who get to play here everyday are fortunate indeed, as I was for one morning, to commune with the spirit of Mr. Ross and to experience the connection with his golfing Scottish homeland. On our final afternoon on Cape Cod we enjoyed a misty stroll along Main Street, Hyannis, visiting the nautical store, book shops, pubs and candy stores. That evening we thoroughly enjoyed our meal at the The Paddock with our friends, new best friend Bob and his wife, Kathy. Though it poured rain all the way back to Rochester, the memories of six grand, golfing days on Cape Cod kept us in sunny spirits and planning our next golf boot camp expedition across the Sagamore Bridge.
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We arrived at Plymouth Country Club on Friday morning May 16th. The temperature was 48 degrees, and the wind was up but we were dressed for it (remember,
we're from Rochester) and anxious to see another example of Mr. Ross's work. We were not disappointed. What an exciting round of golf!
Although the first three holes are not Donald Ross holes, they blend in as well as any "added" or non-Ross holes I've seen. I've played over 70 Ross
course, and many of them have suffered changes over the years due to development or unwitting greens committees. I would love to know what the original
Ross holes down by the water at Plymouth were like before the highway came through.