To the east of Houston is Tour18, a replica course featuring copies of holes from some of the most well-known holes in professional golf. Amen Corner from Augusta National is represented. Since most of us won’ t receive an invitation to the original club, the opportunity to play an imitation should not be missed. Lesser-known holes like the sixth at Bay Hill and the third at Colonial, also make an appearance, and they are a terrific addition to the layout. Most interesting, however, might be the holes from courses that are no longer featured on tour. La Costa in California, Disney from Florida and Nevada’ s Desert Inn won’ t be seen on television, but can be seen at Tour18.
CALIFORNIA( CORONADO MUNICIPAL)
There is a golfing place across the bay from San Diego’ s comfortable downtown. It’ s not, geographically-speaking, an island, but let’ s call it that for ease of reference. Coronado is home to both a naval base and a well-healed citizenship, offering a unique contrast between the gentry and the commoner. To access the island from the mainland, those with no fear of heights climb the Coronado bridge at nearly a 5 percent grade, twisting and turning hundreds of feet above the water, for two miles. At the base of the bridge is the Coronado Municipal golf course, a tricky and welcoming layout that merits attention in a city starved for good golf. Despite its sun-drenched location, proper golf courses exist but not a single one that compares to the clubs and courses found farther up the coast, in central and northern California.
Coronado began its existence in 1957, designed by a little-known architect called Jack Daray. Billy Casper, native son to San Diego, signed for a stellar 69 when the course was baptized. Less than a decade later, construction of the bridge required the expropriation of land where the 9th and 18th holes stood, necessitating a truncated redesign of the course. Despite that dagger, the golf course survived and continues to thrive to this day. A great portion of the course occupies a central meadow, where trees, ponds and sand bunkers provide direction and obstruction. A strand of holes on the inward half runs along the waterway to the west, and no hole is ever without a glimpse of the towering bridge that brings golfers out from the mainland.
The most interesting aspect of Coronado is the disconnect between the way it plays and the its foundation. The island is completely sand based, so one would expect a linksy feel to the golf course. Nothing could be more distant from reality. Coronado is neither firm nor fast. It is extremely green and plays much like a midwest parkland course would play in the central USA. The course is thoughtfully routed, so that no two, consecutive holes move in precisely the same direction. Its conditioning is consistent and its pace of play, quite proper. A round of golf around the course moves appropriately and enjoyably. If you’ re not one for breaking the bank up the coast in La Jolla, at Torrey Pines, a round over the Coronado layout should cushion the wallet and soothe the soul.
WASHINGTON( CHAMBERS BAY)
After the 2015 US Open, which golfer didn’ t want to have a go at the course that drove the world’ s best golfers to the nadir of their skills? Certainly this one did, which is why I found myself at the Tacoma course precisely one day after completing a five-day visit to Bandon Dunes in Oregon. To properly frame the situation, that was five days of walking 36 holes each day, giving my calf muscles the visage of small grapefruits. After walking a mere 18 holes at Chambers Bay, it felt as if those grapefruits had been squeezed, juiced and carved out. That’ s how demanding the uphill climbs and downhill trots are at Chambers Bay. There’ s even a point in the round, after the third green, where a people mover picks up you, your caddy, your push cart, and ferries you one quarter mile to the next tee. Yep, it’ s uphill. Yep, the pros walked it. Now that we’ ve passed the fitness advisory, let’ s talk about the golf course. Chambers Bay was built in the 2000s by Robert Trent Jones, jr., Bruce Charlton and their team, over the remains
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