CHRIS LANG ( 2 ) |
On a glorious Friday in April , dignitaries gathered at The Omni Homestead Resort ’ s famed Cascades Course . Morning libations were served . Fellowship was had . Golf was played . All was in the honor of the 100th anniversary of the groundbreaking of one of America ’ s most famed tracks . No club in Virginia has hosted more VSGA championships ( 256 ), a tally that will rise again in 2023 when the Senior and Super Senior Women ’ s Amateurs return to the Old Course .
Additionally , the Homestead has hosted more USGA championships than any Virginia club ( 8 ). Part of the anniversary celebration was the announcement that the USGA will be returning to Hot Springs for two more championships this decade — the Senior Women ’ s Amateur in 2025 and the Senior Amateur in 2029 .
It marks the first national championships at the Cascades since the Senior Women ’ s Amateur was held there in 2009 . The Homestead has hosted some of the nation ’ s most prestigious championships , including the 1967 U . S . Women ’ s Open ,
|
the 1988 U . S . Amateur , the 1928 and 1994 U . S . Women ’ s Amateurs and the 1966 Curtis Cup .
“ The Omni Homestead Resort has been a part of USGA history for nearly a century ,” said Mark Hill , USGA managing director , Championships . “ We look forward to returning to the Hot Springs community to continue this legacy . The announcement of these championships only adds to the excitement of the future of competitive senior golf .”
The history of how the Cascades came to be is fascinating . Legendary architect A . W . Tillinghast was given the first crack at designing a course on a tract of land just south of the main Homestead Resort , but he declared the land unsuitable for construction . William Flynn , at the time a relative unknown in the design space , entered the picture in 1923 and found the land located at the northern end of the Falling Springs Valley near the headwaters of the picturesque Cascades Stream more than tenable .
Actual work on the course began on September 12 , 1923 , and the course opened for play a mere 13 months later . In between , Flynn and his team transformed the area
|
The USGA ' s Mark Hill makes the championship announcement .
into a breathtaking golf experience . Houses that existed on the property — including one in the middle of what would become the first fairway — were moved , as was plenty of sod and rocks . An extensive irrigation system was installed .
According to reports filed from Col . R . H . Patterson , chief engineer at The Homestead from 1916-26 , the total cost of constructing the Cascades was just north of $ 140,000 , which would translate to about $ 2.5 million today .
Per golfclubatlas . com , which cited Flynn historian Wayne Morrison : “ Trees were cut , cleared , and hauled to a mill for use on the construction of the course .
|