Oak HIlls, in San Antonio, has an extended historical past as a match host.
USGA/John Mummert
“Nestled in San Antonio’s Southwest Texas Medical Center . . .”
As course descriptions go, the language on the Oak Hills Country Club web site doesn’t precisely drip with Golden Age romance. But simply as you’ll be able to’t choose a driver by its head cowl, you’ll be able to’t take the total measure of a structure by the boilerplate on its touchdown web page.
Behind that less-than-inspired lingo is a pedigreed course with a wealthy historical past and an extended resume as a match host, a CV that may develop this weekend and into subsequent week when Oak Hills welcomes the ninth U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship.
The area for the team-format occasion is eclectic, that includes gamers from seven nations who vary in age from 14 to 41. Six of the two-player sides are siblings, and 16 are composed of faculty teammates, present, previous or future.
Everything is about for a compelling competitors. With play scheduled to start on Saturday, listed here are 6 things you want to know about the stage.
1. It’s a Tillinghast design
The decade main up to the Great Depression was a busy time for the Golden Age big, A.W. Tillinghast. In 1920 alone, the celebrated architect had 40-plus initiatives within the works, together with Baltusrol, San Francisco Golf Club, Philadelphia Cricket Club and Upper Montclair (the New Jersey host web site of this week’s LPGA Cognizant Founders Cup). The following 12 months, one other fee got here his means, on the leafy outskirts of San Antonio. Originally often known as Alamo Country Club, Oak Hills was first conceived as a 25-hole facility, with an 18-hole championship course and a 7-hole quick course drawn up by a pair of unknown architects. But the design work was quickly handed over to Tilly, who routed a single 18-hole structure. The membership opened in 1922.
2. It lives up to its label
As the identify suggests, Oak Hills is a sylvan structure. “If you’re slightly off the fairways, you’re in the trees,” says Gretchen Johnson, a GOLF journal course rater who’s competing on this week’s championship. Tight taking part in corridors give means to pushed-up, contoured greens, most of that are jealously guarded by bunkers. “Outside of 15 feet, a lot of putts will break two ways,” Johnson says. This will not be a course to bomb-and-gouge. After an errant drive, Johnson says, “it will be fun to see how aggressive players get,” and whether or not they choose to punch out to the golf green or take bolder purpose towards a greenside bunker. Not that discovering the quick grass off the tee ensures a transparent strategy strategy to the inexperienced. On plenty of holes, together with the par-4 1st, Johnson says, “you have to find the proper side of the fairway or you don’t have a shot due to being blocked out by trees.”
3. Big names have received right here
The Women’s Four-Ball isn’t Oak Hills’ first rodeo. In the final 60-plus years, the membership has hosted 34 PGA Tour and Champions occasions, in addition to the 2001 U.S. Junior Amateur. In 1987, Oak Hills was the location of Tom Watson’s victory within the inaugural Tour Championship. Other big-name winners on these grounds embrace Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Hale Irwin, Ben Crenshaw, Corey Pavin and Nick Price, all of whom claimed Texas Open titles through the interval when the match was held at Oak Hills, from 1961-92.
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4. The par-5 fifth is a beast
When it was constructed, the 657-yard par-5 fifth was acknowledged by the USGA because the longest golf gap on the planet. That’s not the case. But the outlet nonetheless suggestions out on the similar hefty yardage. For this week’s match, the again tees (recognized on the membership because the Tillinghast tees) received’t be in play. The markers will probably be set at 571 yards, with an alternate tee at 526 yards. By any measure, although, the outlet stays a take a look at.
5. Each 9 ends with a 3
In a course-routing rarity, each the ninth and 18th holes at Oak Hills are par-3s. The latter suggestions out at 200 yards, making it the longer of the 2 and an intriguing prospect for matches that come down to the ultimate gap. “It’s not a hole you can sleep on,” Johnson says. “It requires a committed swing. Par is good.”
6. It’s been restored and re-grassed
In 2018, Tripp Davis accomplished a renovation that included the revival of Tillinghast options on greens, bunkers and tees; new drainage and irrigation; and a brand new apply facility. As a part of the work, the greens have been re-grassed with a brand new pressure of Bermuda whereas the remainder of the course was switched from Bermuda to principally Zoysia. Zoysia is usually a grabby grass, and after a wet spell earlier this week, Johnson says that the turf was pretty spongy throughout Thursday apply rounds, with “some bounce but not a ton of roll out.” With drier climate forecast for Friday and Saturday, that might change when play begins. Wind additionally stands to be an element; that is Texas, in spite of everything. But Johnson says that if the match is about up to its revealed yardage “you will have to be a very big hitter” to attain any of the par-5s in two.
“Teams that are good wedge players should do well,” Johnson says.
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