Recently in Golf Category

This week's edition of The Hole Picture zeroes in on No. 9 on the Lakeside Course at Cantigny Golf in Wheaton. What's really interesting about this hole is that it features a fairway bunker in the shape of Dick Tracy's head, which you can see pretty well in this image.

Let me shed some light on that. The first thing you need to know is that Cantigny is built on the estate of Robert R. McCormick, the first publisher of the Chicago Tribune. And the Tribune employed both Dick Tracy creator Chester Gould as well as one of its longtime illustrators, Naperville resident Dick Locher, hence the nod to the comic strip detective.

Now I'll throw this out there: If you could pick someone's visage to be replicated in a bunker, who would it be? Maybe Naperville Mayor George Pradel? Or how about one in the shape of the Millenium Carillon?

For quite a while, Country Lakes Golf Course had been fighting a losing battle to try and keep the course maintained. From a lack of ball washers to poorly maintained grounds, to debris and refuse strewn all over the course, it's safe to say it had hit rock bottom in recent years.

But the new management seems dedicated to changing all that. It has a long way to go, but at least it can no longer be described as unkempt, and the fairways and greens are gaining consistency. After speaking with some of the staff members, they seemed genuine in saying all the right things, and I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt that the worst is behind them.

The clubhouse still needs some work. When I was there this week, the lights were off everywhere but the pro shop and bathrooms. Yet from what I understand, that project is up to the course managers over at Royce Realty, and not in the hands of the golf staff.

What's most important to you when choosing a golf course? Price? Quality of the grounds? Challenging layout? A place to relax after your round?

Naperville golfers had best beware when they head out to some area courses, as some changes can be a bit tricky. Others are simply helpful. For other modifications courses have been making, read this week's Fore Sight, in the May 8 edition of The Sun or here.

River Bend
"We've redone the bunker on No. 1 and put a bunch of boulders around it into the water area just to solve our erosion problem there," said Mike Reilly, River Bend head pro.
"We're still planning a new tee area on No. 4. That's in the very basic stages. We've got the dirt down, but that's about it. We're probably looking at next spring on that. We'll continue to keep planting trees of course; trees are big with us."

Cantigny Golf Club
On Woodside No. 9 (a 421-yard par 4), there's a new bunker on the left side, about halfway to the green.
"This bunker kind of gave definition to where you should target your shot," Cantigny head pro Patrick Lynch said. "Generally speaking from the diff tees it's easy to carry. For some people it will come into play if they're a little bit shorter, but for the most part the idea was to give it a visual intimidation from the tee and better define the look of the hole."

On Hillside No. 5 (a 151-yard par 3), the bunker that protects the left side of the green is being extended.
"There's water that comes into play just off the green, so the safe shot is to hit long, toward the back of the green," Lynch said. "Now that bunker's going to come a little bit more into play."

On Hillside No. 3 (a 374-yard par 4), a new cluster of bunkers on the left side of the fairway can change one's strategy off the tee.
"Whereas before you could hit to the left sideand have a clean shot into the green, now that bunker definitely comes into play, especially for a longer hitter," Lynch said. "Now that's not a bailout necessarily. Now you either have to play it down the right-hand side or lay up a little bit short of that bunker."

Bolingbrook Golf Club
Because Bolingbrook is just a half-dozen years old, it's not due for an overhaul just yet. But the green on No. 12 (a 562-yard par 5) did need some refurbishing.
"The improvement we made on 12 was in response to a lot of feedback," head pro Mike Williams said. "it was poorly designed from the beginning. it was a very severe green, so we kind of softened some of the harshness to it."

This week's edition of The Hole Picture takes a peek at No. 7 -- a par 5 that's 530 yards from the tips -- at Naperbrook Golf Course in Plainfield.

Here's how Naperbrook head pro Tim Dunn suggests you attack it :

"A risk reward hole where birdie or bogey come into play," Dunn said. "Usually downwind and plays downhill. A good drive is a must to get home in two. Fairway bunker on the left and high rough and rolling hills on the right will leave you no option but to lay up. The green is surrounded by water hazards, which forces a great second shot if you are trying to get there in two. A back left pin is very tough to get at. The smart play is to lay up and leave yourself a flip wedge into the green for your third shot and hope you can one-putt for your birdie."

Although technology has advanced to the point where golf clubs can launch the ball much farther than the equpment currently on the market will allow, the sport's two governing bodies -- the United States Golf Association and the Royal & Ancient Golf Club -- set limits on clubs' potency.

St. Andrews Golf Club head pro Dave Erickson, for one, is all for establishing such guidelines.

"Some of the skill has been taken away with the big-headed driver and the distance of the golf ball," he said. "A little of the skill is gone to where people can swing very, very hard at the ball, out of control, and they can still find the ball because of these big heads, where maybe with a smaller head you needed to keep your balance a little better.

Rendering courses obsolete would be another byproduct of unleashing drives of, say, 400 yards on a regular basis.

"There are so many golf courses that might be 7,000 yards and they might be beautiful golf courses; if all of a sudden you just let loose and let a golf ball go as far as you can make it go, you're really going to make golf courses obsolete," Erickson said. "You're going to make golf more expensive because now you've got to take care of 8,000 yards instead of 7,000. It's that much more fertilizer, that much more cutting of the grass, much more time to take care of it.

"And all these other courses, what are you going to do, just walk away from them because they're so short? I think there has to be a limit on this stuff and keep part of the game to where it's the skill of the player and not the clubs."

This week's edition of The Hole Picture breaks down No. 10 on Course No. 1 at St. Andrews Golf Club in West Chicago. The 503-yard par 5 might not look like much standing on the tee or even right after your drive, as it's more than reachable for quite a few players. But there's a new twist that should ratchet up the difficulty.

"We had these humps that were already in the fairway, but we used to mow them close, like fairway length," said Dave Erickson, head golf professional at St. Andrews. "So your ball would just roll up the hump and the ball would never stay on the hump. They're near the green, these five humps, in the area from 20 to 60 yards short of it.

"So what we did, we let these humps grow wild. So it really made you think about it if you don't think you can fly over these humps. Because once you get in them and the grass is a foot long ... you don't want to take that chance next time. Now it's a par 5 that in some instances you're better laying back 80 yards than taking a chance in ending up on one of these humps. It's the most St. Andrews-looking hole we have. It basically made you think a little bit more."

I'll say. I'd much rather be taking a wedge from the fairway than trying to hack out of grass that's a foot long. Has anyone played this hole and noticed a big difference in how to approach it? What other holes at St. Andrews can be tricky?

Being picked at the last second by Wayne Grady to caddie at the Masters Par 3 Tournament is a priceless experience for 14-year-old Ross Murphy. (You can read about the Naperville resident's unbelievable luck in the April 24 sun, or here.) But the experience also could be had for those willing to donate enough to charity.

Ross' father, Dave, ran into someone on the course who filled him in.

"Seventh or eighth hole this guy comes up to me, and I don't know who this guy is," Dave said. "He's got an English accent. I look over at him and I say, 'That's my kid who's caddying,' and he says, 'I know.'"

Turns out the man is the regular caddie for one of the players in Grady's group. He wasn't on the bag that day because a corporate auction to benefit charity allowed someone else to have the job for the day. Dave asked how much it cost, and the man with the accent converted it from British pounds.

The total? About $30,000.

Dave was floored.

"I said, 'You're kidding me, right? My kid was just picked an hour ago to do this.' He goes, 'I know, that's what's so great about this story."

And if you want to get a glimpse of Ross Murphy after Grady's hole-in-one, click here.

This week's featured hole (in the April 24 Sun) is No. 2 at River Bend Golf Club, a par 4 that plays at 404 yards from the back tees.

Head pro Mike Reilly had this to say about No. 2 at his course:

"A couple things about it that I like, one is from the blue tees you're still 400 plus. And depending on the wind, you're still grabbing a head cover for your second shot; you're still thinking about hitting 200 plus into (the green). Out of bounds left, a good bunker off the tee that's pretty much right in the way. It's really tough to get over it unless you're a huge hitter. And it's one of our biggest greens on the golf course, too, so you can have some monster putts out there.

"It was the original No. 1 in the old clubhouse days. It was really a tough starting hole then because right away you're facing a long par 4. It's well-treed, it's well-bunkered at the green. You walk away from there and put 4 down, it's a good number."

He's right about that. In the half-dozen or so times I've played River Bend, I can remember making par just once. It might not be the most intriguing hole on the course, but it will test your game, as Reilly says, especially if the wind is gusting.

Welcome to the first installment of The Hole Picture, blog edition. As a supplement to Fore Sight, the weekly golf page and column in The Naperville Sun's sports section, we'd love to hear what you, the golfers think of the holes we feature. Is it particularly treacherous? Not as tough as it looks? A black hole for your golf balls?

First up for 2008 is No. 12 at Bolingbrook Golf Club. Head pro Mike Williams had this to say about how to approach it:

"The 12th hole offers several risk-reward options. The 562-yard par 5 is a double dogleg requiring proper placement of the tee shot, a thoughtful approach to the second shot and precision on the shot to the green. From there it's an easy two-putt on an undulating green!

"From the tee, players must decide whether to cut off some of the first dogleg by hitting their tee shot more than 200 yards over water, avoiding two bunkers in the landing area, or play it safe and be faced with a longer second shot. The second shot should avoid the mounding on the left and the water on the right and leave the player with a short iron to the green. Club selection on the third shot is critical, as the green is deep and selection can vary by as many as three clubs.

"Wind is always a factor at Bolingbrook Golf Club, and the 12th hole is no exception, with the prevailing winds coming into the player's face."

Is he right? As I have not played this course myself, I'm eager to here what those of you who have played it have to say. And what other holes on that track stand out in your mind?.