Often Overshadowed, Yet One of A.W. Tillinghast's Finest Designs
Alex Elias
Courtesy of Evan Schiller (@evan_schiller_photography)
Although Fenway Golf Club (Scarsdale, NY) is often overshadowed by its neighbors, Winged Foot Golf Club (Mamaroneck, NY) and Quaker Ridge Golf Club (Scarsdale, NY), Fenway Golf Club is one of A.W. Tillinghast’s finest designs. As Tillinghast’s overarching philosophy was that each course and hole deserved its own identity, Tyler Jaramillo, Head Golf Professional at Fenway Golf Club, said, “Fenway requires every club and shot in the bag. It has dogleg lefts, dogleg rights, short Par-3s, short Par-4s, all-you-can-eat Par-4s, and two gettable Par-5s.”
As a complement to the strong variety of holes, Fenway Golf Club features perhaps the most varied green complexes in the U.S. In fact, following Gil Hanse’s restoration in 1997, Hanse said, “It is the green complexes that make this course so special.”
“The size of the greens vary drastically, with some being tiny.” said Jaramillo. “Other than Somerset Hills [Country Club], I can’t think of many other courses where the size of the greens vary as much as they do here.”
In particular, the Par-4 15th green (pictured above) is barely 2,500 square feet. A mere 13’ wide and tilted back to front, Jaramillo described the green complex as “one of the most unique and interesting green complexes in the country.”
“Due to the size and severity of the green, it’s amazing how many players are relieved to make Par on a 300 yard Par-4,” said Jaramillo. “If a player misses the narrow green either in the left or right greenside bunkers, they may even have to chip backwards to the fairway to save Par.”
Even given the unparalleled variation in the size of the greens, the dramatic contours may be more distinct. One of the most notable, the Par-5 3rd features a two-tiered green sloping from right to left.
“The green is so severe,” said Jaramillo. “You could have a putt that breaks three different ways.”
Courtesy of Evan Schiller (@evan_schiller_photography)
Although Tillinghast believed in little redundancy between his designs, he pioneered the “Great Hazard” template, a mass of bunkers that typically comes into play on a player’s second shot on a Par-5. Unlike other renditions, the Great Hazard at Fenway Golf Club doesn’t stretch across the entire fairway. Instead, it obstructs only the right side of the fairway.
“It’s so fascinating because it doesn’t stretch across the entire fairway, but the forced carry is longer here than at other Tilly designs,” said Jaramillo. “As a result, it forces you to play down the left side, where you have a fifteen yard window with OB left.”
With immense variety and unrivaled undulating greens, it's difficult to comprehend why this Tillinghast-design doesn't receive more recognition.
