'The excitement is off the charts': Members are excited about Worcester Country Club's restoration
At Worcester Country Club, they dug up history.
As part of a $3.7 million restoration of Worcester CC, architect Gil Hanse planned to lower the 11th green by 8 feet to return it to its original height when Donald Ross designed the course in 1914.
As Hanse studied the fairway in front of the green late last August, he told superintendent Adam Moore that he felt something was missing. Somehow he sensed that a bunker to the front left of the green must have been filled in. It turned out that he was right. In the exact spot where he instructed Moore to dig, the remains of a bunker from the original design were found.
“It was amazing,” Moore said. “That shows just how good those guys are.”
So Hanse, Moore and their crews restored the green to its original height, rebuilt the bunker that had been eliminated, kept a bunker to the left of that bunker, installed a new bunker behind the green and brought the bunker to the right of the green closer to the fairway.
The golf course architectural firm of Cornish and Silva had raised the 11th green in the late 1960s, but now approach shots that manage to avoid the bunkers can roll onto the green.
“I think it fits more with the character of the golf course,” Moore said. “It’s way more interesting. There’s just a little bit more to think about. The old green didn’t fit in with the rest of the property.”
Head pro Andy Lane said feedback has been positive from members, who think hitting into the 11th green requires more strategy now. The 11th green was ready to play when Worcester CC opened for the season on March 29 with nine holes — Nos. 8-16. A few more holes are scheduled to open by the end of April, and the remaining holes are expected to open by Memorial Day.
More history was dug up on the 15th tee. Longtime member and past club president Bill Abodeely tried to tell people that a separate tee box had been built on the 15th hole for the 1925 U.S. Open, but the club couldn’t find any evidence of it. During the restoration project, Hanse and Moore discovered it near the rain shelter, restored it and lined up the other tee boxes on 15 with it.
The 1925 U.S. Open is known for Bobby Jones calling a penalty on himself during the first round when his ball moved in the rough on the 11th hole as he addressed it. No one else saw his ball move, but Jones insisted on penalizing himself. He went on to lose in a playoff to Willie Macfarlane.
A plaque next to the 11th tee calls Jones’ decision: “A defining moment in the game of golf.”
This spring, a few cart paths at Worcester CC will be paved, and a bridge will be built over the creek on the fifth hole, but general manager Troy Sprister pointed out that the restoration was performed slightly under budget and on time. The only part of the restoration that won’t be finished this year is lowering the seventh tee to its original height. The nearby ponds must be dredged before work on the seventh tee can begin.
“It was a lot of work,” Moore said, “but it was such a cool experience.”
Moore and his staff worked with MAS Golf Course Renovation and Construction of Hopkinton under the guidance of Hanse and his associate, Kevin Murphy. Hanse was on site eight or nine times last fall, and Murphy was on hand three or four times a week.
MAS previously worked with Hanse on several other golf courses, including TPC Boston in Norton, The Country Club in Brookline and Myopia Hunt Club in South Hamilton, and worked with Ron Prichard at Oak Hill CC in Fitchburg.
Prichard also implemented a master plan at Worcester CC from 2005-2007 to expand greens and fairways, renovate the bunkers and tees, and update the irrigation system.
Sprister said it was time to renovate the 85 bunkers and the club decided to go a step further and restore the entire course. From last August until nearly Christmas, the bunkers were renovated, making them more shallow and easier to blast out of.
“Over time,” Moore said, “we found that they had become deeper and smaller and ultimately more penal than they really should be and what they originally intended.”
New drainage was installed in the bunkers and they were filled with high density sand to reduce the number of buried lies. A handful of bunkers were added, including one in the landing area on the right side of the 15th fairway, and one on the seventh hole was removed.
Greens are being expanded by 15 percent, from 3 acres to 3.4 acres. Some fairways were expanded and several back tees were moved back. The par-70 layout is expected to play close to 6,900 yards from the tips, about 150-200 longer than it did last year.
Several trees were removed to make room for two new back tees that extended the par-4 14th hole to 440 yards, about 40 yards longer than it had been. Removing the trees also created a better view of the 11th, 14th and 15th fairways. The rough between the holes will be removed to return them to their original design.
In 2019 and 2020, some forward tees were moved closer to shorten the course from 5,434 yards to 4,907.
“I think we’re definitely getting more attention because of the restoration,” Moore said. “We’ve been on a good path in terms of the golf course for a long time.”
“It’s stunning,” Lane said. “It was beautiful before, and now it’s reached a whole other level. The excitement is off the charts.”
The Hanse-led restoration had its challenges. Rain fell for the first half of the restoration work, and crews worked from sun up until sundown six days a week for nearly five months.
“It was a lot of work and a lot of stress,” Moore said.
But the hard work paid off. Sprister said members were excited to watch Hanse, Moore, Murphy and their crews restore the course, but they had to be kept at a distance for safety reasons. Sprister also said members supported closing holes in order to restore them on schedule.
“Even this spring,” Sprister said, “a lot of members were reluctant to open. ‘Why are you open so early? Why don’t you let it grow in?’ But Adam knows when it’s ready.”
A grand reopening weekend is scheduled for May 31-June 2 with a ribbon cutting ceremony, a poolside BBQ, golf, and a concert by Cara Brindisi, the former contestant on “The Voice” who grew up in Shrewsbury.
Sprister said the club has a wait list and 489 members, compared to 470 last year.
“Overall, it’s incredible,” Moore said. “It’s a perfect blend of making it easier for the higher handicapper golfers and a little bit more challenging for the championship caliber golfers. So it gives us the ability to possibly host something in the future, whether it’s a USGA event or some of the Massachusetts state championships. And it’s more enjoyable for the everyday golfer.”
Worcester CC will host the Tri-State Matches between Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut on Oct. 15-16 and is scheduled to host the Mass. Senior Amateur next year on Sept. 29-30.
Worcester CC is still interested in hosting the Solheim Cup, but the earliest one available is 2032.
Sprister said golf course experts will be invited to rate the restored Worcester CC with the hope of being elevated into Golf Digest’s top 100 classic golf courses in the U.S.
Golf Digest ranks Worcester CC as the 10th best private golf course in Massachusetts, and the club hopes to jump higher on that list as well after the restoration is completed.
Worcester CC also expects to be in contention for Golf Digest’s best renovation award. The Country Club of Cleveland, which Hanse renovated, finished second runner-up in that category last year.
The restoration will be finished in time to help the club celebrate the 100th anniversaries of hosting the 1925 U.S. Open and the inaugural Ryder Cup in 1927.
With the restoration underway last August, the 48th annual Lori Lajoie Charity Golf Classic was played on 16 holes, including a makeshift par 3 on the driving range. This year, the event will be held on all 18 holes on Monday, Aug. 19. The tournament has raised more than $7 million for the Seven Hills Foundation, Greater Worcester’s largest provider of programs for the developmentally and physically challenged.
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—Contact Bill Doyle at bcdoyle15@charter.net. Follow him on Twitter@BillDoyle15.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Highlights of Worcester Country Club restoration catches members' attention
