In the summer of 2004, Hattiesburg Country Club (HCC) decided to make
a handful of course upgrades in preparation for the club hosting the
2005 State Amateur Championship. They called on our principal
architect, Nathan Crace, for assistance with the project--given his
past history with the club's whole course renovations in 1999.
“The
course has continued to receive rave reviews since re-opening in
1999,” says Crace.
“And I’ve always felt fortunate to have been a part of the
renovation work.
But with the State Amateur coming here next year, the club
wanted to ‘tweak’ a few things.”
The
“tweaking” includes adding three fairway bunkers on the par-5 17th
hole, enlarging the member tee on the par-4 1st hole, and
re-working the first fairway bunker on the par-5 13th hole.
According to Crace, the changes are both aesthetic and
functional.
“There
aren’t a lot of things you can do to improve this course,” he
adds.
“[Director of Golf] Jerry [Weeks], [Superintendent] Frank [Ogletree],
their staff, and the membership have done a tremendous job of maturing
the course in the five years since the renovation work.
They just felt like the timing was right to address a few minor
issues they wanted to look into on the course.”
The before and after photos below demonstrate the subtle yet effective
changes that resulted from this week-long project.
|
Click here to see
the photo gallery from the 1999 renovation project. |
|
|
The
addition of three fairway bunkers down the left side of the first landing area on the par-5 17th hole created a dramatic visual
impact from the tee (and the clubhouse) and placed more of a premium
on the tee shot for longer hitters who can reach the green
in two. The photos below show (1) the
new bunkers after being flagged out by Mr. Crace, (2) the same
areas after the sod was stripped, (3) the bunkers after rough shaping,
and (4) the completed project after drainage, sod and sand were installed. |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The
before and after photos below show the view from the championship tee
on the 17th hole. |
 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
The
photo below shows a wide-angle view from the championship tee on the
17th hole. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The
photos below show the first fairway bunker on the 13th hole before
and after the work.
Re-shaping the bunker not only made it more visible from the
tee, but it also brought it more into play. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
