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Crooked Stick Golf Club
Architect: Pete Dye Year: 1964 1964 Burning Tree Ln, Carmel, IN 46032 Phone: (317) 844-9938 Course Access: Private https://www.crookedstick.org/ |
Crooked Stick Golf club
"That's what Pete wanted to build, something really special."
–Alice Dye
Crooked Stick Golf Club, built in 1964 by the famous course designers and builders Pete and Alice Dye, was host to the PGA Championship in 1991 won by John Daly and the U.S. Women’s Open in 1993, won by Lauri Merten. It also hosted the Solheim Cup matches in 2005. Crooked Stick also hosted the 2012 BMW Championship, won by Rory McIlroy, and hosted the tournament again in 2016, where Dustin Johnson won with a record-breaking -23.
For many years it has been noted as one of the top 100 courses in the U.S. by Golfweek and Golf Magazine, two of golf's most popular magazines.
1964
In 1964, Pete Dye built his first great golf course – Crooked Stick. Supported by 60 “interested, avid, and maybe crazy golfers” from the Indianapolis area, he formed a corporation to acquire a flat cornfield to be transformed into a links blend of Alister Mackenzie, Donald Ross, and C.B. Macdonald. Pete’s tour of St. Andrew, Muirfield, Prestwick, Carnoustie, and Royal Dornoch and other courses, provided him with the models for his track and routing. The cornfields were pushed into wide fairways and fair landing areas, but second shots were demanding. Pete’s design incorporated innovative elements in the United States, but familiar challenges in Scotland: railroad ties, strip bunkers, sand and grass pot bunkers, mounds and blind spots.
Construction of the first nine holes (now the back nine) was completed in 1965. Two years later the back nine was completed. Gene Pulliam, one of the original Directors, described the course as a challenging but fair test of the shot-making ability of players of varying proficiency, greens designed to the length and severity of each hole, a course which is 18 holes requires the use of nearly every club in the bag, an element of privacy by restricting the number of parallel holes, and, in sum, a course to be enjoyed both for the challenge of golf and the companionship which only golf offers.
The Name
In June 1964 the members were called upon to vote on a name for the club. “The Golf Club of Indianapolis” looked like the winner. But the story goes that as Pete Dye and Bill Wick, one of the original Directors, were walking over the uncompleted back nine, Pete picked up a gnarled stick and swung it at some stones. The likely beginning of the game was the inspiration for the name “Crooked Stick Golf Club,” which was ratified by the members on April 8, 1965.
first members
Our story begins on the evening of February 17, 1964 . . .
. . . at the Indianapolis Athletic Club. A gathering of about 60 people enjoy their dinner of vichyssoise, tossed salad, filet mignon, baked potato, and asparagus and listen to “a brief talk of not more than five minutes by each of us.” The “us” consists of five local businessmen, members of the Country Club of Indianapolis, bound together by a mutual interest in the game of golf:
The brief talk refers to a discussion of the five men’s objective: “To build the finest golf course in this area” (as quoted from their February 1964 Prospectus for Real Estate Development and Golf Course). In a letter to the other four, some two weeks earlier, Pulliam states: “Ike could talk about membership restrictions and club operation plans. Pete could describe the golf course. Bill could explain the corporate structure, Bob the finances involved and I’ll try to remember and retell a joke I once heard.”
Their lightheartedness belies the group’s weighty purpose: to secure a $6,000 commitment from no fewer than 100 people—$600,000 in needed capital for the acquisition of 400 acres of undeveloped land in Hamilton County, miles north of the city’s northern border, near the gravel road intersection of 106th Street and Ditch Road. The funds also provide a security nest egg enabling the now larger group to secure loans for construction of a golf course and clubhouse.
At the meeting, Pulliam hands out a small booklet entitled The Golf Club of Indianapolis, containing the names of 39 men who have already signed subscription commitments. (It will be many months before the club is named “Crooked Stick.”) The booklet also describes the planned golf course this way:
These principles should be followed as closely as possible in the design and construction of the golf course:
Each hole should be a demanding and challenging but fair test of the shot-making ability of players of varying proficiency. The placement of the tees, bunkers, and hazards should be such that a good shot should be rewarded and a poor shot penalized in proportion to the excellence or the extent of the error. The better the player, the more demanding the tee shot on any hole.
Putting surfaces should be contoured to provide both simple and difficult pin placements and should be designed to fit the length and severity of the hole. Specifically, the shorter the hole, the smaller in size and more severe in slope should be the putting surface.
Each hole, as much as possible, should be an entity unto itself and it should be a different type hole than the one preceding it.
Each hole should offer from the tee a choice to the player. He should be rewarded if he elects and succeeds with a difficult shot. He should be penalized when he fails.
The course in its entirety should be so designed that under normal conditions the player will be required to use every club in his bag during a round of 18 holes.
The 18 holes should offer a challenge and an opportunity to any golfer whatever his abilities. It should be so designed that if he plays as well as he is capable, his score will be that of which he is capable. It also should be so designed that he will enjoy both that challenge and the companionship which only golf offers.
Finally, a short quote, which publisher Pulliam found to his liking in the January 1964 issue of England’s Country Life magazine appears on the back page. Written by noted golf writer P.A. “Pat” Ward-Thomas, these words describe the essence of an ideal golf club—words that would later come to serve as an unofficial motto for the club, adorning scorecards, stationery and even the golf course itself:
The appeal . . . is that of a haven, far removed from urgency and conflict, where golfers can enjoy the quieter pleasures of their game in seclusion and peace. Crowds have no place there, and waiting between shots must be almost unknown, for the membership is limited . . .
–Alice Dye
Crooked Stick Golf Club, built in 1964 by the famous course designers and builders Pete and Alice Dye, was host to the PGA Championship in 1991 won by John Daly and the U.S. Women’s Open in 1993, won by Lauri Merten. It also hosted the Solheim Cup matches in 2005. Crooked Stick also hosted the 2012 BMW Championship, won by Rory McIlroy, and hosted the tournament again in 2016, where Dustin Johnson won with a record-breaking -23.
For many years it has been noted as one of the top 100 courses in the U.S. by Golfweek and Golf Magazine, two of golf's most popular magazines.
1964
In 1964, Pete Dye built his first great golf course – Crooked Stick. Supported by 60 “interested, avid, and maybe crazy golfers” from the Indianapolis area, he formed a corporation to acquire a flat cornfield to be transformed into a links blend of Alister Mackenzie, Donald Ross, and C.B. Macdonald. Pete’s tour of St. Andrew, Muirfield, Prestwick, Carnoustie, and Royal Dornoch and other courses, provided him with the models for his track and routing. The cornfields were pushed into wide fairways and fair landing areas, but second shots were demanding. Pete’s design incorporated innovative elements in the United States, but familiar challenges in Scotland: railroad ties, strip bunkers, sand and grass pot bunkers, mounds and blind spots.
Construction of the first nine holes (now the back nine) was completed in 1965. Two years later the back nine was completed. Gene Pulliam, one of the original Directors, described the course as a challenging but fair test of the shot-making ability of players of varying proficiency, greens designed to the length and severity of each hole, a course which is 18 holes requires the use of nearly every club in the bag, an element of privacy by restricting the number of parallel holes, and, in sum, a course to be enjoyed both for the challenge of golf and the companionship which only golf offers.
The Name
In June 1964 the members were called upon to vote on a name for the club. “The Golf Club of Indianapolis” looked like the winner. But the story goes that as Pete Dye and Bill Wick, one of the original Directors, were walking over the uncompleted back nine, Pete picked up a gnarled stick and swung it at some stones. The likely beginning of the game was the inspiration for the name “Crooked Stick Golf Club,” which was ratified by the members on April 8, 1965.
first members
Our story begins on the evening of February 17, 1964 . . .
. . . at the Indianapolis Athletic Club. A gathering of about 60 people enjoy their dinner of vichyssoise, tossed salad, filet mignon, baked potato, and asparagus and listen to “a brief talk of not more than five minutes by each of us.” The “us” consists of five local businessmen, members of the Country Club of Indianapolis, bound together by a mutual interest in the game of golf:
- Eugene S. Pulliam Publisher, The Indianapolis Star, The Indianapolis News
- Robert E. Sweeney, Jr. Banker, Merchants National Bank & Trust Company
- William A. Wick Attorney, a partner in the firm of White, Raub & Forrey
- J. I. “Ike” Cummings Insurance industry executive
- Paul “Pete” Dye, Jr. Little-known golf course designer with 10 courses to his credit
The brief talk refers to a discussion of the five men’s objective: “To build the finest golf course in this area” (as quoted from their February 1964 Prospectus for Real Estate Development and Golf Course). In a letter to the other four, some two weeks earlier, Pulliam states: “Ike could talk about membership restrictions and club operation plans. Pete could describe the golf course. Bill could explain the corporate structure, Bob the finances involved and I’ll try to remember and retell a joke I once heard.”
Their lightheartedness belies the group’s weighty purpose: to secure a $6,000 commitment from no fewer than 100 people—$600,000 in needed capital for the acquisition of 400 acres of undeveloped land in Hamilton County, miles north of the city’s northern border, near the gravel road intersection of 106th Street and Ditch Road. The funds also provide a security nest egg enabling the now larger group to secure loans for construction of a golf course and clubhouse.
At the meeting, Pulliam hands out a small booklet entitled The Golf Club of Indianapolis, containing the names of 39 men who have already signed subscription commitments. (It will be many months before the club is named “Crooked Stick.”) The booklet also describes the planned golf course this way:
These principles should be followed as closely as possible in the design and construction of the golf course:
Each hole should be a demanding and challenging but fair test of the shot-making ability of players of varying proficiency. The placement of the tees, bunkers, and hazards should be such that a good shot should be rewarded and a poor shot penalized in proportion to the excellence or the extent of the error. The better the player, the more demanding the tee shot on any hole.
Putting surfaces should be contoured to provide both simple and difficult pin placements and should be designed to fit the length and severity of the hole. Specifically, the shorter the hole, the smaller in size and more severe in slope should be the putting surface.
Each hole, as much as possible, should be an entity unto itself and it should be a different type hole than the one preceding it.
Each hole should offer from the tee a choice to the player. He should be rewarded if he elects and succeeds with a difficult shot. He should be penalized when he fails.
The course in its entirety should be so designed that under normal conditions the player will be required to use every club in his bag during a round of 18 holes.
The 18 holes should offer a challenge and an opportunity to any golfer whatever his abilities. It should be so designed that if he plays as well as he is capable, his score will be that of which he is capable. It also should be so designed that he will enjoy both that challenge and the companionship which only golf offers.
Finally, a short quote, which publisher Pulliam found to his liking in the January 1964 issue of England’s Country Life magazine appears on the back page. Written by noted golf writer P.A. “Pat” Ward-Thomas, these words describe the essence of an ideal golf club—words that would later come to serve as an unofficial motto for the club, adorning scorecards, stationery and even the golf course itself:
The appeal . . . is that of a haven, far removed from urgency and conflict, where golfers can enjoy the quieter pleasures of their game in seclusion and peace. Crowds have no place there, and waiting between shots must be almost unknown, for the membership is limited . . .