Quaker Ridge Golf Club
By Chris Mavros, www.Golfadelphia.com
6,456 yards, 137 slope from the Blues
Quaker Ridge is in Scarsdale, New York, which is right above Manhattan for the uninitiated. I am among those who have not spent a whole lot of time in this area, even though it is an absolute mine field of spectacular courses that pretty much sit side by side. Case in point is Winged Foot, which is directly across the street from Quaker Ridge and a few blocks away is Wykagyl and Siwany while Fenway is just a tad north. We’ll be here all day if I keep going but the proximity to New York City as well as the hilly terrain made for a number of well established courses that have settled in nicely over the last several decades.
Quaker Ridge is one of these that sits in splendor and has intrigued me for some time.
The course started as nine holes laid out by John Duncan Dunn in 1915, who was the golf professional at Les Golfs d’Hardelot in France. Dunn attempted to emulate famous golf holes in the U.K. and leaned towards a sporty style as the course was carved out of the woods as a brook called the Sheldrake River saunters through various hills, nooks and dells. The club thereafter underwent ownership change and consulted with A.W. Tillinghast to inspect the existing nine holes in 1916. His report was fairly critical, generally commenting that the nine holes were, “not impressive” and “lack distinction,” but with “modern methods and an intelligent placement and building of hazards will add greatly to the layout.” The club also acquired new land that Tilly inspected for an additional nine holes, which he remarked as “thoroughly good” and “will serve admirably every demand of the modern game.” And with that, Dunn was out and Tilly was in. He re-designed seven of the holes and built eleven of his own, then returned in the mid 1920’s for some revisionary and refinement work.
“In my review of Baltimore Country Club, I wrote about how the course seemed to be a grand expression of Tillinghast as he had the freedom to do as he wish among the sprawling hills. You then have other courses of Tilly, like Wissahickon and Somerset Hills, where there’s a ying and yang between grandeur and intimacy. Quaker Ridge is a brilliant display of another side of Tillinghast. A leafy, idyllic parkland with a serene brook or pond here and there, width and creative freedom of playing structure is maintained even while trees are integral to the design. The ridges, contours, center line roughing mounds and bunkers all bring forth a wonderful tee to green experience that is subdued and restrained, anchored a bit more to traditional presentation. Yet the play structure is rich with strategy and subtlety, where the golfer must consider terrain movement, angles and playing lines, as well as hazard placement. The bold directness and vast intimidation I have encountered at other Tillinghast courses is not present here. There are more exquisite tones that lull the golfer with its relaxing setting yet demand the sharpness and resolve of any of his other courses. I haven’t even mentioned the greens yet, which is where subdued and bold expressions blend in harmonic intrigue. One of the best parklands out there.” This is what I wrote in my Year in Review of Quaker and is worth reiterating verbatim here.
Indeed, there’s a complete immersion here that was fascinating to experience. The lulling of the golfer cannot be emphasized enough. The test before him is comprehensive and stiff yet the visuals do not give any of that away. This challenge begins off the tee and makes for a bit of a driver’s course. The trees, contours and bunkers then conspire into a ball striking gauntlet, leading to the greens that are mischievous and fickle. The golfer never notices as the strokes pile up, as he is too immersed in the pleasant setting to fully focus on the task at hand, or if he does notice, seldom cares all that much as he moves from one lovely landscape to the next. The terrain is used masterfully and even for the golfer who is able to direct his attention to the game, will face ample strategic decisions as he makes his way around.
Fortune found me here last fall in more ways than one. The course seemed to be in peak form and as rare as rare can be, my game was following suit. Brimming with confidence and overjoyed to finally visit, I teed off, beaming.... Continue Reading Here
6,456 yards, 137 slope from the Blues
Quaker Ridge is in Scarsdale, New York, which is right above Manhattan for the uninitiated. I am among those who have not spent a whole lot of time in this area, even though it is an absolute mine field of spectacular courses that pretty much sit side by side. Case in point is Winged Foot, which is directly across the street from Quaker Ridge and a few blocks away is Wykagyl and Siwany while Fenway is just a tad north. We’ll be here all day if I keep going but the proximity to New York City as well as the hilly terrain made for a number of well established courses that have settled in nicely over the last several decades.
Quaker Ridge is one of these that sits in splendor and has intrigued me for some time.
The course started as nine holes laid out by John Duncan Dunn in 1915, who was the golf professional at Les Golfs d’Hardelot in France. Dunn attempted to emulate famous golf holes in the U.K. and leaned towards a sporty style as the course was carved out of the woods as a brook called the Sheldrake River saunters through various hills, nooks and dells. The club thereafter underwent ownership change and consulted with A.W. Tillinghast to inspect the existing nine holes in 1916. His report was fairly critical, generally commenting that the nine holes were, “not impressive” and “lack distinction,” but with “modern methods and an intelligent placement and building of hazards will add greatly to the layout.” The club also acquired new land that Tilly inspected for an additional nine holes, which he remarked as “thoroughly good” and “will serve admirably every demand of the modern game.” And with that, Dunn was out and Tilly was in. He re-designed seven of the holes and built eleven of his own, then returned in the mid 1920’s for some revisionary and refinement work.
“In my review of Baltimore Country Club, I wrote about how the course seemed to be a grand expression of Tillinghast as he had the freedom to do as he wish among the sprawling hills. You then have other courses of Tilly, like Wissahickon and Somerset Hills, where there’s a ying and yang between grandeur and intimacy. Quaker Ridge is a brilliant display of another side of Tillinghast. A leafy, idyllic parkland with a serene brook or pond here and there, width and creative freedom of playing structure is maintained even while trees are integral to the design. The ridges, contours, center line roughing mounds and bunkers all bring forth a wonderful tee to green experience that is subdued and restrained, anchored a bit more to traditional presentation. Yet the play structure is rich with strategy and subtlety, where the golfer must consider terrain movement, angles and playing lines, as well as hazard placement. The bold directness and vast intimidation I have encountered at other Tillinghast courses is not present here. There are more exquisite tones that lull the golfer with its relaxing setting yet demand the sharpness and resolve of any of his other courses. I haven’t even mentioned the greens yet, which is where subdued and bold expressions blend in harmonic intrigue. One of the best parklands out there.” This is what I wrote in my Year in Review of Quaker and is worth reiterating verbatim here.
Indeed, there’s a complete immersion here that was fascinating to experience. The lulling of the golfer cannot be emphasized enough. The test before him is comprehensive and stiff yet the visuals do not give any of that away. This challenge begins off the tee and makes for a bit of a driver’s course. The trees, contours and bunkers then conspire into a ball striking gauntlet, leading to the greens that are mischievous and fickle. The golfer never notices as the strokes pile up, as he is too immersed in the pleasant setting to fully focus on the task at hand, or if he does notice, seldom cares all that much as he moves from one lovely landscape to the next. The terrain is used masterfully and even for the golfer who is able to direct his attention to the game, will face ample strategic decisions as he makes his way around.
Fortune found me here last fall in more ways than one. The course seemed to be in peak form and as rare as rare can be, my game was following suit. Brimming with confidence and overjoyed to finally visit, I teed off, beaming.... Continue Reading Here
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