urban ku # 104 ~ golf in the kingdom

Like playing golf in Scotland without the airfare • click to embiggenIf I had to choose one golf course to play for the rest of my life, without a moment's hesitation it would be the Cedar River GC.

The course is an outstanding example of golf the way it used to be - a course built long before earth moving equipment shaped a course. The course simply follows the lay of the land and, in this case, the Cedar River (or the Cedar Burn, as the Scots would say). The river, a wild scenic gem, winds its way throughout the layout coming into play one way or another on nearly every hole - sometimes you see it, sometimes you don't.

And, just like Scottish links courses, there are plenty of blind shots, firm undulating fairways (with lots of brown grass - only the greens are watered) which can cause a beautifully placed shot to roll and roll and roll to a place you really don't want to be, elevated tees and greens, and, speaking of greens, beautifully maintained small-ish greens with lots of contours and devilishly placed pins - it was very entertaining to see the wife chip onto a green and then watch the ball roll off the other side and then, chip on again, only to have the ball roll right back to her feet (not once, but twice). Great fun (for me).

All of this delightful quirky character is wonderful but the icing on the cake is the course placement in an Adirondack-wild location. Because the layout is so follow-the-land natural, it feels (and is) like all-of-a-piece with its surroundings. It is a joy to behold and is simply what many a modern constructed course wishes it could be.

Re: back to photography - the current issues of View Camera features 2 interesting triptych panorama photographers - Bruce Myren and Ann Mitchell. Neither are making revolutionary pictures, but both are making very engaging ones.