Eastward Ho!, MA, USA

8th hole, 325 yards; Old photographs of the eighth reveal several interesting facts about the evolution of the course. Firstly, the course was indeed cut through trees as is evident from the numerous ones seen to the left of this fairway. Also, and not surprisingly, two Fowler cross bunkers have been lost with time. Finally, on a curious note, Fowler apparently left a solitary pine tree in front of one of the cross bunkers - it would be interesting to understand his logic in that regard but no record exists.

Looking back down the rolling eighth fairway.

The short two shot 8th features the most heavily bunkered green complex on the course.

9th hole, 395 yards; If asked to demonstrate Fowler's brilliance as a golf architect via one golf hole, the authors would take the inquiring person to the ninth hole at Eastward Ho! From the highest point on the property, the golfer needs to decide if he is willing to hug the cliff line with his tee ball. If so, he can gain a level lie on a plateau some 230 yards from the tee. From there, the play is along the spine of a ridge, on top of which is located the fairway and then the green. As the hole is generally into the wind, a low running shot is the play but anything right or left will fall off the ridge and finish well below the putting surface. In several playing aspects, this hole reminds the golfer of one of golf's most admired links holes - the fourth at Rye Golf Club - and Fowler's engaging use of the ridge is a prime example of creating a hole that is unique to its site.

The ball by the hole hit forty yards back up the fairway and bumbled onto the green.
Note how the fairway falls away on both sides.

10th hole, 215 yards; Given the hole's length, the golfer must take particular care in gauging the direction of the wind. Matters are complicated by the fact that this is the first time that the golfer will hit in this southerly direction.

Another fine green location, this time just past the shoulder of a hillock.

11th hole, 490 yards; The trio of three shot holes at Eastward Ho! have a cumulative total of five bunkers amongst them. They also don't need any more as they fall over some of the lumpiest terrain on the property. With the sole exception of Pennard in Wales, the authors have never seen a set of three shotters that feature more topography.

After hitting the drive over one hill and into a swale and after hitting the second shot over
another ridge, the golfer is finally granted this view of the distant green.

12th hole, 320 yards; With Fowler's perfect placement of the green a top a knoll with sharp drop-offs on all sides, this hole is but one of the reasons that Eastward Ho! is always fully engaging to play, even on those rare days when the wind is down.

14th hole, 375 yards; The entire hole is draped over the side of a hill which heads down toward the shoreline. A draw from the tee will run forever and leave a pitch into the green. Common with many of Fowler's greens, it appears simple at first glance but looks are deceiving as the slope of the land (and thus the green) is far stronger than the golfer first suspects.

The 14th green follows the terrain and slopes hard right to left. Any pitch just short is likely
to feed down into the deep bunker on the left.

15th hole, 140 yards; The finally one shotter is just as good as the three that preceded it and rejects greedy tactics. Anything left is a sucker hole location, given that the hazard line is three feet from the back edge of the green. The better golfer will punch a little draw and let it will take the right to left green slope to get near such hole locations.

The final one shotter features a green with two distinct levels. If the golfer misses the back level
left by four feet, his ball is in Pleasant Bay, otherwise known as a hazard!

18th hole, 460 yards; At some point during the back nine, the first time player may question if the course is really as good as he perceives it to be. After all, little is heard of this gem outside of Massachusetts, so surely something is lacking? And yet, all the golfer sees is hole after good hole, so perhaps the course will end with a whimper like Elie, and thus leave the golfer with the nagging feeling that the course is more a holiday course than something more enduring. Just as Lundin Links concludes with a superb long two shotter, so does Eastward Ho! In fact, the scale of the hole makes the golfer feel puny. If he can summon the courage to hit his tee ball over a grove of trees that protrude in from the cliff line, he may be able to catch a sharp down slope at the 240 mark from the tee and gain an additional 50 yards in run. For most of us though, the tee ball will stay up top and the golfer is left with a 200 yard plus approach over a valley to a green located beneath the clubhouse windows. The green's highest point is in its front third with the remaining portion gently sloping away from the golfer, making most up and downs difficult.

As captured in the setting sun, the Home hole provides the exclamation mark.

What would Fowler make of his design today? Undoubtedly, he would be pleased as the course has never suffered at the hands of a lesser architect and the playing challenge remains much as he originally intended, thanks to the ever present wind. Indeed, with today's green speeds, numerous greens are bound to be far more taxing than Fowler ever imagined.

His only recommendations would likely be to see the 12-14 bunkers restored that have been lost through time and that the course be presented in a more untamed manner. Also, while the club has done an admirable job of keeping trees out of play, Fowler would no doubt seek to clear more out and reduce the underbrush wherever possible, especially along the cliff line. An expansive feeling and the sense of being alone in nature are dominant themes at Walton Heath and Westward Ho! and such work would further exacerbate a similar sense at Eastward Ho!

With views such as this one past the fourth tee to the distant Cape Cod National Seashore,
Eastward Ho! is a delight to walk even if one isn't playing.

Chatham Country Club changed its name in 1926 to Eastward Ho! Country Club in difference to Fowler and his affinity for Westward Ho! in Devon, England. Both courses are truly unique in all of golf and play markedly different from one day to the next. The golfer is continually asked to invent shots that he never knew he had. No wonder then that Francis Ouimet and Bobby Jones both enjoyed spending so much time at Eastward Ho!

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