Golf Club Atlas
GolfClubAtlas.com => Golf Course Architecture => Topic started by: Ran Morrissett on September 29, 2009, 09:48:29 AM
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There have been several threads on Cabot and to date, neither Ben nor I have commented: GolfClubAtlas.com is a non-commercial site and we are sensitive to pushing a commercial venture.
Having said that, please read on!! :)
We are very pleased with the progress that has been made since construction started last fall. Work has commenced on seventeen of the eighteen holes and several of the holes are already taking rough shape.
Below are a few photographs that I took in mid-August.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/CabotRod.jpg)
Here is our star architect at his wind-burned best. It was an appallingly hot 87f when I was there, which was making some of the locals swoon from heat exhaustion. One lady told me it had been over 100f the week prior, which was surely an exaggeration. In the background is a 420 yard hole played with the waves crashing along the beach to the left.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabot14th.jpg)
Here is the baby down hill par three. Measuring under 120 yards, it will be a hard green to hit from the elevated tee in any kind of wind. Our crack propaganda team ;D will no doubt shamelessly point out some similarities to the seventh at Pebble, including the change in elevation and dramatic backdrop. Because of our over one mile of sea frontage, many will no doubt over time call Pebble the Cabot of the west 8)
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/CabotCape.jpg)
Unlike some of the great links in the UK, one of the neat things about the property at Cabot is that the farthest point from the ocean isn't dull. We have a long par three taking shape that looks to have reverse redan playing characteristics followed by our version of a Cape hole which plays toward the rocking boats in the distance (the photo above is taken from the par three tee looking across the Cape hole). Ben sent me a photo of work that has occurred to this hole in the past few weeks and as soon as I find it, I'll post it. The green pad has been created and you'll get a sense of the approach shot with the boats rocking in the background.
On a side note, another GCAer and I went over to Cape Breton Highlands and what we heard - and saw - first hand of the plans that they have makes it among the two or three most exciting transformation projects with which I am aware. The entire experience is being enhanced as one fantastic view after another is being opened up. In the process, more sun and wind will be hitting the course and playing conditions will be improved.
Backed by great teams out of Chicago on both the golf and real estate side, we are very fortunate and couldn't be happier in watching it take shape. Given the interest, Ben will post more photos later before we shut down for the year. Maybe we'll pick a single hole and track its development over the first fourteen months of construction come this November? It's a fascinating process to watch an architect uncover the best attributes of a site and we look forward to seeing what you think of Rod's in the dirt work to date.
Cheers,
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This place looks really special....
Thanks for sharing the update Ran! Can't wait to see how it progresses.
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Ran:
Looks like another great place to beat you like a drum.... ;D.
I think it was your last post to this esteemed site that promised you would "paste" me...too bad that some dreams don't become reality.
THE PLACE LOOKS FANTASTIC! Keep up the good work.
Bart
Oh, and get Rod a Cabot hat, you cheapskate...you are going to give the man skin cancer.... ;)
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Thanks for the update and photos Ran. Please keep them coming during construction!
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Looks really great, Ran. Congrats and touch wood the rest of the way.
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Can't wait to miss the green on that little par three!
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Very exciting news that 17 of the 18 holes are being worked on, can't wait for further info and pictures. How far will the 9th green be from the clubhouse?
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Ran:
Looks like another great place to beat you like a drum.... ;D.
I think it was your last post to this esteemed site that promised you would "paste" me...too bad that some dreams don't become reality.
Bart, as always, your memory is selective at best. As I recall, that statement was made in anticipation of our match at GG&CC, where Ran and I did beat you and Matthew. Perhaps not the predicted "pasting", but a satisfying victory nonetheless.
Ed
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That's a great picture of Rod!
Thanks for the update - please provide them as you go - nobody questions your motives when you post.
We all just want to know how things are going.
Regards,
Ian
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Ran:
Looks like another great place to beat you like a drum.... ;D.
I think it was your last post to this esteemed site that promised you would "paste" me...too bad that some dreams don't become reality.
Bart, as always, your memory is selective at best. As I recall, that statement was made in anticipation of our match at GG&CC, where Ran and I did beat you and Matthew. Perhaps not the predicted "pasting", but a satisfying victory nonetheless.
Ed
Ed:
Well, it was, in fact, YOU who managed to beat Matthew and I with only a tiny fraction of help from Mr. Morrissett...you were, however, absent when the singles portion of the weekend was conducted and our dear Ran had to suffer a 6 and 4 thrashing at the hands of his otherwise kind host.
These pictures of Cabot certainly get the juices flowing....I can see Ran pull hooking the ball everytime I look at them.
Bart
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(http://www.cabotlinks.com/CabotCape.jpg)
Unlike some of the great links in the UK, one of the neat things about the property at Cabot is that the farthest point from the ocean isn't dull. We have a long par three taking shape that looks to have reverse redan playing characteristics followed by our version of a Cape hole which plays toward the rocking boats in the distance (the photo above is taken from the par three tee looking across the Cape hole). Ben sent me a photo of work that has occurred to this hole in the past few weeks and as soon as I find it, I'll post it. The green pad has been created and you'll get a sense of the approach shot with the boats rocking in the background.
Congrats on the encouraging start to your project.
I don't know where the greensite is to be located for the picture above and whether it will be the par 3 or 4. But your description of a long par 3 with "reverse redan playing characteristics" together with the picture got me thinking about how interesting a reverse redan concept would be for a green sited hard against the left edge of that picture where it falls to the beach, such that the heroic shot carried the bay area and that challenged the drop-off on the edge would be rewarded by catching the slope on firm and fast conditions.
The one caveat is that the land appears to slope down toward the shore and a reverse redan styled green here would require cut and fill that would disrupt the nice sloping landform that exists there now.
Looks great!
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SPDB:
I read Ran's post to indicate that the cape hole would be after the reverse redan and play toward the boats from where the picture is taken, so perhaps the reverse redan will play the other direction, i.e., away from the boats, so that the water will be on the right.
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Ran-
Cabot looks like it will be a true treat. I can't wait to see the next batch of photos as the land by itself is starting to enter into the "NSFW" category ;)
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It SCREAMS "Must Play".
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If you've never been to Nova Scotia, I can assure you that you'll love it. Golfing on Cape Breton Island was one of the best vacations of my life.
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Ran, really pleased for you and Ben that things are taking shape. Enjoy the process as the gestation continues ad birth approaches!
MM
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Thanks for the update, look forward to reading more.
If you've never been to Nova Scotia, I can assure you that you'll love it. Golfing on Cape Breton Island was one of the best vacations of my life.
Dan, how did you get there? Plane, train or automobile?
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George...Nova Scotia is not to be missed. To only play golf and not see the country (province) would be an opportunity missed. If you don't mind driving the best way is to drive to Bar Harbor (visit Acadia National park while there and play Kebo Valley) and take the high speed ferry. That gets you to the southern tip of Nova Scotia. Still a haul to Cape Breton but much to see along the way...You can also get a ferry from Portland, Maine, but a bit more expensive...Alternatively you could fly to Halifax...
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George - I drove up from Philly. It's a 2 day drive. I drove to Bangor, Maine the first day and then took the ferry to Yarmouth. It's about a 10 hour drive from there to Cheticamp, where I stayed (http://www.seagolfchalets.com/). Cheticamp is a really cool Acadian (French) village right on the Cabot Trail near the entrance to the National Park. You'll feel like you're a world away - this definitely isn't Myrtle Beach!
On the way back, we drove from Cheticamp to Bangor, ME, and then back to Philly the next day. Drove through Truro, NS, Moncton, NB and St John, NB on NB1 and re-entered the USA via Calais, ME.
Cape Breton National Park is not to be missed. The Cabot Trail is one of the best roads in the world and it rounds the island. Wildlife is everywhere - bald eagles and moose were everywhere.
I found driving to be a much faster way to Cape Breton, plus it saved about $200 in ferry costs.
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If you do come to Nova Scotia by ferry from either Bar Harbour, Maine or Saint John, New Brunswick, a visit to Stanley Thompson's Digby Pines course in Digby on your way to Cape Breton would be well worth it.
http://www.digbypines.ca/pines_golf.html
If you came strictly by road the Northumberland Links is a great spot.
http://www.northumberlandlinks.com/
Once you arrive in Cape Breton you have a choice a several excellent courses besides like Dan said one of the most scenic drives in the world.
http://www.capebretonresorts.com/features/golf/cape-breton-golf-vacations.html
Added to the so called Big Four will be The Lakes a Graham Cooke new course and Nick Faldo's "The Fortress" being built at Louisbourg.
Once Cabot Links opens, this part of the world will be a must visit for all golf enthusiasts.
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So when will Cabot Links open? I would guess 2011.
Will it open before Tiger's first course in North America?
Do you think it will beat out Tiger's course in North Carolina for best new course?
No, I don't think it will try to compete with a signature course.
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Thanks (!) for all the encouraging comments and IMs. Here are a few more photographs for consideration.
Below is one of the more visually appealing tee shots on the course, though you won't be able to see your tee ball finish as it hopefully carries well past the brow of the hill. The approach to this 390y dogleg right is one of my favorites as it is to a green that runs from high front right to low back left and just so happens :) to line up on the distant 'Ailsa' rock.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabota.jpg)
This one is the northern most point on the course and it is the green that caps off a 470y beast. That is a natural ravine front left so yes that means there will be plenty of room wide right to work a running hook somewhere near or onto the large putting surface.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabotb.jpg)
Not unlike Bandon Trails, there are several different parts to the property. However, in our case, the sea is in view from all of them and that serves as a natural unifier. Still, we hope to capitalize on the different 'moods' of the land. For instance, right after the green above which is literally on a bluff with a fifty foot drop to a wide beach below, the golfer walks (yes, walks as this is a walking only course) forty-five yards onto the next tee and has the view below that to me has always felt like something you might find in Surrey.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabotc.jpg)
Yes, this is an early photograph of this one shotter being developed and it will obviously be opened up quite a bit more but the point is that the hole has an appealing atmosphere all its own, even without featuring a long water view.
Here is one last construction photo and it too happens to be of a one shotter. I include it in part to show a unique feature of the course: the public board walk that is visible just over the green site and that then wanders down the next hole, a long three shotter. Given Tiger's dominance, I have more or less edged out of playing in front of large groups of spectators. Nonetheless, when pressed to hit a shot in front of people (first tee at The Old Course, hitting recovery shots/putting out on the home green underneath the watchful eyes of members, etc.), there is a certain added element (perhaps theater, perhaps dread) on such occasions. Here too you'll experience that, both via the broad walk for a couple of holes as well as how two of the greens come back to the main clubhouse/hotel.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabotd.jpg)
I was up in Inverness two weeks after Mike Keiser but I can understand why he said, 'I can see the finished course and it is awesome.' Below is a photograph of our architect on the beach below one of the greens, smiling after he heard those words from a man who knows something about building great courses along large bodies of water.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/Cabote.jpg)
We will have a presentation on Cabot Links in Manhattan on Thursday, November 19th. For those interested in attending, please drop me an email at rmorrissett@cabotlinks.com and I'll be sure you get an invite.
Cheers,
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Very nice Ran. That looks like Ailsa Craig out there in the distance.
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Very nice Ran. That looks like Ailsa Craig out there in the distance.
Or Bass Rock at North Berwick!
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Hi Ran
Hope you are doing as well as your course looks to be. I will make the pilgrimage someday.
Are you at liberty to say about how many yards of dirt you will move?
Will fairways be irrigated?
What species of grass will be in play?
Best
Ward
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Now that's what I call livin' the dream!
Way to go Ran and Ben.
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bliss
bliss
bliss
bliss
bliss
bliss
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Waiting for this course to open is like a kid waiting for Christmas. Is it too early to book a tee time? The land that will make up the holes that we have seen photos of so far certainly offer some unique possibilities for shot making!
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What a tremendous site - looks fantastic! (and walking only to boot)
What kind of wind speeds do they receive off the Atlantic?
Is it similar to Bandon where you can get anything from 5 mph to 40+ mph?
CL really does have a Scottish feel to it with the town, the "craig" in the distance, the boardwalk and the ocean.
Lucky Canucks!
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My dream- to open up a B&B nearby. Of course, the reality that I know zip about running a B&B kinda hurts my plan
Rob - Les Suetes winds on Cape Breton can be crazy:
The prevailing wind direction in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Highlands is westerly, but for a few weeks of the year strong southeast winds, known locally as "Les Suetes," (from the French "sud est") blow across northern Cape Breton's open plateau and then crash down the western side of the mountains. The strongest gusts can reach 200 km/h.
Or check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBxtu4Qk4Ks
BUT DON'T WORRY - THESE DON'T OCCUR ALL YEAR! The weather was perfect the last time I was up there!
PS - Here's a photo of the Cabot Trail, one of the most beautiful roads I've ever driven:
(http://www.mccullagh.org/db9/1ds-7/cabot-trail-cape-breton.jpg)
Courtesy DECLAN MCCULLAGH PHOTOGRAPHY
Another great thing about Cape Breton is the music! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaE7n2fHays
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Another great thing about Cape Breton is the music!
And Canada's only single malt whiskey is only a few miles south of Inverness/Cabot Links.
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Dan - The You Tube video totally cracked me up - the guy heads down to the harbor when the wind is really whipping because it blows STRONGEST there (200 mph!?!?!?!) and the lady is talking about ketchup and "serviettes" when the suetes blew her house off the foundations. Fantastic stuff - these are the things I miss about living in Canada, the people are a total riot and border line fruit loops. I love it.
Commerce in the maritimes always needs some love and i think it is great that Ran and Ben (and team) are creating another great reason to visit that part of Canada.
chapeau!
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From the lone shieling of the misty island
Mountains divide us, and the waste of seas -
Yet still the blood is strong, the heart is Highland,
And we in dreams behold the Hebrides
Inscription at the Lone Shieling, Cabot Trail, N.S.
Seems fitting ...
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To learn more about the culture of Cape Breton I would highly recommend two books by Alistair MacLeod, who is from Dunvegan which is only a few miles from Inverness. The books are Island, which is a collection of short stories, and a novel called No Great Mischief.
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Here's an aerial view of Inverness
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2509/3992956725_53b6152df0.jpg)
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To learn more about the culture of Cape Breton I would highly recommend two books by Alistair MacLeod, who is from Dunvegan which is only a few miles from Inverness. The books are Island, which is a collection of short stories, and a novel called No Great Mischief.
Beautifully written books and I agree completely with the recommendation.
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I know it's an afterthought, but here are a few photos from my brief visit to the site in September 2008:
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2550/3998086922_982248f17e_b.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3508/3997328401_22cff6078e_b.jpg)
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2463/3997331689_0120f87716_b.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3535/3998112032_f243d28eb4_b.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3444/3997335087_0f0703b8e4_b.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3450/3998100748_e4890c0302_b.jpg)
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3500/3997354535_112f9ac4c5_b.jpg)
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2574/3997347115_4392221638_b.jpg)
(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2665/3997342047_86451f2bd1_b.jpg)
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How long is that boardwalk? It looks very long from the picture. What a beautiful setting.
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I bet you can see it from space...the great boardwalk of cabot!!!
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I think I now know why we haven't seen lots of photos or updates on Cabot before this. There was not much to show. Bet as the course takes shape we get more info on it.
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As a matter of fact, a lot of work has been accomplished at Cabot Links this year. I was out there with Rod the entire summer. Nearly all 18 holes are roughed in.
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Thanks for the update Ran! It is very interesting to follow how it progresses. I am planning already to play this course after the opening. The Cabot Trail and the region are also so beautiful to visit.
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Sean/Carl,
The Cape (which was the photo) is a long par four, following the par three that Ran referenced.
Ward,
I asked Rod the other day whether he knew how much earth was moved and his response was “a lot less than any project I have done before”.
We are using fescue grasses throughout, which we found natively all over the site on our first visit.
Rob,
The wind is ever present. Amazingly for me coming from Toronto, how frequently the directions change. In the last week we have northerly, westerly and southerly winds. The westerly winds will prove the most challenging, but are also the least frequent wind we receive. The Les Suetes that Dan references are the most intense, however they are reserved for the winter and won’t be a factor during golf season.
Wayne and Henry’s book recommendations are great ones. I heard Alistair MacLeod read from No Great Mischief in Toronto and have had the good fortune of running into him in Inverness, now that we are neighbours!
Chris, thanks for those photos, which I had not seen. It is amazing to look back on that over a year ago and see how much the sight has transformed.
Here are four more:
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/IMG_4191.jpg)
This is a drivable par four, which can be seen from the tee, with the fairway roughed shape and the green in the left center.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/IMG_4195.jpg)
Although not great from a construction standpoint, I wanted to share this one from last week. The rainbow ends on the tee of the short par three that Ran posted.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/IMG_4199.jpg)
Looking across the 245-yar par three, which with its swale in front required full-bore drivers this past weekend.
(http://www.cabotlinks.com/IMG_4204.jpg)
Finally, here is one of the par three that Ran previously posted with the green rough-in completed. Although this is another lengthy par three, it is plays in the opposite direction of the above hole and therefore will play radically different.
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Great to see a course like this in Canada, feel free to come to Alberta for your next project!
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Ryan,
Just go play Blackhawk and Wolf Creek ;D
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just played 36 at wolf creek back in august, really loved the new nine, and I live 30 mins closer now that I moved to airdrie so it'll be even easier, as for blackhawk isn't it private? Calgary in particular could use a new high quality public course in my opinion
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Ryan,
Glad you enjoyed the new nine at Wolf Creek. There are some exception holes there (I didn't do any work on those 9 holes; was building Sagebrush simultaneously).
Blackhawk is private, but there's always a way to play (or at least see it)!
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Great to see a course like this in Canada, feel free to come to Alberta for your next project!
Isn't Alberta mising one requirement to have a course like this - an ocean?
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I didn't say it had to be like cabot links, just something that isn't your average run of the mill real estate development with a course squished in the middle, wolf creek for example, just in the calgary area