I grew up in the Seattle area and played Fircrest in the early 60s when very tall old growth fir trees lined the fairways and smaller fir trees had been planted to separate adjacent fairways. In the mid 60s, I played at Inglewood a few times when tall old growth fir trees lined fairways. Seattle G.C., Everett G.C., and Tacoma G.C. were established clubs in the area at the time.
Sahalee was built in the early 70s and formed by a group of members who left Inglewood. The spirit of the times and regional clubs provided a model for a quality club and golf course with a residential development.It should come as little surprise that preserving old growth fir, cedar, and hemlock was integral to the course and consistent with ideas about what would be a first rate course at the time. I played Sahalee, Inglewood, Seattle, and Fircrest a lot in the late 70s and early 80s. In the mid 70s, Port Ludlow G.C. was built, along with Canterwood GC in the 90s. All of them were considered at various times as among the best the State of Washington has to offer.
More recently, Tumble Creek, Wine Valley, Palouse Ridge, Gamble Sands, and Chambers Bay entered the ranks of the State's best of the best. These modern courses were built on sites with limited trees and have a markedly different character and quality.
With respect to the older woodland style courses, tree removal is a complicated process. I can recall when Inglewood removed a large number of old, closely growing trees. Wind storms in the next couple of years caused substantial blowdown, as trees previously sheltered by wind were exposed and had not developed a root system which would stabilize them in wind. Their removal and restoration of areas becomes an additional expense. Tree removal has benefits in terms of better ventilation and light. Many NW courses remove trees over time to allow more light exposure for greens.
Sahalee had large numbers of trees removed before and again after the PGA was held.Typical of many NW courses is the lone tree standing inside a tree line. This can serve to frame a hole or define a smaller landing area for a good line of play to a green. Given the way the modern game has evolved, some are more or less relevant, depending on tee boxes. I have been reading a thread on Oakmont which talks a lot about narrow landing areas and use of ditches, bunkering and penal rough to require precision on each shot. I have a hard time with complaints about lone trees doing the same thing. Or ditto for a lone and very penal bunker on a links course.
Another point to remember about Sahalee is that it is a club played by men, women, and families. A nearby club which opened 15 years ago serves mostly individual members and their guests. It was built on some forested acreage and farmland. It has individual trees serving similar functions to those at Sahalee and the other classic NW courses. I have not played Gozzer Ranch in Idaho, but Pine forests and rock outcroppings are part of the terrain. I would suspect stately trees were retained there and function similarly.
So I think it is important to consider Sahalee in a broader context. No one would complain about the absence of trees on links courses in Ireland or Scotland. The site defines and constrains what would work for design. Sahalee has consistently ranked in the top three in our state. The terrain, forestation, vegetation, and climate make for a variety of courses unlike those in other areas of the country. The Eastern side is very different from the Western side.So it would offer many opportunities to see and play in environments unlike those in other parts of the country.
Charles Lund