Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

A rainy Sunday morning offers the perfect opportunity to bring readers up to date on something to which I've previously alluded.

Employee No. 2 and I have petitioned the court to grant a change in venue, and the court has seen fit to grant us such relief.  Translated into English, we've resigned from Willow Ridge and, effective yesterday, are now members of Fairview Country Club.  No need to dwell on the reasons for leaving Willow Ridge, but the appeal of Fairview is quite obvious, an exceptional Robert Trent Jones golf course.

Fairview's history dates back to 1904 and a rudimentary 9-hole course in Bronxville.  From there its next stop was Elmsford, as per the club's website:

The new 18-hole golf course, designed by Donald Ross, opened in 1912. It served until 1968, when, as a result of the commercialization of the Elmsford area and the development of Interstate 287, the club moved to its present site in Greenwich where Robert Trent Jones designed a new course.

Of course the abandonment of a Donald Ross strikes this purist as sacrilege, but the statute of limitations has long since lapsed....

The stately clubhouse was a children's hospital of some kind in its original incarnation, and provides a suitably grand appearance.  It's well appointed and maintained, but it's an old building for sure with all the attendant issues and costs.  The club is undertaking a substantial project over the winter to add a large terrace to the side of the building overlooking the course, which will be quite spectacular.  I'm sure that's where you'll want to look for your humble blogger after about Memorial Day next season.

Here's a brief discussion of the golf course from the club's website:

Fairview’s two nines present a marked contrast in styles. On the relatively short front nine, water is very much in play on five of the first seven holes, while length and accuracy are needed on the longer back nine. Fairview’s trees post an ever-present threat, and the slick, sloping greens extract more than their share of three-putts.

That's accurate as far as it goes, with the back nine some 200 yards longer than the front side, but without any water.  To my mind, the line of demarcation is the walk from the fifth green to the sixth tee, where the real golf course begins.  For on the last thirteen holes, birdie opportunities will be at quite a premium, and well-earned.

The golf course sits on a wonderful piece of property, blissfully isolated from the outside world.  One can see that outside world a little on the back nine, and can hear King Street while playing the 17th hole, but that's about it.  As a mitigating trade-off, lovely views of Long Island Sound are avaialble on the 16th tee and 18th green....

But no discussion of the course is complete without touching on the greens, reminding me of this famous quote on the subject:

"Putting greens are to a golf course what faces are to a portrait.” - C.B. Macdonald

The portrait is therefore of a dangerous siren, where disaster lurks at the merest misstep.  The greens are large with severe slopes, often featuring distinct tiers to be factored into club selection.  I've played four times in the last month as part of the application process, and even in less-than-ideal conditions they've tested my nerves, motor skills and eyesight.  The latter is a nod to some moments of hilarity, where the club's very fine caddies point to a line that's simply not within my ablitiy to conceive.  I'm expecting that hilarit will ensue the first few times I'm out there without the benefit of a seasoned hand.

There are some beautiful vistas on the golf course, including the elevated tee shot on No. 7:

I'll get out there with my camera soon enough, but for now I'm limited to the photos from the club's website.  This picture flattens the elevation change, which is quite severe.  The green on the three-shot fifth is also quite beautiful, and usually features beautiful plantings:

You'll have to trust me for now that this picture doesn't quite capture it, as the second shot plays significantly downhill.  

The fifth hole allows me to bore you with a theory I've developed over the years, to wit that you could make an educated guess about the quality of a courses design merely by evaluating the second shots on its Par-5's.  The lay-up is the most boring shot in golf, but to what extent does the architect provide risks and rewards to the player in contemplating such an innocuous shot.

here the test is relatively straight-forward, but Trent Jones provides a series of challenges.  This is the only three-shotter that starts with a "4" from the tips, and big boppers will be sorely tempted to give it a go.  But not how the landing area tightens the closer one gets to the green.  And the left side of the fairway offers the best angle into kidney-shaped green, but of course brings the water into play.

Thus far, my favorite spot on the course has been looking up the ninth hole:

It's hard to see here, but that section of the clubhouse is entirely clad in ivy, our own Wrigley Field on the Sound.

I'm interested to see what awaits us in this grand adventure....  For instance, this change comes with my handicap virtually at its low-water mark (currently my index is 5.3).  I think that I'll inevitably balloon a few strokes, if only due to the greens.  I'd therefore like to take this opportunity to apologize to any unfortunate souls that end up with your humble correspondent as their partner.....  I come in peace, but the handicap is not sustainable in the short-term.

On a related note, I found that recently at Willow Ridge that I could play very poorly and yet post reasonably low numbers.  My low round for the year was 72 and my good days were invariably in the 75-77 range, but it seemed wrong that I could stink up the joint and yet still post an 80.  My bad days at Fairview will be far higher, as Thursday confirmed.

We were sponsored into Fairview by old family friends Bob and Fran Weisman, and the first other member we met was Club President Ric Apter.  We are grateful for their support and help, for instance Ric has gone out of his way in the last month to invite me into games where he had openings to help me meet other members.  It's scary yet exciting, and I'm sure I'll have more for you as the adventure unfolds.