Day 1376
For a few weeks we have looked forward to going out to Josh Terwilleger's place in Indiana and throwing his new home course he's created -- Cedar Grove DGC. Today we got out there and the wait was worth it.
Josh recently bought 8 acres out near Sunman, IN and immediately upon moving in he started carving out 18 holes on the property. The course isn't long -- about 4500' -- but it feels longer than that because the lines are tight and there is good use of elevation. Par is 57 (I think) because there are several holes that are clearly Par 4's (and challenging Par 4's at that).
So, what is the course like? If forced to limit to one comparison, it is most like a better version of Cedar Sentinels (i.e. Farm County Park) because the lines are super tight, the holes are on the shorter side and yet a lot of them still require multiple shots to get into position. But really there are holes that reminded me of 7 @ Osage, 5 @ Gulley, 5 @ Johnson Hills, 8 @ Monroe, 2 @ Stonelick, 4 @ Hidden Ridge. There's only one open hole on the course -- I only used a distance driver once on the course (although there were plenty of opportunities to use fairway drivers).
I think it would be fair to call it an Idlewild-ized version of Woodland Mound. The Par 57 is legit -- there are a reasonable number of holes that can (and should) be birdied but there were several holes where a 4 or 5 was a very reasonable score. And there were very few "gimme" birdies even playing doubles. And just like at Idlewild where you can perfectly execute a shot and still have a very challenging shot awaiting you because the lines are just tougher -- at Cedar Grove there are no easy gaps or approaches -- everything is taxing.
Playing doubles most of the scores during the day were in the mid-50s. Scoring par while playing singles would be very challenging for non-elite players. It's not a course for beginners because the fairways are so tight and the rough (this is a new course) can be punishing.
"Q: How tight are the fairways?"
"A: The fairways are so tight that if you stand in the middle of them -- at 11:58am you're in the shade, at noon you're in the sun and at 12:02 you're back in the shade."
But the course -- designed and installed in its present form in a matter of a couple months -- has been beaten-in and maintained so it feels like a new course that has been in the ground for a year or two, not just a couple months.
In a couple spots you can throw over the trees but mostly you have to try and hit the lines. And those lines are hard -- I know Josh & I were both hitting a lot of trees all day long. "That which doesn't kill me, only makes me stronger." I must be super strong after today.
So for today's event there were about fifteen people out to give the course a preview while competing in a couple casual doubles rounds. It was a 90 degree day but wasn't too bad since there is a lot of shade available. Naturally, I teamed up with Danny.
We threw with Josh & Kyle in the first round (they beat us by one stroke, I think 55 to 56) and in the second round we threw with Josh & Cheryl and Tad & Kyle and Danny & I managed to eke out a 3 stroke win on the card. That 51 was the hot round of the day so for a short time we have the doubles course record . . . we also have the record for most trees ever hit while setting a course record. Ha ha It was a good thing we were playing doubles -- I was throwing decent at times but we must have used Danny's throws half the time in that second round. The course -- being shorter and more technical -- was definitely in his wheelhouse. So we won these really cool trophies (made by Cheryl) for our second round triumph.
Only caveat -- just like with Tim Blanchet's Hidden Ridge -- I give home courses more slack. For now the teepads are wood frames with mulch, the baskets are pretty good and perfectly acceptable (Axiom Pros, MVP Black Holes and similar quality) but not professional grade, the rough is always going to be rougher than established parks with a park department and the signs/signage are adequate (pretty easy to follow I thought) but not outdoor professional quality signs yet. But this isn't a city park with a budget, it's one guy's dream and it's an amazing first draft that will certainly improve over time.
I wish I had taken some more pictures but we were just enjoying throwing and I didn't think much about it. But here are a few more pics (most of them taken by Josh) --
A group pic of some of the people who came out:
This was a fun ace run hole -- basket in the bed of an old truck in the woods. Second round Josh banged off the side of the truck bed.
I enjoyed trying to flex forehand this hole, think it was around 250':
Pretty sure this was the hanging basket on Hole 2. Josh used several hanging baskets to good effect (reasonable height) and also mounted several into cedar stumps:
This one looks tough, but the gap itself was pretty easy to hit . . . but the line up the fairway was a pinched angle and uphill so realistically it was a 300' Par 4.
I think this was the closing basket on Hole 18 -- one of the best holes on the course -- realistically a Par 4 as it requires a long drive through a wooded fairway to the bottom of the pictured hill (then an approach to the guarded basket). Or maybe it's a Par 3 but pretty much no one is getting a 2 on this hole without a throw-in . . .
So there you have it. Really fun course, amazing what he was able to fit into 8 acres.
For a few weeks we have looked forward to going out to Josh Terwilleger's place in Indiana and throwing his new home course he's created -- Cedar Grove DGC. Today we got out there and the wait was worth it.
Josh recently bought 8 acres out near Sunman, IN and immediately upon moving in he started carving out 18 holes on the property. The course isn't long -- about 4500' -- but it feels longer than that because the lines are tight and there is good use of elevation. Par is 57 (I think) because there are several holes that are clearly Par 4's (and challenging Par 4's at that).
So, what is the course like? If forced to limit to one comparison, it is most like a better version of Cedar Sentinels (i.e. Farm County Park) because the lines are super tight, the holes are on the shorter side and yet a lot of them still require multiple shots to get into position. But really there are holes that reminded me of 7 @ Osage, 5 @ Gulley, 5 @ Johnson Hills, 8 @ Monroe, 2 @ Stonelick, 4 @ Hidden Ridge. There's only one open hole on the course -- I only used a distance driver once on the course (although there were plenty of opportunities to use fairway drivers).
I think it would be fair to call it an Idlewild-ized version of Woodland Mound. The Par 57 is legit -- there are a reasonable number of holes that can (and should) be birdied but there were several holes where a 4 or 5 was a very reasonable score. And there were very few "gimme" birdies even playing doubles. And just like at Idlewild where you can perfectly execute a shot and still have a very challenging shot awaiting you because the lines are just tougher -- at Cedar Grove there are no easy gaps or approaches -- everything is taxing.
Playing doubles most of the scores during the day were in the mid-50s. Scoring par while playing singles would be very challenging for non-elite players. It's not a course for beginners because the fairways are so tight and the rough (this is a new course) can be punishing.
"Q: How tight are the fairways?"
"A: The fairways are so tight that if you stand in the middle of them -- at 11:58am you're in the shade, at noon you're in the sun and at 12:02 you're back in the shade."
But the course -- designed and installed in its present form in a matter of a couple months -- has been beaten-in and maintained so it feels like a new course that has been in the ground for a year or two, not just a couple months.
In a couple spots you can throw over the trees but mostly you have to try and hit the lines. And those lines are hard -- I know Josh & I were both hitting a lot of trees all day long. "That which doesn't kill me, only makes me stronger." I must be super strong after today.
So for today's event there were about fifteen people out to give the course a preview while competing in a couple casual doubles rounds. It was a 90 degree day but wasn't too bad since there is a lot of shade available. Naturally, I teamed up with Danny.
We threw with Josh & Kyle in the first round (they beat us by one stroke, I think 55 to 56) and in the second round we threw with Josh & Cheryl and Tad & Kyle and Danny & I managed to eke out a 3 stroke win on the card. That 51 was the hot round of the day so for a short time we have the doubles course record . . . we also have the record for most trees ever hit while setting a course record. Ha ha It was a good thing we were playing doubles -- I was throwing decent at times but we must have used Danny's throws half the time in that second round. The course -- being shorter and more technical -- was definitely in his wheelhouse. So we won these really cool trophies (made by Cheryl) for our second round triumph.
Only caveat -- just like with Tim Blanchet's Hidden Ridge -- I give home courses more slack. For now the teepads are wood frames with mulch, the baskets are pretty good and perfectly acceptable (Axiom Pros, MVP Black Holes and similar quality) but not professional grade, the rough is always going to be rougher than established parks with a park department and the signs/signage are adequate (pretty easy to follow I thought) but not outdoor professional quality signs yet. But this isn't a city park with a budget, it's one guy's dream and it's an amazing first draft that will certainly improve over time.
I wish I had taken some more pictures but we were just enjoying throwing and I didn't think much about it. But here are a few more pics (most of them taken by Josh) --
A group pic of some of the people who came out:
This was a fun ace run hole -- basket in the bed of an old truck in the woods. Second round Josh banged off the side of the truck bed.
I enjoyed trying to flex forehand this hole, think it was around 250':
Pretty sure this was the hanging basket on Hole 2. Josh used several hanging baskets to good effect (reasonable height) and also mounted several into cedar stumps:
This one looks tough, but the gap itself was pretty easy to hit . . . but the line up the fairway was a pinched angle and uphill so realistically it was a 300' Par 4.
I think this was the closing basket on Hole 18 -- one of the best holes on the course -- realistically a Par 4 as it requires a long drive through a wooded fairway to the bottom of the pictured hill (then an approach to the guarded basket). Or maybe it's a Par 3 but pretty much no one is getting a 2 on this hole without a throw-in . . .
So there you have it. Really fun course, amazing what he was able to fit into 8 acres.
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