National Golf Club
...another Nicklaus Star
By Craig Distl
Traveling to Pinehurst for golf is a lot like traveling to Florida for spring training baseball. There are so many options it’s hard to know where to start.
The Pinehurst region is home to some 50 golf courses, including a handful of the best layouts in the United States, so where do you begin? One good place is National Golf Club.
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| Nicklaus tees off at the National Golf Club |
Designed by Jack Nicklaus, National provides a nice blend of quality and accessibility. It consistently receives four and a half stars from Golf Digest, so the quality is there. And there is accessibility for the general public, too, even though it is a secluded, gated community.
Construction on National Golf Club began in 1987, just a year after Nicklaus won his coveted sixth green jacket at The Masters. He came to the Pinehurst area to build a masterpiece and was mindful of his location.
“Mr. Nicklaus knew the importance of golf in this area so he placed a premium on building a great golf course that was both appealing to the eye and challenging,” says Tom Parsons, National’s long-time director of golf. “Obviously I am biased, but I think he did a wonderful job of achieving both.”
Although the property at National has its share of the sandy pine forests that make the region famous, it also features ponds, streams and a lake, which is where aesthetics come into play.
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| Hole #1 on the National Golf Club Course |
“Aesthetically the water does make the course look more pleasing, but the water was incorporated into critical parts of the holes for a reason,” Parsons says. “I call it aesthetic and strategic.”
The first indication this is not just a stroll through the long leaf pines comes quickly. The second hole, a par-3, is carved around wetlands known as the Doon Conservatory. Nicklaus included nine tees to allow a variety of shots across the pond to an undulating green. There is beauty here as rustic tree trunks rise from the water in the distance, but, as Parsons says, there’s also strategy.
The fifth hole is quite memorable as well. The green is not visible from the tee of this par-4. Only
Hole #4 on the National Course
after hitting a drive to the top of a hill are you able to look down upon a two-tiered green protected by a creek. Nicklaus hired an English stonemason to build a rock wall along the creek bank, adding a touch of beauty and danger to the hole.
Several other greens are fronted by the stonemason’s work, including the ninth, tenth and eighteenth.
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| Hole #5 on the National Course |
When all is said and done, it is the greens at National that determine a golfer’s success. Nicklaus devised the putting surfaces in unique fashion. They are not flat ovals; instead these greens are contortionists who meander about with slope and undulation. Merely reaching greens in regulation is not a guarantee of par. Golfers must target their approach shots to distinct areas. Shots that miss the putting surfaces often roll into collection areas, adding another level of challenge.
“From the tee, the course is consistently fair in the fact that you have room to land the ball. The fairways are generous and there is virtually no out-of-bounds,” says Parsons. “Even your errant approach shots will collect into areas where they won’t roll so far away from the green. However if you are in a collection area, the next shot is very difficult, often going up a slope or down a slope with undulation between you and the hole.”
Among Carolina golfers in the know, National has a reputation as a real test. It’s hosted the first stage of PGA Tour qualifying twice in recent years, as well as serving a qualifying site for the U.S. Open. The course measures 7,122 yards when stretched to the tips, but that distance isn’t always needed to test professional golfers.
In fact, while playing the course earlier this year, Nicklaus and his staff spoke of how the course is positioned nicely to counter-balance equipment technology that now threatens many a top-notch layout.
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TOP: Hole #10 on the National Course
BELOW: Hole #18 on the National Course
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“They like the routing, they like the bunker shapes, they like the contours of the greens and the challenges it has,” Parsons says. “I think part of it is because the way (Nicklaus) looks at technology now. People are lengthening courses to make them harder, but this course doesn’t have to be lengthened to be challenging.
“You can hit a 300-yard drive, but you’ve still got several challenges ahead of you to make par or birdie. The difficulty is still there despite the technology.”
Average golfers need not be leery of this talk about challenges and difficulty. The course does not automatically confound its guests. The blue tees (6,595 yards), white tees (6,128 yards) and spacious fairways allow for an enjoyable round as long as you have some semblance of a short game at the greens.
If you don’t boast a solid short game, there’s always the scenery to calm your nerves.
“The one thing people sometimes forget about is the natural beauty, the topography and the way it is laid out,” advises Parsons. “Another unique feature is there’s no real blending of the holes. They all look different and unique. You are truly getting an 18-hole experience.”
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| The Cottages at National Golf Club |
For travel golfers, the experience doesn’t have to end when you exit the green of the long par-4 closing hole. The club has several rental villas and condos on site, not to mention an excellent restaurant in the clubhouse that is open to guests.
The staff at National will even sort through the multitude of golfing options in the area and customize a package just for you. However, don’t be surprised at the end of the visit if National Golf Club was the highlight of your trip.
(You may read other articles by Craig Distl at www.offthebeatencartpath.com)
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
National Golf Club
One Royal Troon Drive
Village of Pinehurst, NC 28374
Phone: 910-295-4300 - 1-800-471-4339
Fax: 910-295-8092
Website: www.nationalgolfclub.com