Pub. 6 2016 Issue 1

11 MINING FOCUS Royal Montreal, was established in 1873. People formed clubs in Canada and the eastern part of the U.S. during the 1880s. There were 80 golf courses by 1896 and a total of 982 golf courses by 1900. By the 1890s, people were making club heads from persimmon wood. Early golf courses were rudimentary, made by Scottish professionals who would stake out the starting and ending points for the holes, aswell as arrangements for hazards, during a single day. Those who actually constructed the courses usually weren’t players themselves and didn’t understand the game. Demonstrating golf’s growing popularity and global appeal, the sport first appearedat theOlympicGames in1900 inParis. Twelve men and ten women from four different countries competed. Margaret Abbot and Charles Sands, both from the U.S., won. In 1901, there was a new kind of golf ball that went further than a gutta percha ball, could be mass produced, and was therefore alsomuch cheaper tomake. Not only did it change theway people played golf, it also made the game more popular than ever. By 1929, the R&A accepted the use of steel-shafted clubs for play. Just because clubs were wooden before, don’t think mining wasn’t involved. Those clubs still had to be manufactured, right? But the use of mined metals changed the game forever. The late 1910s and 1920s have been called a golden age for golf-course architecture. The U.S. had 1,903 golf courses in 1923 and more than doubled to 5,648 in 1929. Architects used contour maps and the courses themselves were built under the direction of a skilled construction foreman. Architects worked hard to make sure each golf course fit into the natural landscape that had been selected, and they created strategic designs that allowed players to decide for themselves the level of playing difficulty. By using diagonal hazards and alternative routes, golfers who wanted to avoid hazards and were willing to take a longer route could do exactly that. Many of the best golf courses being used today date back to this golden age. For example: It wasn’t until decades later that great golf-course designs on this level would be seen again. TheGreat Depression put an end to this golden age. The fewgolf courses that were built were paid for by wealthy individuals or as government work relief efforts. However, some notable new golf courses were built during this time period: Golf courses lost money during the 1930s. Existing golf courses during this timeweremodified to keep down annual maintenance costs so as many as possible could continue to operate. World War II marked the end of the Great Depression, but it still wasn’t a great time for golf in the U.S. since most available resources had to be directed to the war effort. Many clubs simply stopped maintaining the lush grounds. The only notable golf course built during the 1940s was Peachtree Golf Club. It was built by an established golf-course architect named Bobby Jones and a newcomer named Robert Trent Jones. Speaking of maintaining those lush grounds, did you ever stop to think from where that equipment comes? And how about the fertilizer that helps keep the fairways and greens in good shape. You can thank miners for that, too. Potash and phosphate, vital components of fertilizer, are materials mined right here in Utah. After World War II ended, golf architects kept busy renovating existing courses. This took a great deal of effort following years of neglect. The Augusta National Club hired Robert Trent Jones in 1946 and had him make significant changes to the course at that time. In the 1950s, earth-moving machinery made it possible for architects to actually build golf courses to specification instead of finding an ideal site and gently modifying the terrain. Other assets were riding mowers and irrigation systems. However, many architects who had thrived during the golden age died during the 1950s. As a result, Robert Trent Jones became the leading golf architect of his day. He favored long runway tees and tightly defended, big greens. Each day’s setup could be different than the one before. Many players wanted 7,000 yard par 72 championship layouts, too, which meant many courses from the 1950s are often similar. That trend continued during the 1960s and 1970s. Golf architects were building golf resorts and golf communities. The choice sites GOLF continued on page 12 Golf Course Name Architect Augusta National Bobby Jones and Alister Mackenzie Capilano Stanley Thompson Prairie Dunes Perry Maxwell Bethpage Black A.W. Tillinghast Shinnecock Hills William Flynn and Howard Toomey Golf Course Name Architect Pine Valley George Crump Cypress Point Alister Mackenzie Merion Hugh Wilson Seminole Donald Ross Riviera George Thomas Fishers Island Seth Raynor Jasper Park Lodge Stanley Thompson San Francisco A.W. Tillinghast