#50 - Old Macdonald - More Than a Good Walk Spoiled

The famous ghost tree sits atop a massive ridge at Old Macdonald and provides an aiming point for the blind tee shot on the 3rd hole.  The fairway beyond the ridge is almost unimaginably wide, but left of the tree will leave you with a look at the pin, while right of the tree will likely leave a blind approach.  The sun began to poke out from behind the cloud cover as we trudged up the dune with our pull carts in tow giddy with anticipation for what lay ahead.  At the apex, the golf course revealed itself with windswept dunes flowing seamlessly into the Pacific Ocean ahead.  After a long journey from the East Coast, we had reached the other end of the continent, an unrivaled golfers paradise.

Ever since the construction of Old Macdonald, the 4th course to open at Bandon Dunes, golfers have debated which course is the best.  While Old Mac isn’t at the top of any of our lists, the routing of the course make it the ideal way to start a trip to Bandon.  The course truly builds on itself with multiple visual crescendos mixed into the “template holes” designed by Tom Doak and Jim Urbina as an homage to the courses namesake, CB Macdonald.

Bright and Early

Joe and Taylor walk to the first tee at Old Mac with 54 holes ahead.

Hole #1 "Double-Plateau" - Par 4 - 301 Yards

The first hole is short and a perfect way to ease into a long day. The angle of approach is key to this namesake double-plateau green. Joe and Adam both made unremarkable pars, while Taylor got a bit too familiar with a greenside bunker, starting the day with a triple bogey.

Hole #2 "Eden" - Par 3 - 162

Based of the 11th at St. Andrews. The far left pin placement feels like a sucker because missing too far left leaves a nasty chip back onto the green. Aiming for the middle of the green can leave a long, sloping putt. Joe took the aggressive line and was rewarded with a par. Adam took the more conservative approach but 3-putted from just off the green for bogey. Taylor’s woes continued.

Hole #3 "Sahara" - Par 4 - 345 Yards

Featuring one of the most iconic trees in golf, the ghost tree guides players on the correct line of this completely blind hole. The bunker that creates blind shots for players who go right of the tree is a stroke of genius to make hole interesting beyond the iconic tree. Taylor finally rights the ship with a par to match Adam’s, while Joe’s shaky drive leaves him with his first bogey.

Hole #4 "Hog's Back" - Par 4 - 472 Yards

In order to have a reasonable approach into this hole you must catch the downslope of the ridge running diagonally through the fairway. The hardest handicap hole plays long and difficult but Joe still managed a par.

Hole #5 "Short" - Par 3 - 134 Yards

The large green is counterintuitive to most golf courses where the size of the green matches the length of the expected approach, but the “circus” undulations in the green make accuracy paramount on the 5th hole. Even the shortest hole on the course requires a great deal of thought.

Hole #6 "Long" - Par 5 - 520 Yards

The longest hole on the course didn’t play too long with the wind at our backs. All 3 of us handled the hole will, and Taylor rolled in a lengthy putt for birdie to best Joe and Adam’s pars. It would turn out to be the only birdie on the round for the entire group.

The massive fairway bunkers are modelled after Hell bunker from the 14th hole at St. Andrews.

Joe walks away disappointed after missing a birdie look.

The next high point on the course is a quite literally a high point.  The 7th hole, “Ocean”, is the definition of a second shot hole.  The approach is up a steep incline to a blind green that is thankfully larger than it appears.  Walking up to this green has the strong combination of anticipation to see where your ball has ended up mixed with the Pacific Ocean truly, finally, revealing itself.  As I took in the ocean in front of me and the course behind me, a feeling of total escape and peace swept over me.

Hole #7 "Ocean" - Par 4 - 345 Yards

One of the few template holes at Old Mac not modelled after anything else. Length is not needed off the tee, but the approach requires nerves as it is blind and steeply uphill. The elevation in the approach is reminiscent of #15 at Bethpage Black. Despite the challenge, we all recorded a green in regulation, but 3-putts for Adam and Taylor resulted in bogeys.

The rest of the course winds itself away from the coast before returning to it, as many of the course at Bandon do. Finally the course traverses back across the ridgeline, closing with a par 5 and a par 4 heading back to the clubhouse. Although the course winds down to the end, the closing holes do not disappoint as golf holes, with the approach to the sweeping left-to-right bowl shaped green forcing you to trust your instincts.

Hole #9 "Cape" - Par 4 - 352 Yards

Like any good dogleg hole, the more you challenge the corner, the better approach you will have to the green but the bigger the risk of disaster. Everyone closed out the front 9 with a par.

There is an old saying in golf, often misattributed to Mark Twain, that “golf is just a good walk spoiled.” I could go on about each template hole, or my favorite stretch of holes (14-16), or how the massive greens make the course deceptively hard, but after 103 holes of golf in 48 hours it all starts to run together.  Even the courses themselves, while each unique, begin to blur. But Old Mac is the perfect place to start a trip to Bandon because it is so much more than just a good walk.