This article originally appeared in the August issue of NCGA Golf Magazine
By Jim Cowan, NCGA Chief Governance Officer
With the acclaimed remodel of Poppy Ridge now over a year old, we are about to issue new, updated Course Ratings for all sets of tees.
The timing is typical for courses undergoing complete renovations. That is, preliminary ratings are issued based on a visit weeks in advance of the opening. More permanent-like ratings are then issued sometime later.
The reason for this is quite simple: courses mature in their first 12 months. Course conditioning standards including Green Speeds, Green Firmness, Extreme Rough severity, etc., typically change in the first year, then stabilize with time.
Poppy Ridge is no different.
When we first rated the course a good two-to-three months prior to the grand opening, the Fairway grasses were completely dormant (i.e., Fairways were brown), the Greens were especially firm, and the areas beyond the Fairways varied in difficulty depending on how long ago they had been seeded. In short, Poppy Ridge GC was not exactly primed for a rating visit, but such a visit was necessary with rounds soon to be played and golfers wishing to post their scores.
All in all, the initial ratings held up well. There is a feature within GHIN that permits us to determine those days where a course plays tougher or easier than normal based on the scores posted that particular day. And, with the exception of the winter months when the course “played” longer, the initial ratings have been more than hanging in there.
Nonetheless, a “return” rating visit was in order/was performed in June. What we found should be very familiar to those who play the course on a regular basis.
One, that the course is intentionally designed to play firm and fast and generate above average “Roll.” Two, many of the “Fairways” are extremely wide. Three, essentially there is no standard “Rough” . . . everything that is mown (other than the greens) is mown to Fairway height. Four, as the Greens have matured, the “Green Speed” has increased. And lastly, the Greens remain “Firm,” as intended but not as firm as they were when the course first reopened.
The native areas beyond the Fairway have matured as well, however, and can lead to trouble including an occasional lost ball with an errant shot. This, along with the increase in Green Speeds, are the features that changed the most and brought about slight increases in the overall ratings.
The ratings reflect the reality of Poppy Ridge . . . a wonderful “track” capable of challenging elite amateur golfers (as demonstrated by the recent Pacific Coast Amateur) while remaining playable and fun for golfers of all abilities.
The very best of both worlds!
