Headed down to JP this morning to play William J. Devine at Franklin Park as my ninth course in my quest. What a delight. Frankly, I'm ashamed this was my first time around the place.
The day started out on good ground when my two playing partners, Billy and Brendan, turned out to be good guys and good golfers. The Golfer's Routlette of making a tee time as a single can be treacherous. The course was a blast. I didn't have high expectations, but as soon as I looked out on the course, it was inviting. Wavy land, a touch of fescue, and plenty of green grass.
For the most part, the course is right in front of you. It's not terribly long, but offers the choice of driver if you want because there's plenty of space to miss. But laying back with a hybrid or long iron is also completely doable.
The front nine asks you to shoot 34 for a score of par. No par fives in sight. The third hole is a great par three and then the fourth is an excellent par four that reminds me of the swerving 6th at Eastward Ho! with the fescue, blind tee shot, and uphill second.
The back nine feels a little different than the front. The 10th and 11th have well bunkered greens: classic Donald Ross. The 12th is a tough test, a tree lined par four where everything falls off the to the right and you're climbing up the entire way to the green. The 15th is another solid par 3, uphill to a table top green. There's so much in this course that I enjoyed. The subtleties of how the greens are shaped make it tricky to hit certain shots close. I found myself hitting approaches away from spots and then walking to the green and realizing the spot I was afraid of is the the spot I should have aimed for. But Ross scares you off with bunkers and visual trickery.
THE FACTS
Date: July 24, 2020
Tee TIme: 7:40am
Playing Partner: Bill and Brendan
Tees: Blue Tees (6013)
Game: No Game.
Score: 78
Birdie Count: 1 (12 total)