PINE VALLEY GOLF CLUB
Course Architect(s): George Arthur Crump & Harry S. Colt, Hugh Wilson
Year Opened: 1918
Location: Pine Valley, New Jersey
Slope: 155. Rating: 75.2
Par: 70
Yardage: 7,009
Hole-by-Hole: 1 - Par 4 421 Yds 10 - Par 3 161 Yds
2 - Par 4 368 Yds 11 - Par 4 397 Yds
3 - Par 3 198 Yds 12 - Par 4 337 Yds
4 - Par 4 451 Yds 13 - Par 4 486 Yds
5 - Par 3 238 Yds 14 - Par 3 220 Yds
6 - Par 4 394 Yds 15 - Par 5 615 Yds
7 - Par 5 636 Yds 16 - Par 4 475 Yds
8 - Par 4 326 Yds 17 - Par 4 345 Yds
9 - Par 4 458 Yds 18 - Par 4 483 Yds
Par 35 3,490 Yds Par 35 3,519 Yds
Awards Won: Ranked 1st Golf Magazine's Top-100 Courses in the World (2005-08),
Ranked 1st Golf Digest's America's 100 Greatest Courses (2005-08),
Ranked 1st Golf Connoisseur's 100 Most Prestigious Private
Clubs in America (2006).
Key Events Held: Crump Cup (1922-present),
Walker Cup (1936, 1985),
Philadelphia Open (1923, 1941, 2002).
HISTORY: In 1913, 184 acres of the scruffy pinelands were purchased to build a
golf course (over the years Pine Valley would spread to 623 acres, of which
416 remain virgin woodland). George Crump was appointed chairman of the Greens
Committee and it would be his responsibility to build the Pine Valley golf
course. Crump had never designed a golf course before but he knew what he
wanted his golf course to look like. He didn't want any hole to be laid out
parallel to the next. While playing one hole he didn't want to see any other
hole. Crump did not want more than two successive holes to play in the same
direction, and he felt that a round of golf on his course should require every
club in the bag to complete. Despite his strong opinions, Crump solicited the
opinions of many noted golfers and architects for Pine Valley. H.S. Colt, an
English designer of renown, was retained to review the plans and offer
suggestions. Some of the reviewers were not so encouraging. At first many
called Pine Valley, destined to be regarded as the greatest course in the
United States, as "Crump's Folly."
The expanse of sandy scrub pines was so unappealing that skeptics wondered if
Crump could even grow grass on it. To create Pine Valley, Crump had to direct
the removal of over 22,000 stumps that had to be pulled out with special
steam-winches and horse-drawn cables because dynamite only blew up the sand
around the stump. Marshlands were drained, dams built and underbrush cleared
away. Crump built a bungalow along the 5th hole and oversaw construction. The
first grass seed went into the ground in the fall of 1913 and the first 11
holes unofficially opened for play in February 1914. Crump did more than
oversee the construction of Pine Valley, he sacrificed much of his personal
fortune to its creation. He sold his luxury hotel in Philadelphia and plowed
as much as $275,000 of his money into Pine Valley. Crump died in 1918. Only 14
of the holes at Pine Valley were ready at the time and the final four holes -
#12, #13, #14, #15 - would be completed by other designers although his mark
remained on the final touches. Crump never saw the completed masterpiece he
created that is the best golf course in the history of America.
REVIEW: Some people debate over which golf course is the finest in the land.
It's not open to discussion - Pine Valley Golf Club is hands down the best
course in the United States. When Crump designed the course, not only did he
not want to see any other hole while playing on any given hole, but he also
designed a course with 18 different and distinct holes.
The first hole is a dogleg right par-4 which features a 8,300 square foot
green that starts as an extension of the fairway and ends as a peninsula with
sharp fall offs on all three sides. Most courses start you off with a simple
hole, not Pine Valley. The first is rated as the third most difficult on the
course. The next hole is just 367 yards, but it is straight uphill to an
unbelievably undulating green, making two-putting a miracle. Just a three-wood
off the tee is needed, but accuracy is key, due to the myriad of bunkers left
and right of the fairway. A short iron awaits, but don't be fooled, as the
putting surface is 38 yards deep and menacing. The third is a downhill par-3
with a green that features many challenging pin positions. The putting surface
is 35-yards long, but is very narrow with a huge hogback, meandering from
front to back. As is the case on the par three's, sand surrounds the entire
green. The par-four fourth features the largest green on the course at 9,700
square feet. The green itself follows the general slope of the land, which is
from front to back. But, getting to the green is not to be overlooked. An
uphill, tee shot on this, the longest par-four of the course is needed to a
two-tiered landing area. From there, the approach shot is downhill to this
fairly square green. The fifth hole tee box sits adjacent to the clubhouse and
is probably one of the best one shotters in the world at 232 yards uphill.
Even the best players will need to use a fairway metal, but don't miss right,
or you'll have no shot at par, let alone bogey.
The sixth produces some interesting strategy. Depending upon how much you want
to cut off the dogleg right, a player can be left with 200 yards in or a
simple wedge. But miss the fairway and a double-bogey, or worse, is likely.
This hole is probably the first real chance at birdie on the course. The
flattest piece of land encompasses the seventh hole -- or what has been called
Hell's Half Acre, which bisects the fairway from the 285 to the 380 yard mark.
At 578 yards, the seventh is the second longest hole on the course and
requires both accuracy and length. Two solid shots will leave a simple sand-
wedge to somewhat tiny green, making birdie a real possibility. The eighth
hole at 319 yards is the shortest par-four on the course, but features a
sloping fairway to a choice of two greens, one of which is a mere 2,900 square
feet. A fairway metal will set up another wedge to either green, but don't
miss the putting surface, as sand will destroy you. Many believe that the
ninth is the best par-four on the course. The hole also features two greens,
producing different angles of play, with the most difficult and testing being
the left surface. Your tee shot must be placed right center to attack the
green, but make sure to add another club, as your second will be uphill.
The back nine starts with what someone might think is as a somewhat easy par-
three at just 158 yards. Wrong, again. This is target golf at its best, as the
green is surrounded by sand and more sand, not to mention the pot bunker
fronting the surface called so appropriately, "Devil's A__ (rearend)." Just 29
yards in depth, the green, two-tiered, slopes severely from front to back with
many subtle breaks, making this hole anything but easy. The 11th twists from
left to right on this par-four, with the approach shot up a little valley to
an elevated green. The putting surface is well guarded, so don't be
disappointed if you miss the green. An up-and-down is possible, just as long
as you don't miss the green long. The 12th hole is a severe dogleg to the
left, featuring the scrub brush and sand all along the left side. Although
short, feel free to use driver or three-metal to give yourself the best angle
to the green. The putting surface is very narrow, but long, running from front
to back, dropping two-and-a-half feet. If Pine Valley has such a thing as an
easy hole, this is it. In contrast, one of the most difficult holes on the
inward nine is the 13th at 448 yards. The drive on this dogleg left is uphill
to a plateau with a second shot to a large green guarded on the left side by
Pine Valley scrub. The putting surface is huge at 44 yards, so play right and
move on. There is no shame in making bogey here.
Probably the easiest green on the course is at the par-three 14th, but hitting
it is another story. This downhill hole features a pond in front with a beach-
like bunker surrounding the front and right of the green and a moat-like trap
on the left. Another picturesque hole, the 14th tee box is 47-feet above the
green and usually plays into the wind, making club selection a key. As
mentioned before, par is OK. A classic three-shotter, the 15th is the longest
hole on the course at 591 yards. Hugh Wilson, who also finished the 13th,
completed this hole to Crump's specifications. Each shot gets progressively
harder and more exacting with the fairway starting off over 60 yards wide but
narrowing to less than 20 paces by the time one eventually reaches the green.
The putting surface is elevated with three crowned areas around the edges,
however when the pin is in the middle, birdies can be made. The 16th features
a lake on the right side of the fairway leading up to a 11,400 square foot
green with severe undulations. A drive of 200 yards is needed to carry the
sand abyss just to reach the fairway. After a successful tee ball, a medium to
short iron is needed to hit the circular green, that lopes from back to front.
Another short sounding hole at 338 yards, the 17th boasts a wide fairway that
bends to the right, leading up to a small green surrounded by a moat of a
bunker. The putting surface is just 25-yards in depth, sloping severely from
back to front. The 18th is a perfect finishing hole at 434 yards from the
tips. Your downhill tee shot must carry 195 yards to the fairway which will
then leave a mid- to long-iron to an uphill 11,000 square-foot green that
slopes from left to right. Missing the fairway will force the player to layup
about 100 yards out, as rough and water protect par.
Some might think that with generous fairways Pine Valley should be an easy
mark. However, this course features some of the most difficult greens and
missing a fairway will likely result in a bogey if your lucky. This course is
unique, difficult, exciting and exacting and will make you use every club in
your bag and wishing you had a few extra. Every hole and every green is a
different experience. There are no two holes alike and that is one of the
reasons that makes Pine Valley so special. Not to mention the beautiful
surroundings, set among the acres of pine forests, sand hills and wetlands. If
there is such a thing as a final destiny for golf, Pine Valley is it, hands
down. This is a round of golf, where you will remember each and every shot and
a place where you can't wait to get back to. No matter what it takes or costs,
you must play Pine Valley.