Great Places In The Game Files: Hyde Park Edition

For years I've heard from Jaxians Doug Ferguson and Cody Carroll about the merits of Hyde Park, a public gem not too far from downtown Jacksonville, Florida. But like too many visitors, I've headed straight to Ponte Vedra Beach. Finally, young Cody got me out to play this gem. What a place.

Most of you might remember this as the course that has been at the heart of a design credit battle. Donald Ross has his name on the course but all signs point to Stanley Thompson at least carrying out the construction. Garry Smits did a nice job covering the debate a few years back and there was this Thompson ad too.

And guess what? It doesn't matter one bit. Though at the risk of entering a pointless debate, I'd have to say it's a Ross design (on paper) with Thompson's strong influence in the construction. After playing Ross's Palatka just a few days prior where one of his trusted associates clearly carried out Ross's plans and the character-rich green complexes remain very much intact, Hyde Park feels a bit different.

This could be related to the size of the property, which in Ross' day was twice the size of Palatka's. Hyde Park feels like it was designed as a grand scale golf course capable of hosting tournaments (as it did, hosting the Jacksonville Open in 1947 and again from 1950-53. The winners were Clayton Heafner, Cary Middlecoff, Jim Ferrier (who won by 11), Doug Ford & Lew Worsham, according to historian Daniel Wexler.).

However, my heart says Thompson put his touch into the Ross vision and maybe built a set of quieter inverted bowl greens. Or someone has shaved a few contours down over the years. That said, there are moments which feel like Ross, including the 11th green at Hyde Park that is eerily reminscent of the 11th at Pinehurst No. 2.

Again, it doesn't matter. Hyde Park is so full of character despite losing a few too many bunkers over the years that it holds up just fine today. And as I said with Palatka, if every town had an affordable, comfortable and architecturally compelling course like this, the game would be much stronger for it. There's a reason someone like Mark McCumber learned the game here, grew into an elite player and loves this place to this day.

I won't go hole-by-hole but here's how I know Hyde Park is special: a week later I can easily remember every hole and I remain sure that I could never grow bored playing it. Yes, restoring some lost bunkers would be nice, as would a little extra love in the maintenance department. But a few of the extraordinary closing holes actually play better without some of the bunkering seen in old photos, and young Carroll, a regular there, concurs. The short par-5 14th and par-4 15th, both included in the slideshow below, actually benefit from more restrained bunkering compared to the historic aerials.

Also worth noting is the extraordinary clubhouse area. It's spacious and seemingly designed for staging a tournament. While the modern ball would preclude top men's events from going to a restored Hyde Park, the women did play the LPGA's Jacksonville Open in 1955, 1957, 1958 & 1959, won twice by Mickey Wright. The combination of space for infrastructure and a design rich in character would make it a perfect place to play a tournament again. But it's also just fine for a friendly late afternoon game at the kind of place America needs to start better appreciating.

A few photos. In order: #1 is the graceful first hole, #2 the reachable par-5 fifth, #3 the well-bunkered par-5 9th, #4 the glorious short par-5 14th, #5 the par-4 15th, #6 the par-3 16th, #7 the stately clubhouse, #8 remnants of Ben Hogan's presence, #9 the sandy transitions emerging as spring turns to summer.