Jay Blasi Takes Lakeside to Its Full Potential - Henry Shimp
The Vision:
Lakeside Country Club sits firmly in the urban core of Houston, Texas. A 1952 Ralph Plummer and 1990 redo by Ron Pritchard, the location and size of the piece of property were things that immediately jumped out to me when on site a few weeks ago to meet with the 3rd man to leave his architectural finger print on it, Jay Blasi.
A large and functional clubhouse, a distinguished set of bridges, and a canvas for plenty of interesting golf, it’s clear that the potential for something of very high quality is there for Lakeside, it just wasn’t striking on all cylinders prior to where Jay has the course going. While I don’t enjoy saying a prior architect “screwed up” due to the fact that preferences of the game and purposes a course needs to serve change over time, I do like considering those exact things. What has changed since the last architect left his mark, and how does this inform what the next man up should have his mind around? Those are the initial questions that Jay Blasi set out to answer, and in the forthcoming paragraphs, we’ll explore further what those answers may look like.
One of the first things Jay mentioned in his “due diligence” on the course, site, and in formulation of a path forward given what he was working with was to figure out what sort of comparable pieces of land in similar geographies have been the most successful. To situate that directly, the question was “what is the best golf in the South on flat land?” Jay’s mind quickly went to the low country of South Carolina (maybe my favorite place in the world) and the timeless works of Seth Raynor at Country Club of Charleston and Yeamans Hall. He had me there, and I think many of you will feel the same way.
Country Club of Charleston: 17
What those two courses get right-and what Jay has implemented a lot of at Lakeside-is leaning heavily on bunkering and green sites to inform strategy. Through a selection of the template holes, many subtle yet effective fairway and greenside bunkers, and most importantly, short grass, Jay and Seth Raynor have been able to squeeze a lot out of flat and otherwise somewhat uninspiring land. What the membership at Lakeside will be so pleasantly surprised to see is how egalitarian yet devilish a little short grass, a tucked pin, and firm playing conditions can make a golf hole. I immediately think of the third hole. A mid length par 5 with an interesting green that can be accessed by any skill of player through the front; however, will give fits to those who really want to try to score by having the ability to tuck pins around the bunkering and run off areas. With that in mind, let’s change gears slightly and explore maybe the fundamental question Jay is trying to answer for Lakeside’s membership.
The Mission:
Like many courses that had fallen a bit out of the times from a strategic standpoint, Lakeside circa 2000-2021 had become very penalizing to the lesser golfer but not overly challenging to the better one. How to course correct a divergence between high and low handicappers is one of the most challenging but important questions an architect faces. That said, tackling the issue well is the ultimate path to success with any project, in my opinion. On that front, I believe Jay’s work at Lakeside has come up aces.
As you’ll hear Jay discuss in the podcast we recorded with him about his work at Lakeside, what he saw too much of in the previous version of the course was holes that took decision making out of play for the strong player but punished weaker players’ abilities to execute. If a green is surrounded by deep bunkers, a strong player doesn’t have to think much about what to do. They know where to not miss and are good enough to avoid doing so. Furthermore, strong players rarely have an issue with playing from bunkers. Weaker players on the other hand have tremendous difficulty from bunkers and will be more likely not to execute well on the approach when they are mentally intimidated by what they see at the green. So essentially there were many situations where holes were not overly thought provoking nor difficult for a strong player, but highly intimidating and punishing for weaker ones. A divergence in the already present skill gap. The worst of both worlds.
The Strategy:
Insert Jay Blasi’s vision for Lakeside. To converge levels of difficulty, Jay has taken a more Pinehurst No. 2 approach to the golf course. By incorporating more short grass around the greens, he has given weaker players the ability to select the method of play that works for them around the greens and has pushed the stronger players to use their heads. The famous Pete Dye quote “If I can get players to think, I’ve got ‘em” feels apropos. The 200 level of Blasi’s vision goes back to the approach shots, and the 300 level to the tee. Let’s continue the march backwards from the green.
By implementing more intrigue on the greens through template greens or just general undulation that allows players to work the ball to the hole, Blasi is once again getting the wheels spinning for a better player while a weaker player is simply happy to have the ability to run the ball onto the green and see less sand guarding it. Now that the better players are forced to make decisions and are tempted to get creative, the likelihood of execution has dropped. Once again, the goal is to converge bad players and good players and the way to do this is make decisions and shots simpler and less intimidating for bad players and more thought provoking for good players.
Wrapping things up here, let’s take it back to the tee. Remember those fairway bunkers we talked about? This is where things really get fun. A bad player just wants to find the fairway. A good player sees angles and ideal approach locations. Jay Blasi sees an opportunity to place strategically located bunkers to challenge those who want the best angle with a hazard. This is the recipe for converging skill levels and making a golf course playable but also challenging for all. It’s like a great sandwich. The bread is the greens and surrounds. No great bread, no great sandwich. Period. The meat and cheese become the approach shots. This is where good and great are separated. Finally, the balance of flavor and texture comes from the toppings. These are the tee balls and bunkering that create strategy. A good sandwich can be as simple as good meat and bread, but a great one must have it all.
In Conclusion:
Not to go unmentioned is the importance of the man who will bring this whole vision together. While Houston is not necessarily known for firm and fast playing conditions, Jay’s vision for his design will rely heavily on being an anomaly in this regard. Shortgrass, templates, and undulating greens/surrounds beg for firm and fast conditions if they are to truly create for the quality of golf they are capable of and Dane Alexander is coming to Lakeside from the American cathedral of firm and fast, Seminole Golf Club, to be “the glue” to make Blasi’s design work translate to ideal play.
The end-to-end approach Jay has taken to this project has been really cool for me to learn about from formulating his vision for the course, to figuring out what the real goal is from a playing perspective, all the way to filling in the right puzzle pieces to go from renderings to golf shots reacting the way he wants. Lakeside is going to be really neat and will give the Houston golf scene a real facelift both in quality of play and architectural prowess. I can’t wait to be mentally engaged myself out on the course when it opens up in a few short weeks.
Cheers,
HS