Dear Harvey,
I’m writing about tuxedos, templates, and transitions on Fit as a Fiddle Friday. I visited my daughter and son-in-law for a fall weekend in Greenwich, Connecticut, before Autodesk University 2024: The Design and Make Conference in San Diego. The Northeast was a treat, with vibrant colours in the trees and perfect autumn temperatures. Emily and Kyle went the extra mile to arrange two spectacular rounds of golf at The Tuxedo Club and Tamarack Country Club.
The Tuxedo Club
The Tuxedo Club is in Tuxedo Park, New York, about 40 miles northwest of New York City. In September 1885, Pierre Lorillard IV and architect Bruce Price envisioned the creation of Tuxedo Park, a luxurious retreat in New York. The club became famous for introducing the short-tailed dinner jacket, now known as the tuxedo, to America. The Tuxedo Club also hosted the prestigious Autumn Ball, a significant social event for debutantes, and became a hub for various sports, including golf, court tennis, and rackets.
The golf course was in perfect shape, with fast-running fairways and greens. Emily and I took on the two Yale grads, our son-in-law, Kyle Cazzetta, and our friend Livy Miller, whom I had travelled with in Ireland last summer. (Access to Tuxedo comes through Kyle and Livy’s membership to The Yale Club.) I’m pleased to let you know we won the match on 18 when Emily stuck her approach from 160 yards to 15 feet. Playing golf again with my daughter was a great joy and is something I miss.
Tamarack Country Club
Next up was Tamarack, a recently redone world-class golf course in Greenwich. Hosted by Kyle’s good friend from Yale football days, Adam Conklin, we again had perfect weather and a course in ideal conditions. Adam and I took on Kyle and his father, Vinnie, and thanks to Adam’s excellent play, my team won again. What a treat to play this golf course!
The course was designed in 1929 by Charles H. Banks, a noted Golden Age architect with dramatic bunkering and bold green surrounds.
The course features these template holes:
- Cape, number 2 (14th National Golf Links of America & 1st Machrihanish Golf Club); Eden, number 3 (11th at St Andrews Old Course)
- Bottle, number 4 (8th National Golf Links of America & 12th Sunningdale Golf Club)
- Long, number 5 (9th National Golf Links of America & 14th St Andrews Old Course)
- Alps, number 6 (3rd National Golf Links of America & 17th Prestwick Golf Club)
- Redan, number 7 (4th National Golf Links of America & 15th North Berwick Golf Club)
- Punchbowl, number 11 (4th Royal Cinque Ports & 9th Royal Liverpool Golf Club)
- Biarrritz, number 12 (9th Piping Rock Club in Locust Valley, New York & 3rd Chicago Golf Club)
- Short, number 15 (6th National Golf Links of America & 4th Royal West Norfolk Golf Club)
- Sahara, number 17 (2nd National Golf Links of America & 3rd Royal St George’s Golf Club)
What are Template Holes?
- Strategic Design: These holes are designed to test a golfer’s skill and strategy, often featuring hazards, bunkers, and undulating greens placed in ways that reward thoughtful play.
- Variety in Layout: Template holes come in different shapes and lengths, incorporating a mix of short and long par 3s, par 4s, and par 5s. They can include doglegs, water hazards, and elevation changes.
- Historical Roots: The original templates were created by legendary architects like Charles Blair Macdonald, Seth Raynor, and Alister MacKenzie, who drew inspiration from famous holes in Scotland, England, and other classic courses.
Transitions
In closing, I’ve been working hard to stay fit enough to swing my golf clubs and tennis rackets properly. Here are two videos showing the positions (and transitions) needed to be successful and what I’ve been working on in both sports. (My skirt not quite as flowy!)
It’s a joy to be still improving in these two sports at age 65. See: My Flat Ass Fitness Rules (12 of them).
Take care, Harvey,
gPage
“Millions of people were charmed by the homespun golf advice dispensed in Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book, a sports classic that became the best-selling sports book of all time. Yet, beyond the Texas golf courses where Penick happily toiled for the better part of eight decades, few people knew the self-made golf pro who coaxed the best out of countless greats — Tom Kite, Ben Crenshaw, Betsy Rawls, Mickey Wright — all champions who considered Penick their coach and lifelong friend.” – Kevin Robbins, author of Harvey Penick: The Life and Wisdom of the Man Who Wrote the Book on Golf.
