“There are only two types of golfer; those who have played Cavendish, and those who wished they had”
Peter Smith, Head Greenkeeper at the Cavendish Golf Club, is on a mission to bring the Alister MacKenzie designed course back to its former glories.
Laurence Gale MSc catches up with him during a course walk
CAVENDISH Alias Smith and Golfers!
T
he Cavendish Golf Club in Buxton, Derbyshire, is a private members club with a current membership of 450 The course was designed for the 9th
Duke of Devonshire on his Buxton Estate by the renowned Dr Alister MacKenzie in 1923 and opened in 1925. It was sold to the members in 1953 following the death of the 10th Duke.
Cavendish was one of Alister
MacKenzie’s last UK commissions before he gained overseas contracts in Australasia, South America and the USA. In the early 1930s Alister made his home in the USA and died there in 1936. Two of the gang who worked on Cavendish also emigrated and worked for him at Cypress Point in California. It was after playing the latter course, and meeting Alister, that Bobby Jones invited him to design Augusta National, the home of the Masters.
By modern standards Cavendish is short at 5,721 yards; the golfer’s shotmaking skills, not his power, provide the challenge that keeps players returning time and time again. In 1994, American golf course architect, Tom Doak, placed it amongst the top 100 courses in the world with a par under 70 - it is currently 68 - and also reckoned that the 10th was one of the eighteen best holes that weren’t in
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anyone else’s top 100 list! On the club’s website they proudly claim that “there are only two types of golfer; those who have played Cavendish, and those who wished they had” so, when an invitaion came from golf course architect, Jonathan Gaunt, to walk the course with Head Greenkeeper, Peter Smith, I jumped at the chance. Also joining us were club historian,
Richard Ratherton, and head professional, Simon Townsend, holder of the course record of 65 - just three shots under par. That suggests that the course, even though it is short, is a considerable challenge. Jonathan, himself an eight handicap, says that he finds it a major challenge. We met in the bar (where else) and, whilst waiting for one of many rain showers to pass, talked about MacKenzies’ design, the impressive layout that used the contours of the terrain to great effect, the small, undulating greens (a MacKenzie favourite), the sloping fairways and the positioning of tees. Throw in bunkers, out of bounds and rough close to greens, and the unpredictable Derbyshire weather, and it is no wonder the course can be a challenge. A prime example of this is the 17th, a
160 yard par 3. The green nestles in a gorge, surrounded by bunkers and water. It is approached from an elevated tee where the wind seldom drops below force 5. Good golfers would be tempted to take a wedge or a 9 iron - they would be the wrong choice. It is a card wrecker of a hole!
Having said all this, the major factor that influences the golfer is how the course is set up and maintained. The smoothness and quality of the playing surfaces are essential, especially on these Mackenzie greens. Green speed is deliberately kept at under nine on the stimp most of the time. Peter Smith came to the club two years
ago from Selsdon Park Hotel Golf and Country Club, having previously worked at Birch Grove Golf Course and Bradfield College Golf Club. Peter takes over and explains how he manages the course and how, like many clubs, the current recession has put pressure on budgets. “When I took up the position at Cavendish two years ago it was very apparent that the course was not in the best condition. There had been little or no aeration or overseeding for four or five years and, as a result, most of the surfaces had thin, weak swards, the tees were
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