A Conversation With John Fought

During 2003 and 2004, John Fought, a former PGA Tour player turned golf course architect, restored the Donald Ross classic. In returning the course to its original playing personality, while also keeping pace with today’s technology, Fought dramatically re-established the reputation of one of Ross’ most classic designs, which originally opened in 1928. Fought spent countless hours at the Tufts Archives in the Given Memorial Library in Pinehurst, conducting exhaustive research on Ross and his timeless approaching to designing a golf course. Fought even analyzed and compared aerial photography of Pine Needles from 1939 to 1950 to 1966 to determine how the course had changed from its debut in 1928.

While the course continues to play as a par 71, it is about 300 yards longer from the back tees. Following are Fought’s thoughts about the golf course and the upcoming U.S. Women’s Open Championship:

Question: When you restored this Donald Ross classic, you said you could almost literally feel his presence. In the wake of the restoration, what do you think Ross — a man whose works you’ve intensely studied — would have to say about your efforts here?

John Fought: I think he would feel really good about what we were able to accomplish. I think he would agree that the biggest differences you’ll find are what we were able to do with 14 and 15.

It’s amazing how good 15 — Ross’ favorite hole — is now. We pulled the tee back and restored the old bunkers. It is now a par 5, 485-yard hole that will test the players.

Meanwhile, 14 is now a par 4, 402-yard hole where the bunkers on the right side of the fairway won’t allow the players to cut the corner. The green is guarded by bunkers on both sides and falls sharply away to the right.

I can’t emphasize enough how big the differences in the two holes have made to the course and I’m confident Ross would be impressed because these changes are right in line with this original vision and execution in designing the course.

Q: Prior to your restoration, can you pinpoint some of the elements that had been lost over the decades?

JF: For starters, the greens had become very flat and the putting surfaces had shrunk. Over the years, bunkers had been moved or entirely removed. Many of the par 4s had become so short that drives were carrying over the plateaus and players were able to use short irons into the greens.

Q: In making the course more relevant for today’s player, while also restoring the original shot values, what precisely did you have to undertake as part of the restoration?

JF: We went back to the aerial photographs from 1939 and 1950 and pieced it all back together. There’s a lot of information you can glean from those old photos. Work had been done to the Pine Needles course over the years but no full-blown restoration such as we undertook.

Q: What are some of the most significant challenges in trying to restore a course compared to designing a brand new one from scratch?

JF: First, you have to have the right owners who, in this example, genuinely understand and care about what Donald Ross intended for the course. The folks at Pine Needles — Peggy Kirk Bell, Kelly Miller and Pat McGowan — understand the genius of Ross and wanted to return the course to how he originally designed it. There are other course owners who may not have taken the time to understand Ross. Or they might say we’re making these changes because "we know what Ross would have done." It’s fair to say that without conducting the proper research — as exhaustive as it sometimes can be — you don’t always know.

I look at myself. How could I know what Ross truly intended? He died six years before I was born. But we went about slowly putting the pieces back together.

It was a fun project for me. Ross didn’t write books so you had to go back to the archives and look at designs and dig for information.

Q: How will Pine Needles play differently for the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open than it did in 2001 and 1996?

JF: Playing at some 6,700 yards makes for a very big course for the women. It wasn’t that long ago that the men were playing championships at that distance. When the U.S. Women’s Open was first contested here in 1996, the distance was 6,100; in 2001, it played between 6,300 and 6,400 yards so you can see this setup will be quite a bit longer.

In addition to 14 and 15, the women will find a much different 10^th hole. This dogleg left, par 5 not only plays 65 yards longer but also features a bunker in the corner of the dogleg.

The greens, which are much more contoured, will certainly get the players’ attention. They will be difficult. Also, the golfers will have to pay attention on their approach shots into the green.

Q: What would be your advice to those players who are competing here for the first time?

JF: They’ll need to watch corner pin placements. On the par-4 sixth and seventh holes especially, you short side your approach … the ball can roll 20 yards away. A conservative approach will be key. If you’re going to go at the flag, you had better not miss.

Q: Since the course hasn’t been overseeded, the Bermuda turfgrass fairways are expected to be in ideal shape. Hence, talk about how the course will look and play.

JF: It’s in terrific shape. Just perfect. … Dave Fruchte has done a great job getting the course ready for the championship.

Q: Donald Ross once wrote that he favored par 4s because they make for a better test, especially the longer par 4s. Can you give us a quick thumbnail sketch of the par 4s the women will be playing at Pine Needles?

• No. 2, 450 yards. It’s long and downhill — a tough hole.
• No. 4, 375 yards. It has been lengthened in the restoration. You can’t see the putting surface on the second shot. Will be tough to birdie.
• No. 6, 411 yards. It was also lengthened, and the green was expanded to the original size. It’s a long, difficult par 4.
• No. 7, 414 yards. Another long 4 that will be difficult to birdie.
• No. 8, 360 yards. The shortest par 4 on the course can yield birdies. A precise short iron approach will be important to a green that is somewhat hidden.
• No. 9, 384 yards. The green has been expanded to the edges. A very difficult green with a steep drop off the back. If the approach shot to the green goes too far, it will roll away from the putting surface.
• No. 11, 369 yards. We removed all the bunkers from hole since there were no bunkers originally. It may look flat from the fairway but it will be difficult to get the ball close to hole.
• No. 12, 403 yards. There is an opportunity for birdies here with a great approach shot to a green that is long and narrow.
• No. 14, 402 yards. An interesting four — it will take two great shots to have a chance at a birdie. The green is guarded by bunkers on both sides.
• No. 17, 445 yards. A tough tee shot on this dogleg left. A restored fore-bunker on the right side of the green, which has been restored to elevation, makes for a tricky approach. It will be one of hardest holes on the course.
• No. 18, 415 yards. We’ve got it back to playing like it used to; it will be an interesting closing hole for the players. The right greenside bunkers were removed and a closely mown hollow was created. The approach will be important to a green that can be difficult to hold.

Q: Will the type of contestant in the Women’s Open Championship need to think her way around the course, which is part of the USGA’s setup philosophy?

JF: The players will have to think very carefully. Experience will be a key. I’m not saying one of the many good young players can’t do well here, but you’ve got to be on your game and, most importantly, know your limitations. Being a brash blaster won’t get it done.

Q: Does any one player specifically come to mind who may be hoisting the trophy on the final day?

JF: The two players who won here before, of course: Annika, if she’s healthy, and Karrie Webb. Juli Inkster. Paula Creamer. Then you’ve got Morgan Pressel, fresh off her win at the Kraft Nabisco Championship so she’ll have momentum.

But if you’re going to go at the flag all day long, then you’re going to get your brains beaten in … unless you’re perfect and, let’s face it, no one’s perfect.

You have to know where to position your ball. If you short-side yourself on some of these greens, it will be difficult to get par. It will be tempting to go at some of the corner pin placements, but in an example like the sixth hole, where the pin will be on the back right, you had better be perfect. If you miss, it’s at least a bogey. You will pay a huge price.

The women will have to use their heads and be calculating.

Q. What kind of a score are we looking at?

JF: It depends on how the greens are playing: if they’re slow, I could see four under, six under winning the tournament. If the greens are playing fast, it may be even par that wins it.

It’s important the course plays at a national championship level — with the caliber of today’s players, it requires a test that will find a deserving winner.

Suffice it say, Pine Needles will provide a wonderful test of golf.