(In typical Pete Dye fashion, the finishing hole is a complete ballbuster. The line of charm draws your eye to challenge the creek, but the smart play is down the left. There’s plenty of room short of the green to up n down. It’s into the prevailing wind. Par is a great score.
The opportunity to play inside the oval was what compelled me to drive five hours to Indianapolis. What’s more Americana than the Indianapolis 500?! The history..the names..it’s pretty awesome!
(The short par four third is a tricky hole. The large mound on left hides the green from the tee. It’s three tiered with the front and rear tiers lower than the middle...
...this is the bunker that guards the back right half of green. It’s pure Pete Dye.
(The par three fourth plays over Little Eagle Creek in intimidating fashion. It seems like Dye never gets cheated on the one shotters.
In Pete Dye’s book “Bury Me in a Pot Bunker” he speaks very fondly about Brickyard Crossing. His involvement with the course goes all the way back to 1960 when the tour played the 500 Festival Open. He was the general chairman of the tournament. [this is one of the few courses to hold all three tours. PGA, Champions, LPGA] The original course was designed by Bill Diddel in 1929. It had nine holes inside the oval. Diddel redesigned it in 1965, but the championship eighteen had no holes in the oval. When Dye redid the course in 1993, his biggest enjoyment was having players once again go into the oval. 
(The tunnel which transfers players under the track to the seventh tee.)
(The tunnel which transfers players under the track to the seventh tee.)
(Standing on the tee at the par three seventh, Dye talked about the player looking around at the stands, the turn, the final stretch in the distance, and imagining 220,000 people cheering as cars race 155 mph around the track. Note the lack of bunkering. The elevated green really needs no defense, but more importantly, one can soak the unique atmosphere in. 181/174/155)
(Holes 7-10 play in the oval and this is the tenth. When the LPGA plays here, they reconfigure the routing so the tournament ends inside the track. The green cascades from front to back, making the rear bunker in this pic very much into play. It’s a short par four, but the approach must be very precise to make birdie. 353/340/308)
Besides playing in the oval, several holes play alongside it. Some courses have ocean views or mountain views, here there’s grandstand views. It’s something that is very unique.
(The thirteenth is the final hole that intertwines with the speedway. It’s a solid par three that becomes more challenging the further right the pin goes. 193/175/158)
While admittedly the setting is amazing, the golf course suffers from the lack of land. Dye had to shoehorn several holes into the design including the ninth and tenth which are inside the oval. Tom Doak stated in “The Confidential Guide” that Dye ran out of ideas. This is seen during the first six holes where some of the holes look similar and by the abundance of short par fours throughout the routing.
(The driveable fourteenth is a great opportunity for a birdie. The pot bunkers really make the hole look intimidating, but there’s plenty of green grass to plot your attack. 311/298/270)
This was a passion project for Pete, and he made it work despite the railroad tracks, power lines, and concrete barriers. The last four holes along Little Eagle Creek are classic Dye holes. Getting into the clubhouse at even par for these four holes is difficult. Regardless of any shortcomings the course has, the intimate connection with the speedway will be the only thing you’ll talk bout on the way home. I give Brickyard Crossing a 6 (very good)(worth driving two hours to play)
No comments:
Post a Comment