Medinah approves No. 3 renovation

Saturday, December 18, 2021

By Tim Cronin

Medinah Country Club, which values its heritage, is going in a different direction with its famed No. 3 course.

If the plan approved today by the membership is fully implemented, a largely new back nine will greet the membership well in advance of the 2026 Presidents Cup.

A trio of Australians led by 2006 U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy was hired in 2020 to propose a renovation of the course designed by Tom Bendelow and since renovated by Larry Packard, son Roger Packard and Rees Jones. The goal was to toughen the back nine – members were chagrined by Justin Thomas’ 25-under-par 263 in the 2019 BMW Championship, as well as the record 11-under 61 posted by him in the third round and a scoring average of 69.928 – and reduce the number of par-3 holes played over the stream running from Lake Kadijah.

The plan approved by the membership this morning apparently does that. As described to Illinois Golfer, the last six holes, as envisioned by Ogilvy, Ashley Mead and Mike Cocking, will be radically different from the current rotation, which came into play with the Packard-led renovation of 1985 in advance of the 1988 U.S. Senior Open and 1990 U.S. Open.

Among the holes expected to be eliminated are the par-3 13th and 17th, both of which play to the north across the stream. The 13th originally was the 17th in Bendelow’s design, a dramatic hole which played a key role in both the 1949 and 1975 U.S. Opens – the former when Sam Snead missed the green and took a bogey in his quest for the title, and the latter when Ben Crenshaw plunked a 2-iron into the water, missing dry land by a foot.

The current 17th, which has been changed twice since Roger Packard concocted it, played a vital role in the 2012 Ryder Cup. It was there that Justin Rose drained a 45-footer to square his Sunday match with Phil Mickelson, and where Jim Furyk missed a critical putt of shorter length while playing Sergio Garcia. Both Rose and Garcia scored 1-up victories, helping Europe to its dramatic comeback victory.

The current 18th will also disappear in favor of a hole essentially on the original corridor for the 18th, used for corporate tents in recent tournaments. The dislike of the United States Golf Association for the original 18th, a severe dogleg right with little room for spectators, was the original reason for the changes to the No. 3 course in the first place. Officials told the club the USGA wouldn’t bring the U.S. Open back unless the hole was changed, and that prompted a contentious vote – two votes on the same day, actually – to bring in the bulldozers in the first place.

Now, they’ll return. Two of the new holes will run along the stream that the par 3s now cross, one on each side. Depending on their configuration, that could cause some to say they look as alike to each other as the par-3 13th and 17th do now.

Medinah No. 3 has always been controversial. In the 1949 U.S. Open, players were daunted by the length, and not every back tee was used. There’s never been a routine championship played there, either because of difficult conditions or the pressure of the moment. The course may change, but that will not.