(atc)
County Parkway. The museum’s access
road will link directly to the parkway, and
non-military visitors won’t have to obtain a
gate pass to stop by the museum.
Coolican saw an opportunity, rather
than a challenge. The original Robert
Trent Jones design opened in 1947, and
an additional 18 holes were added in 1985,
and some re-routing took place then to
make it a 36-hole facility. This most recent
redesign featured removing five holes from
the old Gunston layout, adding two holes
to the Gunston course and three more to
the Woodlawn course.
The design team brought back a par-3
water hole, now No. 5 on Gunston, which was
part of the original RTJ design but had been
abandoned years ago.
“The architect, Mark Miller, brought that
hole back into play, kind of the way that Rob-
DRIVE, CHIP & PUTT
Of the three VSGA members who
qualified for the 2016 Drive, Chip
& Putt Championshp, held April
3 at Augusta National Golf Club,
Owen Bright (Roanoke CC) had the
strongest showing.
Bright won the chipping portion
in the boys 10-11 age group, but it
wasn’t enough to make up ground
on age-group champion Christian
Kim of Vernon Hills, Ill. Kim finished
no worse than third
place in any of the
three disciplines,
lifting him to a
one-point win over
Nolan Haynes of
Barberton, Ohio.
Paris Fieldings
(Cahoon Plantation)
finished in sixth place in the girls
10-11 division, and Brian Feinstein
(River Bend GC) was 10th in the boys
14-15 group.
Qualifying for the 2017 Drive, Chip
& Putt Championship begins later
this summer. For more information
or to register your child, visit
drivechipandputt.com.
Chris Lang is the editor of Virginia
Golfer magazine.
CLEAR YOUR CALENDAR.
AND YOUR MIND.
Teeing off beside a 50-acre lake. Tastings along
the Chesapeake Bay Wine Trail. Sampling a
bounty of fresh produce and seafood
straight from the source. A romantic
sunset cruise. When can we expect you?
Book your stay at tidesinn.com or
call 844.865.5781.
480 King Carter Drive, Irvington, VA 22480 | [email protected]
8
V I R G I N I A G O L F E R | M AY /J U N E 2 0 1 6
vsga.org
MIDDLE ATLANTIC PGA
Fort Belvoir's
new practice
green clock.
ert Trent Jones had originally designed it,
using the original tee and the original green,”
Coolican said. “In 1985, they just felt there
was a better way to route it. And maybe that
did make sense back then. But now, losing
the land, it totally made sense to bring that
back into the play. I think it’s a great hole. I’m
so glad they did it.”
New tee complexes were built on the
finishing holes at both the Gunston and
Woodlawn courses, and the Army has put
extensive funds into improving the rest of
the two courses. New Billy Bunkers, featuring superior irrigation and sand retention,
were added to the Woodlawn course. Tees
and greens were rebuilt and refurbished.
Though 75 percent of play at Fort Belvoir
is military, the club is open to the general
public, and membership comes with a gate
pass that allows easy travel to and from base.
“I saw an opportunity here to make huge
improvements, especially with the fact that
they were going to be open to the public,”
Coolican said. “I see they had a commitment
to improving the facility. Even this year,
we’re getting funds to build all new bunkers
on the Gunston course. We’re getting all new
tees. We’re getting irrigation upgrades. Last
year, we spent $4.5 million. They want to
make this the flagship golf course of the U.S.
Army, open to the public. We want to make
this a premier facility. And with the commitment I’m getting from my leaders, we’re well
on the way to getting there.”