Rare, Ancient Rocks Discovered in Baltimore

I'm not usually one for geology, but since this story's pretty close to home, I think it's worth mentioning.

Not all rocks are created equal, and the ophiolites found scattered around Baltimore are certainly unusual. They were formed about 500 million years ago in the Earth's mantle and, through complex tectonic shifts, were brought up to the surface and now sit all around the Baltimore area. The rocks were originally part of the Iapetus Ocean, which disappeared when the Appalachian Mountains were formed. They don't look like much right now, but that's simply because they've been through a lot.

I would recommend reading the article, since my knowledge of geology is pretty limited. However, there's actually a bit of a golf connection here: If you want to see some of these rare rocks that were formed in the mantle, go to Forest Park Golf Course in Baltimore. There are some sitting by the ninth green.

Beer of the Week

The beer: German Chocolate Cupcake 10W-40

Brewed by: Hi-Wire Brewing, Asheville, North Carolina

Description (from the website): "Inspired by rich and decadent German chocolate cake, this extra special batch of our 10W-40 Imperial Stout boasts huge notes of cake batter, sweet cherries, pecan dust, and vanilla."

Would I buy it again?: Okay, I know it sounds like a tax form, but this is actually a pretty good beer. There's definitely a good chocolate cake flavor mixed in with just a bit of cherry. Not a lot, but enough to be noticed. I'd buy it again.

Review: The Golf Club at the Equinox (Part 2)

It's time to see the back nine of the Equinox, go here to see the front.

The tenth hole is a big dogleg right with bunkers and O.B. in the corner of the dogleg. The rest of the hole is very open and there's no distinct advantage for going down the right side, so you can aim left and hit driver here. Sure, that lengthens the hole, but at 355 yards it's not a very long hole to begin with. The green is fairly small and almost entirely surrounded by sand.

The tenth hole.

Approaching the tenth green.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is a mid-length par 4 that goes downhill on the tee than gently back up. There's a long fairway bunker to the right that you'll want to get close to in order to have the optimum angle into the green, which is angled right to left and protected by a cluster of three bunkers to the left. Not the most exciting hole in the world, but solid enough strategically.

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is 360 yards and has several bunkers lining the left side of the fairway. The right side is a bit more open though. The elevated green is very heavily bunkered in front, and pretty significantly sloped from back to front. It's got a similar sort of bowl in front like the eighth, though not quite as extreme. 

The twelfth hole.

Approaching the twelfth green.

The twelfth green.

The views at Equinox are enough to make the trip worthwhile, but the thirteenth hole makes a compelling argument on its own. Very few holes have a feature as unique or quirky as this one. My brothers and I first saw it as we were walking up to the eleventh green: A massive pit, something like 30-40 feet deep, guards the right portion of the thirteenth green. This is no decorative feature either, the thirteenth is 425 yards and the pit is just feet away from the edge of the green. It is very much in play, as you'll probably be coming into the green with a fairly long iron. But let's back up a step. The drive is to a fairly wide fairway with a big slope to the left. The approach is up a big hill, with the pit right and a bunker left that is not nearly as intimidating but admittedly still a concern. The green is sloped fairly sharply from back to front, which makes it easier to hit but less than fun to putt when you're above the hole. I don't know if I'd call this a good hole, but it's certainly a unique one, and I'm glad it's there.

The thirteenth hole. The pit is hidden behind the trees.

Approaching the thirteenth green. 

Looking up at the thirteenth from the eleventh green.

A benefit of playing on a Wednesday: the course was pretty empty so we had time to throw golf balls down at the bottom and attempt an escape from the pit.

The thirteenth green.

Quite a view from behind the green.

The fourteenth hole isn't quite as funky as the previous one, but it's interesting nonetheless. The fourteenth is tiny, only 125 yards at most, shoved into a little corner of the property, downhill, and when we were there the tees were up 10-15 yards. Plus it was playing downwind, so it was effectively only 90 yards or so. The green is not large and fronted by three bunkers, and there's O.B. close behind. Sure, it's a small target, but it's a very small hole, and I'm a fan of it.

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is a short par 5 with a very awkward tee shot. The hole is pretty straight, but the fairway starts way right at the bottom of a ridge, then swings left up and over through a saddle in the ridge before straightening out. Again, I don't know how much was changed in the redesign, but I'm guessing this tee shot is pretty original. The second shot, if you've cleared the hill, is gently downhill. The green is easily reachable in two, even when the hole is playing into the wind, however it's protected by eight bunkers, with six left and two right. 

The fifteenth hole.

Approaching the fifteenth green.

It's a much more inviting approach from here.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole is about 200 yards, making it the longest of Equinox's three par 3s. I don't think it's the best of the three, but it's almost as good as the fourteenth, thanks to the green. There's a swale running through the middle in almost Biarritz fashion, though the slope isn't quite as extreme as actual Biarritz greens. Still, it's definitely something to think about. There are three bunkers short right and one short left, and O.B. lurks beyond the green. 

The sixteenth hole.

The sixteenth green.

While it's not unusual that a course measuring 6,400 yards from the back tees has only three par 4s over 400 yards, it is a bit odd that Equinox saves two of them for the last two holes. Not only that, neither is particularly good. The seventeenth hole is the longest par 4 at Equinox, playing a slightly uphill 435 yards. The hole doglegs quickly to the left, meaning you either need to hit a big draw or use a wood or long iron off of the tee. And that leaves you with a 200 yard approach. And when the green is small and protected all around by three bunkers, you don't want a long iron into it. This is a tough hole, to be sure, but it's not tough in an enjoyable or fun way like the thirteenth.

The seventeenth hole. I'd be willing to bet the containment mounds on the tree line are a new addition.

Approaching the seventeenth green.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole commits a cardinal sin of routing: It is a completely legitimate strategy (and maybe even the best one) to play down a wrong fairway. The problem is the big tree sitting in the dogleg. If you go to the right of it like you should, you can only hit the drive maybe 225 yards. The hole is 415 yards and uphill, so that'll leave you a mid or long iron into the green. That's not ideal. If you go left and hit into the tenth fairway next door, you can hit driver and have a wedge or short iron into the green. And there are no trees once you get within 150 yards of the eighteenth green. Yes, I suppose you do have to hit over a big deep greenside bunker, but I think that's worth it. The green is protected pretty closely by that bunker and O.B. right, so it's not like you've got smooth sailing if you play the hole the correct way. No one's ever sliced or hooked a 5 iron, right?

The eighteenth hole. Yes, this tee shot looks awfully similar to the previous hole.

Approaching the eighteenth green.

The eighteenth green.

I'm a bit torn on how I feel about Equinox. On the one hand, it's a beautiful golf course. The scenery is spectacular, the conditions were solid, and there were a few fun, quirky holes thrown in. The thirteenth is something I'll always remember fondly. The last two holes weren't great, but everything that came before was pretty good. At $80 in mid-October, I wouldn't consider it great value in any way, but I did feel as though the conditions matched the price, which is something I didn't feel at Bulle Rock.

On the other hand, those really fun, quirky holes like the thirteenth (like 5, 7, 14, and the drive on 15) offer a tantalizing glimpse of what was probably a more fun golf course. Equinox got changed at a bad time in golf course design by someone with very strong and often-opposite opinions on golf course architecture, and I think that shows. No ponds were added, thank goodness, but there's often a homogenous feel to the greens that I don't imagine existed before. Walter Travis is known for his greens, but Equinox didn't have anything outstanding. I'm sure it'll never happen since the course seems to be doing just fine with the guests of the resort, but I would love to see a restoration. 

Beer of the Week

The beer: Hop God

Brewed by: Nebraska Brewing Company, Papillion, Nebraska

Description (from the bottle): "Contained within this bottle is an artful creation which began with our Hop God Belgian-style IPA further enhanced by a 6-month maturation in French Oak Chardonnay barrels. Hop God is a big, bold Belgian style Tripel hopped in very high amounts to concentrate citrus, grapefruit, peach, and floral aromatics in the nose. The addition of Chardonnay barrel aging adds further dimension and oak dryness to an already wonderfully complex Ale."

Would I buy it again?: I wasn't expecting to enjoy this beer. I'm not a big fan of hoppy beers, and at 101 IBU, I was expecting the beer called Hop God to be, well, hoppy. But it's actually not bitter at all. That aging in the Chardonnay barrels has done wonders for the beer, because this is a very balanced beer that's honestly not difficult to drink at all. It tastes a bit like a Chardonnay as well. I don't think I'd buy it again at $26, but if it was half that price, yeah, I'd get it again.

Review: The Golf Club at the Equinox (Part 1)

It's April, and spring is in the air. So there's really no better time to take a look at a golf course I played in Vermont during peak fall foliage season. To be fair, I got some pretty good pictures.

It doesn't get much more New England than this. There's even a church steeple in the background.

The Golf Club at the Equinox (now to be more elegantly called 'Equinox') is associated with the Equinox resort (a real shock right there). It is, quite simply, an amazing spot to play golf. The views, as you can already see, are incredible. However, there is a bit of a elephant in the room. Equinox, as it turns out, is the younger sibling of Ekwanok Country Club, the golf course next door. And that's not hyperbole in any way. Equinox was originally designed by Walter Travis in 1925, whose first design was Ekwanok, which was built in 1900. (He also did Cape Arundel.) And when I say next door, I mean you can see Ekwanok through the trees from the fourth hole at Equinox. The fourth green here and the twelfth at Ekwanok are less than 100 yards apart.

That brings us to the aforementioned elephant. While Ekwanok is a basically pure Travis course (and extremely private, even by private course standards) and generally considered to be the best course in Vermont, Equinox was modified and redesigned by Rees Jones in the early 1990s. While the routing remained the same, things were changed elsewhere, and probably not for the better. There's a reason the Jones style of design has fallen out of favor. Still, Equinox is considered to be one of the best public courses in the state (it's a small state, but still), so it can't be all bad, right?

The first hole is a fairly gentle start to the round. At 350 yards, there's no need to use a driver on the tee since this isn't the widest fairway in the world. There's O.B. right and a couple of bunkers left, and a fairway wood is more than enough to leave a wedge for the second shot. The green is protected by bunkers right, short left, and beyond. It's not a big green either. Still, the hole is short enough to make birdie a definite possibility. 

The first hole.

The first green.

The second hole is about 400 yards and plays gently uphill. It goes in the same direction as the first hole and is straight, also like the first hole. There's a lot more room to work with, so a driver is fine here, but if you're an especially long driver the pond on the left can come into play. The green has a fair amount of tilt from back to front and is guarded by three bunkers. Another fairly straightforward hole.

The second hole.

Approaching the second green.

The second green.

The third hole is another mid-length par 4, this one with a fairway tilting notably from left to right. There are a couple of bunkers on the right side of the fairway, but a solid driver can take them out of play. There's a lot of room left, but the angle into the green is not ideal and the green is tilted away. Approaching from the right, near the bunkers and the O.B., gives a much more favorable second shot. 

The third hole.

Approaching the third green.

The third green.

The fourth hole is where you can start to see the Walter Travis influence. I highly doubt Rees Jones would build a par 3 like this, a short 160 yard hole that goes straight up a hill to a semiblind green. The green is tilted from back to front and is pretty shallow, so this is one you definitely won't want to miss long. 

The fourth hole.

The fourth green.

Three greens in one picture illustrates the compact routing of the front nine. In order of proximity, the fourth, seventh, and third greens.

The fifth hole is a short par 4, playing 335 yards and downhill the whole way. This is a funky little hole, playing only slightly downhill through a shallow valley for the first 175 yards, then plunging several dozen feet to the green, which is tilted from left to right and protected by three bunkers on the right side. You can lay up with an iron off of the tee, leaving a long approach from a fairly level lie, or you can use a driver, take aim just to the left of the big mountain peak and get as close to the green as you can. I tried to play conservatively, but my iron went wide right and out of bounds, so if I were to play here again, I'd definitely use a driver. It's the more fun option by a wide margin as well, seeing a driver sailing against the mountain and down the hill.

The fifth hole.

Approaching the fifth green.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole plays back up the hill the fifth went down, so despite being basically the same length it plays a lot longer. There are no bunkers around the fairway, so there's plenty of space to use driver and get as close to the green as you can. But the green is guarded by a bunker right in front, in addition to a few left and right. That means an approach from 50-75 yards can be awkward to get close to the hole. You need a high approach with spin to really get at the flag, so despite the open fairway it may be worth it to use a bit of restraint on the tee shot.

The sixth hole.

Approaching the sixth green.

The sixth green.

The seventh hole is the sole par 5 on the front nine and the longest hole at Equinox. Though at 520 yards, it's not exactly a back breaker. The fairway is pretty wide, but there are a few bunkers on both sides of the fairway. And by a few, I mean 17 -- 9 bunkers left and 8 right. Going in any one of them will make it a challenge to get your second shot across the road about 175 yards from the green. Yes, this hole has a road in play as well. Not a busy road, but it's definitely there. The second shot, and the third if you've laid up, are uphill to a green surrounded by eight more bunkers, bring the total on this hole up to 25. Once again, it may be better to be cautious on this hole rather than blasting away and ending up in one of 2 dozen bunkers.

The seventh hole.

The second half of the hole is over a road.

Approaching the seventh green.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is the same length as the second hole, just under 400 yards. The tee shot is steeply downhill, so using driver is probably not strictly necessary, considering the road is close by to the left and there's a narrow water-filled ditch right that can absolutely catch drives. A 3 wood can get you plenty close to the green. The approach is to an elevated green with the usual assortment of bunkers around it. The green itself is more interesting. The front section is in its own little punchbowl, and when the flag is there, shots will funnel down nice and close. If you're not in the bowl, however, the putt will be incredibly slippery. I have a feeling this green wasn't changed much during the redesign.

The eighth hole.

Approaching the eighth green.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is 360 yards and plays gently uphill back toward the clubhouse. It's been a while since a hole was open enough for a driver, but this one is. No fairway bunkers, just a road to the right which is quite a ways off. Well, unless you're me and my brothers, in which case only one of us managed to not hit a huge slice over the road. A hundred yards of course left and we had to go right. Anyway, the approach is over a big bunker to a green sloping back to front with a massive tier running through the middle. A word of warning: if the hole is cut on top, do not end up above the hole. The odds of you overshooting the hole and ending up all the way down at the wrong end of the tier are very good. I speak from experience on that. Again, I'm guessing this green was always this way and wasn't softened. That's a good thing, I just had a bad time with it.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

The ninth green.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.