South of London, the Wentworth Club boasts two world-class
layouts. The East was laid out in 1924 by Harry Colt, the father of British
course architecture. Colt ran the East through a forest of fir and silver birch
that afforded a natural sense of isolation. Patches of purple heather lined the
fairways and large manor homes sprung up around the course’s perimeter.
Two years later the club opened the West, also laid out by
Colt and intended to serve as a tournament site. Even so, it was the East that
continued to host major events, including the 1932 Curtis Cup.
The East’s one drawback has always been its lack of length.
At barely 6,200 yards, the par-68 layout gave way to the West after World War
II. But not immediately, for the West had been completely abandoned during the
conflict. The club employed German prisoners of war from a nearby camp to clear
the ground and prepare it once again for golf. Club secretary “Rawly” Rawlinson
likened the task to the arduous building of the Burma
Road during the Sino-Japanese War in 1937. The nickname stuck.
In the 1953 Ryder Cup, the U.S. won despite the absence of
Ben Hogan, who did eventually make an appearance at Wentworth, teaming with Sam
Snead to win the Canada Cup in 1956. Crowds flocked to the course to see the
“Wee Ice Mon,” who had triumphed at Carnoustie three years earlier. He and Snead
came from behind on the last day to beat out the formidable South African duo of
Bobby Locke and Gary Player.
Largely because of its close proximity to London and Heathrow Airport, Wentworth became a regular venue for some of
Europe’s most respected professional events,
including the annual World Match Play. Today the West is as well known to
British golf fans as any course in the world.
The layout forms a large loop that wanders off into the
countryside, with the back nine beginning well away from the clubhouse. Few
courses open with such a demanding hole, a 471-yard brute. A short par 3 with a
punched-up green follows, and then it’s back to playing long ball at the
442-yard erd hole, which has a treacherous three-tiered green.
Colt’s greens are the hallmark of the course, and none is
more heralded than the one at the relatively short, downhill 7th. Most players
can reach the green with a short iron, but the two-level putting surface is
notorious for the spectacle of tour pros routinely taking three and even four
putts on it.
The West ends with a pair of par 5s. Turning left, the 17th
is a difficult driving hole with a fairway sloping down to the right, making the
second shot longer and more difficult. In contrast, the 502-yard 18th swings
dramatically to the right.
Behind the home green stands the Gothic, castle-like
clubhouse, the architectural equivalent of the British stiff upper lip. The
club’s ambiance has often been compared with that of an upscale American country
club. Inside, the clubhouse is luxuriously appointed, with private function and
dining facilities. Its oak-paneled Burma Bar overlooks the 18th green of the
East and a small lake.
Fifty feet beneath the clubhouse lies Wentworth’s most famous
bunker, a top-secret underground complex built during World War II that would
have housed the nation’s military operations had the government been forced to
flee London during the blitzkrieg.
