Merchantville Country Club - Our First Private Course

Merchantville Country Club

"The only thing a golfer needs is more daylight." - Ben Hogan

(Played on Monday, May 7th, 2018)

Merchantville Country Club is the 10th oldest golf course in the United States. It's a nine hole, private golf club located in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. The course dates back to 1892, and it was formally known as the Merchantville Field Club Organization. What the course lacks in length, it makes up for by placing a premium on shot-making and accuracy.

The bridge over the meandering creek to the 9th green.

Unfortunately for the Sunday Golfers, only one member of group is able to play the course. Chris Colman gets to play Merchantville as a team member of the Rutgers - Camden golf team. Although it is not the same as playing with his normal Sunday group, we felt it would be necessary to show our first private golf course in our area that at least one of us is able to play.

Colman on the par 4 fourth/thirteenth hole.

What makes Merchantville unique is the fact that John McDermott, winner of the 1911 and 1912 U.S. Opens, was the head professional at Merchantville back when it was Merchantville Field Club.

John McDermott was the first American-born U.S. Open winner, and also the youngest to ever win the U.S. Open to this day.. If the name sounds familiar, and you enjoy golfing movies that aren't Happy Gilmore or Caddyshack, you probably remember him from the movie The Greatest Game Ever Played. He was the golfer that publicly yelled out against Harry Vardon and Ted Ray before the tournament began during the movie.

Unfortunately, McDermott suffered from a mental illness, and like the plaque says above, retired very young in 1914, but he continued playing golf throughout the rest of his life.

A full, eighteen-hole round is played out on the same nine holes, but sometimes from different tee boxes. Also, the third and twelfth holes criss-cross, and play to two separate, but very small greens.

The par 3 third. That's Tommy "Potatoes" Paolini. A team-mate of Colman.

The par 3 third, which plays along the creek.

On every single hole, there is a small creek (burn) that golfers have to deal with at least once in their round. If you can somehow avoid it throughout your entire round, you are certainly saving a handful of strokes on your round.

Our teammate Jaden couldn't avoid the creek on the par 4 fourth.

The creek is never more present than on the eighth and ninth holes, which run parallel to each other, with the creek right smack in the middle between the two. The creek being on the right side makes a fader, like Colman, a frequent visitor.

'Potatoes' teeing off on the eighth.

The creek runs entirely along the right side of the eighth and ninth holes.

One of the many bridges across the creek between eight and nine.

The course does not have much elevation change, but it still has a handful of difficult holes that can really ruin a scorecard if the hole is not played the right way. When deciding what we think is the hardest hole at Merchantville, the one that typically comes to mind is the par 5 second hole, measuring a stout 580 yards from the tips. It is the number 1 and 2 handicap hole, and for many good reasons.

Jaden teeing off on the second hole.

The tee shot is fairly simple. The tee shot is over a creek, but it is not really in play. There is out of bounds on the left all the way down the hole, an abundance of trees down the right, and two bunkers sitting in the left rough of the landing area. And even if you can avoid the many hazards off the tee, if you hit the fairway with your drive, a par is not guaranteed.

Colman hitting driver off the deck on the par 5 second hole.

About 180 yards out from the green, the creek crosses the fairway, making a layup tricky if you miss the fairway, or if the wind is up.

The creek reentering the second hole.

There is simply no let-up on this hole. Even after reaching the only two-tiered green on the course, a par is still not guaranteed.

Here are a few more photos of the course:

The par 5 first green.

The tree in the middle of the fairway between the fourth and twelfth hole.

'Potatoes' teeing off on the fourth tee box.

The bridge to the twelfth green.

The many bunkers along the fourth green.

Another teammate, 'Nards', on the par 3 sixth.

The severe sloping, par 4 seventh green, with Jaden duffing a chip in the background.

The par 5 second hole approach to the green.

Although playing nine-holes twice may not be for everyone, Merchantville Country Club is a wonderful course that Colman is lucky enough to play a few times a week for his golf team. The clubhouse is small, but the employees are very friendly, and the members are very welcoming to our team.

Hopefully soon, the rest of the Sunday Golfers will be able to attend our next private course we are invited to. Only one member of the group playing is not exciting, so we will all be together soon, and that is a definite. *Cough cough* Pine Valley perhaps? *Cough cough* Maybe someday! *Cough Cough*.

- The Sunday Golfers