BuffaloGolfer.Com was fortunate to gain access to Scott Witter, golf course and landscape architect, for a sit-down email interview a few off-seasons ago. What is written below refers to Mr. Witter’s first complete 18-hole design, Ironwood Golf Club.
Ironwood Golf Course is a very natural experience and one surely to be enjoyed by everyone who plays it, and I mean that quite sincerely. If one must place it in some design category I would say that it is much akin to a minimalist design… A true lay-of-the-land golf course, where Mother Nature dictated, and for the best I might add, the optimum routing and the most sensible golf experience given the character and the realities of the land site. Ironwood Golf Course may go down as one of my very best golf routings without a doubt. To the trained eye, it holds many simple yet traditional playing characteristics that you will find on the classics in America and overseas. During the routing of the course, my main objective was to direct as many holes as possible whose primary features already existed in the landscape, and then accent their inherent strategies without overkilling the number of hazards that would otherwise place the character of the course in danger of being forced and artificial.
This approach and philosophy doesn’t mean that there wasn’t any earthmoving done. However, it was done so in a manner that doesn’t detract from the natural features of the site and it leaves most people wondering where earth was really moved. Most all of the earthmoving involved cuts made on fairways to create sightlines to landing areas, green surfaces, or to create ponds and wetlands for drainage and irrigation needs. Each hole follows very closely if not literally, the existing contour that existed on the site before we arrived. Overall, this approach is good common sense. Basically, it employs a restraint in not allowing design ideas out of thin air to overrule and outweigh the realities of the land. Instead of totally reshaping a steep slope to cerate a flat landing area, or filling in a ravine to make the course more “friendly” we tried to figure out how to incorporate these features into the golf hole and keep it interesting and fun for the golfers. At Ironwood, we were presented with a few of these landscape characteristics and in each case, the “difficult” feature in question became the highlight of the hole. A perfect case in point is a man-made feature, the very tall and quite prominent TV and radio tower located in the center of the front nine holes. When the Ripstein family first contacted me to walk their land and look over their ideas about a golf course, they told me that the course would end before they reached the tower. I asked them why and they thought golfers would hate the experience of playing around the tower. When I asked them if they owned the land around the tower they said yes. Then I talked to them about the countless famous and classic golf courses around the world with even larger “eyesores” on them. From that point on, the tower became nothing more than another large tree, one that we clearly couldn’t cut down, that we needed to work with to achieve the best routing possible. It is my opinion that some of the best golf on the site routes around the tower and underneath the huge guy wires that hold the tower from falling over. The sequence of holes; 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 are some of the most naturally occurring and strategic golf holes at Ironwood. The course wouldn’t flow nearly as smoothly as it does if this land around the tower wasn’t utilized.
Ironwood expresses an effortless flow of its routing and this is its biggest strength. Each hole presents a different challenge from the tee, a separate strategic look from the approach shot and certainly many subtle and bold putting surfaces to keep golfers of all skill levels on their toes. Each hole is unique from the others with each having its own personality. To me, this is very similar to images and feelings we experience when we see a raw landscape for the first time. No matter which way we turn to see another view, we are given a fresh outlook, with a whole new set of conditions to absorb and enjoy.
I could go on about the design and character of the golf course, but the real success story of Ironwood is a result of the people involved. The three Ripstein brothers (Russ, Terry and Jeff) and Jeff’s wife Linda were completely involved during the entire process from planning through construction, and now they operate the course and continue to make many improvements. There was never a question as to who would build the golf course. Being involved in farming and construction for most of their lives, the Ripsteins brought countless skills from growing grass and crops to operating large scale heavy equipment, so building a golf course didn’t frighten them at all. As soon as the drawings were finished, we all went out with tape measures, wood stakes, spray paint and me with my sketch pad. After a couple of weeks to feel the routing and make minor adjustments, the Ripsteins fired up the heavy equipment and began their new lives.
