In 1938, heirs of the Reynolds Tobacco family in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, hired Perry Maxwell to build a golf course on the R.J. Reynolds Estate, nicknamed “Reynolda.” Maxwell had the pick of 1,003 acres, and he went with a hilly but walkable 165-acre parcel, formerly a horse farm. His 18-hole design for Old Town Club debuted in November of 1939, becoming one of the last and most brilliant expressions of Golden Age golf architecture. Over the decades, Maxwell’s layout remained intact, though many of the fine details became smudged as the club planted trees and modernized bunkers and greens. In the early 2000s, however, golf chairman Dunlop White III—also the restoration chairman at Roaring Gap Club—began pushing for course changes based on historical research. White’s effort culminated in a 2013 restoration by Coore & Crenshaw, which recaptured Maxwell’s naturalistic aesthetics, rippling greens, and width-based strategic design.
(Note: Old Town Club underwent additional renovations over the past several months and is once again open for play.)
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Take Note…
Men in green. In our video on Old Town Club, Yale golf coach Colin Sheehan says of the course, “That’s what Augusta wants to be.” This isn’t just a random comparison; the two Southern clubs have a historical connection. Old Town was founded by Mary Reynolds Babcock, daughter of tobacco baron R.J. Reynolds, and her husband Charles Babcock, an investor who did business with Augusta National co-founder Clifford Roberts. In 1937 and 1938, Roberts enlisted the services of Perry Maxwell to rebuild Augusta’s seventh and 10th greens. Roberts then recommended Maxwell to Babcock for the Old Town project. During Old Town’s construction, the Augusta National chairman visited the site and encouraged Maxwell to merge adjacent eighth and 17th greens into an impressive double green, which now serves as the focal point of the northwestern portion of the course. Certainly a better design idea than this one!
Town-gown relations. Just behind the 8-17 double green and to the left of the 12th tee is an unassuming pathway that provides entry to and egress from the golf course. From there, it’s a short walk to the Arnold Palmer Golf Complex, the practice facility for the Wake Forest University golf team. Wake Forest moved next door to Old Town Club in 1946 in order to occupy a 350-acre gift of land from the Reynolds family.
Se7en. After Old Town Club opened, Perry Maxwell deemed it “one of the seven finest” golf courses in the United States. Any guesses as to the other six on his list? WHAT’S IN THE BOX?
