The golf course at Orinda Country Club, designed by William Watson in 1924, meanders through the hills east of Berkeley and Oakland, California. Despite the land’s severity, the course is not excessively arduous to walk, spanning just 6,313 yards from the tips. By the 2010s, Orinda had become over-treed and choked by rough. The club hired Todd Eckenrode to conduct a historically informed renovation, nicknamed “Project Watson.” Assisted by shapers Brett Hochstein and George Waters, as well as superintendents Bob Lapic and Josh Smith, Eckenrode removed numerous trees and bushes, enlarged greens and short-grass surrounds, and reconstructed the bunkers in the rough-edged style characteristic of 1920s Northern California golf architecture. The result, unveiled in late 2015, is an example of tasteful architectural stewardship that other Golden Age clubs should emulate.
{{content-block-course-profile-orinda-country-club-001}}
Take Note…
The clubhouse debate. William Watson and owner E.I. DeLaveaga disagreed about the location of Orinda’s clubhouse. Watson proposed situating it on a hill near the current second, third, and 11th holes, a spot that would have enabled returning nines. DeLaveaga, however, preferred a more dramatic site on a bluff overlooking a valley. He won the debate, and Watson created an out-and-back routing with the ninth green sitting about a third of a mile from the clubhouse.
Whoa. I usually side with golf architects in disputes over clubhouse placement, but in this case, I have to hand it to Mr. DeLaveaga. Orinda’s clubhouse, a Spanish-Mediterranean-style structure nestled into a rocky promontory, is one of the most impressive I’ve seen.
Renaissance dude. Orinda superintendent Josh Smith not only oversees ongoing improvements to the course but is also an accomplished painter and the co-founder of Flag Bag Golf, a company that crafts golf bags from customers’ pin flags. Andy’s interview with Josh is one of our favorite episodes of the Superintendent Series.
