COG HILL #4 RE-OPENS
REES JONES’WORK IS DONE,
AND HE HAS PUT THE "DREAD" BACK IN DUBS
BY RORY SPEARS
For years it's been one of the best golf courses anyone
can play. Cog Hill's number four course better known as
"Dubsdread", has re-opened to the public as of May 15th.
Cog Hill owner and President of Jemsek Golf, Frank Jemsek
made the decision in 2007 to shut down his famed layout,
and give renowned golf architect Rees Jones a chance to
bring the course up to modern golf standards.
While Dubsdread never became easy, it's age had started
to show. The diamond needed to get polished, the dust
blown away and the test of golf upgraded. Not only to
PGA touring professionals, but to the general public
that can play this Dick Wilson and Joe Lee gem anytime
winter or the PGA tour isn't in the town of Lemont.
" I am thrilled with the way the golf course turned out,"
Jemsek said. "Rees has done a great job in defining the
target area's, he adds more definition than any architect
I see. I am very pleased with the work he has done."
Jones admitted to being excited to have a chance to
renovate Cog Hill's most challenging course.
"Working on this classic golf course and bringing it into
the 21st century is one of the highlight’s of my career,"
Jones said. "The course hopefully will have a U.S. Open
someday, it's for the PGA Tour too. But the Jemsek family
did this for the golfers of the land, which isn't always
the case anymore because things are money driven."
Jones added that the location helps make the course great.
"This course was great before Frank brought me in to work
on it," Jones said. This job is one like in yesteryear,
the course is in a classic setting. Dick Wilson and Joe
Lee along with Frank's dad Joe Jemsek picked this setting
because the holes fit the ground so perfectly."
So how did Jones bring Dubsdread into the 21st century ?
"We added some length and pushed some of the fairway bunkers
out farther because they were not in play anymore. " Jones
said. " Shorter bunkers were eliminated that effected the
average golfer, bunkers were added farther out so that the
tour can move tee's up and have a hazard in play. While
it's basically a par 71 golf course, I hope the tour will
convert the 15th hole to a par 4 from a par 5."
Jones also added his thoughts on what are the biggest changes
that golfers who have played the course before, will notice.
"The par 4 seventh is a major change because we put a pond
in, so players will not be able to cut the corner without
taking a chance. But the 7th green has been made bigger
and the sections of the tongues are larger."
"Hole number nine (Par 5) is now back over 600 yards, which
is the last thing Frank and I did. The second shot now has
a cross bunker in play and the green is much more elevated
so players to take an extra club on their approach."
"The 11th hole is not a major change, but with the tee back
the trees (on the left) that good players went over on their
second shot, are now back in play. There is now a bunker in
front of the left side of the green that now comes into play
too. The hole has become much more demanding."
"Hole 13 (par 4) the tee has been pushed back and the stream
in front of the green is back into play. The green is closer
to the stream and a tongue has been added back right, but the
green will be smaller than it was. The left side hill where
players hit shots in the past and let the ball bounce down
into the fairway, has mostly been replaced by a long deep
bunker almost eliminating that option."
"18 is another major change, the tee is now back so it plays
over 500 yards long (par 4). The bunkers "neck in" which is to
keep long hitters who play from a front tee when they shouldn't,
a chance to roll way down the hill. The green has been lowered
five feet and brought down closer to the pond, which is now
very much in play. If you bail out right on your approach shot,
the deep greenside bunker on the right will leave you a shot
back towards the water that is not a piece of cake."
"The real fast pitch has been taken out of a few greens, like
on holes 2-14-16 because the greens are much faster now with
the new grass. They will drain better with the new sub-air
system that has been installed."
"I would say the most challenging green on the golf course is
now number four. Because it runs on a diagonal from right to
back left, it has all sorts of contours on it and other things
going on the golfer will have to learn about. The par 3's with
all the variety now available have many more pin placement
possibilities, during the BMW the 12th could have 15 different
pin placements. While on the (par 3) second hole where the
left side of the green used to fall away, the area has been
deepened and swept up (to hold shots)."
One thing that golfers will notice is all the tee boxes have
been squared off. Something Frank Jemsek wasn't in favor of
at first, but now thinks helps players aim the ball better.
There are six sets of tee's on every hole, with the forward
tee's playing from 5,441 yards. The black tee's (the tips)
play from a listing on the scorecard of 7,554 yards. But can
be stretched just a bit more if needed for professional
tournaments to 7,608. While the par 4 18th hole is listed
at 494 yards from the back tee's, it can go back to 508 yards.
This was done because of Tiger Woods playing the 18th hole
(then 470 yards) on Sunday of the 2007 BMW Championship, using
only a driver and pitching wedge to get home in two shots.
The early feedback Frank Jemsek is hearing is that players
"really love the greens, but hate the sand traps. That would
make my dad so happy if he was still alive. He always quoted
the Old Tom Morris line that bunkers are not supposed to be
places of pleasure, they are supposed to be places of punishment.
Now I think they are."
The comments coming in from the Chicago golf media is something
else that Jemsek can smile about. 39 year veteran Chicago Sun-Times
golf writer Len Ziehm says Dubsdread was "already a great golf
course but made better and is ready for a major championship.
The owners knew the course was due for an upgrade which was done
by the best in business."
Tim Cronin who has covered golf for over 25 years for the Southtown
Star,(Chicago's southern and southwest suburban paper) and the author
of several golf books added. "You could hold a U.S. Open here in
three weeks after allowing for the rough to grow. Dubsdread is a
complete examination of golf that every golfer needs. Rees Jones
has updated this Joe Lee-Joe Wilson classic in a fashion, that Lee
and Wilson would have done if they were alive today."
"I just can't tell you how great the renovation of Cog Hill is,"
said John Kaczkowski Vice President of Tournaments for the Western
Golf Association and Tournament Director for the BMW Championship.
"Cog Hill Dubsdread has always been a wonderful golf course but it
needed to be modernized and updated, so the Jemsek family made a
great commitment not only to the golfers of Chicago but to the
game of golf. The course is now set up not only to host the BMW
Championship, but future major championships for years to come."
Frank Jemsek feels his dad is looking down from a great public
course in the sky, and is liking what he see's.
"I think he would be quite proud," Jemsek said. "He wanted to
build a public course that anybody could play, that was a
championship golf course. When you have a championship golf
course you dream of hosting championships."
So does Frank think his fathers dream of hosting a U.S. Open
will ever happen ?
"We hope someday it will, or maybe even an Olympic golf event
(should the 2016 summer games be awarded to Chicago)," Jemsek
said. " Mike Davis of the USGA has already been here and given us
some good suggestions. When you look at the economics of having a
U.S. Open, Chicago has all things that would make for a good open.
We also think we have a golf course and the facilities that would
make for a good open." (Cog Hill also just completed renovations
to it's main clubhouse.)
Jemsek hopes his Cog Hill #4 course will return to the rankings
of America's Greatest 100 courses in a few national publications,
"that always make's more people want to come play the course".
In the meantime though, Jemsek and his family are keeping the green
fee's affordable. Unlike many of the nations top rated public courses
where green fees run $200 dollars and up, Cog Hill #4 will see only
a small increase up to $150 per round. Reservations for tee-times
are now being taken. For more information check the courses website
or call (630)-257-5872 or 1-866-Cog-Hill. The
course will be closed in early September, during BMW Championship
week being held from the 7th to the 13th.