Oak Hill Country Club is a country club in the northeastern United States, located in the Town of Pittsford, New York, a suburb southeast of Rochester. Founded in 1901, and best known for its East golf course, the club has hosted multiple major championships. The club facilities are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]

Oak Hill Country Club
Club information
Oak Hill Country Club is located in the United States
Oak Hill Country Club
Location in the United States
Oak Hill Country Club is located in New York
Oak Hill Country Club
Location in New York
LocationPittsford, New York, U.S.
Established1901; 123 years ago (1901)
TypePrivate
Total holes36
Websiteoakhillcc.com
East Course
Designed byDonald Ross
Par70
Length7,390 yards (6,757 m)
Course rating77.3
Slope rating153
West Course
Designed byDonald Ross
Par70
Length6,735 yards (6,158 m)
Course rating73.3
Slope rating136

History

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The club has a rich history of golf, starting out in 1901 as only 9 holes on 85 acres (0.34 km2) on the banks of the Genesee River in Rochester. The clubhouse was no more than a converted farm house. At the time, golf was a relatively new sport in America, and as popularity of the sport grew, so did the country club.

By 1921, Oak Hill had doubled in size and had a new clubhouse, so when the University of Rochester proposed a land swap in 1921, it was a tough decision for members. However, the country club decided to take the university up on their offer, and moved the club to a 355-acre (1.44 km2) plot in nearby Pittsford.

This decision ended up benefiting Oak Hill, the University of Rochester, and the City of Rochester. Now with triple the land of the old country club, Oak Hill had room for two 18-hole courses. Designed by Donald Ross, they became the East Course and the West Course. Local physician and civic personality John Ralston Williams cultivated and planted tens of thousands of oak trees among the fairways and roughs on what once was a farmed-out field.[2]

East Course

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The East Course — which hosts the major tournaments — is built around the east branch of Allen Creek, which acts as a lateral hazard on 9 of its 18 holes. It has had several changes made over the years - first by Robert Trent Jones Sr. in the early 1960s, later (and more recently for the 1989 Open and 2003 PGA) by Tom Fazio and his design group and finally by Andrew Green who completed a restoration project in 2019.

In 1941, the Rochester Times-Union, a local paper at the time, posted a $5,000 purse which attracted the greatest golfers in the world, including names such as Sam Snead, Walter Hagen, and Ben Hogan. This tournament, won by Snead, put Oak Hill on the national golf map. Several prestigious tournaments were held at Oak Hill over the next 78 years, including seven men's major championships – including three U.S. Opens and four PGA Championships, as well as the Ryder Cup.

In 2019, the East Course was ranked 22nd in Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses.

Scorecards

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East Course
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Championship M:77.3 / 153 460 405 230 615 180 500 460 430 480 3,760 430 245 400 625 320 160 460 500 490 3,630 7,390
Par Championship 4 4 3 5 3 4 4 4 4 35 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 4 4 35 70
Black M:75.5 / 146 440 405 210 570 180 460 430 430 420 3,545 430 190 370 595 320 160 440 500 445 3,450 6,995
Blue M:74.0 / 141
W:80.9 / 155
430 375 175 550 160 440 415 420 400 3,365 410 175 370 565 320 150 430 465 405 3,290 6,655
White M:71.6 / 138
W:78.5 / 150
380 350 165 470 145 385 400 375 390 3,060 410 165 360 490 310 135 415 455 395 3,135 6,195
Gold M:69.0 / 130
W:74.4 / 143
380 350 165 470 120 305 360 255 345 2,750 335 165 360 490 310 120 360 385 320 2,845 5,595
Green M:67.2 / 127
W:72.2 / 139
380 300 135 470 100 305 360 255 345 2,650 335 115 290 460 245 105 360 385 320 2,615 5,265
Par Men 4 4 3 5 3 4 4 4 4 35 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 5 4 36 71
SI Men 5 11 15 13 17 1 3 9 7 8 16 10 2 12 18 6 14 4
Par Women 5 4 3 5 3 4 4 4 4 36 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 5 4 36 72
SI Women 13 5 11 9 17 3 1 15 7 4 14 10 2 12 18 6 16 8
West Course
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Black M:73.3 / 136 370 465 420 190 385 545 450 155 365 3,345 400 490 305 445 210 415 460 210 455 3,390 6,735
Blue M:71.2 / 133
W:78.1 / 149
360 425 400 140 375 530 435 145 350 3,160 375 465 290 405 190 405 445 190 425 3,190 6,350
White M:68.2 / 129
W:74.2 / 137
350 365 340 130 370 445 375 135 290 2,800 365 445 290 325 170 320 375 175 370 2,855 5,655
Gold M:67.8 / 129
W:73.6 / 137
350 365 335 130 370 445 375 135 290 2,795 365 435 275 325 170 320 375 140 370 2,775 5,570
Green M:66.4 / 125
W:72.1 / 131
350 335 335 80 325 445 375 80 290 2,615 365 395 275 325 105 320 375 140 370 2,670 5,285
Family M:60.2 / 100
W:61.7 / 106
210 225 240 80 230 260 270 80 165 1,760 220 275 180 185 105 210 275 140 215 1,805 3,565
Par Men 4 4 4 3 4 5 4 3 4 35 4 5 4 4 3 4 4 3 4 35 70
SI Men 5 11 15 13 17 1 3 9 7 8 16 10 2 12 18 6 14 4
Par Women 4 4 4 3 4 5 5 3 4 36 4 5 4 4 3 4 5 3 4 36 72

Major tournaments hosted

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All played on the East Course.

Year Tournament Winner Winning
score
Margin
of victory
Runner(s)-up
1949 U.S. Amateur   Charles Coe 11 & 10   Rufus King
1956 U.S. Open   Cary Middlecoff 281 (+1) 1 stroke   Ben Hogan
  Julius Boros
1968 U.S. Open (2)   Lee Trevino 275 (–5) 4 strokes   Jack Nicklaus
1980 PGA Championship   Jack Nicklaus 274 (–6) 7 strokes   Andy Bean
1984 U.S. Senior Open   Miller Barber 286 (+6) 2 strokes   Arnold Palmer
1989 U.S. Open (3)   Curtis Strange 278 (–2) 1 stroke   Chip Beck
  Mark McCumber
  Ian Woosnam
1995 Ryder Cup   Europe 14½ to 13½   United States
1998 U.S. Amateur (2)   Hank Kuehne 2 & 1   Tom McKnight
2003 PGA Championship (2)   Shaun Micheel 276 (–4) 2 strokes   Chad Campbell
2008 Senior PGA Championship   Jay Haas 287 (+7) 1 stroke   Bernhard Langer
2013 PGA Championship (3)   Jason Dufner 270 (–10) 2 strokes   Jim Furyk
2019 Senior PGA Championship (2)   Ken Tanigawa 277 (–3) 1 stroke   Scott McCarron
2023 PGA Championship (4)   Brooks Koepka 271 (–9) 2 strokes   Scottie Scheffler
  Viktor Hovland

Note: bolded years indicate modern era major championships.

The course record of 63 was set by Jason Dufner in the second round of the 2013 PGA Championship.[3]

Future events

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Year Tournament
2027 U.S. Amateur (3)

References

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  1. ^ "Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 4/21/2023 through4/28/2023". National Park Service. Retrieved May 4, 2023.
  2. ^ Marcotte, Bob (November 29, 2010). "Passion, dedication made John R. Williams a force in Rochester". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. pp. 1B, 4B. Archived from the original on June 12, 2022. Retrieved December 4, 2010.
  3. ^ Auclair, T. J. (August 9, 2013). "Dufner's record round surpasses his hero, Hogan". PGA of America.
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43°06′47″N 77°31′59″W / 43.113°N 77.533°W / 43.113; -77.533