On Friday, July 4th next, the members will hold a Special General Meeting to 'right the wrong' by approving a €4.2 million plan drawn up by Course Architect Martin Hawtree, which will hopefully and finally bring The Cashen to its full potential.
In 1906, Captain Lionel Hewson editor of Irish Golf magazine, laid out 9-holes that was to become the basis of unimagined great things to come. Another twenty years passed by before Carter & Sons, a London based company was invited to develop a second nine holes. Never should it be forgotten how much of a struggle for survival, Ballybunion Golf Club's early years were and yet the wily locals always seemed to know that they had 'something special.'
When GUI President-in-waiting, Commander George Crosbie of Cork, 'bulldozed' his colleagues into bringing the 1937 'Irish Close' to a previously 'unknown' Ballybunion, the club committee with two years advance notice but no funds enticed an Englishman, whom with typical Kerry cuteness, they suspected would be indifferent to the fees he might earn to advise them. Nobody could have anticipated the resounding success of the championship or that it would be won by a 17-years old future legend, James Bruen.
Tom Simpson was born into a wealthy English mining family background. Financially secure, Simpson enjoyed the luxury of turning an interesting hobby into a career that has left indelible marks on some famous courses. Trained in law at Cambridge University, Simpson qualified as a Barrister but never practiced. He was a respected art critic whose sketches featured in Bernard Darwin's Country Life articles. His favourite hobby was needlework. He was also a collector of exotic cigars, Persian rugs, walking sticks and wines. The latter must have been impressive as was invited to build two courses for the Rothschild family. Today, Simpson's golf designs are recognised as being as artistically inspiring as any in the history of the game.
Simpson always arrived for work in a chauffer-driven, silver Rolls Royce dressed in a flowing cloak, a Basque-like beret while wielding a riding crop. The chauffeur doubled-jobbed as a valet, driving the automobile onto an appropriate fairway to serve a Fortnum & Mason's luncheon from an enormous wicker basket. Unlike Pete and Alice Dye, there was no dining with the humble construction crew for Simpson and his dramatically beautiful wife who accompanied him on assignments. The fact that his clients did not actually hand over any cash saved him from being dismissed on occasions because he rarely paid attention to what they wanted and was free with insults to those who questioned him.
During a game in 1962 with the late Brendan Houlihan who later became the popular, club professional, it was pointed out to me that because it was the Simpson's favourite picnic spot, the two pot bunkers in the middle of the 1st fairway (then the 14th) were named after the architect's wife and not the Duchess of York of the same era. Apparently, a frustrated member who found his ball 'trapped' once too often said 'prayers' for the distracting Mrs. Simpson that became the talk of the clubhouse and the name stuck.
Compared to less talented designers of the classical era, Simpson's work tends to be forgotten. Accepting 'too many' redesign jobs in order to 'correct the mistakes' of others, as he termed it, did not endear him to jealous peers and his work was not given the respect it deserved as a consequence. If referred to at all in contemporary writings, it was usually as 'the crazy and eccentric Simpson.'
Tom Mackenzie of Mackenzie & Ebert who was responsible for the superb work on the Killeen Course at Killarney says: "Simpson is an unsung hero of golf architecture. His name deserves to be mentioned alongside Harry Colt and Alister Mackenzie, as one of the greats. That he isn't is due to his personality and how he was perceived personally more than a fair judgement on his body of work."
Perhaps, Simpson's greatest 'gift' to Ballybunion was realising that the links did not require 'much correction' and that nature could not be surpassed. In fact, all that he did was make a few minor adjustments. He relocated three greens, the 7th then the 2nd, the 9th then the 4th, and the 13th then the 8th - as well as introducing some new bunkering. He left the routing and shape of the holes more or less as they were. Quite a compliment to Messers, Hewson, Carter and to God Himself!
If he had worked more often on original routings on virgin land, there is little doubt that Golf Architect Tom Simpson would be better known and appreciated today.
It is unfortunate that a haughty attitude stirred up such strong feelings that his reputation and legacy are largely forgotten because Tom Simpson's judgement was sound.
Of course, having to live through two world wars did not help his productivity.