Favorite Hole
No. 3, Par 4, 369 yards
Part of the Pete Dye magic is making something from nothing. While most of the holes required serious earth moving to be transformed into the course we see today, the third stands out as a terrific short par 4 that may have required the most dirt pushing. Three large mounds were constructed along the fairway, simulating the feeling of playing through Irish dunesland in central Indiana. The slender, angled green makes it so approach shots from the right have a very narrow window to land and stop the ball on the putting surface. The severe fall off to the back left accentuates the necessity to keep the ball up the left side of the fairway, but this also creates an obstructed view. So, you can push a drive up as far as you can and leave a delicate wedge shot, or lay back a little off the tee to have the most forgiving approach that may be semi-blind.
Illustration by Cameron Hurdus
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Overall Thoughts
The design of Brickyard Crossing came at a point in the Dye’s career where they were well tenured and had completed a lot of their most famous courses. This includes Harbour Town (1969), Teeth of the Dog (1971), TPC Sawgrass (1981), the Honors Course (1983), and the freshly completed Ocean Course at Kiawah Island (1991). Whistling Straits (1998) would then be the final course of significant stature added to this list. While the landlocked site just outside of downtown Indianapolis doesn’t compare to the coastal, lakeside, and mountainside wonders of the courses above, Dye was still able to make something interesting and memorable.
Pete and Alice did what they did best at the Brickyard: build a golf course. A large majority of the holes on this course weren’t found or discovered like the great links courses or modern minimalist designs. The team moved earth in grand proportions to manufacture interest and mold exciting golf holes into a bland site. Outside of the historic racetrack and prominent creek, the site is pretty unassuming and the high tension power lines, massive water tower, and industrial surroundings don’t help. Like many of their other projects, large cuts and excavated lakes were dug to produce enough dirt for Pete to build certain features, like the third hole mentioned earlier. The volcano-like seventh is another prime example. One can reasonably assume that the large pond right in front of the teeing ground was dug to produce the raised tee and greensite. What you might not easily infer is that there was a deeper motive. Pete wanted to bring the golfer up to an elevated position that would afford players a spectacular view of the racetrack and IMS tower. He was using the hole as a way to introduce and show off the incredible location of the golf course while also producing a mighty fine par 3.
The seventh green at Brickyard Crossing (Fried Egg Golf)
The remaining three holes inside the speedway follow a similar concept to the seventh in being completely distinctive from one another, which adds both memorability and incohesiveness. The eighth boasts a green that tosses and turns across the entire surface, unlike anything Dye normally built. Littered with round pot bunkers, the ninth is slightly offensive to the eye but comes equipped with a turtleback green which repels shots that lack precision. Finally, the short 10th provides one last hoorah with its rolling fairway contours that propel balls down towards the severely undulating green, a characteristic found throughout the course.
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Along with making massive spectator mounds, Pete put massive mounds on the greens as well. Perhaps he did this as a way to challenge the tour pros without significantly impacting the daily fee golfer. Large rolls, knobs, and planes pitched in multiple directions give character to each hole at the green. Many of these surfaces are extreme and certainly stand out as the most undulating I have seen from his portfolio. The combination of these rippling greens, the constructed landscape, and integration with the IMS gives the course a strong identity that is enjoyable yet slightly chaotic.
Holistically, this golf course is quite the marvel. And whether or not you agree with the engineered style of golf course construction and design, it’s hard not to recognize the ingenuity and creativity of the Dye duo to produce what they did at the Brickyard. They embraced the site for what it was and created a course that’s fascinating to visit and play, even if it doesn’t fall into their greatest hits.
0 Eggs
(How We Rate Courses)
While the racetrack holes do feel disjointed from the rest of the design you’d be really disappointed if they weren’t a part of the course. This is without a doubt a golf course that everyone should seek out to play at least once. It has several flashes of greatness along with several forgettable holes. I’d love to give this course an Egg for its experience alone, but the totality of the design is unfortunately weaker than its parts.
Course Tour
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Additional Content
A Trip Down the Pete Dye Golf Trail (Design Notebook)
