Chambers Bay
Encyclopedia
Chambers Bay is a Scottish links
-style golf course
in University Place, Washington
on Puget Sound
. The public course is owned by Pierce County
and opened for play on June 23, 2007.
Chambers Bay hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur and is scheduled to host the U.S. Open
in 2015, the first time the event will be held in the Pacific Northwest
. The events were awarded by the USGA
in early 2008. Chambers Bay is the longest course in USGA history.
Chambers Bay was designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.
. The 250 acre (1.0 km²) course is the centerpiece of a 930 acre (3.8 km²) county park. Pierce County bought the land for $33 million in 1992; the property was formerly a sand-and-gravel quarry, popular with off-road four-wheelers and dirt-bikers.
During construction, 1.4 million cubic yards (1.1 million m³) of dirt and sand were moved to sculpt the course. At the time, it was still permitted as a working mine, which meant fewer restrictions for the course architects.
Chambers Bay has just one tree, a Douglas fir behind the 15th green. Five sets of tees are available, ranging from 5,250 to 7,585 yards, and as a municipal course, Pierce County residents receive discounted rates. The course is for walkers only, caddies are available but are optional. Motorized carts are permitted only for those with medical conditions or disabilities, and a caddie must be hired as the driver.
The course is operated by Kemper Sports Management of Northbrook
, Illinois
, which also operates Bandon Dunes on the southern Oregon
coast.
The course is part of the Chambers Creek Properties which includes numerous non-golf recreational opportunities including a three mile loop walking trail, part of which travels through the west side of the golf course.
Each hole on the course has it's own name. The names are
- Hole 1 : Puget Sound
- Hole 2 : Foxy
- Hole 3 : Blown Out
- Hole 4 : Hazard's Ascent
- Hole 5 : Free Fall
- Hole 6 : Deception Point
- Hole 7 : Humpback
- Hole 8 : High Road Low Road
- Hole 9 : Olympus
- Hole 10 : High Dunes
- Hole 11 : Shadows
- Hole 12 : The Narrows
- Hole 13 : Eagle Eye
- Hole 14 : Cape Fear
- Hole 15 : Line Fir
- Hole 16 : Beached
- Hole 17 : Derailed
- Hole 18 : Tachoma
Links (golf)
A links is the oldest style of golf course, first developed in Scotland. The word "links" comes from the Scots language and refers to an area of coastal sand dunes and sometimes to open parkland. It also retains this more general meaning in the Scottish English dialect...
-style golf course
Golf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
in University Place, Washington
University Place, Washington
University Place is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Its population was 31,144 at the 2010 census.Based on per capita income, University Place ranks 81st of 522 areas in the state of Washington to be ranked.-History:...
on Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
. The public course is owned by Pierce County
Pierce County, Washington
right|thumb|[[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]] - Seat of Pierce CountyPierce County is the second most populous county in the U.S. state of Washington. Formed out of Thurston County on December 22, 1852, by the legislature of Oregon Territory...
and opened for play on June 23, 2007.
Chambers Bay hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur and is scheduled to host the U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...
in 2015, the first time the event will be held in the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
. The events were awarded by the USGA
United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association is the United States' national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the Rules of Golf. The USGA also provides a national handicap system...
in early 2008. Chambers Bay is the longest course in USGA history.
Chambers Bay was designed by Robert Trent Jones, Jr.
Robert Trent Jones, Jr.
Robert Trent "Bobby" Jones, Jr. is a noted golf course architect. He is the son of legendary golf course designer Robert Trent Jones and the brother of golf course designer Rees Jones....
. The 250 acre (1.0 km²) course is the centerpiece of a 930 acre (3.8 km²) county park. Pierce County bought the land for $33 million in 1992; the property was formerly a sand-and-gravel quarry, popular with off-road four-wheelers and dirt-bikers.
During construction, 1.4 million cubic yards (1.1 million m³) of dirt and sand were moved to sculpt the course. At the time, it was still permitted as a working mine, which meant fewer restrictions for the course architects.
Chambers Bay has just one tree, a Douglas fir behind the 15th green. Five sets of tees are available, ranging from 5,250 to 7,585 yards, and as a municipal course, Pierce County residents receive discounted rates. The course is for walkers only, caddies are available but are optional. Motorized carts are permitted only for those with medical conditions or disabilities, and a caddie must be hired as the driver.
The course is operated by Kemper Sports Management of Northbrook
Northbrook, Illinois
Northbrook is a village located at the northern edge of Cook County, Illinois, which is also a North Shore suburb of Chicago. The population was 33,170 at the 2010 census....
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, which also operates Bandon Dunes on the southern Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
coast.
The course is part of the Chambers Creek Properties which includes numerous non-golf recreational opportunities including a three mile loop walking trail, part of which travels through the west side of the golf course.
Each hole on the course has it's own name. The names are
- Hole 1 : Puget Sound
- Hole 2 : Foxy
- Hole 3 : Blown Out
- Hole 4 : Hazard's Ascent
- Hole 5 : Free Fall
- Hole 6 : Deception Point
- Hole 7 : Humpback
- Hole 8 : High Road Low Road
- Hole 9 : Olympus
- Hole 10 : High Dunes
- Hole 11 : Shadows
- Hole 12 : The Narrows
- Hole 13 : Eagle Eye
- Hole 14 : Cape Fear
- Hole 15 : Line Fir
- Hole 16 : Beached
- Hole 17 : Derailed
- Hole 18 : Tachoma