A Sharp Design: MacKenzie Layout Open To Public - And Animals

By John K. Abendroth

Pacifica, Calif. – Alister MacKenzie is widely regarded as one of the premier golf course architects of the 20^th century, credited with some of the finest designs in the world, including Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia, Cypress Point on the Monterey Peninsula in California, Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia, Crystal Downs Country Club in Michigan and Lahinch in Ireland. There are, however, just a handful of MacKenzie layouts that are open to the public.

Known for a style that embraced naturalism and minimalism, MacKenzie – an English surgeon before transitioning to a career as a golf course architect – strove to find the right balance between artistry and playability. As with all his designs, MacKenzie designed Sharp Park for players with a wide range of skills, from the beginner to the accomplished professional.

Sharp Park opened for public play in 1932, a few months before Augusta National, for which MacKenzie gained most of his public acclaim. Both courses were completed during a course construction flurry from 1927-33 that also included Pasatiempo in Santa Cruz, Calif., site of the 2004 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur and long considered one of the West Coast’s foremost designs, along with other California MacKenzie masterpieces, Cypress Point Golf Club and Meadow Club in Fairfax.

Through its Recreation and Parks Department, the City of San Francisco owns and oversees the operation of the Sharp Park Golf Course, despite its location 10 miles south of the city limits in San Mateo County.

While the city has owned the land since 1917, two other municipal courses served as the impetus for Sharp Park’s creation. Lincoln Park Golf Course opened in 1908 and the more-heralded Harding Park Golf Course became operational 17 years later. Each course enjoyed brisk business prior to Sharp Park.

Known for a style that embraces naturalism and minimalism, Alister MacKenzie strove to find the right balance between artistry and playability. (John Mummert/USGA)

Under the direction of nature visionary John McLaren, who then headed San Francisco’s park system, the city eyed a third public venue.

The estate of Honora Sharp, who was the widow of local and prominent attorney George Sharp, gave the tract of land to the City of San Francisco in 1917. Under the terms of the donation, the land was designated for a “public playground or park.”

Because of the high demand for public golf, a decision was made to build a new course on the Sharp family property. MacKenzie, living in the San Francisco area at the time, was the unanimous choice to design it.

The construction portion of the project was supervised by H. Chandler Egan, a two-time U.S. Amateur champion. Egan had recently remodeled Pebble Beach in 1929 with MacKenzie. Another important person on the team was Jack Fleming, the foreman at Cypress Point who worked on Augusta National and the other California MacKenzie projects.

Fleming would eventually oversee all of San Francisco’s golf facilities and, to this day, the nine-hole layout at Harding Park is called the Fleming Nine Hole Golf Course.

The original Sharp Park design had two holes that lay virtually on the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Other inland holes wound over and around Laguna Salada. But over time the saltwater wetlands evolved into a fresh water sanctuary that ultimately would have a major impact on Sharp Park Golf Course’s future.

Nine years after it opened, the city was forced to build a seawall on top of the two beach holes to protect the remainder of the course and surrounding property from flooding and erosion. To facilitate this change, four new holes were built by Fleming after MacKenzie’s 1934 death. Known as the “canyon holes,” they were built well inland and significantly altered the original layout. Nevertheless, a large percentage of the course (14 holes) still maintains the MacKenzie design.

Over the years, golf course architecture experts have given high marks to Sharp Park, including Daniel Wexler, one of America’s leading exponents of older courses. Wexler called Sharp Park “marvelous.” According to Bo Links and Richard Harris on http://golfclubatlas.com/, Tom Doak, a noted authority on course renovation and design, said Sharp Park was a "milestone," in reference to an evolution in MacKenzie’s style.

Despite its design features and public affection, environmentalists have threatened to shut down the course. As Laguna Salada morphed from a saltwater to a fresh water sanctuary, the California Red Legged Frog and the Garter snake – both endangered species – have taken up residence on the property, creating debate over the course’s future between the golf community and environmentalists. 

“Don’t make the mistake of thinking these [city] golf courses are some sort of elitist refuge,” said San Francisco’s Frank Priscaro, a golfer at Sharp Park. “They are important recreation facilities for the common man. They are the people’s golf courses.”

For years the course has been known for its diversity of patrons, from the avid Asian golf community to retired Italian immigrants. Many retired San Francisco firefighters and police officers are also regulars. The course is affordable for juniors and anyone else on a tight budget. Currently, Sharp Park averages about 50,000 rounds per year.

“I live just two blocks from the course and have played there many times, and each time I’m impressed by the variety of people who come there; the working class, the elderly and  retired, school kids and everybody in between,” said Pacifica resident Eric Nelson.

Ed Preston, a retired postal employee who has played Sharp Park for many years and now works as an on-course marshal, understands the environmentalists’ concerns. But he’s of the mindset that the course’s inhabitants and golfers can both enjoy the harmonic surroundings.

“There is a lot of wildlife on the course now,” said Preston, an accomplished painter who has one of his works hanging in the clubhouse. “Foxes, many birds and, in fact, there is an area where a litter of foxes are born every year. I’m very taken by the property; it is very beautiful.”

Just last week, on Dec. 17, a compromise was reached. The San Francisco Recreation and Park Commission voted 6-0 to retain the golf course. According to SFGate.com, the approval means that the Recreation and Park Department can continue with an environmental analysis, start work on a more detailed design and seek funding to complete it, said Dawn Kamalanathan, the department's director of planning.

Minor tweaks to a couple of golf holes and other considerations for the watershed will allow the frogs, snakes and golfers to coexist in harmony.

The equally good news is that the MacKenzie masterpiece will remain. The opportunity to play Sharp Park is nothing short of a treasure.

John Abendroth, who grew up playing Sharp Park, is a San Francisco-based PGA golf professional and a noted expert on the history of San Francisco golf.