Lehigh

Along the Little Lehigh Creek lies the private Lehigh Country Club which celebrated its centenary in 2008. The club moved to its present site in 1928 and the master router William S Flynn, who was perhaps the most respected and influential architect of the “Philadelphia School” of golf course design, designed the course.

The 206-acre site selected for the club’s new 18 holes were farms that belonged to the Kemmerer and Kline families and a syndicate of forty-two club members purchased the chosen land. Built by Flynn’s business partner Howard C. Toomey, the course was opened on Memorial Day, 1928 under the watchful eye of Paul Weiss, the former construction supervisor who became the first greens keeper on the new layout.

The routing of the fairways here has been acknowledged as nothing short of masterful with elevation changes in excess of one hundred feet negotiated during three of the four Creek crossings at the par four 4th, the par three 7th and par five 11th. Such is the severity of the topography in places, it’s doubtful if any architect would every contemplate laying out a modern course at the present location.

Flynn's courses are notable for their strong short holes and Lehigh follows that tradition with the Creek coming into play at two of them, the downhill 7th and the 184-yard 13th. There are only two par fives on the card, one on each nine, and they dogleg in opposite direction from tee to green at the 6th and the 11th holes.

Trees have been thinned out at Lehigh in recent years to allow for wider playing corridors and architect Ron Forse has been involved in a bunker restoration plan aimed at improved drainage.