The US Open at Pinehurst #2

          Good Morning. In this post you will find pictured above a cell phone quality photo of the paiting as it looks now. Down below is the earlier version, which just didn't quite excite me enough to call it finished. I decided to get a little more sand scrub in view in the foreground, along with two or three other minor tweeks. Can you see them? I hope you enjoy my painting.

           US Opens always draw excitement for me, but this one is different. The news that Pinehurst #2 was going to be restored by Coore and Crenshwaw was such a great surprise a few years back. The Pinehurst brain trust has made a monumental decision and they will not regret this. The course looks like a throw back, has torn edged bunkers, sandy waste areas abound, burnt out turf at the margins and unclean lines. It pulls people 180 degrees from the "green and manicured" that has plagued much of US Golf and #2 for the last few decades.
   
           It has been a pleasure to know Bill Coore personally for the last 7 or 8 years. He is my idol and owns an original painting of mine. His legend was planted at Sand Hills in 1993 for most of us and each course he and Ben Crenshaw took on after that has come on scene looking as if it had existed for a century or more. I had the pleasure of meeting Ben at the Streamsong grand opening and we met while standing in front of two of my original paintings. I surely couldn't have wished for a better scenario. A month or so later Ben had written me a letter endorsing my work. Here is my most recent oil painting of the restoration of the ninth at Pinehurst #2. It is 24x36 and looking for a good home. It is only the 3rd painting I have done not as a commissioned painting in the last 2-3 years. The new look excited me to another level and I knew I wanted to see if I could creates something worthy.

           "For several years I have admired your work and considered you to be among the elite golf course artists in the world. Having seen several of your most recent paintings, I could make the argument that you are the best in the profession. Your technique and style bring to canvas the life, vibrancy and realism of the landscapes you paint. I also appreciate that your work presents golf hole from the golfer's perspective. The holes you paint are actually recognizable to a golfer fortunate enough to have played them! I was very please to see Ron Whitten's recent article on you in GOLF WORLD and am happy to see your talent being recognized by the golfing community." -Bill Coore 

           "We are great admirers of your work. Your paintings are beautiful and I must say that they appeal to Bill and me from that aspect that there is a good deal of impressionism painted so admirably by you." -Ben Crenshaw 

 Enjoy the US Open.

So Glad Someone Had a Camera ...Streamsong Opening

Tom Doak, golf's most accomplished architect commissioned two Streamsong oil paintings as a gift to the Mosaic company. A year ago, he flew me out to play the juvenile version of the course with him. This was a great moment, as we had never golfed together and I hit shots while taking photos trying to figure out great painting angles, of which there were many. Fast forward a year to last weekend. The weekend was filled with amazing weather, two fantastic courses debuted and great personalities coming together. This presentation happened at the grand opening and it was fantastic as I finally got to meet Ben Crenshaw. He was pretty excited about seeing my painting of his course. He and Bill Coore couldn't have been more complimentary, but of course you would expect nothing less from these two gentlemen. Tom completely caught the ownership off guard with this generous gift. Thanks to Masa Nishijima for the best photo on the subject. Being among these three gentleman and talents is a moment I will never forget. Cheers to a great 2013 and a huge year in my life with the birth of our first Daughter expected within the month!!!!

Yardage Book

Since visiting Old Sandwich Golf Club a couple years ago, I've looked at each golf course a little differently. The architects, Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw and the club have done such an amazing job of turning back the clock there. From the moment you drive on site, you are overwhelmed with a timeless, throw back feel. While it was only built a few years ago, you would swear it is 100 years old. From the style of clubhouse, heirloom grassing choices, course hardware, down to the everyday maintenance, it screams Old and Wise. I left with great memories, a memory card full of photos, an OS baseball cap and probably the best yardage book ever created. While I don't have a photo of their book here, I do have photos of my first attempt at a Yardage Book.




Their yardage book was drawn by Bill Coore and features loose sketches of each hole tee to green. Each line was sketched with care as if he had designed the course... ;) ;) ;) When asked by the California Golf Club to create a yardage book of my own, my mind raced to the OS book. I asked myself how can I create something with such feel without ripping off the style completely. After sketching for a while with pencil, it became clear to me I needed to "dance with the date I brung" and oil paint the book. It would be completely original and give me a better chance to attain something special. My hope was to paint it in color and have the book produced in black and white. The Board of Directors overruled and wanted the book printed in color. Hope to be lucky enough to do another Yardage Book some day, in between Original Oil Paintings.




Cheers,

Josh Smith