Ross was retained in the late 1920s when a group controlling the Grew estate sought to develop a course that would function as a private club on city land. That private effort collapsed with the 1929 market crash. In 1932, the project was resuscitated as a public work when Ross’s longtime associate Walter Irving Johnson assumed engineering oversight for the Massachusetts District Commission; federal WPA funds underwrote the heavy construction that Ross’s plans required. Contemporary and municipal accounts emphasize the extraordinary engineering: roughly 60,000 pounds of dynamite were used to fracture ledge, 72,000 cubic yards of fill were brought in to elevate swamp ground, and about 57,000 linear feet of drainage were installed—figures that explain why the course’s fairways, greensites, and paths string across rock shoulders and manufactured benches rather than natural meadow. By completion, a six-foot perimeter stone wall enclosed the 156-acre site and a monumental, Norman-style clubhouse occupied the hilltop. The course opened to play for the City in 1938.
Ross’s direct correspondence and detailed plan sheets for George Wright have not been made publicly available online, and the City’s website and contemporary press are the principal sources for construction chronology. Those sources do not document specific post-opening site visits by Ross. Johnson’s role as on-the-ground engineer during construction is, however, explicitly recorded, and several secondary histories describe Ross construction chief Walter Hatch assisting in executing the work. Further confirmation would require consulting Boston Parks Department archives and any surviving Ross office drawings.
Unique Design Characteristics
George Wright’s most persistent character trait is how its holes tack across and along granite: fairways were blasted into ledge and then draped to maintain playable slopes, producing frequent blind or semi-blind approaches and constant sidehill stances. The local hole tour and contemporary analyses identify sequences where this is clearest: the par-5 3rd climbs a secluded valley to a green flanked by deep front bunkers; the par-4 5th doglegs right along the property’s high ground and asks for a semi-blind downhill approach that can be bounced onto a green set in a dip just beyond a sharp fall-off; the par-4 10th demands a tee ball into a narrowing corridor to reach a large, undulating green approached downhill with fall-offs on both sides. These holes exemplify the site-specific way Ross’s routing worked with (and through) the ledge.
Greens at George Wright are generally benched into slopes rather than perched atop dunes; several feature false fronts or front-to-back nuances that interact with elevation. The par-3 4th plays across a valley to a shelf green guarded by deep front bunkers; restoration work in recent years re-expanded its putting surface to the original edges, recapturing a false front that now sheds timid tee balls. On the back, the par-4 13th is explicitly described by the City as having a false front, with two ponds guarding the left side of the fairway, while the par-3 14th again features a pronounced false front that rejects shots failing to reach the middle third. The par-3 17th sits in a windswept pocket where recovery from the bunkers requires a high, precise explosion. These touches—sited on specific holes and interacting with the course’s granite shoulders—constitute the course’s defining, repeatable tests today.
Other Ross elements remain conspicuous in the routing choices. After front-nine holes moving away from the clubhouse through neighborhood edges, the course turns into a remarkably secluded interior where (as observers note) one sees little of the surrounding city until the closing stretch—an effect achieved by threading corridors along the reservation edge and behind the stone wall. The perimeter wall, which the official local rules designate out of bounds with no relief, shapes play on multiple corridors and is an artifact of the original 1930s build as much as it is a strategic frame.
Among surviving exemplars of Ross’s work here, the 4th (par 3) and 5th (par 4) are frequently singled out. The 4th’s restored green pad and frontal defenses now reward precise trajectory control, closely matching period photographs and descriptions of Ross’s one-shot tests on rugged ground. The 5th’s tee shot—shaped to a chosen line over the inside elbow—and the option to use the pronounced downslope short of the putting surface to bound an approach echo construction choices visible across other Boston-area Ross work, but the blasted corridor and the way the green nestles in a trough are unique to this property’s geology. The 3rd similarly preserves Ross’s narrow valley concept, with modern maintenance emphasizing the deep, set-in bunkering tight to the front of the green.
Historical Significance
Within Ross’s oeuvre, George Wright stands out as a major municipal commission executed via New Deal funding on a severe site—an extreme counterpoint to his sand-based work in the Carolinas and one of the most engineering-intensive builds associated with his office. The course’s stone-walled enclosure, blasted fairways, and bench-cut greensites required methods and budgets unusual for a public facility of the era. In the modern era the course has been repeatedly recognized: in 2009 Golfweek ranked it 14th-best municipal in the United States; in 2021 GOLF Magazine listed it among the Top 30 munis nationally, and its current “Top 100 You Can Play” entry includes yardage and par confirming its competitive stature.
Tournament history underscores the point. In 2018, Mass Golf staged the Massachusetts Amateur across the two Boston munis, with stroke play day two and all match play rounds at George Wright; later that month the club hosted the Massachusetts Women’s Amateur in full. These decisions reflected both the course’s restored conditioning and the enduring sophistication of Ross’s routing under championship pressure.
Current Condition / Integrity
The routing remains fundamentally Ross’s, with corridor widths, greensites, and fairway alignments that still read from the 1930s plan lineage. After decades of contracted management, the City resumed direct operations in 2004 and engaged architect Mark Mungeam under a 2003 master plan to guide restoration. Reported measures include tee-to-green renovations on holes 1 and 13, renovation of 25 of 34 bunkers, expansion of 10 tee boxes, and installation of a new irrigation system; extensive tree management reopened historic angles and restored views of the nearly three-mile stone wall that rings the property. Municipal investment also modernized the Norman-style clubhouse (slate roof, windows, arched doors; a rebuilt patio), and the City has continued to adjust tees (e.g., expanding the 16th). These works have largely preserved Ross’s corridors and green locations while re-establishing green perimeters (e.g., the 4th) and bunker placements in a manner sympathetic to the historic appearance.
The present-day playing characteristics cited by Mass Golf and local descriptions—undulating lies, a bevy of blind shots, and terrain-driven difficulty at yardages under 6,700—align with the site’s 1930s construction narrative. Maintenance upgrades have elevated turf standards, but strategically the course still hinges on false fronts (4, 13, 14), downhill approaches from hillcrests (5, 10, 12), and greens that reward staying below the hole (10, 11, 17). The stone wall’s out-of-bounds status remains an active design constraint as stated on the official card.
Citations and Uncertainty
Primary municipal sources (the City’s website, official scorecard, and press materials) have been used wherever possible, supplemented by Mass Golf championship communications and architecture scholarship. Two discrepancies deserve flagging. First, while the City reports an opening in 1938, some secondary accounts (including a Boston Globe feature and an architecture essay) reference 1936—possibly reflecting a soft opening or staged completion prior to formal inauguration. Secondly, attribution beyond “Donald Ross” properly includes Walter Irving Johnson (engineer/associate), and some accounts note involvement by Walter Hatch from Ross’s construction staff; confirmation of Hatch’s onsite role would require locating Ross firm field reports or MDC/WPA contractor records.
Sources & Notes
City of Boston Golf — George Wright GC overview page. Includes history, WPA construction figures (dynamite, fill, drainage), Johnson’s role, acreage, wall, clubhouse, and a 1938 opening claim. https://www.cityofbostongolf.com/course/george-wright-golf-course
City of Boston Golf — George Wright Course Tour. Hole-by-hole yardages and descriptive notes used to identify specific features (e.g., false fronts at 13 and 14; deep bunkers at 4; approach characteristics at 5, 10, 12, 17, 18).
Boston Globe (Ben Volin), “Restoration has made George Wright and Franklin Park golfing jewels,” July 5, 2018 (PDF hosted on City site). Documents 2003 master plan by Mark Mungeam; 2004 city operations; scope of tee-to-green work on 1 and 13; bunker and tee expansions; irrigation replacement; tree work revealing the perimeter wall; 2018 Mass Amateur match play at GW and Women’s Amateur at GW; contains a 1936 opening reference. Mass Golf — 2018 Massachusetts Amateur communications. Confirms event format and that day-two stroke play and all match-play rounds were contested at George Wright.
Mass Golf — 2018 Massachusetts Women’s Amateur (host site and schedule). Confirms George Wright as the venue, July 30–Aug. 2, 2018. https://www.massgolf.org/championships/2018-amateur/ Golfweek, “Best Municipal Courses” (2009) — PDF hosted on City site. Ranks George Wright 14th in the U.S. municipal category. GOLF Magazine / Golf.com (2021 & 2024–25 entries). Lists George Wright among America’s best munis (2021) and in the Top 100 “You Can Play” (2024–25) with par and yardage. https://golf.com/travel/courses/americas-30-best-municipal-golf-courses/ ; GolfClubAtlas, “George Wright (2015)” by Ran Morrissett. Secondary but detailed architectural analysis referencing City data on blasting/fill/drainage; discusses stone wall length, Walter Hatch’s involvement, and hole-specific characteristics (3, 4, 5, 6). Boston.gov news (City of Boston): “City golf courses now open” (Feb. 16, 2017). Notes ongoing clubhouse restoration and expanded 16th tee at George Wright.