Echo Lake’s present course began in 1912 when the Cranford Golf Club purchased the Harper Farm on Springfield Avenue and engaged Donald Ross to plan a new 18-hole layout. The course opened in 1913 at 6,247 yards, par 72, with the clubhouse placed conspicuously on the lake bluff. In 1921 Cranford GC merged with Westfield GC and adopted the new name, Echo Lake Country Club.
By 1919—only a few years after opening—the club hired Robert (“Bob”) White to design “a longer and better back nine,” resulting in six new holes (today’s 11–16). The club then carried out two property transactions in 1922–23, acquiring about 32 acres in the area now occupied by the 6th, 7th, 9th, and the practice range, and conveying a similar acreage to the Union County Park Commission along the lake, with water rights retained. In 1928 Willard Wilkinson designed new holes at 6, 7, and 9, and the range opened. The club’s own historical summary attributes the current course to Ross on 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 17 and 18; Wilkinson on 6, 7 and 9; and Bob White on 11–16.
In the 21st century, the club advanced a Rees Jones master plan (with Steve Weisser) aimed at unified style and competitive relevance. Work culminated in 2017–18 with significant changes to the opening stretch: the 2nd was lengthened and converted to a par five; the 3rd became a ~140-yard par three; and the 4th, after discussion during the project, ultimately settled as a par four—collectively moving the course to par 71.
The same work lowered terrain on the 1st and 2nd to improve visibility and pace, and, as the superintendent noted, it opened a new skyline vista from the clubhouse terrace. Tournament and media pieces from 2017 initially described the 4th as a par five; by 2018 the NJSGA host-club profile recorded the 4th as a par four and the course as par 71. The club’s scorecard reflects those changes and lists the back-tee yardage as 7,116.
Unique Design Characteristics (course-specific)
Because Echo Lake evolved early, the course offers a side-by-side look at Ross corridors and later insertions. The club’s own authorship list makes the opening quintet (1–5) and the finish (17–18) the clearest windows into Ross’s 1913 work. Hole 1 drops away from the bluff to a small green that falls from back-right to front-left, guarded by two deep bunkers—an arrival sequence the club’s hole guide still describes in detail. 2 now plays as a par five after 2017, but it continues to use the Ross corridor. 3 is a short par three (~140 yards) with flanking bunkers and a tight, exacting target that became a signature new test during the 2017–18 project. 4 is presently a long par four, revised from the historical par five during the last phase of the master plan. 10—attributed by the club to Ross—plays to a green defending front-left with bunkering; the club’s guide calls it “one of the flatter greens,” an outlier on a course known for active putting surfaces. 17 (par three) and 18 (par four) return golfers to the clubhouse plateau, completing a finish long associated with Echo Lake’s tournament identity.
The non-Ross holes illustrate how later architects wove into the terrain. Wilkinson’s 7th is a photogenic, mid-length one-shotter to a tiny, markedly undulating green ringed by bunkers; his 9th is a dogleg-left two-shotter to an elevated green with a strong false front. White’s long-two-shot 13th allows a running approach that “typically bounces and releases,” and the 14th par three often stretches past 200 yards to a narrow entrance pinched by large bunkers—both consistent with the club’s published hole notes. These descriptions matter because they set the context for what is and is not Ross at Echo Lake: the club’s own attributions guide which features can reasonably be discussed as Ross survivals.
Historical Significance
In a Ross directory, Echo Lake’s significance is two-fold. First, it was a 1913 metropolitan-area commission that shows how quickly club needs could reshape an early Ross course: within six years, half of the back nine was rebuilt by Bob White; within fifteen years, three front-nine holes were re-designed by Wilkinson. Second, Echo Lake has sustained a competitive profile across eras on a composite of architects, with marquee winners such as Paul Runyon (1934 Met Open), Terry Noe (1994 U.S. Junior Amateur), and Inbee Park (2002 U.S. Girls’ Junior) on its ledger, and a fresh USGA assignment as stroke-play co-host of the 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball. The event record underscores how Ross’s surviving corridors, blended with later work, have remained viable for championship play.
Current Condition / Integrity of Ross Features
Routing and hole authorship. The club affirms that nine present holes trace to Ross (1,2,3,4,5,8,10,17,18). Those corridors remain in play, but some pars and green sites have been altered since 1913—most recently through the Rees Jones plan that reshaped the first four in 2017–18. 6, 7, 9 (Wilkinson) and 11–16 (White) are not Ross and introduce distinct green sizes and bunker schemes.
2017–18 works and their impact. The master plan lowered grades on 1–2, extended 2 to a par five, created a new short-iron 3rd, and finalized 4 as a par four, with the overall course re-rated to par 71. The superintendent and head professional documented the goals: improve visibility and tempo off the first tee, eliminate a persistent blind-shot issue, and strengthen the opening quartet for modern competition. Those decisions inevitably changed Ross’s original yardages and green surrounds on that stretch; however, the club still attributes those holes to Ross in the macro sense of corridor and sequence. Beyond holes 1–4, bunker lines and green perimeters have been incrementally updated under the plan to bring greater stylistic unity.
Condition and presentation. The club highlights firm, undulating greens across the property and has published detailed hole notes reflecting that character; several of the most demanding putting targets today—7, 9, 13, 14—are not Ross, which helps explain why players often describe Echo Lake as a composite challenge rather than a single-author museum piece. From a Ross-integrity standpoint, the best surviving examples to study on the ground are 1, 3, 8, 10, 17, and 18, where the corridors and green settings read most naturally within the 1913 framework, despite modern refinements.
Sources & Notes
Echo Lake CC — “History.” Club historical page outlining Cranford GC origins, 1912 land purchase, Ross engagement, 1913 opening yardage/par, 1919 Bob White additions (11–16), 1928 Wilkinson additions (6,7,9), and authorship of current holes; event list with winners.
Echo Lake CC — 2018 Scorecard (PDF). Lists par-71 configuration and tee yardages, including Championship 7,116 yards; credits Ross as course architect and Rees Jones as master-plan architect.
Rees Jones, Inc. — “Echo Lake’s Substantial Renovation … Nearly Complete” (news post). Summarizes intent and specific changes on holes 1–4 and the shift from par 72 to 71.
NJSGA Amateur Championship Program (2018) — “Host Club Profile: Echo Lake CC.” Narrative by Mike Moretti documenting the master plan, lowering of 1–2, conversion of 2 to par five and 3 to par three, and final conversion of 4 to par four, confirming par 71. Also recounts recent championship history and course-setup commentary.
New Jersey PGA (2017) — “Echo Lake Redesigns its First Four Holes.” Early-stage announcement describing new 3rd (par three) and lengthened 2nd (par five), and noting the par change to 71; language on the 4th evolved as the project finished.
USGA — 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, “Take a Tour of Stroke-Play Co-Host Echo Lake C.C.” Event site noting Echo Lake’s role as stroke-play co-host.