Oak Hill’s relocation from its original Genesee River property to Pittsford was finalized in April 1924, with members commissioning Donald Ross to design two full eighteens on 355 acres. The club records describe Ross addressing members in May 1922—two years before construction—calling the site “one of the finest” prospects he had seen and emphasizing its “remarkable beauty,” specifically the rolling ground and a meandering creek through the property.
Ross’s construction campaign for both the East and West courses ran through 1924, employing large crews, extensive drainage and irrigation, and seeding both courses by summer’s end; the grass knit in 1925 and the club moved to Pittsford for the 1926 season.
A separate historical synthesis drawing on Oak Hill archives corroborates these dates and costs, noting that both courses were “laid out and dug out” in 1924, matured in 1925, and opened in 1926.
Evidence of Ross’s explicit design intent specific to the West Course is sparse in public sources; most surviving quotations center on his appraisal of the property as a whole (and on East’s relationship with Allen’s Creek).
What is clear from the routing and today’s hole descriptions is that Ross used the broader topography west of the clubhouse—without a creek—to create interest via elevation changes, diagonal stances, and internal green contours. The club, on its official West page, characterizes the course as “virtually untouched since…1926,” underscoring continuity between Ross’s built work and the present layout.
There is no documentary evidence in readily available sources that Ross returned for a multi-hole redesign phase on the West after opening. Subsequent major rework on property focused on the East ahead of championships (notably mid-20th-century changes and the 2019–2020 restoration by Andrew Green).
By contrast, the West’s historical storyline is largely one of continuity rather than overhaul.
Unique Design Characteristics
The West Course’s strategy and aesthetics hinge on the property’s ridges and elevated targets rather than water. The club’s own hole narratives identify several Ross hallmarks as they appear here:
No. 6 “Camel Back” (par 5): Two pronounced fairway ridges at approximately 230 and 370 yards define the line of play, culminating in a “severely elevated and windswept” green—an example of Ross using existing landforms to ask for trajectory control on the third shot.
No. 13 “Twin Hills” (par 4): The approach twists through “two lush mounds” to a ridge-top green, creating a classic uphill, slightly obscured target and emphasizing position off the tee for the proper angle—subtle ground use that fits Ross’s methods elsewhere on property.
No. 3 “Pitfall” and No. 2 “Rolling Hills” (pars 4): The club calls No. 3 “the most undulating green at Oak Hill” and No. 2 a “very undulating” target requiring accurate placement, pointing to preserved internal green movement that drives approach precision—consistent with Ross’s tendency to emphasize short-iron exactness via contour.
No. 12 “Shorty” (par 4): The only West hole involving water is explicitly identified by the club as a short, lay-up-then-wedge two-shotter into a small, bunkered green—shot-value variety amid a routing otherwise defined by upland contours.
No. 16 “Twister” (par 4 for men): A long double-dogleg with hummocks bracketing the fairway and a guarded approach under a large oak, showing Ross’s use of landform and specimen trees to shape sightlines and shot choices late in the round.
The clearest surviving examples of Ross’s work on the West are those where the club’s descriptions align with original-era shaping rather than later insertions: Nos. 6 and 13 for their ridge-driven approaches, and Nos. 2–3 for their original-feeling green interiors. The club’s statement that the West remains “virtually untouched” since 1926 reinforces this reading, though verification against original plan sets would be necessary to quantify changes to individual green pads.
Historical Significance
Within Ross’s oeuvre, Oak Hill is notable as a comprehensive, dual-course commission where the designer executed two contrasting experiences from a single landholding: East integrating a creek corridor and West deriving variety from rolling uplands. The club’s own history captures Ross’s early optimism and the massive 1924 build, a snapshot of Golden Age engineering applied at 36-hole scale.
The West has also played a recurring role in national competitions. It co-hosted stroke-play qualifying for the 1998 U.S. Amateur, and it is scheduled again for stroke play when the 2027 U.S. Amateur returns (match play on the East).
Additionally, the PGA of America has slated the 2028 Boys’ and Girls’ Junior PGA Championships across the West and nearby Country Club of Rochester, placing the West in a prominent junior championship rotation.
In contemporary assessments, Golf Digest’s Best in State lists have kept Oak Hill West in New York’s top tier for more than a decade (Top 20 in 2013–16; Top 25 in 2011–12 and 2017–20; Top 30 in 2021–26; ranked 29th in 2025–26), confirming the course’s continuing standing independent of its major-hosting sibling.
Current Condition / Integrity
The club explicitly describes the West as “virtually untouched since…1926,” and outside sources likewise call it a “largely unaltered 1926 Donald Ross layout.”
The present routing and hole-by-hole notes show no major 20th-century redesign phases analogous to those undertaken on the East; instead, the West reflects accumulated maintenance and incremental tweaks. One documented adjustment is on No. 15 “Twin Tees,” where the club notes a new back teeing option using the rear of East’s 17th tee to add approximately twenty yards—a lengthening that affects only the start point, not the green site or corridor.
Tree planting dramatically reshaped Oak Hill after opening—an estate-wide change driven by Dr. John R. Williams beginning in 1926—which gave the West its present canopy and tighter corridors over time.
Recent high-profile restorative work at Oak Hill has focused on the East; public documentation does not indicate a parallel, architect-led bunker/green reconstruction program on the West in the last decade.
The West also serves operational roles during championships (e.g., housing player practice areas and broadcast compounds), but those overlays are temporary and do not alter the course’s permanent features.
Given the club’s own characterization and third-party descriptions, the integrity of Ross’s routing and many green contours appears high on the West, with the caveat that a definitive inventory of original versus modified features would require consulting original Ross drawings and field notes (likely held at the Tufts Archives) and club construction files from the 1920s and any later maintenance-era projects.
Sources & Notes
Oak Hill Country Club, “Our History – The Creation of a Masterpiece,” club website (accessed Sept. 2025). Includes 1921–1926 relocation narrative, Ross commission, Tudor clubhouse, Dr. John R. Williams’ tree-planting program.
Oak Hill Country Club, “Golf – The Evolution of A Legacy” (excerpt from Donald M. Kladstrup). Provides Ross’s May 1922 remarks about the site, 1924 construction details, and seeding timeline; confirms 1926 commencement of member play.
Oak Hill Country Club, “West Course” hole-by-hole page. Yardage (6,735 yards), par (70), rating/slope, and detailed notes for holes including “Camel Back” (#6), “Twin Hills” (#13), “Shorty” (#12), “Twin Tees” (#15) back-tee extension; club’s “virtually untouched since 1926” characterization.
Golf Heritage Society, “Oak Hill: A Restored Major Championship Masterpiece” (May 9, 2023). Summarizes Oak Hill archival accounts that both courses were laid out and dug in 1924, matured in 1925, and opened in 1926; includes historic plan imagery.
Donald Ross Society, “Directory of Golf Courses Designed by Donald J. Ross” (June 2023). Lists Oak Hill West (Rochester, NY), 18 holes, design date 1924, confirming Ross authorship.
Top100GolfCourses, “Oak Hill (West)” (accessed Sept. 2025). Describes the West as a “largely unaltered 1926 Donald Ross layout,” supporting the integrity claim from the club.
Golf Digest, Best-in-State entry for Oak Hill Country Club (West) (updated through 2025–26). Documents consistent New York state ranking history and current position (29th).
USGA/NYSGA/RDGA releases:
• USGA Future Sites—U.S. Amateur (confirms 2027 dates at Oak Hill).
USGA
• NYSGA announcement (June 18, 2020) and RDGA note: stroke play on East and West, match play on East.
• USGA Records: 1998 U.S. Amateur West Course par-3 ace record, indicating West’s active use in that championship.
USGA
Visit Rochester, press release (Aug. 15, 2024): 2028 Boys’ & Girls’ Junior PGA Championships to be hosted by Oak Hill West and the Country Club of Rochester.
GolfWRX (interview/article), “November build will pay dividends for the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill”: notes the players’ practice range staged on the West Course and event buildout over the club’s main range, evidence of West’s operational role during majors.