One of golf’s most beloved trees is in a precarious state
The 3rd hole, and ghost tree, at Old Macdonald at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort.
Evan Schiller
If you’ve been to Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, you know what the ghost tree is, and even if you haven’t, you still might know what the ghost tree is. Because let’s be honest: how many famous golf trees are there anyway? Not many.
But the ghost tree is certainly one of them, and Bandon Dunes reported via Twitter on Wednesday that a recent storm has put it in a precarious state.
“The Ghost Tree on Old Macdonald’s 3rd hole will always be a majestic symbol of Bandon,” the tweet read. “Yesterday’s storm caused the tree to lean and our team is researching ways to stabilize it. If you are playing OM soon, please be respectful of its space and celebrate it from a safe distance.”
The Port Orford Cedar — a.k.a the ghost tree — is on the par-4 3rd at the Old Macdonald course. The hole starts with a blind tee shot over a sand dune, and the line is to draw your tee shot around the ghost tree to the fairway that falls away from you. The tree can be seen from almost every hole at Old Mac (as long as the fog doesn’t roll in).
The tree has become somewhat of a celebrity, too, mostly because golfers love Bandon Dunes, and what’s not to love about a really cool, spooky-looking tree? It even has its own collection in Bandon’s Pro Shop, as you can buy it on putter covers, hats, shirts, sweatshirts and more.
The ghost tree is one of few trees in the golf world notable enough to write about. Another semi-recent instance was at the home of the Masters. In 2014 the famous Eisenhower Tree at Augusta National, which guarded the 17th hole, suffered major damage from an ice storm and had to be removed.
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