"North of Boston" courses

[Hunyacka]

need some recommondations

I live in a town just a few miles north of Boston, and would like to find a decent course near me. I know there are plenty of good ones south near the cape, and west around Stowe, but not too many good ones up this way.

I've played most recently at The Meadows in Peabody which was ok but had a lot of poorly designed holes. Far Corners is ok and I'm going to play it tomorrow. Mt Hood is the closest in Melrose but it's only OK and very short. There's Gannon in Lynn which is actually pretty decent, but not great.

I've had the opportunity to play on some private courses around me, but that's few and far between that I get that opportunity.

I'd love some recommondations of public courses to play in the North Eastern part of MA. Any hidden gems that I haven't found yet?

Thank you for any tips. They will be much appreciated.

[eacsgolferdad]

I live and work in the general area that you are asking about. There are a good number of public courses but we're lacking a few great/really good public courses IMO. The best in my opinion is Meadow Creek in Dracut. The course has only been open a few years but it is coming along nicely. There is Hickory Hill in Methuen, Trull Brook in Tewksbury, and Hillview in N. Reading. These are decent courses with Trull Brook the best of those three IMO. I like both Far Corners and Gannon although many others don't. I have heard good things about the Meadows but have yet to play it. I need to get there this season...I've said that at least the last three seasons!

Tom

[flugelwood]

Trull Brook is good and I always enjoy myself at Far Corners.

Have you tired the Sagamore courses? [url="http://www.sagamoregolf.com/golf/proto/sagamoregolf/"]http://www.sagamoregolf.com/golf/proto/sagamoregolf/[/url]

For that matter southern New Hampshire is so close I would check out Breakfast Hill [url="http://www.breakfasthill.com/"]http://www.breakfasthill.com/[/url]

[flugelwood]

And Bradford Country Club isn't too bad. It tends to be in similar condition to Far Corners.

For 9 hole courses if you want a quick round after work there is Carriage Pines (former Rowley Country Club) and Amesbury Country Club (kind of a funky layout)

[JJK947]

Crumpin Fox is a great course in northern Mass. I don't know how it is price wise though it could be expensive, I forgot. Some really tough holes on that course.

[Hunyacka]

I played Far Corners yesterday. It's a 27 hole lay out. I played the Fox and the Heron courses. It was in good (not great) shape. Tee boxes, fairways and rough were in good shape. The greens however were pretty bad. I actually picked up my ball on one of the greens due to the extent of the winter kill. The sand traps were also pretty poor as they were hard as a rock, and actually did have rocks in them.

The practice putting/chipping green is good, but the driving range your hitting uphill, and by uphill I mean WAY up hill. It's fine for straightening out the swing though.

The club house is decent. My friend and I both had the Black Angus burger and a Sam Adams which were both excellent. The Sam Adams was poured into a frosty mug and was ice cold. Delicious!

It's a bit of a hilly course and we used carts, but I could see walking it.

The layout of the 2 nines that we played were pretty interesting. The par 3's were challenging, the par 4's and 5's more than fair. It plays about 6,600 yards from the tips.

The price was $55 for 18 with a cart which is exceptable, but they really need to work on the greens and sand traps.

[Chris_NH]

There are indeed a variety of nice courses to play. My recommendations (with the caveat that I haven't played any of these yet this year except Breakfast Hill and the Ledges):

Meadow Creek in Dracut - someone else mentioned this course. It's one of my favorites. I like to walk, but here I always take a cart - there's a lot of real estate between the greens and the next tee. Great conditioning.

Shaker Hills in Harvard - fantastic course, always well-conditioned, nice layout. A bit pricey, but cart/range balls are included.

Butter Brook - Westford MA. Half a step behind Meadow Creek and Shaker Hills IMO, but still a nice course.

Breakfast Hill - Greenland NH. This is my home course, and I like it a lot. They punched the greens about 3 weeks ago - I'd give it another 2 weeks before it's really in great shape, but it's always well-conditioned and a good layout.

Portsmouth Country Club - Greenland NH. Pricey, private club that allows daily play. Donald Ross course right on the Great Bay, links style course and long enough to challenge even the biggest hitters (which is not me).

Sagamore - Hampton NH. Definitely not in the league of any of the other courses IMO, but still a nice layout (particularly the back nine) and decent (not great) condition. Typically very slow greens.

The Ledges - York ME. This is a drive for you, but should be on your list to play sometime. This is my favorite course in the area hands-down. Pricey, top-notch conditioning, fast greens, fantastic layout. They punched the greens two weeks ago, so wait a while to play it.

I'll also say, I know people have recommended Far Corner. I love the layout, and when I lived in Georgetown I used to play there (10-ish years ago). But their conditioning has really slackened off. The last time I played was 3 years ago and I was very disappointed. I've read other comments to the same effect over the last year or so, so I haven't gone back. It's too bad, because it really is a nice course - but poor greens absolutely kill a course (to my way of thinking).

Chris

[Hunyacka]

I'll have to check out Meadow Creek and Breakfast Hill. Thanks for the tips on these.

I have played the Ledges a couple of times and really like it. It's pretty expensive and some of the holes (depending on the hole location) are unfair with how fast the greens are. Last two times I played there it was last year and the fairways were sopping wet both times on the first and ninth holes. I love the 8th hole over the water hitting off the ledge.

I played Sagamore at the end of last year. It may have been my last time out in '09. Wide open track, hard to lose your ball, and slow greens. All in all it was decent.

Butter Brook and Shaker hills I'd consider north west of Boston but both nice courses.

[TAG617]

I played Meadow Creek for the first time. What a nice course. Weather wasn't great and we went late on a Sunday (2:30PM) so there weren't many people on the course which was nice. After 2:30 it's $50 with cart all you can play. It's a short tight course with interesting holes. I really enjoyed it. But as mentioned I wouldn't advise walking here...

[bryanr]

If anyone wants to put together a weekday round at Meadow Creek, I'm game.

[rlskinne]

Head up to The Shattuck in NH for a real test. Closer in, Butter Brook is a great course.

[bryanr]

[quote name='TAG617' date='15 June 2010 - 09:49 AM' timestamp='1276609760' post='2510447']
I played Meadow Creek for the first time. What a nice course. Weather wasn't great and we went late on a Sunday (2:30PM) so there weren't many people on the course which was nice. After 2:30 it's $50 with cart all you can play. It's a short tight course with interesting holes. I really enjoyed it. But as mentioned I wouldn't advise walking here...
[/quote]

Just noticed it's even cheaper at Meadow Creek for a foursome starting at 2:30, $180 including carts ($45 pp)

Might be playing it this Saturday

[sodak77]

No offense but I am very surprised for the love given to Meadow Creek. I have played the course multiple times and while it is generally maintained well and does have a few good holes, the overall routing of the course is very poor in my opinion. There are many blind tee shots that can really get you in trouble if you don't have course knowledge (3, 5, 7, 16, 18).

For courses "North of Boston", I find myself playing Butter Brook, Red Tail, Sagamore (work league), Far Corner and Atkinson Resort in Atkinson, NH. If Red Tail and Butter are not considered really "North of Boston" then I would say Atkinson is head and shoulders above the other courses listed in this thread. Atkinson does have 2-3 funky holes on the back 9 that need course knowledge but the rest of the holes far make up for this.

Another course that pop-ed up on my radar this season is Merrimack Country Club (semi-private). The course looks good based on their website although at 6k yards and par 70 it might be a little on the short side. Has anyone played it?

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='sodak77' date='25 June 2010 - 12:32 PM' timestamp='1277483544' post='2532823']
No offense but I am very surprised for the love given to Meadow Creek. I have played the course multiple times and while it is generally maintained well and does have a few good holes, the overall routing of the course is very poor in my opinion. There are many blind tee shots that can really get you in trouble if you don't have course knowledge (3, 5, 7, 16, 18).

For courses "North of Boston", I find myself playing Butter Brook, Red Tail, Sagamore (work league), Far Corner and Atkinson Resort in Atkinson, NH. If Red Tail and Butter are not considered really "North of Boston" then I would say Atkinson is head and shoulders above the other courses listed in this thread. Atkinson does have 2-3 funky holes on the back 9 that need course knowledge but the rest of the holes far make up for this.

Another course that pop-ed up on my radar this season is Merrimack Country Club (semi-private). The course looks good based on their website although at 6k yards and par 70 it might be a little on the short side. Has anyone played it?
[/quote]

To each his own. I don't consider having a few blind tee shots (although I'd disagree that 5 and 18 are blind tee shots) as long as the course doesn't have 10 of them. In fact, I can't think of any course I play that doesn't have at least two blind tee shots. But I have a buddy here at work who agrees with you - he hates the fact that you have to tee off on a par 5 with an iron, among a few other complaints with the course. For me, conditioning (particularly the greens) is of paramount importance, and Meadow Creeks' conditioning is top notch IMO. That's the primary reason I won't go back to Far Corner.

I've only played Atkinson once, but remember really liking. I've kept trying to get back there, but it never seems to happen.

I don't have any info on Merrimack, although I'm now racking my brain because someone else mentioned that course to me in the last two weeks. Coming up blank, though.

[sodak77]

[quote name='Chris_NH' date='25 June 2010 - 02:26 PM' timestamp='1277490410' post='2533812']
To each his own. I don't consider having a few blind tee shots (although I'd disagree that 5 and 18 are blind tee shots) as long as the course doesn't have 10 of them. In fact, I can't think of any course I play that doesn't have at least two blind tee shots. But I have a buddy here at work who agrees with you - he hates the fact that you have to tee off on a par 5 with an iron, among a few other complaints with the course. For me, conditioning (particularly the greens) is of paramount importance, and Meadow Creeks' conditioning is top notch IMO. That's the primary reason I won't go back to Far Corner.

I've only played Atkinson once, but remember really liking. I've kept trying to get back there, but it never seems to happen.

I don't have any info on Merrimack, although I'm now racking my brain because someone else mentioned that course to me in the last two weeks. Coming up blank, though.
[/quote]

The reason why I mentioned hole 5 being blind is because you can not see the hazard that cuts into the right 3rd of the fairway/rough about 270 out. I remember it being like a well or something kind of odd. 18 is annoying because you can not exactly tell where the hazard cuts across the fairway and every time I think I have drilled a tee shot down the middle I find my ball in the left rough almost out of bounds. The back 9 is a little too billy goat for me and I have to agree with your buddy about the par 5 16th being a bad design. That being said the course does have some excellent holes. My favorites being hole 3 (despite being blind) and holes 4, 6, 10, 14, 15 and 17.

Also do yourself a favor and get back to Atkinson as it is in great shape right now. Merrimack looks interesting enough to give it a shot and I will make sure to update this thread on what I thought of it.

[eacsgolferdad]

[quote name='sodak77' date='25 June 2010 - 12:32 PM' timestamp='1277483544' post='2532823']
Another course that pop-ed up on my radar this season is Merrimack Country Club (semi-private). The course looks good based on their website although at 6k yards and par 70 it might be a little on the short side. Has anyone played it?
[/quote]

I played Merrimack early in the season and forgot to mention it in my earlier post on North of Boston courses. For the money, I think Merrimack Valley is a good value. When I played it, the course was still wet from all the March rain and the grass hadn't started growing yet because it was early April. You do have to overlook the 7 par 3s on the scorecard. With the exception of one of the par 3s, none of them are push overs. All five of the par 5s are good holes and there are several good par 4s as well. This course was fully re-opened last fall after a substantial renovation and is a significant improvement from the old Merrimack GC. I will go back to play the course again at some point as I think they have made it a good course. I bet it is in good shape right now.

Tom

[redliner]

I play atkinson and windham very often love both of them. usually play twilight 40-45 for 18 with a cart can't beat it. Beautiful courses

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='sodak77' timestamp='1277512902' post='2536012']<br />[quote name='Chris_NH' date='25 June 2010 - 02:26 PM' timestamp='1277490410' post='2533812']<br />To each his own.  I don't consider having a few blind tee shots (although I'd disagree that 5 and 18 are blind tee shots) as long as the course doesn't have 10 of them.  In fact, I can't think of any course I play that doesn't have at least two blind tee shots.  But I have a buddy here at work who agrees with you - he hates the fact that you have to tee off on a par 5 with an iron, among a few other complaints with the course.  For me, conditioning (particularly the greens) is of paramount importance, and Meadow Creeks' conditioning is top notch IMO.  That's the primary reason I won't go back to Far Corner.<br /><br />I've only played Atkinson once, but remember really liking.  I've kept trying to get back there, but it never seems to happen.<br /><br />I don't have any info on Merrimack, although I'm now racking my brain because someone else mentioned that course to me in the last two weeks.  Coming up blank, though.<br />[/quote]<br /><br />The reason why I mentioned hole 5 being blind is because you can not see the hazard that cuts into the right 3rd of the fairway/rough about 270 out.  I remember it being like a well or something kind of odd.  18 is annoying because you can not exactly tell where the hazard cuts across the fairway and every time I think I have drilled a tee shot down the middle I find my ball in the left rough almost out of bounds.  The back 9 is a little too billy goat for me and I have to agree with your buddy about the par 5 16th being a bad design.  That being said the course does have some excellent holes.  My favorites being hole 3 (despite being blind) and holes 4, 6, 10, 14, 15 and 17.<br /><br />Also do yourself a favor and get back to Atkinson as it is in great shape right now.  Merrimack looks interesting enough to give it a shot and I will make sure to update this thread on what I thought of it.<br />[/quote]<br /><br /><br />

I went to Atkinson a few weeks ago and it is indeed in fantastic shape. Unfortunately, it beat me up pretty badly :-(

[redliner]

i think atkinson beats everyone up pretty bad not an easy course at all ive played there 4-5 times this year, live 10 mins from it. I love the GPS on the carts

[Andy Lu]

I just moved to the Boston area and will be checking out Meadow Creek and the other recs. Thanks!

[goldengolfer]

[quote name='flugelwood' timestamp='1273093355' post='2423472']
And Bradford Country Club isn't too bad. It tends to be in similar condition to Far Corners.

For 9 hole courses if you want a quick round after work there is Carriage Pines (former Rowley Country Club) and Amesbury Country Club (kind of a funky layout)
[/quote]

Can't forget Ould Newbury.

[sodak77]

[quote name='redliner' timestamp='1308834861' post='3329425']
i think atkinson beats everyone up pretty bad not an easy course at all ive played there 4-5 times this year, live 10 mins from it. I love the GPS on the carts
[/quote]

Especially the back 9. You need some course knowledge to score well here. I love the front 9 as it is a good test and very straight forward.

Another course that I need to check out in the North Shore is Black Swan in Georgetown. Supposedly its a pretty good track and in good shape.

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='sodak77' timestamp='1309052224' post='3335574']
[quote name='redliner' timestamp='1308834861' post='3329425']
i think atkinson beats everyone up pretty bad not an easy course at all ive played there 4-5 times this year, live 10 mins from it. I love the GPS on the carts
[/quote]

Especially the back 9. You need some course knowledge to score well here. I love the front 9 as it is a good test and very straight forward.

Another course that I need to check out in the North Shore is Black Swan in Georgetown. Supposedly its a pretty good track and in good shape.
[/quote]

I played there last weekend. A nice course in very good condition, at a pretty competitive price. I highly recommend it, even though there are 1 or 2 funky holes.

[mrbsmells]

Cant believe no one has mentioned Red Tail yet. Just north of boston i think, and is better than any other course mentioned here. Except for the exception of the ledges in Maine. Which imo is the best public track in the northeast. But butterbrook is alright, i live 10 mins away and only go about once or twice a year because to me it seems way overpriced, but they do have 2 nice different 9s ( one woodlined, trouble and the other it more links style). But ide say list in for courses north of boston (driveable) is

btw, meadow creek is alright, but nothing special. Is usually soaked, impossible to walk, and flooded events that lock up the course

1.) The Ledges (Maine)
2.) Red Tail
3.) Crumpin -Fox
4.) Butterbrook (when they take care of greens)
4.) Atkinson

[sabram]

I'm surprised there hasn't been mention of Shaker Hill. It is located near Red Tail. I thought they made a nice 1-2 combo in that area.

[Fore_Man]

There's a handful of choices in the greater Nashua area... all worthy of a visit.

Overlook GC in Hollis (where I call home course).
Green Meadow (36 holes) in Hudson
Amherst Country Club in Amherst
Souhegan Woods in Amherst
Passaconaway in Litchfield

[bryanr]

[quote name='mrbsmells' timestamp='1319210955' post='3701199']
Cant believe no one has mentioned Red Tail yet. Just north of boston i think, and is better than any other course mentioned here. Except for the exception of the ledges in Maine. Which imo is the best public track in the northeast. But butterbrook is alright, i live 10 mins away and only go about once or twice a year because to me it seems way overpriced, but they do have 2 nice different 9s ( one woodlined, trouble and the other it more links style). But ide say list in for courses north of boston (driveable) is

btw, meadow creek is alright, but nothing special. Is usually soaked, impossible to walk, and flooded events that lock up the course

1.) The Ledges (Maine)
2.) Red Tail
3.) Crumpin -Fox
4.) Butterbrook (when they take care of greens)
4.) Atkinson
[/quote]


Red Tail is good, though it's not really north shore which is why people may not have mentioned it. That said, it's just as close from Boston as most of the courses north of the city and I would lump together all courses within an hour's drive that doesn't involve Cape traffic to be viable weekend options.

If we're venturing out a bit further, Townsend Ridge Country Club is a hidden and very affordable gem. I guess you could include Quail Ridge in Acton on the list but there's a few things about the course that will irk most serious golfers. Trull Brook outside Lowell is pretty nice. I like the course at Meadow Creek but it's painfully slow to play. I don't really care for Butter Brook considering how much they charge.

[quote name='sabram' timestamp='1319215621' post='3701493']
I'm surprised there hasn't been mention of Shaker Hill. It is located near Red Tail. I thought they made a nice 1-2 combo in that area.
[/quote]

Used to be a good combo. Shaker has kind of fallen off the map in the last few years. It's unfortunate because it is a beautiful setting and good layout. Due to conditions, it's not really in the same class as Red Tail anymore. Their weekday rates are reasonable, though, and in line with what you get.

[redliner]

i played meadow creeks it wasent bad but id rather play windham or atkinson. meadow creek was nice but soaked and it didnt rain 2 days before i played. Just wasent overly impressed.

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='redliner' timestamp='1331492183' post='4482857']
i played meadow creeks it wasent bad but id rather play windham or atkinson. meadow creek was nice but soaked and it didnt rain 2 days before i played. Just wasent overly impressed.
[/quote]

Being unimpressed because a course is wet - at this time of year, and 36 hours after we got some snowfall - is a bit harsh I think.

Was there any info about the financial problems they're having? I know there's some potential lockout of the clubhouse by the mortgage owner versus the club management, and there was an article about how the owner might use cement blocks to block off the parking lot (talk about cutting off your nose to spite your face - jeez). Anything mentioned or apparent about that?

[massduffer]

I'm new to this forum and starting my second year of actually playing, but surprised no one has mentioned Black Swan in Georgetown. Played there a few times and its in pretty good shape.