Advice Needed on NH and ME Courses

[Mike Hoak]

I am headed up to Kennebunk, Maine later this week for a brief golf outing and need to kill some time tomorrow on my drive from Manchester airport up to Kennebunk.  I wanted to see if any of the New England folks could recommend a place to play somewhere along the way.  I am looking for a decent public course that is a relatively short distance from I-95.

[Dan Herrmann]

Try Portsmouth Country Club in Greenland, NH - close to I-95.

[Brad Tufts]

You will likely get some advice from Michael "Ask me about golf in Maine" Moore, but I can take a crack at it....

Assuming you will be playing Cape Arundel....

The Ledges in York, ME...Brad Booth
Portsmouth CC in Greenland, NH...50s RTJ on a great tidal inlet site
The Oaks in Somersworth, NH is a new one that looks pretty good...I think Brad Booth also.  It's one of his "featured projects" on his website.
Cape Neddick is 9 Ross, 9 Cornish?
Biddeford-Saco is the same as above...
Nonesuch River has gotten ok reviews I believe
Sanford CC is supposedly ok but difficult and very tree-lined.
Links at Outlook is ehh, but some like it...

The privates would be Manchester CC, York GC (might be worth a begging call), and Portland CC.

Some of these are in between Manchester and Kennebunk on the back roads, although the Ledges is decently close to 95, and Portsmouth CC is too.  Nonesuch River, Biddeford, and Portland are north of Kennebunk...

[Dan Herrmann]

When I lived up there, I also liked Rochester Country Club, in Rochester, NH.  Don't know who the architect is.

[Mike Sweeney]

For ease of logistics, Portsmouth NH CC is about half way from the airport. Pretty good and very scenic RTJ.

If you want to drive all the way to Kennebunkport, play the Moore favored:

http://www.webhannetgolfclub.com/index.html

It is about 5 miles from Cape A, and is right next to but not on the ocean. Much more of the Maine style of parkland golf and will still be a contrast to the links style Cape A. Neither is "championship golf".

[Allan Long]

I would second Portsmouth CC and also add Breakfast Hill in Portsmouth (Greenland) as a nice alternative.

[Mike Mosely]

I'm going up there in the spring and have been invited to play at Abenaqui and Manchester.  I was just trying to see what info anyone might have on those two courses or some NH recommendations.  Thanks.

I'll be glad to report back afterwards:)  Should be a nice time.

[Geoffrey_Walsh]

Mike,

IMHO, Maine is the site of some great relatively unknown 9 holers and from what I saw of Abenakee it certainly looks like a great place to disappear.  You are officially "off the grid" when you play there and the members like to keep it that way.  Just finding it is a challenge and that assumes you can make your way onto the peninsula.  In the days before GPS and sattelite images, I'm sure most people never knew it was there.  Then there is the problem when you arrive -

I had the pleasure to walk this 9 hole course built around the turn of the century.  The toughest part is not finding it (and that is very difficult) but parking.  THERE IS NO PARKING LOT because the only people that play the course live nearby.  That may be the coolest thing that I have seen since finding out Myopia doesn't have a bartender because someone figured it out it would be cheaper to have an honor system for the bar even if people took some of the booze...

The course is located in Biddeford Pool, Maine.  Pull that up on Google Maps and you will see how extraordinary the location is out on the peninsula.

The course is a typical out and back routing with the 6th green all the way out on the point.  The first fairway is awesome, as it looks like the embankment of a NASCAR racetrack and is quite unlike anything I have ever seen for the first tee shot.  After that, each hole is of moderate length and generally has an understated look but with some really cool architectural features.  Of particular note are the geometic bunkers (rectangles) which makes you wonder why they are not more common on other courses.  I wish my pictures were still posted on the thread, feel free to IM me with your email address if you want them.  The course is eminently playable in the wind but does have some high grass if you wander too far off course.

The last feature is an Epicopal Church in the middle of the course.  There was nothing cooler than walking out there with a good friend of mine, alone, and hearing the waves crashing and the chimes on the hour.  It is how I imagine tranquility on a golf course.  Thanks for bringing back that memory.