Sunrise at the Driftwood Inn, Bailey Island, HarspwellMike Sweeney came up to Maine for a very quick hit last week. We began on Friday by meeting up with a couple of lurkers at The Links at Poland Springs, which is located in the foothills not too far from Portland, and therefore not a links. This misnomer would be just about the only fault that Sweeney would find all day. We began the afternoon by enjoying some homemade lobster rolls at a picnic table right next to the putting and lawn bowling green.
Poland Springs began with an Arthur Fenn nine in 1896 that was completely redone and expanded by Donald Ross in 1912. At 6,127 yards this course is not exactly going to club you over the head. However, the course is spread out entirely upon a north-facing slope heading down to Range Pond, so the benched-in greens are just about impossible to read. Even the professional in our group was scratching his head at putts that seemingly broke uphill.
The false back on the excellent first green.As we were walking down the fourth fairway, Sweeney could no longer contain himself and blurted out "People talk about the way golf should be, but this is it right here. Great conditions at a low price, you walk the course, good pace of play, and a natural layout with some quirk." Or words to that effect. I could not agree more.
On the fourth tee you feel like you can reach out and stick your hand into Range Pond.The dead-simple 305-yard fifth hole, pictured below, was where I first understood angles and the line of charm after reading some golfclubatlas.com posts way back when. Everything slopes from right to left, and the visual attraction to the left rough is especially dramatic.
Everybody hits it over there, from where you have the shot pictured above, and many have hit that flyer off the hook lie into oblivion.
The non-returning routing does get a bit "stuck" at the bottom of the hill, but this is alleviated by the fact that in the midst of this begins a sequence of four consecutive half-pars - the 315 yard downhill tenth, 471 yards back up the hill, 297 yards and 238 yards. Eleven and twelve have two of the steepest and most interesting greens on the course.
The wholly unpretentious tenth greenThe back nine winds up with another, smaller dispy-doo downhill and back up. From the high spots on these holes, you can see well into New Hampshire.
On the ride to dinner, I opened my mouth to ask Sweeney about his favorite hole on the course. But it's not that kind of place.
We arrived at Holbrook's Lobster Wharf and Grille a bit before sunset. A strange name indeed for a lobster shack located at the end of the line on a working dock in Cundy's Harbor. This restaurant could hardly be more charming and the food was delicious.
We drove through the gloaming to the Driftwood Inn, also located at the end of the line, on Bailey Island. I will just say that this is one of the most beautiful and peaceful places I have ever stayed and I recommend it very highly. Sweeney and I drank a few pops and observed a shooting star while chatting on the oceanfront porch.
The next morning we teed off at the Brunswick Golf Club, which has a back nine by Wayne Stiles. As the expression goes around here, the holes lay gently on the land, and they are very well crafted and attractive. Sweeney made numerous comments concerning the lack of acclaim accorded Stiles.
The tenth green
The seventeenth greenIt's a great big lobster shack world out there, and we wrapped things up at the Portland Lobster Company, which being located on bustling Commercial Street and featuring live music, was in direct opposition to the previous night's restaurant. Yet, this shack too was overflowing with charm and good food.