I have been meaning to get up there as I have heard nothing but great things about it.

I've also been Jonesing for a Lupo's Speedie as well.

Okay Jay, where is it, is there a link?

I played the course the year it opened.  The conditioning was a liitle ragged but the layout was fun and gave the players a lot of different options of the tee and into the greens. I'd like to get back there again.

Jay,

I like most of HL a great deal, but 17 and 18 are really two clunkers to finish.  

Fortunately, the best stuff is in the middle of each nine, and it's an absolute steal for anyone travelling through south-central NY State.  

I drive past there more often than you'd imagine, including last weekend, but it appears they're presently closed for the winter, with tarps on the greens.

Shame too, because it was about 60 degrees and sunny.

I tell everyone I can that Hiawatha is one of my favorite courses. The strategy that the course demands you execute, the great layout & the imaginitive greens brings you a great golf course. Done by Brian Silva.

The value is fantastic and the course is always busy. The one downside is it is hard by the Susquehanna and has had some flooding on the front side over the last few years. Not sure how it made out w/ this past summers rains that forced the BC Open to leave near by En Joie.

If this course was anywhere other than the suburbs of Binghamton NY iot would be raved about.

Here are some pics & descriptions from Hiawatha:

Hole 1 - Par 4  414 yards Dogleg left - Challange the inside bunker your rewarded w/ a short ewedge in your hands.



Hole 3 - Par 3 179 yards - Tucked into a side opening on the front. Small green.



Hole 6 - Par 3 223 yards - Hard by the irrigation pond w/ a narrow green. Bail out to the left and you are left w/ a pitch/chip over some rumpled ground to a very shallow area.



Hole 7 - Par 5 525 yards. - Great hole. River right, pond left bunker down the right side. Plays to an offset green. Long looks safe but the green will run away from there.



Hole 10 - Par 4 391 yards - bunker right Fescue/hill/nasty stuff left to slightly elevated very large green. Plays tough. this view is from the 11th tee looking back to the green.



Hole 11 - 433 yards dogleg left - Not a bunker in sight. Tree's right punish a too agressive line. Green sight is cut into the hill side w/ alot of movement.






Hole 12 - Par 5 583 yards. Very serpentine goes left off the tee then back right towrds the green. Great bunker guards the green from agressive play.



Hole 13 - Par 3 160 yards uphill . Small hourglass-shaped green w/ a spine bi-secting front left and back right. Miss the green and par is a fleating dream.





Hole 14 - Par 4 356 from the tips 330 from Blues - Severly downhill. Drivable or close to it, if it's F&F. Marsh on left and grove of trees & bunker short guard the green. Plays from the highest point on the course.



Hole 16 - Dogleg left par 4 - Tee shot w/ options conservative right agressive left. Catch the downhill & it's a fli[p wedge to the green - Hiss the tee shot it's double-bogey ville. Love the pedastal green.



Hole 17 Par 3 - 210 from tips 178 from blues. Trouble left (water) and right fescue .

Sits right there in front of you and tells you to hit the shot.



Hole 18 Par 5 523. Cut off as much as you can or play safe down the right. Failure to execute eiother will cause very large score. Very small green cut into the hill side w/ a very tough bunker fronting.

From tee



From corner



From about 90 yards in.



From behind green looking back.


Anyone traveling through it's a definite must play & a phenomenal value.

Jay,

I like most of HL a great deal, but 17 and 18 are really two clunkers to finish.  

Fortunately, the best stuff is in the middle of each nine, and it's an absolute steal for anyone travelling through south-central NY State.  

I drive past there more often than you'd imagine, including last weekend, but it appears they're presently closed for the winter, with tarps on the greens.

Shame too, because it was about 60 degrees and sunny.

With great respect, they are a striong finish.   17 is a gorgeous draw par-3, but with plenty of bail room.  18 has tons of options and you can make 3 or 10 or anything in between...16 is stuilll one of my fave drives of all time...carry the cross bunkner you have 8-iron in....play safe to the right, its 5-wood...or pick any diagonal angle of attack form the tee in between and you'll have any club...plays differently each day because of the wind...its a spectacular ever-changing finish.

Mike, I understand where you are coming from...I just think that the act that the bail out on 18 is small and the drive on 18 tough is "sweating the small stuff" in light of the much larger picture...a terrific, flat-out unbeatableprice for great greens, excellent bunkering, solid design, some template hoes...etc.