New York State golfers seeking phenomenal play in nearby Western Massachusetts can meander down the historic Mohawk Trail. The two-lane highway snakes through 60 miles of scenic, rural countryside in the Berkshire Hills from Williamstown, in the far northwest of the state, to Greenfield, in the picturesque Connecticut River valley.
Make Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown your first stop. A championship track, Taconic prides itself on its challenging, but fair, layout, and nothing-but-golf environment.
“There are no tennis courts, no swimming pools, no evening meals or fancy, over-the-top clubhouse,” says Rick Pohle, Taconic’s head PGA professional. “Everything is based around the playing of the game.”
Williams College owns Taconic, a semi-private club that welcomes golfers of all abilities. “Players [can] play the correct markers for the challenge they want, and all the holes are straightforward, without any gimmicks,” Pohle notes.
But don’t be lulled into believing you can grip it and rip it. Strokes add up quickly if you leave yourself out of position or fail to negotiate the slick greens. While Taconic showcases each hole, the front and back nine offer distinct challenges. You’ll start off on a track that requires careful placement, and make the turn needing a quality long game.
After a multimillion-dollar renovation, Taconic should be in perfect spring condition. The maintenance staff revamped tees, bunkers, drainage areas, fairways, greens, cart paths, and the clubhouse.
Taconic Golf Club, 19 Meacham St., Williamstown, MA 02167; 413-458-8222, taconicgolf.com.
About 30 minutes east is the Crumpin-Fox Club, a Robert Trent Jones-designed jewel. Like Taconic, you’ll find no country club amenities, only one of New England’s most exquisite semi-private/public-fee golf courses.
“It’s all about the golf at Crumpin-Fox,” says head pro Mike Zaranek. The greens are contoured and quick, the fairways manicured and tight, and the vistas breathtaking. The ambience is laid-back—from the rustic pro shop and grill to the welcoming staff—but the par-72, 18-hole circuit is anything but undemanding. From the tips (73.8 rating/141 slopes and 7,007 yards) or the forward tees (72.5/131, 5,432 yards), you’ll need all your shots and a slew of golf balls to play this perennial top-100 U.S. course.
Chiseled through thick forests and rolling farm land, each discrete hole favors an intimate golfing experience. Rambling streams and pristine ponds sparkle, and you might share the fairway with the occasional bear, but don’t let the scenery distract you.
The signature par-5 eighth will tempt you to smack your downhill drive into the woods on the right to avoid the daunting, tee-to-green pond on the left. Your approach shot over the water may look simple, but the course-record—a “Tin Cup”-like 22 strokes over the water—stands for a reason.
Crumpin-Fox, Parmenter Rd., Bernardston, MA 01337; 800-943-1901, golfthefox.com.
The Mohawk Trail becomes Route 2 in Greenfield, and well worth the 60-mile drive east is Red Tail Golf Club. Located some 35 miles northwest of Boston, Red Tail was the first New England course to earn an Audubon International Sanctuary certification. Indeed, designing a “green” course was the aim of Red Tail’s architect, Brian Silva.
“[Environmental protection] was our intention before we moved any dirt,” says Jim Pavlik, Red Tail’s general manager and director of golf.
Golfers who believe they must sacrifice first-class surroundings to play eco-friendly courses have never teed it up at Red Tail, where fairways and putting surfaces are lush and fast.
At $115 per round (including range balls and cart), Red Tail’s prime-time weekend green fees are among the highest of any New England public course. Pavlik believes the club’s championship conditions—Red Tail hosted the 2009 Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship—make it worth the price.
Red Tail, 15 Bulge Rd., Devens, MA 01434-4103; 978-772-3273, redtailgolf.net.
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