Question on Maine golf

[R-Kid]

We will be vactioning in Maine for a week, this will be our first time there. Is there an area that you would recommend that would have a good balance of golf and tourist interest. Thanks Ron

[Chris_NH]

My favorite area of Maine is the Rangeley Lake area - some of the most beautiful country around - but I don't know of any good golf around there. Southern coastal Maine is also beautiful and there are many great towns - York, Wells, Ogunquit, Damarascotta (and more) - dotting the area. My two favorite courses in that area are The Ledges (in York) and Old Marsh (in Wells). There's also Samoset Resort in Camden. I haven't been there, but hear rave reviews about the resort, the area and the golf course.

[fore]

Beyond what Chris_NH already said...

If it's Maine's coastal beauty your after, then Acadia Park might be a good choice. For golf nearby - Kebo Valley is a wonderful old course.

[DCSerafin]

Few other courses/attractions in the York, Wells, Ogunquit area -
Arundul Golf Club - George Bush Sr's home course, links style - Phil Mickelson owns the course record - Pretty historic course
Cape Neddick in York - Donald Ross Design, nuff said.

Attractions - ~ 30 minutes north - Old Orchard/Saco - Amusement parks, water parks, etc
- ~ 30 minutes South - Portsmouth - Water Country

Have fun

[Shemp]

The ski area courses are great... Sunday River and Sugarloaf. I love Samoset in Camden. Ledges is very good. Cape Neddick, Arundel and Point Sebago are really good courses. Belrgade Lakes is spectacular. Maine is a big state, it depends on where you are staying.

[R-Kid]

Thanks for the replies. We have not decided where we are going to stay. We would like to find a place that has golf and is in a pretty area. We will probably rent a house or condo for a couple of weeks. Ron

[Chris_NH]

[quote name='R-Kid' timestamp='1344297201' post='5419304']
Thanks for the replies. We have not decided where we are going to stay. We would like to find a place that has golf and is in a pretty area. We will probably rent a house or condo for a couple of weeks. Ron
[/quote]

If you have a couple of weeks, you might want to consider splitting it into two separate spots. As someone else said, Maine is a big state, so traveling to all the different areas from one location is probably not feasible. But one week in the mid-coast area and one week in either Bar Harbor/Acadia or Rangeley areas would be a good idea IMO.

[tyorke1]

when does your season start, thanks

[MadGolfer76]

[quote name='tyorke1' timestamp='1362342374' post='6539645']
when does your season start, thanks
[/quote]

Southern Maine? Could be March or early April. Northern Maine = May.

[Kingface]

By the looks of the snow outside right now....I'm thinking an early April start in southern Maine (Nonesuch River in Scarborough opens first....decent but over-rated course). In Central Maine I'm thinking middle of April.

[Vindog]

[quote name='Kingface' timestamp='1363016588' post='6589399']
By the looks of the snow outside right now....I'm thinking an early April start in southern Maine (Nonesuch River in Scarborough opens first....decent but over-rated course). In Central Maine I'm thinking middle of April.
[/quote]
Yep
Nonesuch will be the first to open (take your money) It gets pretty crowded being close to Portland. Same with Sable oaks, not only is it crowded but it's also really tight with lots of trees and planes flying overhead.

Nonesuch also recently (last year) paired up with Dunegrass (Old Orchard Beach), which really went into the crapper the last few years. Hopefully they can get it back into shape.

[gsteitz]

Love Kebo Valley. Some crazy old holes out there, I think President Taft got worked over good on one of the holes(17?). If I remember it has a huge sand face surrounding the raised green.

Belgrade Lakes for a beautiful modern track cant be beat, but all the rocks can look intimidating.

[Vindog]

[quote name='gsteitz' timestamp='1363353009' post='6616143']
Love Kebo Valley. Some crazy old holes out there, I think President Taft got worked over good on one of the holes(17?). If I remember it has a huge sand face surrounding the raised green.

Belgrade Lakes for a beautiful modern track cant be beat, but all the rocks can look intimidating.
[/quote]

That is indeed # 17.

Beautiful course. Back 9 is encompassed by Acadia Nat'l Park.. Great views. can be slow at time though. I worked there many many moons ago.

If you are on the Island, don't overlook Northeast Harbor Golf Club

[Drewmun]

Anything open yet???

[R Hagan]

[quote name='Drewmun' timestamp='1365122445' post='6763807']
Anything open yet???
[/quote]

Man I miss Maine. From what my family's said, most everyone is open now.

[eastonball]

I'm staying in Portland with a bunch of Family in July. We will be staying at the fireside Inns?

Any course suggestions? I am not looking for anything super fancy. We have a large group of people ranging from people who golf twice a year to twice a week. So Something in the $50 or less price range and 30 minutes or less of a drive. Any suggestions? I'd prefer something in good condition and a nice view over a difficult course. We want to be able ot enjoy the location as we are coming from all over the country.

[MadGolfer76]

Go play the Ledges. Nice course, fast greens. Might be a shade over 50 bucks, but it is a good value. You might also be able to score a round with yours truly and the driving machine that is our own DriverWedge.

[Titleist 670]

There is nothing great right in Portland - I'd agree with MadGolfer that the Ledges is a good option - always in good shape and has fast greens. It's a bit of a drive south and is a challenging course.

Fox Ridge is in Auburn - great price, always in good shape, probably 40 minutes north of Portland. Has some challenging holes, but some nice, open holes as well. Spring Meadows in Gray is also a nice course that is well maintained and under $50.

Right in Portland are courses like Nonesuch, Sable Oaks, Riverside - those courses get crowded, and frankly aren't worth the crowds/price. Ledges/Fox Ridge/Spring Meadow are worth the drive over those in my book.

Most of the top courses in Maine are either private or quite a drive from Portland. Ledges and Fox Ridge were the only courses Golf Digest had in their state top 10 that were public and less than a 45 minute drive from Portland. The advantage with Ledges would be that even though the course isn't right on the coast, after the round you'd have easy access to coastal areas and restaurant, where with Fox Ridge and Spring Meadow you wouldn't.

[eastonball]

I just looked up Spring Meadows and its only 18 miles. About 30 min drive. And it's only $43 to play. So I'll def be checking that out.

The ledges was pretty far out there from the hotel.

[Titleist 670]

[quote name='eastonball' timestamp='1368058061' post='6995406']
I just looked up Spring Meadows and its only 18 miles. About 30 min drive. And it's only $43 to play. So I'll def be checking that out.

The ledges was pretty far out there from the hotel.
[/quote]

Yeah Ledges is pretty far down there in York.

Spring Meadows is nice - but you'll kind of know if you like it or not the minute you get there, as the clubhouse/parking lot overlooks 75% of the course.

It's playable for both experienced and less experienced golfers. Be warned that the 3rd hole is kind of crappy - wetland carries on a dogleg par 5. That's the only hole there I really don't like, and generally the only drawback of the course is that the par 5's are kind of crammed in. But if you like kind of an open style of play it's a nice spot. Fox Ridge in my opinion is slightly better and only about 10 or 15 minutes north of Spring Meadows.

Essentially if you look at the top 10 courses in Maine, Sugarloaf is about 3 hours from Portland, Sunday River is 2 hours or so from Portland, Belgrade Lakes over an hour, Samoset 1.5 hours or more, Portland CC, Woodlands, Falmouth are all private, Kebo is 3 hours away. Ledges and Fox Ridge are the two closest to Portland.

As I said, Nonesuch & Riverside are nothing spectacular and Sable Oaks can be snobby and it's pretty narrow with many hazards. Dunegrass is in OOB - that used to be a good course but I've heard it's gone south recently, though I haven't played it in several years.

[Chris_NH]

Old Marsh is another good choice - one of my favorites. It's a Links-style Brian Silva course. It's in Wells, which is a bit north of York - so it would be a bit closer to Portland.

[Kingface]

Nice to see some love for Fox Ridge! It's the club I belong to. Could have joined anywhere within 30 miles of Auburn...I chose there. LOVE IT! Played over 250 rounds there the last 3 years. Challenging if you want to play from the tips....slightly easier from the blue tees but still can be a bear. The 5th home will make 17 at Sawgrass look like a pitch and putt hole. If you can get up there and play YOU WILL NOT be dissapointed. Spring Meadows is VERY nice too....I just like the layout at Fox way better.