Heritage Country Club in Charlton MA & Wycoff Country Club in Holyoke MA are Must Plays This Season

Must Plays

Wycoff Country Club

Wyckoff Country Club in Holyoke, MA

A family-owned and operated, a semi-private country club in Holyoke, Massachusetts, Wyckoff Country Club is an 18-hole, par 69, 6100-yard championship golf course built on the beautiful rolling property at the base of Mount Tom.

Wycoff CC has an interesting mix of holes; a number of short par--fours that can be attacked with a lusty drive and a shortiron or wedge to the putting surface, only two par-fives, one of which, the 478-yard 13th, can also yield birdie to long hitters that can reach the green in two, two par-fours that play over 400 yards from the tips, and several strong parthrees (there are five short holes in all on the layout). The 18th is perhaps the most difficult par-three and a cool way to finish a round. It’s a whopping 229 yards from the tips.

The course begins with a 301-yard-par four that can get your day off to a nice start. Then

it’s on to one of those long par-fours, 401-yards from the tips, followed by a very good, 531-yard par-five that is a three-shot hole to get the green for all but the longest hitters.

The toughest hole on the front side is the 421-yard par-four sixth where par is never a given, even for the best players. The front side ends with two par-trees of modest length sandwiched around a 389-yard par-four.

The back side has a mix of short and medium-length par-fours, in addition to a 478-yard

par-five at the 14th. The 16th is another tough parthree, playing 213 yards from the back markers, followed by a 345-yard parfour and then the closing par-three hole.

You will be called upon to hit pretty much every club in your bag at Wycoff. If your driver and fairway woods and hybrids are on fire, you can score low here. But nothing is a given at this track. While only around 6,000 yards from the tips, the layout has plenty of bite, especially if you get wayward on your tee shots and approaches.

Wycoff Country Club is accessible to our subscribers this year as part of our Course Play Stimulus Program. It is certainly worth a visit. Wycoff Country Club Holyoke, Ma. 413-536-3602 www.WycoffCountryClub.com

Heritage Country Club

Heritage Country in Club in Charlton, Massachusetts has long been a favorite of locals and those golfers who like to throw their sticks in the trunk and drive a bit to play a real good course. Heritage offers private club conditions and amenities at affordable rates.

Heritage CC has joined Golfing Magazine’s growing list of courses you can play when you subscribe to our magazine. You get a complimentary round of golf with a small service fee charged when you arrive to take care of a motorized cart for the round.

The 18-hole course at Heritage Country Club features 6,335 yards from the longest tees and a par of 71. The course rating is 69.3 and it has a slope rating of 118. The layout was designed by Donald Hoenig, with the track opening for play in 1964. Shane Bayer manages the course as General Manager.

There are a mix of holes at Heritage CC that will keep you entertained through your entire round. Some of the fairways are rather tight,

so accuracy is called for off the tee to get you involved in the hole from the tee box.

The layout starts off in stern fashion, with a pair of fairly long par-fours followed by a 200- yard par-three where par is a good score indeed. The fourth is a 452-yard par-five that is reachable in two shots for long hitters.

The fifth hole is a beast of a par-five, playing around 600 yards and it’s a true three-shot hole to get the putting surface. Number eight is

a par-four of around 300 yards where birdie awaits before moving on to the monstrous 490-yard parfour ninth. The ninth can also be played as a parfive, which makes sense for most golfers.

The back side also starts off tough, with two par-fours of around 400 yards sandwiched around another long par-five of about 600 yards. The 305- yard par-four 14th is a birdie hole and then it is on to a demanding finish that includes another parfive that measures almost 600 yards from the back tees. Better bring a great long game when you play here and tee off from the tips. The wise option the first visit may be playing from one tee up, which will put the total yardage to around 6,000, shortening some of those long par-fives. 85 Sampson Road Charlton, Ma.

www.HeritageCountryClub.com