Review: Sagamore Golf Club (Part 1)

Sometimes it feels like you can't go anywhere without tripping over an old Donald Ross course. Seriously, there are so many, and upstate New York is no exception. Sagamore Golf Club is part of Sagamore Resort, and is located deep within dense forest just west of Lake George. Let me tell you, there are few better places to spend an August afternoon than in the Adirondacks. Mid afternoon and it was barely 70 degrees. Despite the mild climate, the course actually fell on hard times in the 60s and experienced a restoration in the 1980s and 90s, bringing back the Ross design. So, how does this one stack up with the other Donald Ross courses I've played?

The first hole presents the golfer with quite an epic tableau of Lake George and the mountain beyond. It's a fairly long par 4 at 435 yards, but the tee shot is nearly 100 feet downhill, so you can get some pretty impressive distance. That means you'll probably only need a wedge or short iron for the admittedly uphill second shot. The green is sloped fairly steeply from back to front, and there are two large, deep bunkers defending it, one on each side. This is actually a fairly common Donald Ross par 4 with a downhill tee shot and an uphill second, though this one has an admittedly impressive view and particularly rugged topography.

The first hole and its rather impressive view

Approaching the first green.

The first green.

The second hole is 375 yards and also features a significantly downhill tee shot. The fairway isn't exactly narrow, but since there's dense forest on both sides there's very little room to miss it. This is something Sagamore struggles with, especially on the back nine, but this hole isn't the worst offender. The hole doglegs significantly to the right, so if the forest wasn't enough, the design of the hole really encourages you to lay back with a wood or long iron. That leaves a wedge or short iron to the green, which is gently undulating and has a deep bunker to the right.

The second hole.

Approaching the second green.

The second green.

The third hole is about 200 yards, but it plays a bit uphill, emerging out into a meadow that the next few holes continue through. The green is tilted from back left to front right, and while both bunkers are quite deep, the one short right is especially threatening. Go down there and you're at least 10 feet below the level of the green. You may be tempted to bail out a bit left, but just remember the slope of the green. Chip shots from the left side aren't easy. It's not the longest par 3 in the world, but it's a tough one.

The third hole.

The third green.

The fourth hole is quite a long par 4, especially considering this is a Donald Ross course. 460 yards is a lot, so while I don't know for sure, considering Sagamore is a par 70, I wouldn't be surprised at all if this was originally a short par 5. The hole is straight with a wide fairway, though a road and O.B. lurk just to the right. That leaves a mid iron to the green, which is pretty open except for on the right side. That front-right bunker is separated from the green by a few yards. The green itself is gently undulating, not an easy green to putt but not a difficult one either.

The fourth hole.

Approaching the fourth green.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is a mid-length par 4 with three large bunkers dominating the view such that you can't even really see the fairway. There is one out there, though it's not very big. Wide but short, wedged between those bunkers and a small pond that cuts into the hole about 100-125 yards from the green. That means a lay-up off of the tee. You're best off favoring the left side, as that will give you the best angle into the green, which is small, elevated, and protected by a deep bunker front right.

The fifth hole.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is the longest hole at Sagamore, playing 545 yards over flat, fairly marshy terrain. There are multiple ponds, one in play on the drive and one fairly close but not quite bordering the green. The hole is otherwise basically flat and also completely bunkerless. Now, I don't like water as a hazard much, but natural water hazards are just fine, and the water lining nearly the entire right side does a great job of giving a hole without the advantage of topography plenty of strategic interest. Lay-ups are especially tricky since the pond by the green narrows the fairway for nearly 100 yards, so you'll probably have a decently long third into the green, which is the most undulating one so far on the course.

The sixth hole.

Approaching the sixth green.

The sixth green.

The seventh hole is my favorite hole on the course. After the brief foray in the meadow the golfer is returned to the hills and the trees in abrupt fashion. The hole is 425 yards, which is fairly long to begin with, but about halfway through the fairway rises abruptly and turns left, making driver a very poor choice unless you can hit a big slinging hook. That means hitting a fairway wood or long iron off of the tee, leaving a very long second shot up the hill to a semiblind green. You'll want to favor the left side of the fairway, as difficult as that is, because the green is guarded front right by a deep bunker. When my brother and I stepped onto the tee here, we all had roughly the same question: "What are we looking at here?" It's a funky, quirky hole, a hole that isn't actually all that difficult but looks like it is just because it asks some weird questions. It's got a sense of humor, and that makes it really memorable in my opinion.

The seventh hole.

Approaching the seventh green.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is a mid-length par 3 that plays significantly uphill to a small green that's a bit crowned and slopes away at the back. There are a couple of bunkers right and one left placed into a big sideslope. You really don't want to miss the green left, since the ball will bounce down into the forest. The cart path placement really doesn't help, since that also goes down the left side. 

The eighth hole.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole isn't the most compelling 410 yard par 4 in the world. The fairway is on the narrow side but not extremely so, and there's a bunker guarding the right side. The second shot is a wedge or short iron into a green with bunkers right and front left; the green has a fairly noticeable right to left tilt, so it's not the easiest to hit, but it's not the most difficult in the world either.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

The ninth green.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.