When it comes to towns in central Maryland, Hagerstown, in almost every regard, is significantly worse than Frederick. One merely needs to visit the downtown districts of both places to quickly see the difference. But Hagerstown has the advantage in a few areas: donuts, pizza, and municipal golf.
That last one is what we're going to talk about today. I've never written about Clustered Spires, Frederick's 18-hole municipal golf course, because there's very little to talk about. I've played it once and I have no desire to go back. It's not a bad golf course, technically speaking, but it's so incredibly bland and uninspired that I simply have nothing to say.
Black Rock Golf Course is never going to win any awards for being a great and interesting golf course. But unlike Clustered Spires, there is occasionally something to say about Black Rock's design. I know, try to contain your incredible curiosity.
The first hole is a short par 5, playing 490 yards from a tee set high above the fairway. The playing corridor is extremely wide, and shots hit wide right will often bounce back in to a more friendly position. It's a green light to swing away with driver and get into a position to go for the green in two. That second shot is more interesting, as the green is quite small and well defended by a pair of large bunkers. Even so, this is a great opportunity to kick the round off with a birdie.
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The first hole. |
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Approaching the first green. |
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The first green. |
The second hole is a mid-length par 3 that also plays from a perched tee, and honestly, this green complex is a little weird. The only bunker is behind, and the front portion of the green is pinched in, leaving prime space for flanking bunkers that simply aren't there and never have been, as far as I can tell. That makes hitting the shot really the only challenge here, and while that's plenty for most golfers, this is decidedly not an interesting hole.
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The second hole. |
The third hole, on the other hand, is pretty arresting as soon as you step onto the tee box. The reason for this is simple: About 75 yards, right where one might want to aim their drive on this 480-yard par 5, is a tree of great significance. If one struggles to hit a fade with the driver, your options on the tee shot here are severely limited and you likely won't be able to reach the green in two. Even if you can hit a fade, you really need a big one (or a smaller fade hit dangerously close to the branches) to bring the green into range in two, as there are more trees lurking just left of the fairway to block out insufficiently curved shots. The rest of the hole is almost banal, though the fairway is quite rolling and the green is shallow and significantly elevated. Is this a good hole? No. Is it memorable? Yes.
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The third hole. |
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Approaching the third green. |
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The third green. |
The fourth hole is 360 yards, with a tee shot that plays uphill to a plateau about 225-250 yards out. If one uses a 3 wood or long iron, you'll have a wedge back down the hill into the green, and you'll be playing from a relatively flat stance. Alternatively, you could hit driver, challenging the corner of the dogleg to try and get close to the green, at the risk of leaving yourself a second shot from an awkward length and a hanging lie. The green is small and has a single bunker right.
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The fourth hole. |
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The fourth green. |
The fifth hole is 380 yards and is everyone's favorite: a 90-degree dogleg. The tee shot is simple, just hit a 3 wood out into the very wide fairway, avoiding the trees left. That will leave a wedge or short iron down the hill to a relatively large green guarded by three bunkers. I do not enjoy this hole, and I don't think I've ever played it well. (Oh yeah, I've played Black Rock several times, though it has been a while.)
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The fifth hole. |
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The fifth green. |
The sixth hole is 355 yards and features the same sort of diagonal drive as the third, just without the giant tree in the way. Honestly though, while you can hit driver straight at the green, you may not want to. A good drive will leave just a little half-wedge, and when the approach is to a relatively shallow, elevated green surrounded by bunkers, you really want to have a full wedge in hand. Trying to gauge a half-shot with all that is a recipe for leaving your second shot in the front bunker.
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The sixth hole. |
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Approaching the sixth green. |
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The sixth green. |
The seventh hole is just under 200 yards and plays over essentially flat land to a green angled from right to left hidden behind a bunker, with a second bunker long and right. The shape of the hole is vaguely Redan-like, though of course without any meaningful tilt to the green, it doesn't really play like one or offer any particularly interesting options.
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The seventh hole. |
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The seventh green. |
The eighth hole is 415 yards, which isn't particularly long, but the hole plays uphill the entire way, so that does add some effective distance. And that's about the only interesting thing on this hole; you hit the fairway, then the green, making sure to avoid the trees left of the dogleg. No need to get too aggressive on this tee shot. There are two bunkers around the green, one left and one long.
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The eighth hole. |
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Approaching the eighth green. |
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The eighth green. |
The ninth hole is 430 yards, but since it plays quite dramatically downhill, it's effectively a bit shorter than the previous hole. The fairway is pretty wide open, though the driving range is off to the right and longer hitters do have to worry about the pond lurking left of the fairway. For most, though, this is a pretty simple and fun tee shot. The second shot will be a short iron to a narrow, angled green flanked by bunkers, with the pond left not really in play but still something to think about.
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The ninth hole. |
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Approaching the ninth green. |
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The ninth green. |
That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.