The Muni Golfer: Lehigh Valley

Monday, September 28, 2009

A Mountain High at Sawmill Golf Course

Sawmill Golf Course
Easton, Pa.
Yards: 2869/2411 - 5280
Par: 35/35 = 70
Rating: 64.2, Slope: 105
Score: 45/46 = 91
Date: September 26, 2009

While visiting family in the Lehigh Valley this past Saturday, I had the opportunity to again play a round of golf at Sawmill Golf Course in Easton. I had previously played Sawmill in 2007 and enjoyed the experience. Sawmill was built on an old farm over 35 years by Dick Field, who still owns the course today. Sawmill does not take tee times and although it has carts for golfers who want to use them, walking is welcomed and encouraged. The course is a medium length track that plays just over 5,000 yards; but what Sawmill lacks in length it makes up for in its unique layout. Most of the holes are straight away, with not a sand trap to be found. But since Sawmill is located in the Lehigh Valley, many of the holes play either severely uphill or downhill. Some holes do feature blind tee shots with fairways that slope left to right.

Sawmill Golf Course Scorecard

The front nine at Sawmill looks pretty tame, and it is, except for maybe the Par 3 7th Hole, which plays out of a chute of trees, slightly downhill to a large green that slopes hard from left to right. If you miss to the right, it runs down into the 8th fairway and there are a few small trees to contend with on your pitch shot.

The First Hole (above), The tight tee shot at the Seventh (below)

I played well on the first nine, shooting 45 with two pars. I was hitting the ball well off the tee and was giving myself opportunities. Witness the fact that I had par putts on five of the first nine holes. Even better, my putting was more consistent than it has been recently.

Sawmill's panoramic view (above), the Ninth Hole (below)

The back nine at Sawmill is where the golf gets really interesting. After straightway, short Par 4s at 10 and 11, the 12th Hole is a 112-yard Par 3 that drops about 150 feet from the tee to the green, which has a road running in front and a creek behind. Then comes the the unusual 13th, a 372-yard Par 5. Yes, a Par 5! A short tee shot is required to an elevated, narrow fairway framed by two overheard powerline towers on the left and telephone poles and an out-of-bounds creek on the right. You'll have about 185- to 200+ yards for a second shot, with a small spring running across the front of the green, so a lay-up short is advised. Hole 14 is a 236-yard Par 4, that plays straight uphill the last 100 yards or so. Driving this green would be almost impossible since the green sits at least 50 yards above the fairway! Hole 15 in a 321-yard Par 4 that continues the journey onward and upward, playing straight uphill to a two-tiered green. But, as they say, whatever goes up, must come down and Holes 16 and 17 both play sharply downhill, with the 16th playing out of a chute off the tee and the fairway being well-guarded by trees all the way down the left side. The round finishes at Hole 18 with with a short, flat, 135-yard Par 3, whose only difficulty is its undulating green.

The Twelfth Hole is 112 yards downhill

My back nine score of 46 wasn't bad considering I made 7s at the 13th and 15th holes when I hit my approach shot and my tee shot out-of-bounds on the two holes respectively. Other than those two holes, I kept the ball in play off the tee and was generally around the green with my approach shots. My chipping was subpar this day, but my putting again bailed me out on the back nine. I had par putts on four of the nine holes.

The tee shot at the Thirteenth Hole, a 372-yard Par 5!

The best part of Sawmill Golf Course was its price. $25 to walk on the weekends and includes as much golf as you can play, whether its 18, 27 or 36 holes. The staff was friendly and they had a nice snack bar where you can relax and relive your round. If you're ever in the Lehigh Valley and looking for an inexpensive, but fun round of golf, I highly recommend Sawmill Golf Course.

More photos of Sawmill:

The Fourteenth Hole is 236 yards, but plays uphill

The narrow, demanding tee shot at the Sixteenth Hole

Photos by The Muni Golfer

Sunday, July 5, 2009

A Holiday Round at Green Pond CC

Green Pond Country Club
Bethlehem, Pa.
Yards: 3205/2949 - 6154
Par: 36/35 - 71
Rating: 69.4, Slope: 122
Score: 53/51 = 104
Date: July 3, 2009

While once again doing the family thing in Easton, Pa. during the holiday weekend, I finally got a chance to play Green Pond Country Club. Located just a short distance off Route 33 and Easton Road, Green Pond bills itself as "the public's country club." The course, designed by Scottish immigrant Alex Findlay and opened in 1931, is a classic layout with a lot of tree-lined fairways, doglegs, sand traps and medium-sized greens. Unlike many of the area courses, it is relatively flat--a few holes play slightly uphill or downhill, except the Par 17th--and is a very easy walking course.

Green Pond Country Club Scorecard

Conditions are Green Pond were excellent, except for the tee boxes, which could have been a bit more level. Nevertherless, the course was in great shape. It is a course where you definitely want to put the ball in the fairway as the rough was thick. The greens were fast, and I struggled with my speed throughout the round. They also featured just enough break to keep your full attention until the ball was in the hole. The greens are also well protected by numerous bunkers as I found out throughout my round. It is understandable why Green Pond is the host course for the Lehigh Valley Amateur Tournament each September. Green fees are also very reasonable: $32/42 to walk/ride during the week and $55 with a cart mandatory on the weekends. Twilight rates are $22/30 to walk/ride after 2 p.m. during the week and $32/42 to walk/ride after 3 p.m. on weekends.

The 1st Hole at Green Pond, a 342-yard Par 4

Since a lot of people had off Friday in observance of July 4th, the course was crowded when I arrived. The pro shop staff was very friendly, especially considering they were having computer problems. They informed me that there were presently five foursomes waiting to tee off. The young woman went out and spoke with the starter then came back to tell me he indicated he would be able to get me out, but that it might take awhile. I said I was in no rush and would wait. After about 20 minutes, the fourth foursome indicated they only had three golfers, so the starter paired me up with Mike, Rich and Robert. They welcomed me into their foursome and we had a great time throughout the round. Play was semi-slow through the first 7-8 holes, but moved along well after that.

Approach shot to the 9th Green

As for my round, I hit my 3-Wood off the 1st tee into the middle of the fairway and then a 9-iron to the back of the green. A good start, I thought, until I hit my first putt about 15-feet past the hole and three-putted. The 2nd Hole, a 544-yard Par 5, I hit Driver to the right side of the fairway, layed up, then hit a short iron onto the green in regulation...then again three-putted. So instead of starting par-par, a started bogey-bogey. At the 3rd Hole, a slightly downhill Par 4 that doglegs left, I hit my 2-Hybrid into the middle of the fairway, then left a 7-iron out to the right and into a bunker, the first of many I would visit at Green Pond. In fact, I spent more time in the sand at Green Pond than Charlton Heston did filming The Ten Commandments. I did manage to play out of most of the bunkers rather well, but I was never able to get the speed of the greens and three-putted numerous times. In fact, only made one par all day, at the 10th Hole, where I hit my tee shot far enough right that missed the dogleg and hit a 9-iron over some trees to the back of the green, then two-putted. I was happy overall with how I played off the tee and my iron game was pretty good, but my chipping and putting really let me down. It added up to a 104.

A pond fronts the 14th Green

One cool note: on the 16th tee box, a young red fox was playing around with what looked like a field mouse or some other small creature that he had captured. Unbothered by our approach to hit our tee shots, he sat and watched as we played through!

Our wild gallery of one on the 16th Tee

Green Pond adds another golfing option when visiting the Lehigh Valley and I look forward to returning to Green Pond for a round in the not too distant future.

Some additional photos of Green Pond CC: