Links At Poland Spring, The, is a Resort, 18 hole golf course located in Poland Spring, Maine.
Poland Spring Resort's Golf Course is considered the Oldest Resort Course in America.
When you tee it up at Poland Springs you are playing on the same turf where... Babe Ruth, Walter Hagan, Bobby Jones, Joe Kennedy, Harry Varden; Presidents Rockefeller and Roosevelt, Jim Gallagher, Sonny Listen, Jack Parr, Ben Hogan, Bobby Jones and many, many more played golf!
The course was originally designed by Arthur Fenn and later redone by Donald Ross.
Arthur Fenn was born in Waterbury, Connecticut in 1858. Fenn would later distinguish himself as a player and course architect. At a time when American golf was dominated by Scottish professionals, Fenn was hailed as one of America's first home bred golfers. As an amateur, he would win many championships including the Lenox Cup (from Lenox C. C. in Massachusetts where Donald Ross was the pro). When invited to establish golf on the vast grounds of the Poland Spring House, Fenn quickly accepted. A six-hole course was opened for play in August of 1893 and he later added 3 more holes.
Later Donald Ross (of Pinehurst Fame) would redesign the Poland Spring Golf Course to an 18-hole championship course. Scotsman Donald Ross transformed the American sports landscape in the first half of this century. At his death in 1948, he left behind a legacy of 413 courses, including such gems as Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina, Seminole in Florida, The Country Club in Brookline Massachusetts, and the site of the 1996 U.S. Open, Oakland Hills outside Detroit. Over 100 U.S. national championships have been played on courses he designed. Small wonder his name still resonates among golf history's aficionados.
Poland Springs is an 18-Hole Championship Course par 71 (6,178 yards) Slope 124. Fifteen of eighteen holes have views including either mountains and or lakes and in the fall, the colors are spectacular.
$26 (cart included), played on Saturday, June 2013 at 6am
Stayed at resort, and found a very sporty, Donald Ross designed golf course as something of a hidden gem bonus. Course is well conditioned, staff is extremely friendly and accommodating. It's definitely a course that you need to play a few times to gain an understanding of the Ross greens. You don't get too many opportunities to play a course that Donald Ross had a hand in for such a reasonable rate. I wish I lived closer, so I could play this one more often.
$31 (cart not included), played on Monday, August 2009 at 2pm
Member (cart included), played on Wednesday, July 2008 at 8am
Resort Course in great shape and well maintained. Donald Ross design. 9th hole DOES NOT return to the Clubhouse. Only 2 significant water hazards in play. The 10th Green is almost as far away from the start as you can get, but the views available as you play are worth the anomaly. Not an extremely difficult track but as with all Ross designs, it will make you think and is a fair test of one-s shot making abilities. Course closes last week of October. Enjoy!
Latest Golf Course Reviews
Guest (cart included), played on Sunday, January 2012 at 12:00 AM
The weather was miserable when a friend and I insisted on playing the Poland Spring course. We had the course to ourselves, so were able to enjoy the interesting features. As Walter Travis aficionados, we were most interested in seeking out the features that Travis brought to the course in his major remodeling of 1916-1917. 10 of the greens were either rebuilt or newly built by Travis, and he installed 10 new bunkers. So, the course is a very interesting mix of Ross and Travis. Two designers who spent a lot of time together in Pinehurst, and shared similar design philosophies. Poland Spring provides ample challenge with its very interesting terrain and interesting green sites. I hope to get back someday to enjoy the course on a bright sunny day highlighting the beauty of its setting.