Spruce Ridge Country Club

Detailed description of Spruce Ridge Country Club

Spruce Ridge Country Club, previously named Spruce Ridge Golf Course is a public 9-hole golf course located in Arcade, New York. The course was purchased in the fall of 2010 by Tim & Laurie Berger and is now under new ownership.

Spruce Ridge Country Club opened for play in 2004. The back nine opened in 2007. The course was designed by Tom Coffey, Stan Gidnan, Bob Farleo and Mark Scrimshaw.

Four partners said that, if they had known back in 1998 that it would be such a long, difficult process, they likely would not have begun. Mark Scrimshaw, of East Aurora, came up with the idea of building his own golf course and gradually recruited the others, all golfers of varying abilities. One night in June 1998 at a bar (where else?) they (Tom Coffey, Stan Gidnan, Bob Farleo and Mark Scrimshaw) joined hands and what would become Spruce Ridge Country Club was born.

After an extensive search, Bob Farleo found a hay field 19 miles south of East Aurora with a breathtaking view of rolling hills and farmland, and as soon as the others saw it they agreed, "This is it."

They purchased 200 acres for $90,000 in the summer of 1999 and -- after considerable searching -- found a bank to lend them $250,000.

All had a hand in designing the 3,131-yard, par-36 course, they describe as challenging, but not impossible. Normally, designing and building a golf course is a lengthy and expensive process. The cost of the average course can add up in the millions.

The Spruce Ridge team, however, worked with a used bulldozer, a used backhoe and other equipment. The equipment was subject to frequent breakdowns, and getting stuck in the mud was routine. With the exception of Coffey, who is a retired teacher from Bennington, the others were taking time off from work and have since left their jobs to devote all their time to the course. They hired someone to dig the five ponds.

Spruce Ridge Country Club is a dream come true. This is a labor of love, built by golfers for golfers.