The great short par-four 15th at Oak Point GC-Photo by Mark Eucalitto

I’m going to tell you about an overlooked little gem of a golf course in the Charleston, S.C. area, Oak Point Golf Course.

It’s easy for Oak Point to get overshadowed, for it it lives in the shadows of the fabulous resort courses on Kiawah Island, including the fabled Ocean Course, home to this year’s PGA Championship. Oak Point is the first course you will run into when you make the drive down down Rt. 12 and past live oaks draped with Spanish moss to Kiawah Resort, which has five public-access courses in all.

Oak Point is different in some respects than the other Kiawah courses. It was added to the stable a few years back and is actually “off-island. Tip: Make sure you check out a funky little restaurant on Main Road (that turns into Bohicket Road that turns into Betsy Kerrison Parkway) called Chez Fish, after a round at Kiawah. The tomato basil and crab bisque is out of this world.

The Resort purchased Oak Point in 1997 and immediately set about restoring and enhancing the Clyde Johnson creation. The track is laid out over a former cotton and indigo plantation and is within close proximity to the Kiawah River and Haulover Creek, (love those uniquely Southern place names).

If you like looking at water you’ll love Oak Point. Every hole, save one, the par-four 16^th, has water in some form and often the wet stuff must be crossed on the tee shot or approach to the greens. But that’s what makes Oak Point so much fun. If you put your tee shot where you should, navigating the layout is relatively straightforward. The par-fours and three threes are not long and thus you can attack them with nothing more than mid- to short-irons. The par-fives are all about 500 yards in length from the back tees and therefore very approachable for players of all skill levels, especially if you play down a marker or two, which is advisable on a first try.

Brandon, my son-in-law and a local, claims Oak Point is kind of a forgotten course because it is not located directly on the island but right before it, and is often passed by golfers heading to Kiawah proper. He told me before we played, perhaps in an effort to rattle the old guy, a pond that encompasses the first green and tenth hole approach is home to an alligator nest that has “some of the biggest gators I’ve seen besides The Ocean Course.” He swears there’s an even bigger gator in a pond that splits the 10th and 13th holes. He says he hit a shot perhaps 20 feet from Megagator, which made it very difficult to concentrate on his second shot on the par-five 13th. That’s another great aspect of playing golf on Low Country courses; you have built in “gator excuses” for bad shots that you can’t use in other areas of the country. And, yes on the day we (my buddy Mark joined us) we were warned about a gator that had strolled onto the cath path leading to the next hole we were too play. “He’s a big one, so stay clear.” Sure thing, boss.

I loved the second hole, a 183-yard par-three that has water on the left and behind the putting surface. The seventh is a very cool, 168-yard short hole that has a pond in front, sand flowing down to the water’s edge and a pot bunker in front of the very long green. Just a neat looking hole from the tee.

I thought the 14^th, a 345-yarder, to be one of the best examples of a good short par-four that I have encountered in the area. The fairway narrows as it proceeds to the green, and you have to thread the needle if you hit driver in order to leave you with nothing more than a wedge or nine-iron over water (of course) to the green. You can make easy par or disappointing double here with equal ease.

The best hole of the course was by far the 406-yard par-four 18th that runs along the waterway and offers an amazing panoramic view. Brandon says he’s caught it at the right time of day, when the sun is setting, presenting a breathtaking view of South Carolina’s cotton candy skies.

Again, the daily fee rates at the course is reasonable for such a solid layout, especially during the off-seasons of late fall, winter, and early spring, the latter coming about two months before the North warms up.

My suggestion is to play all four of Kiawah’s “other” courses and then take on The Ocean Course. It will be a cool way to build yourself up for the big treat as you enjoy some great golf in the meantime.

For further information about Oak Point and other Kiawah Resort courses, visit www.kiawahresort.com.

Curtis Strange

World Golf Hall of Fame member Curtis Strange, an analyst for ESPN’s coverage of golf and a television commentator since joining ABC’s golf coverage staff in 1995, was one of professional golf’s dominant players in the 1980’s.

He won back-to-back U.S. Opens in 1988 and 1989 and led the PGA Tour in money winnings in 1985, 1987 and 1988. He scored 17 Tour wins in his career and had a streak of seven years with at least one Tour victory. He was voted Player of the Year by the Golf Writers Association of America three times. Strange also represented the U.S. on the Ryder Cup team five times and was captain in 2002.

Born into a golfing family, Strange began playing at age 7 and won the Virginia Junior Championship when he was 15. He earned a scholarship to play collegiate golf at Wake Forest and was part of what many believe to be one of the best college golf teams ever. Strange and teammate Jay Haas, another future pro, led the team to consecutive NCAA titles in 1974 and 1975. A three-time All-America selection, Strange won the NCAA individual golf title in 1974 as well as the World Amateur Cup.

Strange, who still plays on the Champions Tour, turned pro in 1976 and scored his first professional win in 1979 in Pensacola, Fl. In 1988, he became the first golfer to win more than $1 million in a single season. He played his first season on the Champions Tour in 2005 after reaching the age of 50, and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007.

His father, Tom, owned a golf course in Virginia and his identical twin brother, Allan, also played on the PGA Tour.

I caught up with Strange at his home in North Carolina recently.

GM: How’s the game?

CS: The weather has been so darn nice down here I’ve been playing a lot between working for ESPN and playing on the Champions Tour. I’ve been down in North Carolina for seven years and I have a bunch of guys I play with, the local pro, assistant pro and a few other guys that are real good players. We have some fun matches.

GM: Do you miss competing on Tour?

CS: I still pay in eight or nine Champion Tour events and I like that. But I really enjoy the television work and am looking forward to being a hole commentator for ESPN this year.

GM: How have you changed as an announcer?

CS: Well, hopefully I have improved! I think you should improve at anything you do a lot. But, you know, I don’t worry about it. I’m in a different position now than when I was an analyst. As a hole announcer, you have to set the stage and tell the viewer what the player faces. As an analyst, you react to something that has happened. Being a hole announcer stretches me and I like that.

GM: What do you feel your strengths are as an announcer?

CS: I have knowledge of players and the golf courses and the nuts and bolts of the game. Hopefully, I’m warm and charming at times and I can also bring the viewer closer to the game.

GM: Do you feel it is your job to criticize players when they hit a bad shot?

CS: I once said that criticism is not part of my job description as an analyst and TV critics jumped on me about that. But I would rather give the reasons why a player tried a certain shot or didn’t. You can offer criticism in different ways. Instead of saying, as another announcer does quite often, things that are obvious and cruel, I prefer to make a comment that tries to explain what happened and give the reasons for it.

We in television and those who watch it closely think everybody has to hang on every shot. But we need to be patient because the tournament is four days and four rounds. The talking heads on television feel they have to embellish every shot that is hit on a Thursday, and I understand there is a need to comment and fill airtime. But I like to let a player get over a shot and hit it and not have all the chatter that sometimes takes place early in the tournament, especially.

GM: Okay, the Tiger question. How big was him winning at Arnie’s tournament, Bay Hill?

CS: It was huge. You know, you never get much from Tiger and you wonder if he is just doing his power point presentations. But whenever you have been down to win again was big for him. Golf is better off with him playing well, whether you root for or against him.

GM: Have you read Hank Haney’s book about Tiger?

CS: No, and I won’t. I have read excerpts and let’s just say I found it interesting. The guy and Tiger Woods had a confidence in one another and Haney broke the rules. I think it was very unprofessional of him because real men don’t do this to one another. It’s about trust; it’s a macho thing, if you will. I like Hank Haney but he broke the rules. A confident who broke rules, who was very unprofessional for doing it. Look, we all can delve into somebody’s mind…sports psychologists, coaches, announcers, caddies and even bag boys. But he broke the confidentiality rule and I don’t like it.

GM: Okay, I’m sure you are asked often about your back-to-back U.S. Open victories the last time it has been done. Does that define your career?

CS: It’s usually brought up around U.S. Open time every year. It’s fun to be a part of the team that does the U.S. Open and winning those two events made me, basically, everything that I am. I had a long, pretty successful career in golf and those two U.S. Open wins were highlights.

GM: Any ones that got away that you still think about?

CS: Well, the 1985 Masters. I felt like was mine to lose and I didn’t win. I missed a playoff in the 1994 U.S Open by a shot. There were others that I thought I should have won. But I never got on myself too badly about not winning. For me, it was about playing well and if I did that I was happy with myself heading into the next tournament. I could have just made the cut and then went on to a top 10 or top 20 finish and that was great and I was feeling good about my game. You just try to put yourself in position to win and sometimes you do. It is a long, long year and I always tried to find something good about my game to give me momentum into the next event.

GM: Was there a tournament you won early in your career that allowed you to think that you had what it took to be a great player?

CS: It really wasn’t so much one event or even a round. It was just sort of a momentum thing. I won a tournament, then another, then won money titles, then the Opens and it gave me such a confidence in my game that I never doubted myself on Sunday. Listen, I had been there and thrown up on my golf shoes enough times that when I finally got that confidence in myself I felt comfortable on Sunday and relaxed and just played golf. I do remember though, winning the Memorial. It’s a big tournament, Jack’s tournament, with a big field and a lot of pressure. I was so comfortable on the back nine on Sunday that I was hitting great shots and I was reaching my peak.

GM: How do you feel about the state of golf?

CS: I feel good about the game as a whole. Like any other sport, it’s cyclical and like all other aspects of life affected by the economy and money. The players on Tour haven’t been affected to a large degree because we have great corporate sponsors and the players are making good money off the golf course. The PGA Tour is solid. But golf in general still suffers from being too slow and too expensive for many people. You have to remember that golf is a privilege to play and maybe we have forgotten that a bit. It’s great to try and bring the masses to the game but we have to follow up and give everyone who wants to come to the game an opportunity.

We’re trying to attract young professional families but dad or mom doesn’t have the time or energy to dedicate weekends to playing golf. I would like to see caddie programs instituted at every club. It’s a way to get kids from all backgrounds playing the game so they can sustain it down the road. That was the way a lot of great players came to the game at one time, Hogan, Nelson and others. Golf carts finance many clubs but it has hurt the caddie programs and hurt the growth of the game in that regards.

Luke Donald

I’m one of these guys that places big hardware over how much money is stuffed into a golf bag.

Meaning? I judge a player’s greatness not on how many money titles he wins, or even how many Texas Valero Opens he captures. For me, it’s about Majors and that means the four big events of the year, the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open (or, ahem, The Open Championship) and the PGA Championship. Win one of those and you are a PLAYER in my eyes.

I look at it this way. Not too many pundits are ever going to say Andy North was one of the game’s greats, even though he’s one of the nicest people I have ever met. But he won two U.S. Opens! That’s big in my book and every time I think of North I think of those two Opens. You win one Open and you’re a made man. Win two in my book and you’ve done something special, even if, like North, you win only one other title on the PGA Tour.

So, I’m out of character when I say I’m so impressed by what Luke Donald did this year. No, he didn’t win a Major. Indeed, he hasn’t won one in his career, which I think changes in 2012. He’s too good of a ball striker and short game player not to grab at least one or two of the big ones during a career that is still in its prime.

But Donald did something that has never been done before and that gets me excited: He won the money titles on both the U.S. and European tours. Nope, never been done before in the same calendar year. Greg Norman did it but his titles came in different years. For Donald to win both in the same year is quite impressive, a “major” feat if you will.

His accomplishment was aided by the fact that winnings from a number of tournaments, such as the World Golf Championship events and the Majors, count on both tours. But you’ve still got to perform consistently well throughout the season whenever you tee it up, whether it is in Augusta or Dubai and Donald did just that this year.

I love what Luke Donald did. I’m still not ready to call him a great player because he needs that Major. I hope not having one doesn’t start to get to him like it has other fine European players, such as Colin Montgomerie and Lee Westwood. I can’t figure out how both of those studs never captured a Major title with all the talent they possessed and possess. Westwood’s still got a chance. Maybe he’ll pull a Darren Clarke and win one later in his career. But Westie needs a big title to lay claim as being one of the great players of the last two decades.

What Luke Donald did this year could springboard him to a fabulous 2012. That means not only being the number one player in the world according to some computer and having enough money to buy his own 747, but also collecting one of those beautiful trophies they give to the winners of the four Majors to put on his mantle.

The View Back to the 11th Tee. (Photo by Mark Eucalitto)

The Magical 11th at Crystal Springs (Photo by Mark Eucalitto)

This is a little tale about golfing guts, glory, disappointment, screaming schoolgirls, and bad manners. Yes, a lot can happen on a par-three.

The wandering Fearsome Foursome of myself, Mark Eucalitto, Dana Mosher and Vin Serella were enjoying a round at the Crystal Springs golf course, which is part of a fab lineup of tracks at the resort of the same name in northwest New Jersey. We drove our carts up a hill to the 11^th hole where spread before us like golfing Valhalla was the layout’s famed par-three, known as “The Quarry Hole.”

As you walk to the tee a marvelous sight unfolds some 75 or 80 below, the aforementioned quarry, with its black waters menacing and fearful, a small, tree-studded hill some 170 yards away and a massive green snaking past the quarry and back around the hillock. To add to the difficulty a yawning bunker sits to the back left of the green. (There’s also a wetlands below the tee box and a bunker in front of the sprawling green that didn’t come into play this day.)  In the distance, the hills of the Sussex Highlands rise and serve as a perfect backdrop to the visually exciting par-three.

Okay. I know all about the 17^th at Cypress Point, the 11th at Pine Valley, the 17^th on the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass and so many other island greens and magical short holes. But the 11^th at Crystal Springs is the most impressive par-three I have played.

While the hole can be relatively easy if the pin is stuck in the front portion of the green (nothing more than a seven- or eight-iron) the day we played the flag was just barely visible in the shadows at the very back of the putting surface, some 185 yards away. Intimidating? How about gut-check time? We began to ponder what club we would hit as the foursome in front of us began to putt.

But first a lesson in proper golf course etiquette. Naturally, the 11^th backs up with groups because of its difficulty and majesty that demands you linger a bit and take it all in. The foursome behind us, instead of laying back a respectful amount of distance, drove up behind us on the very tight tee box area. Two players, without saying a word, get out, step onto the tee and start getting a read on the distance to the flag with a yardage finder.

Tip: If you are going to do something as rude as these guys did at least say something to the group ahead of you, like maybe “Hi, nice day,” or, “Do you mind if we get a look and a read.” Nothing from these jerks. Except that one of the guys yelled to the group playing the hole below to “Hurry up.” As my buddy Mark says, the tee box is sacred ground. Unless you are next to hit, stay off it and give the group playing the hole their space. Not wanting to make a fuss, especially with such a difficult tee shot facing us, we kept quiet, gave them a glare when we left and played the hole verrrrry slowly.

Back to the task at hand. Mark and Dana hit first with Mark putting the ball in the back left bunker and Dana hitting a pure seven-wood to within 20 feet. I pulled a four-iron, blocked the dopes behind us and the view out of my mind and struck a solid shot that caught the green and rolled to within 35 feet. Whew. Vin also joined Mark in the back bunker.

Actually finishing the hole out was anticlimactic, except for the view back to the tee from the green, with the white and gray cliffs rising from the quarry. Just fabulous.

Another aside: Prior to our putts, Dana had to scold several girls from a nearby school that were running amuck close to the green. “This is a golf course, for crying out loud.” Told you a lot can happen on a par-three.

Anyway, Dana two putts, Mark and Vin take bogeys out of the sand, so it’s up to me to two-putt to tie the hole or somehow drop the birdie putt. Too concerned with the line I came up five feet short and missed the par putt. What began with such a satisfying shot ended in bitter disappointment. It would have been a sweet par. It’s what makes golf so mesmerizing and frustrating. It took me one shot to go 175 yards from a tee 80 feet above the ground, over a quarry pond, and three strokes to get down from 10 yards. Go figure.

But today the only thought I have is that tee shot, soaring majestically high in the air, its arch over the quarry probably some 200 or more feet, and landing softly on a putting surface that I could hardly see. Nice.

If only every par-three could be like the 11^th at Crystal Springs.

Check this super course out (there are plenty of other interesting holes on the layout), as well the other tracks at Crystal Springs Resort, like the linksy Ballyowen, which we played in the wind and 45-degree temperatures, and Wild Turkey, two of the better courses in Jersey.

Visit www.crystalgolfresort.com for more information.

South Carolina's The Founder's Club

To say the Grand Strand of South Carolina’s Myrtle Beach has lots of great golf courses would, of course, be an understatement.

But Classic Golf Group is taking excellence to a new level. In business since 1986, Classic Golf Group arranges play at several of the area’s top rated courses, including the Founder’s Club at Pawley’s Island, which earned this year’s Myrtle Beach Golf Course Owners Association Course of the Year honors.

“Classic Golf Group offers an exceptional experience on four award winning quality courses for a competitive price because of our commitment to the game, the product and to the customer,” says Sherri Crawford, director of marketing for the firm. “Our target audience varies based on the time of the year. Overall it consists of locals, hotel package play, walk-in guests and members at specific groups or courses.”

Other courses in the impressive Classic Golf Group portfolio include Indian Wells Golf Club, the 2004 winner of the MBGOA Course of the Year award, 2006 South Carolina Golf Course of the Year, Burning Ridge Golf Club, and Black Bear Golf Club, which has hosted major tournaments.

“Classic Golf Group would like to add new clubs in the future should the right opportunity arise and the golf industry has stabilized,” says Crawford.

The firm draws its clients from the Myrtle Beach area, all of South Carolina, North Carolina, New York, Canada, Washington D.C., Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Tennessee, Chicago, Atlanta and New Jersey.

The reason for Classic Golf Group’s success is really quite simple.

“We offer a quality product with excellent customer service at an affordable price,” says Crawford.

This year’s Myrtle Beach Golf Course of the Year, the Founder’s Club, is defined by waste bunkers that run alongside almost every fairway, providing visual contrast when set against the layout’s lush green fairways.

Classic Golf Group handles every aspect of a golf trip through its Classic Golf Getaways division. It also offers a Classic Player Card that entitles the holder to deep discounts and a free gift, and Classic Gift Certificates to any of the four courses.

For more information, visit, www.ClassicGolfGroup.com

View from the tee at the ninth hole at Golf Club at River Oaks. Photo by Mark Eucalitto

It has always hit me as quite remarkable that two of the best new courses built in New England during the past decade are located about a five minutes crow’s flight from one another, Bulls Bridge Golf Club in Kent and The Golf Club at River Oaks on the Sherman/New Milford town line in western Connecticut.

I had the opportunity to play both of these private gems this year and it is difficult for me to choose which one I prefer. It’s kind of like deciding between chocolate chip or chocolate swirl ice cream. I mean, they both taste great. If I were to compare I would say there are more spectacular holes at Bulls Bridge, especially, one, two and 12, with the first tee maybe the most dramatic view on a golf course in Connecticut. While River Oaks may not have the visual wow factor of its competitor up the road, the routing is just as good and unique in that a number of the track’s holes on the back nine hug the Housatonic River, which was visible through the shedding trees when we played this week. And the look from the tee box on the ninth hole reminds one of playing golf in northern New England rather than  Connecticut.

There are differences between the two in ways other than their routings. Bulls Bridge is a golf club, pure and simple, while River Oaks is more of a country club, with tennis courts and a pool and a huge dining facility. There are also homes (several quite stunning) near the course at River Oaks, while Bull’s Bridge is unto itself. But the real reason people join these clubs is for the golf and it’s great at both venues.

Ralph Salito is the new head pro, director of golf, teaching pro and several other titles at River Oaks, joining the club earlier this year after a long and stellar stint at Richter Park Golf Course in Danbury, Ct., ranked annually as one of the better municipal courses in the United States. Ralph is an accomplish player, having won a number of prestigious tournaments and he can still can move the ball around the course with skill and success.

We got to play River Oaks on perhaps an ideal autumn afternoon, temperatures around 60, a bright sun and no wind, which only enhanced the experience. Robert McNeil designed the course that opened in 2003 and he built into it challenge and fairness. The fairways are rather generous on the par-fives and longer par-fours and tighter and strewn with fairway bunkers on several of the shorter par-fours. The greens are fairly large and kept on the fast side, although this time of year the grass grows a little thicker and slows the roll of the ball down.

While the course is no push-over it is eminently playable for guys like us, 8 to 10 handicappers, as long as you play the proper set of tees, which for us on this day were the whites, measuring around 6,100 yards. The tips play 6,730 yards with a slope of 138 and a course rating of 73.8. The layout  plays to a par of 70 and has five par-threes, which cuts into the overall length, so don’t be fooled into thinking 6,100 yards is easy. It’s not, even for the best players.

Perhaps the best hole on the front side is the 435-yard (back tees) par -four ninth, which starts from a dramatically elevated tee box and affords a spectacular view of the fairway below and the hills in the distance. The second shot is across a natural area with a huge bunker guarding the right side of the putting surface. I made par and it felt like birdie.

Number 12 is a real nice short par-four that plays about 300 yards. But the drive must be pure to avoid several large fairway bunkers, and the second shot is to a green that is hidden from sight on the fairway.

The finishing holes are all very good, which adds to the satisfaction of playing the course. A well-designed golf course should always reach a climatic ending in style and River Oaks does that. After a nice par-three in the woods at 15 there’s a short par-five (503 from the tips) that can be reached in two by the big hitters, and then comes the course’s signature hole in my estimation, the 210-yard par-three 17^th that plays across a pond to a narrow green. The 18^th is solid, a double dogleg par-five that demands a lusty drive, a well-placed layup and a short iron into a large green that is protected by  bunkers.

All in all, River Oaks is as good a golf course as you will find in the state. If you ever get the chance, do yourself a favor and test out this beauty. Check out www.clubriveroaks.com.

The Cape is a wonderful venue for fall golf, with the courses in good condition and the competition for tee times nowhere near as intense as during the summer months. Courses on the Cape will stay open all winter, providing Old Man Winter doesn’t send snow or ice pelting down on the peninsula that sticks out like a flexed arm into the Atlantic Ocean.

Starting at Bourne and ranging to Truro, the Cape boasts a wide variety of layouts–from exclusive private clubs to little nine-hole gems that never fail to delight. Many courses offer fabulous fall greens fees.

Cranberry Valley Golf Course, designed by Geoffrey Cornish and Brian Silva and located in Harwich, is well a maintained course and features a superb routing that flows easily over beautiful terrain, which includes marshes and, of course, a few cranberry bogs.

Management enhanced the course a few years ago through an extensive bunker redesign and restoration, overseen by noted architect Mark Mungeam. Several fairway bunkers were relocated so as to come into play to protect par against today’s modern equipment, although the best players can still dare to fly the traps off the tee.

Cranberry Valley isn’t overly long, 6,745, but there are a number of dogleg holes that add invisible yardage and demand proper club selection and shot placement off the tee.

Bay Pointe Country Club in Onset offers a fun routing and a course that is easy to walk. The course, located just a mile from the Cape Cod Canal on the mainland side of the Cape, plays only 6,201 yards from the tips and is a par 70. It is a shot maker’s course, one where correct club selection and accurate positioning is rewarded more than brute strength off the tee.

The terrain of Bay Pointe is gentle, except for some hilly sections on the opening two holes, the first a par-five that measures close to 500 yards and the second the longest par-four on the course at 465 yards.

The layout also features one of the few island greens in Massachusetts, the seventh hole, which plays only 100 yards from the back tees. But you had better hit it right on the number or double bogey comes into the equation.

A few miles away is Sandwich Hollows Golf Club, which offers views of Cape Cod Bay to the north from several holes. The course is bordered by hundreds of acres of conservation area to the east, west and south, giving golfers the feeling of being isolated from players on other holes.

Sandwich Hollows features a number of par-fours on the short side, several long par-threes, and challenging par-fives, one of which (the sixth hole) measures close to 600 yards from the tips.

Up Route 6 a bit from Sandwich Hollows is the Yarmouth’s 45-hole facility that includes Bayberry Hills Golf Course and The Links 9 and Bass River Golf Course.

The original 18 holes at Bayberry Hills was designed by the team of Geoffrey Cornish and Brian Silva and opened for play in 1986. The layout can be stretched to almost 7,200 yards. The track features seven par-fours of over 400 yards and three par-threes over 200 yards, including the monstrous 241-yard 17^th hole. Number four is a good par-four, playing around 400 yards with water guarding the right side of the fairway landing area and the front of the green.

The Links 9 was opened in 1999 and is a fun course to play if you want to tack another nine holes onto your round or are merely looking to fit a little golf in between sightseeing or walking the beach. A number of the holes are doglegs, which makes approach shots tricky if you don’t put your tee shot in the proper position. Number nine is a 195-yard par-three that demands a solid shot over water to reach a medium size green.

In contrast to the modern look of Bayberry Hills, Bass River Golf Club offers a 100-year-old course that the legendary Donald Ross renovated and expanded in 1914. The layout rolls along among trees and sandy hills and features narrow fairways, small greens and views of nearby Bass River.

The club’s signature hole is the sixth, a 169-yard three par that plays across the river. The layout is on the short side, but the holes demand good shot making and a deft touch around the greens, a Ross trademark.

The Captains Golf Course is Brewster offers 36 holes of very good golf on two distinct 18-hole layouts. The club bills itself as the Cape’s premier public golf facility. The conditioning here is always top notch, the golf is challenging and scenic, there are two practice greens and a driving range, a restaurant, a staff that is always available for lessons, and a fully-stocked pro shop.

The two courses–The Port and The Starboard–are solid routings. The Port plays to a yardage of 6,724 yards and has a slope of 131 and a rating above its posted par of 72, which gives an indication of the difficulty of some of the holes. Perhaps the best is the 573-yard, par-five eighth. A pond guards the putting surface and there are several large fairway bunkers to complicate matters.

The Starboard Course plays around 6,800 yards and has a slope of 122. It’s a bit more “player friendly,” with wide fairways and large greens and fewer bunkers than its sister track, which makes it more suitable for seniors and mid-handicappers. Number 18 is a great finishing hole, a 534-yard par-five that can be reached in two by big hitters.

Falmouth Country Club is a town-owned club that has 27 holes of golf–an 18-hole, par-72 course and the nine-hole “Talon” layout that appeals to players of all abilities, especially seniors, ladies and juniors.

FCC’s holes have a “Carolina” feel, and it is real treat to play here during autumn when the warm breezes blow off the Atlantic Ocean and the sun shines through the tall pines that line much of the layout.

FCC’s Championship Course plays 6,665 yards from the tips and has a par of 72. There is a nice mix of short, mid-length and long par-fours that will have you hitting every club in your bag, both off the tees and on approaches to the medium-sized greens.

The Talon Course plays 3,455 yards from the tips and, despite its reputation as a “family” course, the track has quite a bit of bite, such as the monstrous, 495-yard par-four first hole.

Quashnet Valley Country Club in Mashpee is considered one of Cape Cod’s true gems.

The 6,601-yard, par-72 championship layout offers an approachable routing for all golfers, yet one that can be tricky and baffle the best players at times. A number of the holes are lined with waste areas or wetlands, which means that you’d better keep the ball straight off the tee if you want to enjoy your round.

The seventh hole is a great par-five, playing 525 yards from the tips and big hitters can get on or close to the putting surface in two shots with a big drive. But water runs almost all the way down to the green on the left side and the fairway is somewhat narrow.

The Brookside Club in Bourne calls itself a public club with a private feel. The layout was originally designed by Mike Hurzdan and refined by John Sanford 15 years ago. It offers very good conditions and an approachable routing, one that pleases beginners and scratch golfers alike.

The first hole is a 460-yard par-four that tests you right out of the box, and the 10^th hole is a nice par-five that plays almost 600 yards and tumbles softly downhill to the green.

Waverly Oaks Golf Club in Plymouth, a town that is considered part of “the old Cape,” has 27 holes of great golf.

The Championship Course is a test but it won’t beat you up. The 251-yard 17^th, perhaps the most difficult short hole in the region, demands a lusty tee shot over a waste area and a yawning bunker that sits some 15 feet below the putting surface.

The club’s Challenger Course is a super spot for beginners and high-handicappers to have some fun. The layout plays only 2,264 yards from the back and is a par-33. Conditions on the Challenger track are just as good as on the Championship Course.

Visit www.capecodchamber.org for individual course website information.

Surrounded by a few of my close friends and family and an Army honor guard that saluted dad for his service in Europe during World War II in tear-jerking fashion, Armond Torsiello was put into the ground next to my mom, who had passed away almost 17 years ago. They handed me the flag that was draped over dad’s coffin, saluted and thanked me for my father’s service to his country, a service he was so proud of and told me about often, especially in his later years. Another of America’s Greatest Generation gone from the earth by not forgotten.

I owe my father everything I am, of course. He helped care for me when I couldn’t care for myself, picked up after my messes when I was a dumb teenager, helped my family through occasional tough financial times with an ease that only parents can pull off. And he never asked anything in return. I like to think that I did indeed pay dad back later in life by making sure he was fine and happy at the senior housing apartments where he lived in peace after my mom died, and then ensuring he was well cared for and loved when he entered a rest home a year and a half ago.

One of the greatest gifts my father gave me was a love for and participation in sports. Baseball, basketball, tennis, bowling and football, he loved it all and passed that precious gift down to an eager son, his only child. One of my first memories was watching the 1958 National Football League championship game between the New York Gants and the Baltimore Colts on a cold, early December afternoon. Dad was upset because Johnny Unitas was my favorite player and I rooted for the Colts, while he was a New York Giants fan.

There were meetings with great Giants players of the 1960’s during “sports nights”  at dad’s veteran’s club, guys like Del Shofner and Y.A. Title, who would drive up to Torrington, Ct. for $500 bucks and a dinner and sign autographs for wide-eyed kids like me until their hands hurt.

Dad never pushed sports on me, rather I absorbed them through osmosis and he loved every minute of it. As I sat next to his casket this week listening to a bugler blow taps, I was taken back to the day when dad brought me to my first Major League baseball game. I recalled vividly how green the grass looked as we walked out of the tunnel and into the stands at Yankee Stadium. I got to see Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle hit home runs that day and I still have a button my dad bought for me of Maris hanging in my office.

Dad also instilled in me a love for golf. He wasn’t very good at it but he liked the game a lot, found it fun to hang out with his brothers and work buddies and walk nine holes on a regular basis. There was the first set of Wilson woods (persimmon) and irons my parents gave me for Christmas and days of being dropped off at a local golf course during the summer, where me and my cousins and friends would spend the entire day playing the game, I think for something like three bucks apiece.

We all caught the golf bug. Arnold Palmer was big then and Arnie was cool. I set up a nine-hole course in our backyard and used plastic golf balls to play fantasy matches between the famous players of the day. One of my friends even went so far as to build a dirt course in an abandoned gravel pit behind his house.

Dad and I would play occasionally. He was a lefty swinger and never really mastered the game, although he became a steady bogey golfer once he retired and joined a league. He and my late uncle, Chet, would get a kick out of how far my cousin and I could hit the ball with our new drivers that seemed so large back then but appear nothing more than 3-woods by today’s standards.

Dad and my uncle would tell some great stories about their golf, like the time my uncle pulled a ball away from some deep rough so he could hit a shot and was reprimanded by his opponent for doing so. “Oh, be quiet, it’s just a game and we aren’t going to be around for much longer,” my uncle fired back and kept right on rolling the ball whenever he needed to.

Once, when playing with dad I noticed that every time he marked his golf ball on the green he threw the coin down so that it landed a few inches closer to the hole than it should have. I questioned him on it and he said, “What’s the big deal? It’s only a few inches,” and I never questioned him on it again.

He and my uncle would occasionally ask what one or the other got on a certain hole and they would answer, “Give me a five,” or “Give me a four.”  Which, of course, was bending the truth a bit, but again it was just a game, so what the heck.

Later in both my dad and my uncle’s lives, my cousin, Rick, and I would challenge them to a yearly match, offering them a stroke a hole in the best-ball format. The Old Guys usually prevailed but that’s the way Rick and I really wanted it to turn out anyway. It was more about re-bonding and expressing our gratitude for all the sacrifices our fathers made for us and the love of golf they instilled in us. I still laugh when I recall dad pumping his fist after he smoked a five-wood to a green on a par-four, knowing that his shot probably secured them the victory and the chance to hold the trophy for one more year.

Dad and I would enjoy sitting in front of the television set and watch the pros play. He loved Arnie and off-beat guys, like Chi Chi Rodriguez and Lee Trevino and then later found a special liking for Mark Calcavecchia and Rocco Mediate because of their Italian-American heritage. Of course, anybody I interviewed also became a favorite of his. He would read the stories I wrote with interest and comment on them when we saw one another. As they say, he was “involved” in what I was doing and it made me feel appreciated. And there is no better feeling you can get from your dad than the feeling of being appreciated.

His proudest moment on a golf course came when he won The Retirees Golf League championships at Eastwoods Country Club, a little nine-hole course in Torrington, when he was 80. I waited for him to come in on the last hole so I could find out what happened in the big championship match, and there was dad, riding on back of the golf cart with his partner, smiling and waving. We knew dad had finally won that darn cup, closing his opponents out on the eighth hole, after so many years of trying.

Dad is gone now but not really. He lives in my soul and in my memory and I’ll think of him every day, especially when I’m on a golf course, a place that he taught me to love and enjoy. In the end, the greatest gift a father can give to his child is just that, to love and enjoy life.

Dad stopped playing golf a few years back because he was having trouble with his balance. I’ll turn his left-handed sticks over to my daughter, who somehow picked up this backwards approach to the game from grandpa. Jen and her husband Brandon are having a baby in a few weeks and we will all try to infuse in him a love for anything involving a ball, just like my father did with me.

Goodbye dad. See if you can arrange a few more birdies and maybe an eagle for me. I miss you.

Lexi Thompson

Lexi Thompson is the coolest thing to hit professional golf since a fresh-faced Tiger Woods burst onto the scene and into our living rooms 15 years ago and made everyone fall in love with the game. Seems so long ago, doesn’t it?

But Ms. Thompson has a chance to reenergize a sport that needs new energy. The LPGA did the right thing in granting her playing status in 2012 even though she hasn’t yet had a chance to take her Justin Bieber posters off her bedroom wall.

Listen, the kid (16 years old) can play. And if she can win on a professional Tour like she did when she captured the Navistar Classic recently (by five shots no less) then she deserves a chance to keep playing and winning. Golf desperately needs a feel good story, some kid that we can get excited about and who will draw young fans (and, let’s face it, women) to the game the way Woods did when he burst upon the scene and performed magic for a dozen years.

We thought Michele Wie was going to revolutionize the sport for he ladies a few years back and she did, kind of. That was before she adopted an ass-backwards approach of spending much of her teenage years golfing and trying to play on the both the women’s and men’s tours, and then deciding go to college when she should be out living up to the hype that surrounded her when she was a 13-year-old bombing it 300 yards and beating men. I honestly think Wie is going to Stanford to tick her parents off. They ruled her life with such an iron fist when she was a kid and wound up depriving her of basic joys, like having a boyfriend and going to her high school prom. Instead, she played golf and then she played more golf and more golf until she was burned out. Remember those 88’s she was throwing up a few years back? I’m not one to knock education but it is difficult for me to understand anyone with the athletic talent that Wie possesses (as well as millions in the bank from endorsements and winnings) would want to stay up until 3 a.m. cramming for a trigonometry exam. A tad bizarre if you ask me. But that’s her life.

Alexis Thompson is rarin’ to go and I can’t wait to how this kid does next year. She’s wise not to jump full bore into the LPGA this year and wait until she has her mind and affairs sorted out before she goes at it fulltime in 2012.

Golf needs Lexi Thompson the way it needed Tiger Woods. She can attract young girls (and boys) to the game, which is one significant and lasting way we can grow golf in the coming years. Young female golfers have traditionally been underserved and often they are intimidated by the game. Women’s golf organizations have also not done enough to promote the game to girls (i.e., spending money establishing junior programs for girls, funding female high school teams, etc.). Alexi can pump a new vitality into the game and finally make young females understand the joys of competing at what is one of the best games ever invented.

With Tiger on the wane, Alexis Thompson may just be the next savior the game needs.

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