Hunters Oak Golf Club - New Course

Great links layout that used to be 27 holes. Now only 9 maintained. Conditions were very bad!

My grandfather died when I was 7 yrs old, 30 years before I started playing golf. I have a picture of him as a teenager in 1905 playing the Sunset Hill House course in Sugar Hill, NH which I tracked down, and played years ago, after I took up the game. Course conditions seemed pretty much unchanged; this was the era before manicured perfection and irrigation.

Hunters Oaks played very much the same way but is a far more interesting course. Expect an experience as if it is 1900--dry conditions, "greens" that are rough and imperfect, fairways that are dusty and hot. However, the design makes it worth playing. Many bunkers (now mostly grassed in) protect approaches. The eighth hole is particularly interesting with a series of bunkers dotting the fairway all the way to the green. Visually quite intimidating from the tee box, and targeting distances is key!

I have a high tolerance for poor conditions, when there is another reason to play. This unique 9 holer is worth experiencing-- its one of a kind.

$10 with a cart. COVID 19 honor system (put the money in the slot).

You will get glimpses of how great a course this can be. It would take time and money. For $10, it is worth a play, if only to reconnect to the old style of course conditions.

I'm sure in it's heyday the course was a gem, but I was very displeased with my entire experience. The course was in terrible condition, tee to green. Some greens weren't even worth putting on as they were completely dead (black!), while the tees and fairways were completely overcome by crabgrass. It's unfortunate that this course has been left for dead because I really liked the layout, especially the Par 5 #9 (split fairway with pond stretching up through the approach).

This is the second time I played this course. I am an intermediate player and find this course very challenging. It has recently reopened and the staff is working very hard to get it back to its former glory. It is still in very good shape and for the cost it is one of the best courses around. It is a links course with a good bit of water, so you really have to hit it straight, which is a challenge for all amateurs.
I hope the golfers in the area will continue to support this course so we on the Eastern Shore will have this affordable option.

Very disappointed to get to this course which believed had 27 holes only to find that only 9 are usable and kept up. The other 18 have not been used in years based on their look. To play 18, we had to play the same 9 holes a second time. We did ask any employee in the pro shop where hole number one was so we could start, but sadly, he had no idea.

Long Narrow Courses that are peppered with lots of odd shaped bunkers with steep knoll's that would be terrific for motor cross racing.

This course was designed as a destination for the DC crowd to come out and have weddings, conferences, golf outings etc. The owners fell onto hard times in the recession and lost the property. Current owners came in and got it for a song. As such, I get the impression this is the owners toy. It's like he's a rich guy with a really nice back yard - and he'll let you come and play for a small fee. It was designed as a links style, complete with dunes, blind shots, and pot bunkers. The design is challenging, the gnarly conditions make it even more so. I paid $10 each for my son and I on a hot deal and it was worth that. But I spent $20 on lost balls and I only played 9. No amenities, no range, the greens and tee boxes were in the process of being aerated.

The course is a diamond in the rough that has enormous potential. Yes, the conditions are a little gnarly but that's how some of the courses are in Scotland and Ireland.

The new ownership, a clueless husband and wife, bought this course on the advise of their accountant, or so I am told. They new and know nothing about golf, and had no money left over to run a golf course. They have a bare staff, which is just enough to keep the grass cut. They have hired a superintendent, but the damage from years of neglect will be costly to overcome. The back nine has been abandoned and it is not playable. These geniuses decide to reopen the adjoining parkland course, which was a dull, uninspiring course back when it was in top shape. I honestly don't know what they are thinking, but they need to sell to someone who know what they are doing. They are only charging $15-$20, and no one is ever out there, so it is a good place to practice, but the conditions are so abysmal you can't really play an actual round.

Scottish Links. This course was great! Beautiful fariway undulations, bunkers, and water hazards made me have to calculate every hole very carefully. Greens were not super fast, but definitely fast enough and rolled true to the read. Honestly, this layout design is probably one of the best I have ever played (which is close to 3 dozen courses.) Staff was very friendly and accommodating. The experience was so great that I not only played friday, but the following sunday as well. For a course this nice, $25 for 18 holes is a steal. The only issues I had with the entire course was that some of the bunkers were not in great shape (hard.)