Thousand Islands Country Club - The Old Course

I've known about the Thousand Islands Club Golf Course for years. Always thought it was private. Found out it was not. Wife and I played. Lifetime best....83.

We'll be back!

This is my first and last review of any course, ever, which shows you how passionate I am for this place.

The staff is great and do what they can with what they are given. What they are given is not much, the clubhouse is fine but really could be replaced with a small hut and patio. The conditions of the course are basic, considering the sparse staff and lack of equipment. This course is extremely overgrown with shrunken greens, fairways and tees.

All aspects of Seth Raynor are lost, if they ever were there in the first place. There are idiotic trees all over the place, most of which should be cut down and used as firewood. Every single vista is destroyed by overgrowth, flying a drone 20 feet above would be a simple showcase of what the place could look like with some proper adjustments.

The undulations in the fairways are hit and miss, but the greens have shrunk are remain flat and circular. I don't know any raynor greens that were just circles.

There is the bones of the templates that Raynor uses, but the growth of the trees destroys their playability. The course would be best to cut down and restore the vistas that once were. This course needs new ownership to invest and restore the course to what it once was, as well as restore it to the original routing. Overall the routing works well, but you can see where people who think they are smarter than Raynor changes where tee boxes are to keep up with uncontrollable technological advances.

There are also these dumb ponds placed in front of greens that serve absolutely no purpose and if you're just playing the course for the first time would stop you from ever coming back. If the course had any sense at all they would fill these in as soon as possible.

I have played this course for over 40 years. It used to be a great place to spend a day playing a fun and somewhat challenging round of golf along with a pleasant meal and drinks after the round. Well the golf is still fun but the course and clubhouse amenities have vanished. I heard it was purchased by a foreign investment group a couple of years ago and clearly they have no intention of keeping up the clubhouse, restaurant or bathroom facilities. In the past there was always a sandwich stop and restroom stop at the 9th green. Not anymore, which has resulted in our wives refusing to play with us here anymore. We played the Lake course once this summer and the clubhouse there is closed and no bathroom facilities at that course at all. We had to travel by golf cart all the way back to the main clubhouse after 9 so our wives could use the restaurant bathroom and drive all the way back to the 10th hole to finish the round. Ridiculous! The courses are too long and remote not to have a restroom out on either course. The only bathrooms at this club are upstairs in the restaurant above the clubhouse. The clubhouse/pro shop has not been updated in years. It’s dirty, unorganized and disheveled. The same descriptions apply to the restaurant, the building and surrounding grounds that lack mowing trimming and upkeep. Unfortunately there is nothing special about this place anymore.

On paper, you see the yardage and think the blue tees wont be bad, for the most part they arent but a couple holes are very challenging, like a 240 yard par 3. Green in good shape, fairways well kept. Its a bumpy ride, lots of little bumps in the fairways. Good views of the river and a good value, they usually have deals.

The Seth Raynor design did not disappoint. The course layout was phenomenal, aside from the 1st hole which was a bit corky. Certainly a course worth playing if in the area especially given its history.

Course Layout: excellent

Fairways: Fine, but hard to differentiate the fairway from the rough. (Length of grass was different, but coloring super similar)

Greens: roll true, but utterly slow (slowest I have played in the last 5 years)

Bunkers/Sand Traps: very well positioned, could be larger and deeper (they we pretty easy to get out of)

Water: The are ponds and creeks throughout the course, be mindful when teeing off and hitting approach shots

This course has the opportunity to be one of the best in upstate NY / lower Ontario. I think the best thing mgt. could do is focus on the greens and fairways and perhaps take out trees to have a more links like feel. Could see 6 greens from the clubhouse if they do so.

an average course; nothing sticks out as memorable; ok if you are in the area; a group of 12 of us drove 1.5 hrs to play this course for the first time and the consensus was that it was ok but similar or better courses are available to us closer to home.