Chanticlair Golf Club

I have played Chanticler three times and have enjoyed each round. The course is challenging without being overly difficult. Holes are not real long, which is good for a senior golfer such as myself.

Pace of play has been a bit slow. Today is Father's Day, so probably more play than usual.

Check out this course. I think you will enjoy it.

A lot of fun . Course was challenging and fair . Great value . I would definitely go back!!!

Fairways and greens were nice . Somewhat challenging holes , nice round .

Fairways back to back and dangerous. Lot of “four” calls.

Good course great time with friends and a good price

Played a quick 9 on Saturday morning with a buddy of mine. Cheap on golfnow, expectations were low. $50 for 2 players and a cart for 9. Cool. Course was.dry. Connecticut has been dry. All the water hazards were extremely low and it looks like the only part of the course that sees constant water is the greens, teeboxes were pretty hard and not distinguished. Putting was slow, but fun. There are some really hard holes, 6, 7, 8 that require precise shots. 4th hole could be beautiful considering its design, and the first 3 holes are a nice warm up. Good course for the beginner golfer to learn to play. Guy in shop didn't offer any sort of guidance...but its pretty self explanatory. We did 9 holes in about 2 hours.

The only complaint I have is the tee boxes are in very rough shape compared to other places I have played. Don’t expect to hit irons off the tee box with out a tee. Other than that enjoyed the course greens and fairways in good condition

Love being in this part of CT(Colchester). Course Delivers in every way, although only being 9 holes.

Straightforward course with good condition tee boxes and greens. A little rough around the edges but a very good round of golf.

Over my first few rounds played at Chanticlair in the mid-1990's, it occurred to me right away that this was a straightforward and sound track, but also a golf course infused with several real challenges. Granted, with a slope of 116, it's aimed pretty squarely at intermediate players (most courses are), but better players will find something to like here because there are some stringent holes. Play this nine from the back tees. You'll likely see my point.

Holes 2, 5, and 6 form the foundation of the course. Their difficulty is moderate. If you play them well, if you manage your game sensibly tee-to-green on these three, the reward will be three pars, or, with an especially deft stroke made on one of them, a 'bonus' birdie in the mix. Two runs nearly 400 yards from the blues and sports an open driving area, but several hazards around the green liven things up. Five, a classic, reachable short par-5 with a left-bending dogleg, should have you playing strategically to find its surface in two. Six is another leftward dogleg favoring a draw; the approach to the green is best made from the right side (trees on the left make an approach dicey from that side).

All well and good. Then there are the "green light" holes: distinct birdie opportunities at three, seven and nine, tempting holes each. I usually have the aggressive mentality playing these: "Batten down the hatches, lower the boom, take out the driver! And fire at every pin!" With a wedge in my hand on three and seven and a pair of accessible pins, birdies are within reach.

But when things sound a little too easy or simple in golf, there’s invariably a catch. Here, it is playing holes one, four, and eight from the back tees.

HOPE YOU BROUGHT YOU’RE “A” GAME FOR THESE THREE: The par-three first hole is rigorous from the blues, given that we’re hitting over a pond directly in front of the tee and toward a rather small target some 205 yards distant. So one’s pulse will oftentimes flutter a bit when standing on this back tee. In fact it is all too easy to pull or overdraw the shot left, where a 3-foot embankment snags the errant shot rather savagely, while misses that fall to the right meet slightly better fortunes and make for easier pitches—from his angle—onto a shallow green.

Then there is the island hole at four.

Now, island holes are relatively simple propositions: miss the water, hit the green. But consider the most famous island hole in the world for a wee bit of perspective on this one in Colchester, Connecticut. The back tees’ yardage at Chanticlair’s fourth are virtually identical (138 vs. 137) to those at the famed TPC Sawgrass, Pete Dye’s Stadium Course in Ponte Vedra, Florida. Add to that relatively similar green sizes: TPC is 3,912 square feet; while Chanticlair’s is in the neighborhood of 5,000, or slightly above the average green size—4,500 square feet.

What we have, then, at Chanticlair is a compelling amateur analogue to a hole that surely tests the very best touring pros every year. The going rate to play the Stadium Course is $450, just a bit pricier than Chanticlair. I played a somewhat longer Perry Dye island hole last year in Hawaii (the venue was Makani, on the Big Island). This hole is remarkably similar to his father’s iconic Stadium creation, and the Makani hole (#17) felt to me about as difficult as Chanticlair #4. The carry at Makani's 17th was a bit longer, but the green, somewhat larger, was equally forgiving (or unforgiving, depending on your perspective). Maybe not everyone will be convinced by this. But I've estimated the number of balls the pros hit into the water at TPC Florida's 17th versus those amateurs hit into the water on Chanticlair's 4th. Put it this way: if there were no divers routinely retrieving submerged or 'lost' balls in the pond around this hole, the banks of its green complex would be overflowing with golf balls.

Finally, for a test of the highest precision, there is dogleg-left, par-4 eighth. It is hardly an overstatement to say that this hole induces agony from the back tees when your driver is uncooperative. Hooks, slices, even marginally pulled or pushed drives—all are devoured with an equal ferocity by this 380-yard uphill, tree-lined mini-monster. At some moments, particularly after the tee shot is played, the odds of making par feel about equivalent to those of my purchasing the $4.5 million Lamborghini Veneno roadster. The eighth, it is safe to say, will certainly demand everyone’s best efforts. Hit the drive too short and the approach will need to bend around the corner-hugging trees. Hit it both long and straight enough, however, and your reward is a simple pitch to a beautifully pitched (back to front) and undulating green.

Today's Experience: Enjoying a Game with some Good Golfers: This was an interesting day because I began by joining up with Bob, a Chanticlair member and very capable player, who left after hole 5 (the pace was slow for him; I couldn't blame him). On hole six I joined with two twenty-something power hitters—both named Matt (surnames Fresk and Dominioni), who later both smashed their drivers within fifty yards of the par-4 seventh. Nice to have a little speed in one's downswing. We enjoyed each other's company, and I learned that this was their first outing at Chanticlair (they went on to play a second nine), and I asked about what other courses they liked. Both are fans of Tallwood and Blackledge (AG), along with Lyman-Jones. Hmmm, they share my tastes. Interestingly enough, Matt Fresk's father is David Fresk, who worked closely with one Mr. Pete Dye, and was involved in—among other projects—TPC River Highlands. I was also pleased to meet Harsh Patel on the tenth tee (he joined up with the other two affable young men) where we talked golf a bit before I left. Mr. Patel, another guy with a power game, gave a firm endorsement of Chanticlair because he believes if you can play some of the tight holes here, "you can play almost anywhere else." Take a look at the photos and you'll see these three playing the first hole.

Slow play, unfortunately, was the only issue: over 2 hours and twenty minutes to play nine. I did see the clubhouse attendant out monitoring the seventh and eighth fairways for the problem's source, so I've left 'pace' out of the ratings. I know that both of the Stollmans—Carey and David—do their utmost to combat slow play at Chanticlair, having witnessed them doing so here earlier this year.

STRONG CONDITIONING: Today, above all, Chanticlair was impressive for its excellent overall conditioning. The fairways are lush and consistent; the rough smooth, the tee boxes groomed, and greenside fringes and rough excellent. One weakness, however, was slow greens; they didn't seem to have been cut for a few days. I could see everyone's footprints—far too distinctly—on the greens. Still, each putting surface was basically consistent, relatively smooth, and unblemished. And the entire course has a manicured look; it's as good as I've seen it.

Course was difficult from the Blue tees.

Starts with a 205 yard par 3, followed by a 410 yard par 4. I am an intermediate golfer-about a 14-15 handicap, so those first two holes are a tough start.

Island green is fun to play. The green is very large so it is not too hard to hit.

#5 is a tough dogleg left hole. You can drive it through the fairway straight if too long or be blocked out on left if too short. Second shot in is 170 from middle of fairway.

7 and 8 are narrow. Must be accurate off the tee.

9 is the easiest hole on the course, although OB on left if you hook it off the tee.

I enjoy playing here. Decent price, casual, good experience. Only complaint is that better signs at each tee would be nice to explain where the green is.

Course is good for walking. Layout is ok with some challenge to it. Tee boxes, fairways, and greens are in rough shape. Course was crowded but played nine holes in under two hours. If you are just starting out playing golf and don’t want to play a championship level golf club this is the place for you.