Agawam Municipal Golf Course

On a surprisingly pleasant late fall afternoon at this reliable muni, I played an enjoyable round, also meeting some interesting “Golf Now” guys out on the course, then joining them for a few of the closing holes. We all agreed that this is one of the top value offerings, combining, as it does, quality with a fair price.

What I like most about playing this layout, in short, is the neat contrast between the open front side and the much tighter--and more difficult--inward half. Certainly, on the front you may enjoy yourself and, if all goes to plan, make a good score, but you’ll also need to steel yourself for what is to come, starting with the short but brutal par-3 ninth.

Conditions were surprisingly good for this time of year, especially on the smooth putting surfaces here. The fairways weren’t bad, either. Only the bunkers needed a bit of attention, but who’s complaining on November 21st? The atmosphere is also friendly in the pro shop and around the clubhouse.

On the seventh tee today, a red fox appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, as I was waiting to hit my driver (see picture). A golfer from fairway eight tipped me off that he or she was imminently approaching. The fox appeared curious about whether my golf ball was edible or not, but, after knocking it off the tee, left it on the ground and casually departed the scene.

It was an unusually warm day mid-November so the course was busy. Started about 15 minutes after our tee time. But pace moved along pretty well, as we finished 9 holes in just over 2 hours.

Second time playing since late summer. Everyone played well and enjoyed the game.

We’ll be back.

Good conditions however leaves becoming a problem finding balls in play. Staff tried blowing leaves to the side helped clear fairways. Greens pretty fast. 9th hole a nightmare if you come up short. Two chips rolled back and off the green. Next time play it stronger to be sure to hold.

Great course to golf at. The grounds were very well kept and very affordable. Best course for your money.

The front 9 and back 9 are very different from each other with the front being being more open, fairly flat with back and forth fairways and the back being more peaks and valleys with a creek that crosses the fairway on several holes. For a municipal course, we didn't expect too much but the conditions overall were very, very good. We'll certainly be back.

This is a great place to play. The pro-shop staff is very courteous.

This is my first time playing this course and got a deal through GN app. I will visit again but more so on a hot dry day when the course is in decent conditions. Most of the fairways and greens were very wet and mushy. There was a huge bump on one of the greens filled with water if you are not too careful and step too hard you could have found yourself falling thru like quick sand.

I was paired with 2 other fellas who played well and maintain pace. The course had 2 small tournaments going on and wondered why they even had golfers going out. The pace was a bit slow which could have been a result of the small tournaments going on. I think this was the longest it took me to complete 18 holes over 5 hours + and halfway through I was famished. Thought I had enough snacks/Powerade to get me through the day. Normally when I play at other courses I walk and have enough energy but riding and have to wait to proceed took quite a bit out of me.

The starter was a cool old dude and did mention the tournaments and came out a few times to scold golfers of ‘cart path only’ but not sure about maintaining pace, maybe he did.

Overall, I would recommend and visit again.

Agawam Municipal has a lot going for it. The landscape on this track might be described, in a phrase, as “beautiful Southern New England;” the golf is tough enough without being punishing; the views are pleasant and varied; the atmosphere around the clubhouse friendly and low-key. It’s also a very good value.

Though the front nine may seem as if it’s going to be one-dimensional because it’s built mostly on one large hill, the architect made the most of it, crafting playable holes. The sixth green slopes excessively, in my opinion, but it’s a good hole otherwise, and the outward half finishes admirably at eight and nine--the last an amazing hole that is virtually a Donald Ross “Volcano” type. In truth, I like it a bit better than one of Ross’ own Volcanoes at Shennecossett in Connecticut. The back nine shifts the course into higher gear, and things become tougher, given the woods and the immense hills, yet it never quite goes over the line. Ten, eleven and twelve will test, fully, both your driving and approach play. The entire course is a complete test of driving; I used my driver almost everywhere as the holes aren’t too tight--it wasn’t necessary to revert to three-wood. On the plus side, as well: there are no holes where you should be “hitting and hoping,” although twelve and fourteen can be a bit nerve-wracking.

Course conditioning was good, in sum, this time out. I was surprised earlier in August to have seen a dip, in this respect, from my first play back in May. The greens putted smoothly enough and the fairways were better this time.

As I mentioned to a foursome I encountered, who are locals, they’re lucky to have not one but three good public courses in Agawam: this one, Oak Ridge, and St. Anne’s. One in this group mentioned Crestview, nearby on Shoemaker Lane, as a fourth and possibly toughest. I haven’t played it yet, but it’s also rated well on GA. Now that’s an embarrassment of riches for a relatively small town which also happens to have, as yet another form of entertainment, Six Flags.

Some conclusions:

Agawam is not a severe test for low-handicap players, but it’s still a lot of fun and offers several holes with stronger challenges. Yet many golfers will find this to be exactly their cup of tea, no doubt. It’s surely growing on me.

Pathetic.The course put us out mixed in with a golf tournament.When we arrived there were no carts available and the starter said there was a tournament but it was almost finished. Players of the tournament were upset and told us their tournament started at 12:30 and our tee time was 1:30. . We ended up playing only 9 holes because of the extremely slow tournament play and attitude from some of the tournament players.Totally wrong for the course to squeeze in the general public during a tournament. We are definately staying away from this course in the future.