Wyckoff Country Club

In the rolling hills near Mt. Tom. Greens are smaller than I'm used to and some are very SEVERELY sloped. You've heard of the 'wrong side of the hole'?...putts above the hole on several holes couldn't be stopped within 15' of hole (including multiple attempts). Is fun to play once as long as you ride (wouldn't recommend walking it) and are OK with shooting a much higher score than you're used to.

Set among the hilly environs of Holyoke and overlooking a scenic valley, the classically-styled Wyckoff Country Club radiates a warm green glow during sunny spring afternoons like this one was, with temps in the mid-60’s. The course is well-designed and its fairways are expansive enough to encourage strategic play from tees to greens. The siting of these greens, which is widely varied but includes many elevated positions, demands a higher level of iron play than on most golf courses.

LAYOUT

Wyckoff CC is hilly and should fully test your game. One fairly immense ridge on the front side makes for a tough stretch over holes two through six. And the sixth seems the toughest par-4 at Wyckoff, although rivalled by the seventeenth. The back side, too, features fairways that cross steep terrain, but overall its slopes are less severe. Excellent variety may be the inward half’s key characteristic, though: each hole has an individualistic quality. But watch out for the two long-par 3’s as you conclude your round, which can be card-wreckers unless you play them well and carefully.

HAZARDS & DEFENSES

Wyckoff features profuse and often deep greenside bunkers. There are a few ponds, some streams, and several marshy areas. The most prominent defense may be the tree-lined fairways and the woods, which are more prevalent on the back nine. And sometimes you’ll encounter huge–and often devastating–falloffs around the greens.

COOL HOLES

I like these three: the unique drive-and-pitch opener, the dramatic, downhill twelfth (a genuinely tough par), and thirteen, the reachable but well-defended par-five.

CONDITIONING

Early spring conditions: aerated and sandy greens; many sandy tees; rough patches around some of the fairways, greenside roughs and fairway roughs. Bunker conditions have improved and the fairways were good for springtime. Overall, then, course conditions range from fair to good, but expect better here (which has been my experience) before too long.

BOTTOM LINE

Al Zikorus’ remake of what was once wholly a Donald Ross layout certainly works for me because he smartly retained the general spirit of Golden Age golf courses. The slope is 131 from the blue tees, so be ready for strong resistance to scoring here.

Being early season, the fairway and rough had not grown in yet and rain the night before had left some of the areas swampy. The greens had been aerated within the past week or two. Allowing a couple more weeks for the weather to warm up, and the greens to heal, the course will definitely be much more playable.

good challenging golf course. It has improved since i last played there. I will be back!

Course in good condition. Greens were easy to read & in excellent shape

Great course and a great staff

Wyckoff Country Club was popular today, with visitors partaking in golf and a wedding, though certainly not simultaneously. This was my second play of this beautifully set and classic course which plays over rolling hills and tree-lined fairways, and it surely won’t be my last.

The blueprint for Wyckoff seems primarily to exploit several large hills over this excellent terrain. As a rule, the holes run up and down them, with a typical green site often perched atop a hill or at the base of one. Only a few holes in the vicinity of the clubhouse are somewhat flat--though they have some pitch and roll. The sixth, sixteenth, and seventeenth stand out as the only ruthlessly tough tests, but there are no routine holes at Wyckoff; all mete out some form of challenge. Bunkering is abundant enough and a few marshy water hazards show up, yet most of the big tee-to-green headaches to be experienced stem from the hills and the woodlands. Tall, mature trees make their presence felt throughout these eighteen: on 15, for instance, huge tree limbs guard the right side of the green.

In my review of this course last year, I overstated (based on limited knowledge) the extent to which this is a Donald Ross layout. It’s more accurate to call it, despite Ross' early contribution, mostly the handiwork of Al Zikorus. According to a knowledgeable staffer (Assistant Pro?) I met today, much of what Ross originally designed--which formerly sat across I-91--is now gone. Still, Mr. Zikorus’ rerouting and re-design, which apparently preserved some of the Ross holes, still seems to owe much, overall, to Rossian ideals about what a golf course should look like, not to mention how it should play. The greens, above all, seem similar, but there is also an emphasis on the use of ground contours on both the fairways and around greens that recalls Ross. The bunkering also resembles what Ross tended to do without being slavishly imitative.

Design credits aside, the bottom line is this: Wyckoff is an excellent layout. It’s fun, varied, and never boring. Putting the greens may well be the toughest obstacle here, but you’ll still need your long game and plenty of short-game finesse when greens are missed. The biggest bonus, though, is the tremendous vistas you’ll enjoy, most prominently on holes 1, 3, 5, 6, 10, 11 and 12 (have I missed any?).

The Layout:

Although the front nine is fairly unrelenting and has a few standout holes that include the second, fifth, and sixth, the back nine is still superior in terms of overall challenge. You’ll start out with two shorter but tricky four-pars at ten and eleven, launch into the heart of the nine with fair-but-tough holes from twelve through fifteen, and then try to survive a fairly brutal finish that culminates at the devilish 16th and 17th holes. But these were the two holes I most enjoyed playing today:

Thirteen. Par-5, 478 yards.

A terrific hole that may be reached in two with a stout drive and straight second. The green, well-protected and blind from the fairway, is best hit by a high approach that lands softly. Trouble abounds if you miss it.

Fourteen: Par-4, 393 yards.

Classic driving hole to a doglegging fairway surrounded by woods. The approach travels uphill to a well-perched green, which is no easy target. A great view is to be enjoyed, back upon the hills, when you reach the putting surface.

Playing Experience:

Met up with a couple of friendly players at nine, one of whom continued on for several on the back side and was interesting company. Also met Mike Bergeron, the Head Professional, at check-in. Very friendly and accommodating staff.

Conditions:

Very good, and much improved over my visit here last fall. Fairways were plush if a big shaggy (except a few tees) well above average. A few of the greens (16 and especially 17) were too speedy downhill. Is it because they’ll soon be playing a qualifying round here for the Mass. Senior Championship?

Some Conclusions

The course may measure just above 6,000 yards, but it’s a par-69 and so plays quite a bit longer; its numerous hazards and hills make it far from spineless. I’m finding it worth the hour drive.

Wycoff was in excellent shape today, the fairways were green and trimmed, and the greens were green after air raiding. No signs of dryness or burnout. Wycoff has always been a hilly course as it’s located on Mount Tom which makes it challenging. I have played this course numerous times over the years as my father was a member in the 1990s and 2000s, and I still find the course enjoyable. I would highly recommend playing this course.

Jamie R