Riverside at Juniper Hill Golf Course

I've played here a few times in past years--I'm not sure if they have a new superintendent, or just had a rough off season, but the greens are terrible! The worst I've seen in the area. I would not recommend playing here for $64--at least until they figure out the conditioning. It needs A LOT of work.

The pace of play on a Saturday morning was very slow as well. You're better off probably anywhere else.

We arrived last minute, they squeezed us in on a Tee Time. Pace of play was fast, course was very well maintained. Staff was unbelievably friendly, everyone there seemed to really enjoy working on or at the course and had great attitudes. Cant wait to go back.

Fantastic golf value. Brand new carts, plush fairways, perfect height rough, awesome design and scenery, nice greens (faster would be awesome), friendly customer service and nice bar with food on the patio afterwards.

I'd actually rate this as 3.5 stars, because there are a few very memorable holes. The Riverside course offers interesting holes, a few of which are quite difficult but fair. Lots of elevation changes, some small greens, and enough water to make life very interesting. Numbers 11 and 17 are particularly memorable and challenging. While there are plenty of trees on the course, most of the fairways are reasonably wide open. The greens are in good shape and don't have a lot of undulation or difficult breaks. Course conditions can vary--I've seen fairways burned out in one year when a drought was on, but this time around, everything was in very good shape.

I think Juniper Hill is very comfortable with its accurate reputation as that dependable public course in Metro West. It does not pretend to be a modern, high end track and the public is good with that. I play it every June with my friends. It is usually in good condition and unless it has been flooded by heavy rains, it plays fast and true. It is a homemade design by it legendary late owner Homer Darling. He used the natural lay of the land to craft some interesting New England style holes, There are numerous hills and waterways that meander through. There is ample room to steer clear of these hazards, so the public is not tortured during a round. The first is an interesting uphill dogleg right that necessitates getting far enough left to have a clear second shot to the green. The 17th is a 200 yard par 3 over water, that has a large tree protecting the left side of the green. It is all carry and 4 is not a bad score. When in doubt at JH, hit to the fat part of the fairway with less club. After a few rounds you will know where to bomb away for a birdie chance. The clubhouse does a fine job with food and beverage. The staff is friendly and makes everyone feel welcomed. JH is an easy to reach course from Rt. 20, 495 or the Mass Pike. It has been the go to course and staple of thousands of area public golfers for years and I do not see that changing. It gets the basic principle of make golf fun and the golfers will come back for more.