Waukewan Golf Club

5 out of 5. The scenic views are beautiful and Cathy at the pro shop is the best!!

If you appreciate vintage golf courses, or those with bold and rugged contours, or maybe just the unspoiled beauty of New Hampshire, you won't want to pass up Waukewan. Set just outside the picturesque town of Meredith at the northern end of Lake Winnipesaukee, this is the kind of course where you might expect to see a moose wandering across the fairway from out of the marshland. I haven’t yet, but who knows? Short and mostly open enough to encourage creative golfers to find the best route to the hole, Waukewan encourages strategic and adventurous play. At other junctures, one may feel hemmed in by the sometimes tree-lined fairways. Time to play 'safe' golf.

The creation of the Hale family, with its two nines built separately, Waukewan is cleverly designed and features a variety of interesting green complexes. The first example of the latter comes at hole one, where you'll find a plunging, Donald Ross-style entrance to the putting surface, which, being blind on the approach and quite small, eludes all but sharp, well-planned iron shots. It is easily missed long, where a hidden bunker may snag your Titleist.

While it's unlikely that you'll hear anyone comparing Waukewan's difficulty with Winged Foot's, this fine public-access course offers some impressive challenges. Sprinkled into the mix are doglegs, steep and perilous slopes, and the occasional long hole. The pitched, quick greens often undulate and sometimes seem to encourage three-putting. Even on those few holes here that can be outmatched by strong players wielding modern clubs and using today’s hot golf balls, it's expected that everyone should think her or his way around the course to earn pars or less.

Stylish Par-threes:

The big, sloping greens on the quartet of par-3's here create interest enough, but three of the four are also long-ish, and no two feel even remotely alike. Both seven and eleven are standouts, yet the seventh impresses especially because its green, cleverly concealed on the tee shot, is fortified with big bunkers. The terrain around this green, like many others here, is tricky. You’ll need your best chipping effort if you’ve missed the putting surface.

Toughest Hole: Thirteen (410 yard par-4)

Thirteen is so tough that I'd guess the mathematically mean score to be about five and a half. On the drive, where big trees crowd the left side and a pond lies hidden to the right, the expansive fairway seems generous. But the trees crowd the second shot's airspace on the left hand side, so driving into the left rough or even sometimes the fairway presents problems for the subsequent approach, uphill—as it is—and to a two-tiered green. The usual miss on the second shot falls short of and below this green. Here you'll see the putting surface's rather massive second tier rising prominently. Pitching from this area, I try to land it near this huge uprise, lending the ball enough momentum to roll onto the upper tier. For the highly skilled, a riskier alternative: fly the ball onto the top level. But those who miss long at green thirteen will find a world of trouble.

Best Hole: Eight (470 yard par-5)

The eighth defies even good shots hit on this brute, an uphill five-par. On the drive, where two wide bunkers flank the fairway, you can try to either thread it down the middle, or perhaps try to the aerial route. The approach on the second shot, flying up the huge slope toward the perched green, smashed string-straight, travelling in excess of 200 yards, needing to be a supremely confident stroke, could, if you're lucky, get you on in two. If a third stroke becomes necessary into green eight, be it a pitch shot or short iron, nothing less than perfect execution is required: the surface is on the small side, and a frontal 'wall' rejects anything short. I block the faintest thought of failure out of my mind when playing eight. With good fortune, this works. There is a compensation for our toils here, though: this may be the most scenic hole at Waukewan.

Most Interesting Hole: Twelve (270 yard par-4)

Even though designed in the mid-20th century, this course has a few touches that harken back to Golden Age (1920's) layouts. For example, the big trap preceding twelve's green by some 25 yards feels like something Donald Ross or Devereux Emmett might have created, but its pronounced lip is not so tall that you can't bounce your tee shot over it. Voila! A one-shotter. Doing just this today, I left my drive a few feet off the small green. Luck, of course, was involved. But this hole puts up an equally stern defense when played in two shots tee-to-green, as the putting surface is surrounded by four sizeable traps in all.

Other notes and comments:

(A) The big news here is conditioning. Waukewan struggled last year with it, but this season marks a return to form. The only problem we found today was a degree of patchiness on some of the low-lying fairways. But the greens excelled, along with almost every key facet. For a public course, it looks superior. The greens putt smoothly. Course was a bit dry but almost exclusively in the rough.

(B) Not every hole is perfect here, but there are many strong ones, including four, a short par-4 with the tightest of fairways and a tricky setting around its green; six, a par-five which exercises precise shot placement; nine, a classic uphill par-4 over a pond; fifteen, an uphill 480-yard five-par that puts a premium on straight hitting and sports a fiendishly sloping green back to front; and seventeen, a unique par-5 that calls for course knowledge, patience, and a above all a well-played tee shot. The best stretch of holes runs from 11 through 17.

(C) The pro shop staff finds every avenue to satisfy visitors. Bob, the pro, is a knowledgeable resource about this course and the game of golf. He let us play the back nine first so as to bypass league play. After the round, I also chatted with Cathy, who gave me suggestions for playing here again later this summer. Also met the assistant pro, Tyler Somers, who was accommodating and helpful when I wanted to take a few extra pics of the course. I first played at Waukewan some 40 years ago. Little has changed. Awesome service.

(D) Conversed with a club member here who is impressed with the how the staff returned conditions to excellence in 2020, after some tough, weather-related breaks last year. A good golfer, he also enjoys the layout, especially each hole's distinctiveness at Waukewan.

(E) Value: A high-quality golf experience, reasonably priced. My son and I had an excellent (and tied) match here today, although he outplayed me tee-to-green, and the layout brought out our better golfing selves. What more could we ask for?

Waukewan very very dry, which is very unusual for this course. Have not played here for about 3 years. Was in good shape and place of play was also good.

been a member here for 13 years and the course is the best it has ever been!Tim and Tom are doing great.

Short, straightforward course. Excellently maintained. Had a group in front of us that destroyed the pace of play so not sure what the pace would be with normal golfers. Would like to play this course a few times to see how gettable it is. Will definitely come back

Coutse in decent condition

greens are good but slow

This is one of my go-to courses for play. Perfect level of challenge so that I don't get too frustrated. It is also a wonderful setting for a golf course in the mountains. The staff is great.

A great course! Good challenge. Some of the course had some rough patches of grass on the greens but fairways and rough were in great shape.

Waukewan is in great shape! The price is right, cart included! Tim and his staff are incredibly helpful and friendly. The entire experience was terrific from beginning to end. In our foursome, we all took our own carts and they were very clean during this time. The speed of play could not have been better - 18 holes in just over three hours! Could not have asked for a better experience. Thank you!

Such a great place to play. Course has enough hazards to make it very interesting for my skill level (OK, difficult). We played last year, but the back nine was not open. Got to play 10-18 this time out. The last 9 holes are very nice. It is a bit of a hike for me, but I still plan to go at least one more time this season. It was worth the drive.

I played Waukewan twice last summer while vacationing up at Squam Lake. The course layout is not overly challenging but tests your overall game with some tricky bends and hole layouts throughout the round. The staff is super friendly and they even have a driving range to warm up on. Overall, the course is very beautiful and scenic and one I will be quick to come back to.

I have played this course about 12-14 times. I have also played a few tournaments here and have always enjoyed the overall experience. I have two children learning to play golf and I have taken them here 5-6 times and they have also enjoyed the course. They have felt comfortable playing as it has always been a friendly experience low pressure and respectful employees. The people we run into on the course have always been friendly as well. The conditions vary from year to year depending on the severity of the winter and compared to other courses in the area this one seems to be in better condition. I like the layout and will return as many times as I am able.

Waukewan is in great shape. This was a tremendous deal. We played 18 holes in 3 hours and enjoyed every single minute! Views are breathtaking. What a beautiful course!