Turner Hill Golf Club
Ipswich, MA - I recently had the opportunity to play one of the newer courses in New England, Turner Hill Golf Club. A lot has been written and said about this course and not all of it has been about the golf. The golf facilities and clubhouse were recently purchased by the membership at auction with the hope and desire of maintaining the course. So far so good. The membership’s bid was $9 million dollars and they were awarded the course and facilities while the original developer kept the home sites. To say that this membership is dedicated to its’ golf course is an under statement.
When you drive onto the property there is the feeling that you are someplace special. The 10th, 17th and 18th hole are framed by a majestic Elizabethian designed clubhouse that has been on the property for decades. The entire site was once a majestic estate and was later converted into a retreat for Catholic priests. The clubhouse inspires memories of some of the great old clubhouses such as Newport Country Club and The Country Club giving the whole golf course a feel that it has been there for generations.
I found the practice range suitable with the driving range flat with very little characteristics but it also had a rather large putting green and short game area.
The course itself was designed by Hurdzan/Frye an award winning design firm that created Shelter Harbor Golf Club, Devil’s Pulpit Golf Club, Willowbend and Widow’s Walk. The land on which they had the opportunity to build was a spectacular piece of property. The elevation changes and some of the vistas, especiallly from the 11th green and 12th tee are fantastic.
Here is a rundown look at some of the holes. I really enjoyed the par 5 second hole. You stand at an elevated tee with ample room to land your tee ball. It is a three shot hole that requires an accurate approach to a green that gradually slopes right to left. The fourth is a down hill par four that rewards well struck drives. The challenge is on the approach shot, if the pin is on the left hand side of the green it gives you little room for error. The ninth is a monster par 5 that plays uphill and offers a split fairway. I barely missed reaching in two, but instead wound up in a greenside bunker that towered over me. I was fortunate to save par, but when I climbed up to reach the green, I noticed a large two tiered green and I was lucky enough to be near the pin.
On the back nine, you start off on 10 with a picturesque downhill par three that carries over water. There are a lot of unique pin placements on the green with some of the contours of the green serving as a backboard. Thirteen is another par five that if you can manage three good shots you should be putting for birdie. Fourteen is a solid par four with a false front so your approach may be a half a club more. Fifteen is a tough golf hole with little room on the right side off the tee. Your approach is over a lateral water hazard to a large green with many undulations, but nothing too drastic. 17 and 18 offer an amphitheater setting which offers a great view from the clubhouse for the ending of any matches. 17 is a dogleg right par four over water. It has a large green. I am not a big fan of ending golf courses on a par three, but in this case it is a picturesque par three that offers a high degree of difficulty. This closing par three is a much better closing hole than The Boston Golf Club’s par three 18th.
Here are a couple of holes I wasn’t crazy about. The par four third hole just seemed to penal, if you hit your drive just a little bit left you were dead. The Fourth is a challenging par three that can play up to 243 yards from the back tees and it is all uphill, yikes. We played from the blues and 211 was more like 230 yards. I played with a NEPGA member and a former assistant both single digit handicappers and no one came close to par. On the back, the twelfth has a great view but I am not excited about hitting an iron on a par four. The green left very little room for error.
Overall, I would rate the course 7.5 out of 10. The setting is spectacular and if I were a member I would be proud to call it home. Personally I think that if they had a design team dedicated to minimalist and retro design like Coore and Crenshaw or Doak, it would’ve translated magnificently with the existing aura and setting. This course is a difficult if not impossible walk with the elevation changes but I am sure there are people who do it. The club initially sold 147 memberships from $75,000 to $117,500. When the members bought back the club that number decreased but the initiation did as well. Interested golfers can now get in at $35k which is non-refundable or $75k which is refundable by the terms outlined by the club. Currently there are over 120 members making up the membership. Turner Hill has seemed to turned the corner with a dedicated membership and a golf course that when it hosted the NEPGA Championship in 2006, only one playing professioncal broke par. The club does have the unique ability to captivate you when you turn up that driveway. The course did not disappoint and that is truly an impressive feature that can’t be overlooked.
