Course 129: Holden Hills
Jefferson, Mass.
Played: August 16, 2024
Yardage: 6,088/5,380
Tier: Fast Casual
Rating: 2
According to my playing partners, Gary and Paul, HH has come a long way in the last 4-5 years. It’s in better shape and they pointed out spots where they cleared up some patchy areas to make holes more playable.
I played it on a foggy morning following some heavy rains, so it was a bit soggy. The greens still rolled nicely, even though some of the fringes were saturated. It’s a low lying course with plenty of water, so that’s bound to happen.
The course feels like it’s in Central Mass. The land rolls and sways while tall trees create doglegs. Players hit up and down to greens from uneven lies. HH does have its quirks. The 11th green sits very close to the driveway, and the 12th tee shot is guarded by a big tree that even a 6-iron can barely cover.
The routing requires some long walks between greens and tees, and there are some central locations where the holes converge.
There seems to be more room on the back nine, but most of the course requires players to keep their ball on a string, as doglegs turn sharply, and hitting through them can be penal.
The second hole is a monster at 620 yards. One of the longest par 5s I’ve played. It’s so long that it is a par 6 from the red tees.
The standout hole was the 15th, a 359-yard hole with a unique wall of grass along the right side. From the tee, the hole seems tight because that wall gives the illusion that the land drops off severely into a hazard or deep hole with gnarly, high rough. That’s not the case, and players can hit the ball down there. Even though the hole is dead straight, it was hard not to let my eyes creep to the right as I lined up my tee shot. Just a very cool feature.
The greens are small and round for the most part, a few have severe slopes and we had a couple pins tucked up into corners, which added to the challenge.
Be forewarned, the 18th is a long, uphill par 3.
Overall, for 35 bucks to walk on a weekday morning, Holden Hills is a solid option. The holes have some variation, and it seems like they are putting energy into improving the course to make it more playable in all types of conditions.
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