7. Waubeeka Golf Links

Location: Williamstown (2:49 west of Boston / 0:29 north of Pittsfield).
Architect: Rowland Armacost, 1966.

Yardage: 6394 (blue), 6024 (white), 5023 (red).
Weekend Rates: $49. Cart + $16.

Best Deal: $39 (weekday, walking).

Stunning fall foliage backdrops the 17th green at Waubeeka.

Located in Williamstown, Waubeeka Golf Links has all the ingredients to be a top public course. The condition of the course is better than ever, as the large greens run truer than a few summers ago and the fairways play firm and fast. Four small ponds dot the landscape and two branches of a rushing creek dotted with rocks crisscross fairways. The terrain is varied, from flatlands near the intersection of routes 7 and 43 to heaving hills along the southern edge of the rectangular property. I believe the inspiring mountainous views from the back nine trump Taconic's remarkable vistas up the road; from the area around the 11th green and 12th tee, you can turn in any direction and be dazzled.

Waubeeka's open nature allows mountain views from all over the course.

Unfortunately, though Waubeeka's eighteen contains a handful of superb holes, the overall design of the course doesn't live up to its setting. The head-scratching begins at the 360-yard dogleg left 1st hole. It may be the worst first hole I have ever played; its moniker, "Early Mourn," is quite appropriate, as I've seen it ruin rounds barely started way too often. The problem is a pond lurking straight down the heart of the fairway, hidden by a rise about 220 yards off the tee. Anything hit with even a little speed going over the crest is your first lost ball of the day. The only sane way to play the hole is with a pair of long irons, which makes for a highly demanding shot into the sloped green. Needless to say, for this short par four, a "5" is not a bad start. The 2nd is a long par four with out of bounds through the fairway, and the 3rd is a nice 181-yard par three over an elbow of a creek. It would be an even better shot if the numerous hanging tree branches near the creekbed were pruned back, to give view of not only the rushing creek, but the right third of the green! Waubeeka's design contains an abundance of crossing hazards, starting with a trickling creek perpendicular to play slightly more than halfway down the flat 494-yard 4th. The decision to hit driver and either get close to or over the creek, or lay back and play the hole as a 3-shotter is the first of many such questions throughout the round. A similar dilemma arises at the brutal 431-yard 5th hole: trees and marsh pinch the fairway to only ten yards wide in a long driver's landing zone. While laying up short of the neck is much wider and safer, can you afford to make the already long par four longer? The 6th hole's narrow diagonal green is beautifully shelved between a pond left and sharp hillside right, calling for both precise distance and accuracy for the approach shot.

The isolated and tranquil setting of the par three 7th.

The best hole on the front nine, and one of my favorite par threes anywhere, is the downhill 176-yard 7th. The tee shot flies over the creek, toward a simple green complex located in a quiet pocket created by a curved hill of fescue backing the putting surface. The 8th hole is the second of four par fives. While every one of the par fives is potentially reachable, the 8th plays the shortest at 487 downhill yards, and is definitely your best chance to putt for eagle at Waubeeka.

The 8th fairway is perfectly shaped for a righty's draw.

When I played Waubeeka throughout college, the dogleg right 9th hole had interior out of bounds stakes separating its playing area from the 1st fairway on the right. Thankfully, these gimmicky white stakes have been removed in recent years and the hole now plays as a less stressful short par four. The back nine begins with a graceful short par four climbing to the right and ending with a skyline green. A relatively simple hole to play, but a breath of fresh air after some of the strange shots on the front nine.

The tough drive at the sidehill 417-yard 11th.

The 11th hole at Waubeeka is as hard a par four as I've ever tackled. It measures only 417 yards, but the drive is to a fairway severely canted from left to right. Drives fanned to the right have little hope of getting to the elevated putting surface in regulation, and even solid drives finding the fairway always seem further from the green than they should be. The approach is a couple extra clubs uphill to a green rolling from left to right with tough pin locations abound, especially in the back. Miss the green right, and your ball bounces at least 10 yards away. Miss left, and your pitch has little chance of holding the slope falling away. During the last four-ball match I played at Waubeeka, an opponent's double-bogey won the 11th hole outright!

The gorgeous views may soften the blows dealt by the difficult 11th green.

The 12th hole is the first of back-to-back odd short par fours. It measures 343 yards, and forces a layup no further than 220 yards off the tee. At that point, the fairway ends and the ground plunges straight down into a pond which fronts the low-lying green. Though the tee shot is with less club than usual, it is still scary as thick pine forest lines both sides of the narrow fairway. Assuming a straight tee shot, only shots aggressive enough to reach the very end of the fairway have any view of the green. Most approaches are hit over the dropoff aimed only at a chosen tree-trunk or mountain peak in the distance; though an unorthodox hole, it is certainly fun running up the fairway to peer over the ledge and hopefully find your ball resting safely beyond the hidden pond.

Dual forests pinch the narrow 12th fairway.

The 13th hole is 294 yards, but attempting to drive the green would be an insane tactic. The hole bends hard to the right about 190 yards off the tee and shoots up a severe slope hidden from the tee by trees. The green is at the top of the rise, walled off by a fronting cross-bunker. Mid-iron, wedge is the play. The 14th hole is a simple downhill par three to an undulating green, and the par five 15th parallels the 8th and plays very similarly, if but a bit longer. Waubeeka's 16th hole is an excellent uphill par three measuring 179 challenging yards, and the green has a particularly good hole location in a front bowl. Missing on either higher "wing" of the green makes 3-putting a strong possibility.

Driving at #17: where's the fairway?

Seventeen is a "swing hole" if I've ever seen one - at 489 yards, all downhill, eagle putts are not too rare, but with out of bounds lining the right side, X's aren't rare either! While I tend to enjoy blind shots, the drive at Waubeeka's 17 never feels very comfortable, as it is to a diagonal fairway with out of bounds right, waiting for any shot bounding through the short grass. Left isn't a bailout option, as a sea of fescue awaits anything tugged. The tee shot has a little too much "hit and hope" aspect for my liking. The course finishes with a short par four divided by two bunkers crossing the landing zone - they are relatively small and insignificant, and rarely catch well hit drives.

Overall, Waubeeka is a solid value for what it provides - above-average conditions, a smattering of good golf holes, and incredible vistas in every direction. That said, I would love to take a shot at redesigning the course. Breathing life into the bland oval bunkering, re-routing the atrocious first hole, cutting back encroaching trees, making the out of bounds more strategic than penal - I think there is a lot of potential in Waubeeka Golf Links, and hopefully some day the course will maximize its sublime setting.

Course Rating: 4 stars out of 10

Bang for your $39 bucks: 6 stars out of 10