When I asked our host which course he wanted to play this time around, of course he suggested Saratoga National again. But when we couldn’t get on there, he suggested another one of his favorites, Hiland Park Country Club just up the road in Queensbury. The only problem was, when I went to look up the course, the only Highland Park that came up was in Highland Park, Illinois. That’s when I realized Highland was spelled without a “gh.”
Hiland Park Country Club is in a beautiful spot tucked at the base of the Southern Adirondack Mountain Region of Lake George, and according to their web site, “is widely considered one of the finest public facilities in the Northeast region of New York State.” Who can argue with that? They have a great looking logo too. It has a tree, some hills, and a road running through it, but it’s the kind of simple, classic logo that will look as good 50 years from now as it does today.
The course is also located about 30 minutes outside of Saratoga and the Saratoga Race Course. It’s horse racing season, and while there has typically been only one “dark” or non-race day at America’s oldest racetrack in years past, this year there are two. Now that there’s no racing on Monday or Tuesday, courses like Hiland are jammed. Unlike Arizona, it’s high season baby, and courses like this will see upwards of 200 rounds per day from 6:30 in the morning all the way until sundown at almost eight o’clock.
Hiland Park was designed by Stephen Kay, and since opening for play in 1989 has hosted several PGA Qualifying events as well as the New York State Open. I had never played a Kay design before, so I was really excited about playing this parkland-style layout. The course plays 6,797 yards from the Blue Tees to a Par of 72, a course rating of 72.8, and a slope of 137. Here are some of the highlights of the round:
Holes Worth Writing Home About
I thought the best hole on the front nine was the downhill Par 3 6th. And boy are we talking downhill! This is where you’re going to want to have your phone ready to snap a picture because it’s going to be your best view of the day.
Because the course isn’t overly long, one of its best defenses is the relatively small size of its bentgrass greens. Hole 6 is a perfect example. The hole measured 148 yards, but I played the shot as if it was closer to 130 because of the elevation change. There’s really no good place to miss.
There are bunkers short right, short left, and long left, and if you hit your ball long right, there’s a good chance it will land on the downslope and bounce into the surrounding wetlands area. My tee shot was in the air for what felt like forever, but when it finally came down on the green, I was happy to take my two putts and get out of there with a par.
On the back nine, holes 15-18 make for a really nice finishing stretch. Hole 15 is a long Par 3 over water, 16 is a driveable, risk/reward dogleg Par 4 over water, Hole 17 is a 461-yard Par 4, and 18 is a reachable Par 5. You can pick up a couple of strokes here if you play your cards right.
These holes are all good, but the 351-yard Par 4 16th is the real gem if you ask me. I’ve always said that if I designed a golf course, I would have a driveable Par 4 late in the back nine simply to add a little drama. I think 3-wood is the play off this tee. Aim for the bunker on the far left, and curl a little draw around the dogleg to avoid the water and giant willow tree waiting to swat any shot that’s not high enough, right enough, or left enough (if you’re going for the green) into the water. Hit driver and you not only risk going through the fairway onto No. 11, you’re also asking for tree trouble. If you do go for the green and come up short, you’re wet. But there is a small opening between the bunkers short left and short right, so if you’re brimming with confidence, it’ll definitely make for an entertaining tee shot.
The difference between the blue and the white tees at Hiland Park is a little less than 400 yards, but the tees were in almost identical locations with few exceptions. It was hard to see where they got the extra yardage on the scorecard, but if I had to guess, I would say a majority of it comes between tees on the front nine.
Unlike the courses we have in the desert, there are no sand bottles on the carts or out on the course. Because these are bentgrass fairways, when you take a divot, you simply replace that beaver pelt and tap it down with your foot. I’m not used to doing that.
Quiet Please…
A really cool thing happened when I went into the Tudor-style Golf Shop to check-in. Assistant Golf Professional Brian Jeffers said, “I have a really strange question for you. Are you the guy who posts PGA Study Guides on his web site?” When I told him I was, he exclaimed, “Your Study Guide helped me pass Level 2!”
That exchange really made my day and is exactly what I had in mind when I started my web site and began documenting my PGA Membership journey in the first place. I wanted fellow Associates to be able to learn from my successes and failures and to be able to pass their tests. I figured if I was going to do the work anyway, I might as well post it for others to take advantage of and use.
It reminded me of my experience at the PGA Level 3 Seminar when my roommate from the big island of Hawaii told me he had stumbled across one of my Study Guides, that it had helped him pass, and that he was telling everyone he knew about my site. The internet makes the world feel so much smaller!
Here I was, standing in a Golf Shop in upstate New York, talking to a guy who had found my web site and printed out my Study Guide. To this day, I love getting questions and comments from Associates, and I think it’s really cool that Associates have been able to use my web site as a platform to communicate with one another. And yes, Brian, there’s also a Study Guide for Level 3.
Fore!
The shot of the day came at the Par 5 18th. I hit the green with a 4-iron from 213 yards out and made an easy two-putt birdie. It wasn’t the easiest approach shot in the world. There’s a pond short left and a fairly large bunker short right, so I had to really thread one in there.
We had a great time, and now that I knew where to hit it, I wanted to take revenge the following day similar to the emergency nine my brother and I had played at Mansion Ridge. The only problem was that we were leaving for Schroon Lake early in the afternoon. I was going to have to convince the wife. I compare “schemes” like this to getting a bill through Congress. The veto power is strong with the wife, and she rules with ultimate authority. But once she had a little time to think about it, we got the okay.
We rushed to the course to beat a wave of foursomes right around the ten o’clock hour, but when we got to the first green, our hearts sank. For some reason, maintenance had sanded the greens earlier that morning. Why? The greens were perfect! Then again, maybe that’s why the greens were so good.
Unlike what we were told at Mansion Ridge, there was not a blade of poa in sight, but because they were still sandy underneath, the first bounce was even firmer than before. We had to adjust by hitting our approach shots short of the greens just so they would hold. The greens are good, but there were a little slow because of all the sand that had just been applied. That took a lot of the break out too.
While We’re Young
We got around the course in exactly four hours. We got stuck behind what we thought were a couple of slower groups, so when we looked at our watches after we finished, we were pleasantly surprised.
Next On the Tee
There is a course in nearby Bolton along Lake George called Sagamore. It was designed and built under famed architect Donald Ross’ personal supervision in 1928 and looks amazing! I’m ear-marking this track for our next trip.