Some golf courses give off good vibes before you play your first shot, or even check in. It may be the way the fairways and greens look on your drive in, or how you are greeted at the bag drop before you park your car. Even seemingly silly things like well-defined parking spots or good signage inspire confidence in what will come in the following four hours.
In
New England, as temperatures drop and winter beckons, most courses furlough
their employees as golf rounds slow to a
trickle, and they pull back on course
maintenance. The changes are
noticeable especially on the greens, which tend to slow down a touch even
though grass virtually stops growing during the cool days and cold nights.
The thermometer had barely topped 45 degrees when I drove into the parking lot of the Foxborough Country Club in Foxborough, MA, southwest of Boston. There were no more than six cars in the lot at 11 a.m. As I opened the car door, I heard the loud sounds that most New Englanders can recognize with their eyes closed in October and November -- high-powered leaf blowers. Four Foxborough CC workers were clearing leaves from the 18th green and the area around it. Then, as I passed the practice green on my way into the clubhouse for a meeting, I saw something I had never seen -- another Foxborough employee sat on a motorized roller (I'm sure it has another name) lanquidly rolling back and forth across the practice green. Very smooth.
Just before I left Foxborough, I noticed a foursome putting out on the ninth green, behind the clubhouse. As they made their way from the green to the 10th tee, I asked them if the course was in good condition. "Perfect," one of them said. "How about the greens?" I asked. "Ever putt on linoleum?" he answered, a gleam in his eye.
What you see at Foxborough is apparently what you get. The course is on my list to play next spring.
Despite light play on a cold November day, workers at Foxborough Country Club cleared the leaves from the 18th green and all others.