I was invited by my friend John yesterday to play nine holes in the afternoon at the private Wampanoag County Club in West Hartford, CT. The weather was perfect, clear and crisp at around 63 degrees, and the wooded layout was framed with the many colors of autumn. The golf course, which underwent a multi-million renovation last year, was virtually immaculate, the only visible flaws a cluster of divots in a collection area less than a pitching wedge short of one of the elevated greens.
In Connecticut, most golf courses punch their greens with aeration tines in September or October. The greens at The Wamp, as it is affectionately called by its members, appeared to have been aerated a couple of weeks earlier; no holes, just some pinprick discolorations where the punch holes had been. The greens were smooth and true, although on the Donald Ross designed layout, naturally I didn’t see a straight putt during our nine holes. The contrast of the bright green fairways with the brilliant white bunkers – plenty of those – on an afternoon of bright sunshine and blue skies punctuated by fluffy white clouds, can make you feel as if you are playing inside a painting. (See photos below.) Playing in such surroundings is relaxing, and golf works best, of course, when the only distractions are welcome and you are at peace with your swing, as well as your environment. In short, I played better than I expected to after a long layoff. God bless autumn golf in New England.
