Island Adventures - By Jeff Blanchard
Photographs by George Peet

NANTUCKET GOLF CLUB

250 Milestone Road
Siasconset, MA 02554
Nantucket County
phone: 508-257-8520
www.nantucketgolfclub.org

Club Pro: Kevin Walker

Back Tees: 7,081 yards par 72
Rating 74.7 slope 132
Middle Tees: 6,792 yards par 72
Rating 73.4 slope 132
Forward Tees: 5,378 yards par 72
Rating 69.6 Slope 118

The newest golf club on Nantucket is the Rees Jones-designed Nantucket Golf Club. It is located in Siasconset and is visible from the 15th tee of Sankaty Head. By utilizing the natural terrain, Rees Jones' design team was able to insert this course into the land in a way that makes it feel as if it's always been there. Vacationers and second home owners from the top end of the corporate world, where money is not an issue, were delighted with the opportunity to join the club since Sankaty Head had a closed waiting list. The club met with instant success.

Golf magazine ranks the course number 57 on its list of top 100 courses in the U.S. -and with good reason. The course conditions are superb, the club amenities are above average, and the food is exceptional.

As one player puts it. "There are no tricks here. What you need to know is right in front of you. The key element is the wind." Almost every day the wind blows on Nantucket, and Jones acknowledged that fact in his placement of the many fairway bunkers, all of which are visible from the tee, thus making accuracy from the tee essential to scoring well. The rough is no bargain either.

Another player spoke of the club this way. "The course is the epitome of a golf course that fits its surroundings. The course is difficult, forcing you to think about your club selection, but it is not impossible to score well." The par 3's are all different and tricky, and several greens are elevated, making club selection important -especially in the wind.

The 18th hole is a strong par 4 finishing hole that brings you back toward to the clubhouse that beautifully complements its surroundings. There are no golf carts at the club, but there are always caddies available. The course, however, is easy to walk since the elevation changes are not severe. If you ever get the call to play, take it without hesitation.

MIACOMET

12 West Miacomet Rd
Nantucket, Massachusetts 02554
Nantucket County
Phone: (508) 325-0333
www.miacometgolf.com

Managed by Moors, Inc.
Club pro: Michael T. Merrill

Back tees: 6,831 yards, par 72,
rating 73, slope 123
Mid tees: 6,167 yards, par 72,
rating 69.5, slope 118
Forward tees: 5,159 yards, par 72,
rating 69.6, slope 118

About five miles down the road is Miacomet, the island's only public year-round 18-hole course. Where the road to Sankaty was lined with conservation lands full of foliage stretching all the way to the ocean, Miacomet is surrounded by farms, homes and other grey shingled buildings; its center of commerce is a garden center that doubles as the neighborhood grocer.

"Located in the rolling hummocks southwest of the town of Nantucket, the course offers breathtaking views and challenging golf shots," the club boasts on its website, which is chock full of good stuff for the prospective golfer.

Miacomet was a nine-holer until a new nine, designed by Howard Maurer, came on line in October, and that's what brought our foursome to the island in the first place.

Today's Miacomet combines the old and new. You start out on the old Nos. 1 and 2 near the clubhouse, and then cross through the parking lot to No. 3, which begins a run of new holes, returning to the old on return to the clubhouse.

Among the noticeable differences are the green sizes. The old course averaged 3,000 square feet, and the new is about double that, with handsomely undulating tiers and nice chipping areas, should you need them.

Miacomet hadn't settled on its rate schedule quite yet, but the numbers being bandied about were $90 for a round, with a limited number of memberships available. At its best, Miacomet can make this seem like a bargain. How else would you get to enjoy the scenery from the seat of golf cart in the summer? In a way, you are also supporting a worthy cause, that is, the Nantucket Land Bank, which in 1983 became the first land acquisition program of its kind in the nation, according to the club, and is "designed to protect the island's unique and endangered landscapes."

"The program is funded by a two-percent transfer fee on the sale of real estate on the island, and an elected five-member commission uses the proceeds to acquire beaches, wetlands, aquifer recharge areas, moorlands, heathlands and other land significant to Nantucket's open rural character."

Current holdings of the Nantucket Land Bank exceed 2,200 acres, including the Miacomet Golf Club.