Top-shelf Northeast resorts offer combination of old-time and new-age golf

Turning Stone Resort Casino

We love golf in the Northeast region of the United States, where there’s both an old-time and new-age feel, where all the putting surfaces seem to be flawless Bentgrass, and the tests of the grand game change, like the leaves, with the season. 

Those leaves have turned now in the Northeast which means it’s the perfect time to take advantage of some late-season specials at many of the area’s top golf resorts before the weather gets too cold to enjoy a round without a heavy coat. 

Or if you’d rather play when it’s warmer, the time is ripe to set your itinerary for a visit to one of the resorts and courses listed below, a handful of our favorites in the Northeast any time of the year.

Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club

Turning Stone in New York makes the grade and more 

No. 1 on this list is the Turning Stone Resort, set in Verona in central New York’s Oneida Indian Nation. With its trio of top-shelf golf courses everything at Turning Stone is set for a bucket-list golf vacation that is added to with its apres golf fun and amenities. 

The three courses are varied in design in their features and their challenges while maintained to the nth degree. It’s that overall variety – and the varying degree of difficulty in the courses – that make Turning Stone a step above the competition. 

Atunyote, designed by Tom Fazio, Kaluhyat (a Robert Trent Jones, Jr. routing), and Shenendoah, fashioned by Rick Smith, have been awarded through the years for their quality and playability.  

The Fazio-designed Atunyote has wide fairways, white-sand bunkers, and absolutely flawless conditioning, as would be expected on a course that’s hosted PGA Tour events. It’s set about five miles off the main Turning Stone property on a relatively open and a mostly flat piece of ground, and Fazio has placed plenty of water features and stands of trees and hazards to more than demand the golfer’s attention. 

Kaluhyat is the player’s course here, and is the most demanding track at Turning Stone. Jones routed his course around and over a half-dozen lakes, through marshland and up and down as much as 50 feet of elevation change, all of which add both difficulty and aesthetics. With Its forced carries, its length (7,105 yards, the longest of the three courses at the resort) and its rating and slope (75.5, 150), it’s up to the golfer to focus and stay fully committed over every shot at Kaluhyat

Shenendoah, Smith’s creation, is the least-hyped course on the property, but it might be the most fun. The track runs through a series of wetlands, which — combined with holes routed through stands of trees and some that are almost links-like in their wide vistas — allows this course to be a little bit of all things, and all of it good. Shenendoah was the first of three 18 hole courses laid out at Turning Stone Resort and a 2016 renovation made it even better. I dare you not to have a good time, and great round, on this course. 

Turning Stone Resort is complete with world-class accommodations in any of the seven lodges, hotels and inns, an expansive casino with table games, slots, bingo and poker room, and seemingly unlimited dining options.  The rooms are all extremely comfortable and well appointed, and the price point is exceptional for how much value they provide here.  We also highly recommend a visit to TS Steakhouse during your stay as the food here is exceptional and the bartenders are masterful at what they do.  We’ve recommended this resort to countless numbers of golfers, and every single time we do the group raves about it after their trip.  Do yourself a favor and get this on your list for destinations to visit.  

Nemacolin employs a pair of beautiful courses

If you like the idea of a serving of luxury with a little Pete Dye action on the side, then this is the place for you.  Nemacolin, located in Southwestern Pennsylvania, is owned by the Hardy family who also famously founded the 84 Lumber Company, and the family’s passion for creating a unique and exceptional experience can be seen throughout the property as no detail is left to chance in order to ensure the ultimate experience for their guests. 

From a golf perspective, Nemacolin offers two exceptional courses with two Pete Dye designs that provide breathtaking views of the Allegheny Mountains throughout your rounds that will leave you captivated from start to finish.  Mystic Rock, the original Dye design onsite, recently received a renovation that was overseen by Pete Dye and his disciple Tim Liddy (prior to Pete’s passing) that has greatly enhanced the enjoyment of this golf course.  Dye is known for his challenging designs, but we love what the team at Nemacolin has done with this course as it has softened the design to create plenty of options allowing higher handicap golfers to enjoy their round while also challenging better players.  The greens are fast and true, and we’ll let this video of the course do the talking for us as you’ll see how truly special this design is here. 

Shepherd’s Rock is the latest addition to the golf portfolio at Nemacolin, and this design is more reminiscent of what you’d expect from Pete Dye as it will challenge you on every shot making you think your way around this incredible track.  The good news though is all you have to do is look up at the incredible mountain views and spectacularly manicured conditions and you won’t mind for a minute that your being tested in this way.  It’s very similar to the way you’d feel if you were on other Pete Dye classics such as the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island or TPC Sawgrass PLAYERS Stadium Course.  These courses were built to test you, and you’ll love every minute of it. 

From a lodging perspective, Nemacolin offers numerous options with our favorite for golf groups being Falling Rock.  Located right next to the golf courses, it’s the perfect hub for your golf getaway as the rooms are comfortably luxurious, and with your own personal butler available for any needs you may have you’ll feel extremely spoiled during your visit here. 

In addition to Falling Rock, the resort also offers The Chateau which was featured significantly during the recent season of “The Bachelor” that was hosted here, The Lodge which is currently getting a massive facelift, and The Homes and The Estates for those looking for a more private setting.  All of these choices provide an epic experience and can be perfect for any golf getaway. 

Old and new make Cape Cod’s Ocean Edge Resort a great experience 

Set on a stunning 429-acre tract in the quaint Cape Cod seaside town of Brewster, Mass., the combination of grand accommodations in the classic style and superb golf on a testy course make Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club an experience that must be enjoyed first-hand. 

This is exactly what you would expect from a trip to Cape Cod — a turn-of-the-century golf vacation right out of the story books, with the added flair of modern conveniences and a revitalized golf challenge fashioned by Nicklaus Design.  

The centerpiece of Ocean Edge is the historic Nickerson family mansion and carriage house that sit on a bluff overlooking Cape Cod Bay. Built in 1890, the mansion and carriage house are on the National Register of Historic Places. 

Ocean Edge‘s golf course opened in 1906 as a nine-hole track beside the mansion. The estate changed hands several times through the early years and became a resort in the 1980s when another nine holes (designed by Geoffrey Cornish and Brian Silva) were added in 1986. Nicklaus Design’s Chris Rule headed another renovation in 2008 and infused the course with the area’s native thickets, a landscape that includes mature tree stands, rolling topography and subtle elevation changes.  

While there are no ocean views, several of the region’s famous freshwater glacial ponds enter play. There are 60 bunkers on the course but it seems like there are many more due to the fact that they can come into play from the tee and on your approaches.  

Attention was paid to a long list of details, including more-defined bunker complexes and areas in front of the putting surfaces that collect shots and create diverse opportunities to recover.  

The back nine contains just one par 3 and a lone par 5, and you’ll get your money’s worth on both holes. No. 16 – the one-shotter – plays into a prevailing left-to-right wind and features a well-protected and elevated green that slopes left to right. The best hole on Ocean Edge‘s revised layout is the 17th, a picturesque par-5 dogleg-left that stretches 600 yards and works its way up a hill to a plateaued putting surface. 

Ocean Edge contains Cape Cod’s only Nicklaus Design, and it’s everything you want as far as the big trifecta of playability, challenges and conditioning. If you’ve never been to the Cape, you owe yourself a trip out there, even if it is just for the golf.  

In addition to the golf course, the Ocean Edge Resort boasts a 700-foot-long private beach, four outdoor and two indoor swimming pools, a USPTA-certified tennis complex, fitness room and a number of restaurants. Ocean Edge is on the 26-mile Cape Cod Bike and Rail Trail route, with bike rentals available on property. 

Ocean Edge Resort & Golf Club

Spruce Peak at Stowe Vermont – different name, same great golf 

The catch phrase of the opulent Spruce Peak Resort in Stowe, Vermont is that every experience for guests is designed to make them “feel like they are part of the mountain.” Situated at the base of Mount Mansfield, Spruce Peak is Stowe’s only slope-side destination and is a welcoming mountain community that captivates visitors with consistently elevated experiences. 

Such is also the case at two courses available for members and resort guests at Spruce Peak, The Mountain Course and the Stowe Country Club. 

The Mountain Course, designed by the late, great Bob Cupp, has fairways that are laid out in the foothills of Mount Mansfield. The course is split into two sections, with the first 11 holes visiting the lower slopes of Spruce Peak and last seven holes routed around Peregrine Lake on the floor of the adjacent valley. 

Highlights here are the plunging 171-yard seventh hole and uphill 499-yard 10th. The lake comes into play on two drivable par 4s, the 338-yard 14th and the 317-yard closing hole. In between is the 195-yard 15th, a par 3 that’s all carry over the lake. 

The vistas from higher spots on the course can be distracting. Yes, the course plays at just 6,411 yards from the tips and at elevation, but the lack of length is more than made up with undulating putting surfaces and plenty of risk-reward options. 

Stowe Country Club is at the base of the mountain in town and is even shorter, at just 6,195 yards but can also be challenging and is a good B-side to its more ballyhooed sister up the mountain. Built on what was once a dairy farm, it sports rolling fairways and well-maintained greens. 

The course underwent a  complete redesign/reconstruction this past summer of its approach and green areas on the seventh and eighth holes, with the Beau Welling Design group providing the plans for the project. 

The Lodge at Spruce Peak, formerly called the Stowe Mountain Resort, is one of the top luxury properties in Vermont and offers rustic elegance throughout – from the impressive lobby with floor-to-ceiling windows to its bright, contemporary rooms. This property has a lot in the way of amenities, particularly for the area, including an inviting spa, a big outdoor pool with mountain views and an acclaimed restaurant. 

Spruce Peak at Stowe Vermont: Mountain Course

Bet on great golf at Jones’ Lake of Isles GC at Foxwoods 

Our second recommended Northeast casino/golf resort takes us to the Foxwoods Resort Casino in North Stonington, Connecticut, the home of the Rees Jones-designed Lake of Isles Golf Club. Jones’ routing winds through the area’s thick woodlands and around a 90-acre lake. 

The North Course here was opened in 2005 and allows public play, is carded at more than 7,200 yards and sports dramatic elevation changes and plenty of do-or-die shots over the water. Jones’ work here was arduous because of the rocky, boulder-strewn site, but the golfer is the beneficiary of his time and the effort involved. 

The scale here is big-shouldered and the routing offers clear views of the options to attack each hole, many which sit on sloping ridges above the lake. Five sets of tees help mitigate the difficulty (move up, my friend). 

The North Course’s higher holes rise and fall through the hardwoods and pines while the lower ground is played through lush wetlands. The par 3s at Lake of Isles are standouts, and the best of the four is likely the 11th, which plays from an elevated perch to a peninsula green framed by bunkers and native grasses and scrub along the lakeshore. 

The North Course is one of the best-conditioned and one of the most challenging resort courses in New England. It is considered the top public course in Connecticut, and for good reason. 

Opened in 1992 by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Foxwoods Resort Casino is considered one of the premier resort destinations in the Northeast. It’s home to the largest resort casino in North America, and offers a vast array of gaming in seven casinos as well as AAA Four-Diamond hotels, restaurants from gourmet to quick service and world-renowned spas.

Lake of Isles GC