Young Players Practice Year Round With Sagamore Golf

By Clay Cowart
Green Alliance Writer

NORTH HAMPTON - From the tee to the green, Sagamore Golf has something to offer all young golfers looking to improve their game at the Sagamore Golf Center, or spend the day playing 18 holes at Sagamore-Hampton Golf Club. Located on North Road in North Hampton, N.H., just a few good driver swings away from the University of New Hampshire and a 7-iron away from Portsmouth, Sagamore's two facilities are designed with golfers of all levels in mind.

Everybody knows that practice makes perfect and up here in the north that time is limited due to the weather. But at the Sagamore Golf Center weather isn't a problem. For students home on winter break, or younger golfers living in the area, the golf center offers year round access to the driving range.

“Our covered semi-indoor driving range ports include overhead heaters and southern exposure to provide heat from the sun,” said Richard Luff, Sagamore's owner and operator.

Besides the many driving range mats, the indoor range also includes eight “power tees." This state of the art system automatically re-tees a player's practice ball from the ball-well after each swing.

“Some say they are the ultimate in laziness,” said Luff, who noted that the technology is popular amongst younger golfers who find the system "cool to use." But the "power tees" have also proven popular amongst older golfers, as it helps alleviate some of the strain on a player's back from bending over to tee up a ball.

When the weather warms and the snow melts, Sagamore Golf Center has multiple areas designated for practice that offer grass tees. Public grass-ranges are often tough to find and sought after by golfers looking to practice. Many public ranges turn to artificial turf mats.

“Places that do have it are limited and are usually at private clubs and even there the grass gets eaten up pretty quickly", said Luff. “People will come from far away to hit off of well maintained grass.”

The range is lighted for nighttime practice Monday through Saturday for students home in the summer.

There's a popular saying amongst golfers, “You drive for show and putt for dough.” With that in mind, Sagamore Golf Center offers a chipping area and a putting green for players to work on those pesky up and down par saves. And to further work on sinking putts Sagamore also offers a challenging 18-hole mini golf course.

Recognizing the importance of an experienced professional on hand to work with young golfers, Sagamore Golf Center offers lessons from Laura Shanahan Rowe, an LPGA Class A Teaching Professional.

“My goal is to be effective teacher for all levels of golfers. I am motivated to create a learning environment that makes the lessons fun and simple for an enjoyable experience that produces success,” said Rowe.

Once a player feels that his or her game is ready, just a short drive down the road is Sagamore-Hampton Golf Club. This par 71, 18-hole course is perfect for all levels of young and college-aged golfers. With different tees to choose from, ranging from 4,886 yards to 6,041 yards, golfers can pick the challenge level of the course based on their handicaps.

If you're a new to the game, or a player with a higher handicap, the white tees are perfect for you. Teeing up from these markers shorten the course by about 500 yards and allows golfers to hit to the wider areas of the fairways. More experienced golfers can hit from the blue tees that provide a challenging round. The course tips out at 6,041 yards, not overly long, but these tees do provide some challenging holes including three par threes that measure around 200 yards.

Even more impressive than the course and practice areas is the way Sagamore Golf chooses to maintain them. Since opening its first venue in 1929 Sagamore Golf has always had ideals that are different than that of many other golf courses. Most courses use an excessive amount of chemicals and water to maintain their courses and keep them as competitive as possible. Sagamore Golf has always chosen to not rely on these practices and only use traditional chemicals as a last resort.

“We're not 100% natural organic. We occasionally still have to rely on more conventional products to maintain the conditions, but we are always going to try an alternative product or a wait-and-see approach before we go out and use a conventional method,” said Luff.

The organic alternatives used include compost tea, kelp meal, soybean meal, horticultural oils, humates, and others. These sustainable and environmentally friendly practices are the reason why Sagamore Golf has joined the Green Alliance, a union of over 100 sustainability-minded businesses that offer discounts on goods and services to consumer Green Card Members. Sagamore has offered 15 percent off weekday greens fees to Green Alliance members since 2009.

Sagamore Golf ‘s facilities offer everything that a young golfer could ask for; from up-to-date practice facilities and a great 18-hole course with competitive and affordable prices. Every Wednesday is College Day! With a valid student ID students can play 9-holes for $15 walking or $20 riding. Or students can play a full 18-holes for $25 walking or $35 riding.

For more information about Sagamore-Hampton Golf Club and the Sagamore Golf Center, visit www.sagamoregolf.com.

To learn more about the Green Alliance, visit www.greenalliance.biz