Lochmere Golf Club

I've golfed this course twice and couldn't finish either round. They booked me into a foursome and the starts are every 8 minutes. by the time you get to the 6th hole the course bottlenecks. At the 11th hole we started to get frustrated. Would you believe that three holes ahead of us there were walkers! There were still golfers in carts ahead of them. After 4 hours we only got to the 11th hole. This is twice we were unable to finish. Only golf here if you have all the time in the world and if you book in the afternoon you can forget 18 holes. Physically the course is nice. The ridiculous pace of play is PATHETIC. This course is unmanageable with 8 minutes between tee times. Either they need to reduce the amount of foursomes, or stagger the tee times.

Great Course, however the one issue I've had each time I play this course is what I've called "WALK-ON'S"...I tee off with a pair in front of me and you look ahead and see another pair ( so you have 2 sets of two playing ahead of you) and like clock work each time I get to the 4th hole that number grows to two set of 4 or you a third guy joins a group in front of me.

I spoke with other golfers about this and the common explanation I got was...hole #4 and 15 runs side by side with each other and so tendency is if I play the back 9 I can place 10 that I golfer will pay to play the back nine

Lochmere is an undistinguished municipal course that is showing its age.

On the upside:
- The course is mature and tree lined, and playing it feels like you are walking through a public park
- There is a driving range and a practice green for pitching and bunker work right behind the clubhouse, a nice amenity
- Most of the holes are straight shots from tee to green, making this course a good remedy for the fatigue of playing target golf at more modern tracks
- Distances from the whites and blues are manageable; as long as you can hit relatively straight, you can score well
- The staff is very friendly, especially the pro shop team; the grill has good food, reasonably priced
- The prices are lower than other local tracks, and you can usually find online specials

On the downside:
- Member events are frequent, be sure to ask if any are on tap before paying. I went out with a buddy one weekday morning, and after we made the turn a senior group kicked off a shotgun start event- about which the pro shop had failed to tell us. Four players pulled in front of us and teed off literally as we were drinking water from a cooler 30 feet away, without saying a word to us. Worse, they were so slow that we ultimately went to the pro shop to get partial refunds. Not a good experience.
- The course can be very busy in general; playing with a foursome, it took us 5 hours to play 13 holes in July, and we waited on every single hole, every shot except putts, at which point we gave up and left
- You will bump into joggers and people walking their dogs on the course, and they don’t stop walking or talking just because you are taking your shot
- There are no elevation changes and minimal water hazards; in general, the course lacks character, and no holes are memorable or exciting as you stare them down
- The greens were in bad shape when I played in September 2011 and again in February 2012, with crabgrass and bare spots; I understand that they are working on replacing their greens soon

Overall, although I try to offer balanced feedbacks in these reviews, I am not a fan of Lochmere. The cost is low, but the sheer number of people playing the track diminishes the enjoyment so much that I no longer play there. For a similar challenge but better experience I suggest Pine Hollow, and for a better value I strongly suggest Crooked Creek.

What a waste of a Saturday morning! The greens were in TERRIBLE shape. They don't even have the standard 100 yd markers on the course! For the "prestige" that this course is supposed to offer, the quality of the course is severely lacking. It's hard to play with any speed when you are trying to figure out which club to hit, and having to walk off 15-30 yards from a sprinkler head before deciding between a 9 iron and PW. I won't be playing here again any time soon! Knight's Play is in way better shape!

The condition of the greens at Lochmere have deteriorated to the point where they are barely playable. It's a shame because the rest of the course is in pretty good shape. The greens have more bare spots than grass and quite a bit of crab grass has crept in. It's almost impossible to gauge a putt. So if putting is something that means something to you, I would pass on this course until they can get the greens straightened out. I was told that they are going to try and get them fixed early in 2011.

This is a pretty easy course if you play from the amateur tees. The holes are pretty generic and there isn't much character to the course. However, you can play there for 25-30 bucks if you book the tee time online, so for this area it isn't too bad. The course could be in a lot better shape though. If it rains, give it about 4 days before you play it because it stays soggy because it's in a flood plain. Good for 15+ handicappers.