Alfred, Maine proposed course

[jtreadwell]

Hello All,

Currently I am in the process of spawning a new, 18 hole professional level course in Alfred, Maine. The site is approximately 65 acres of hilly forest land with multiple large fields about 25 minutes from Portland. Currently, we are in the process of convincing a private investor (the landowner's father in law) that a course on his land would eventually be profitable enough to pay the taxes on the land. To that end I am looking for feedback from folks that live within a few hours of the location to document the level of interest. Both myself and my business partner are more than capable of designing a high quality course and have the time and money to keep it current. One of us is also a professional chef and we are planning a burger/food cart as well as a pro shop. Hole design is planned to be a mix of semi-open big D shots, short tight technical shots, and at least one hole going down an 800 - 900ft. hill backed with heavy trees and rough. We are looking at Mach V baskets but may opt for discatchers. This would be pay to play and we're looking at a cost of $4 for a single round or $7 for unlimited play for the day.
If you live in the New England area, your feedback is greatly appreciated in order to help make this dream a reality!

 

[jtreadwell]

and yes I am aware that the first selection in the poll says "love" instead of "live". I couldn't figure out how to fix that.

 

[bradharris]

It really all depends on how the course turns out. The hour and a half drive for me is about the same as the drive to Pyramids and Maple Hill. If I'm going to drive that distance to play, it will still likely be to the Worcester area. However, if it's a nice course with a quality pro shop, I'd be inclined to at least check it out once as another option.

Have you been in contact with the Boynton Street guys at all? I'm sure they could help build some interest in a Portland area course.

 

[jtreadwell]

It really all depends on how the course turns out. The hour and a half drive for me is about the same as the drive to Pyramids and Maple Hill. If I'm going to drive that distance to play, it will still likely be to the Worcester area. However, if it's a nice course with a quality pro shop, I'd be inclined to at least check it out once as another option.

Have you been in contact with the Boynton Street guys at all? I'm sure they could help build some interest in a Portland area course.

I'll probably start networking a bit more soon so I'll keep that in mind. We plan to make this an epic course (though no one goes out to make a crappy one) so I'm sure once it has been played a bit it'll catch on.

 

[Jeronimo]

J, my name is Jeremy and i'm a local player here in southern Maine. I'd love to talk to you more about this. Alfred is kind of a pain in the ass location because people on the coast end up having to take 111 to get there (****ty road). It could work though, there's a lot of demand in this area for a course of the caliber you are suggesting. It's just a shame it couldn't be closer to Portland.

 

[jtreadwell]

J, my name is Jeremy and i'm a local player here in southern Maine. I'd love to talk to you more about this. Alfred is kind of a pain in the ass location because people on the coast end up having to take 111 to get there (****ty road). It could work though, there's a lot of demand in this area for a course of the caliber you are suggesting. It's just a shame it couldn't be closer to Portland.

How's it going Jeremy? My J stands for Jacob btw. The course in question is going to be off of Mountain Rd. which is right off of 202, so not too difficult to reach for some. Definitely would be nice to be closer to Portland but we had to take the land we had available, and the plan is to make this nice enough to warrant a slight drive. Plus it's within an hours drive of several other quality courses like Woodland Valley and BAP so it can be a good road trip stop. If you're ever going to be in the Dover, NH area on a weekday morning let me know - I play a couple rounds at Bellamy Park pretty much every day.

 

[seano2222]

I work in Biddo and live in Lyman (same zip as Alfred) - Count me as obscenely excited about this.

For all the population, York county is only sparsely populated with courses - This will work.

If it's as good as you say, I'll certainly be frequenting on the weekends. Probably a bit to far out for me to catch on the way home from work though - Boom is just extrememly convenient for that.

65 Acres? Hmmm ... That's enough room for two

 

[MacDaddy]

More is better

:thmbup:
I do not live in the area, but if I lived within 1 hour of this course I would come play on a regular basis, if:

27+ holes
Pro and Am tees
concrete tees
multiple pin placements
well stocked pro shop
hot and cold food available
$5 per round, $8 all day

adult beverages available while playing, I would live there!!

Good luck!