Lake of Isles (North) – Played June 2023
- Rankings: Golf Magazine Public #85
- Location: 1 Clubhouse Drive, North Stonington, Connecticut
- Year: 2005
- Architect: Rees Jones
- Course Access: Resort
- Walking Rules: Carts Available
Score Card Information:
- Black: 7,279 yards, Par 72, 76.7 Rating/147 Slope
- Gold: 6,757 yards, Par 72, 73.4 Rating/138 Slope
- Silver: 6,005 yards, Par 72, 70.2 Rating/132 Slope
- Copper: 5,387 yards, Par 72, 67.3 Rating/124 Slope (Men’s), 72.4 Rating/135 Slope (Women’s)
- Jade: 4,895 yards, Par 72, 67.3 Rating/124 Slope (Men’s), 68.9 Rating/126 Slope (Women’s)
After the event at Highland Links, I headed to Connecticut to see Lake of Isles (North). This course is situated in the southern part of the state and is associated with the Foxwoods Resort Casino. The entire operation is owned by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.
The site is routed through woods and plays around a 90-acre lake. There is an additional course (South) here as well.
With that, let’s get into the tour.
Hole 1 – 369 yards – Par 4
A gentle opener with a generous fairway gives you a chance to get off to a good start. Favor the left side of the fairway for the best angle to the elevated green.
Hole 2 – 154 yards – Par 3
Nothing but a tough and intimidating tee shot here. If there is any wind this is diabolical.
Hole 3 – 469 yards – Par 5
While this isn’t a long hole, the elevated tee and tree-lined fairway make for a nervy drive. Anything up the left side gives you a real chance to get home in two.
The green is a pretty big target, which you expect on a par five.
Hole 4 – 331 yards – Par 4
This slight dogleg left doesn’t necessitate the driver. If you avoid the bunker, the approach should be a green light to go flag hunting.
This guy joined me for a bit in the fairway.
Hole 5 – 457 yards – Par 5
The par fives on the front are not long and definitely offer up some birdie opportunities. An aggressive line here is up the right side over the fairway bunkers to cut the corner of the dogleg.
Short grass behind this green allows for some runout.
Hole 6 – 369 yards – Par 4
Here’s another opportunity to cut the corner over the bunkers. The fairway does narrow a bit the farther left you go.
You cannot miss long of this green, but that shouldn’t be an issue with such a large target.
Hole 7 – 129 yards – Par 3
We played through on this hole, so I missed the tee shot. There is a sharp dropoff on the right side.
Hole 8 – 325 yards – Par 4
Drives up the left side are preferred to this semi-blind fairway. The right side drops off a bit.
Hole 9 – 389 yards – Par 4
This looks like a tougher driving hole than it is. The hole itself bends to the right before rising to the green.
Hole 10 – 550 yards – Par 5
I forgot to get the tee shot photo here, but it is a wide fairway to hit into. The real challenge begins with the second and third shots. That’s because of the bunkers and elevated green. Any indifferent shots are going to be heavily penalized.
Hole 11 – 144 yards – Par 3
This elevated tee provided a nice view of this hole that features the lake. The green is a bit shallow so distance control is important.
Hole 12 – 308 yards – Par 4
This is another blind landing area on this short four. Up the right side is the preferred route.
The green falls off on both sides making a short miss preferable.
Hole 13 – 372 yards – Par 4
The longer you go off this tee, the narrower the fairway becomes. A sensible play is to get your drive just past this 150-yard marker. Unlike a lot of the other holes at Lake of Isles, this one doesn’t feature any blind shots.
Hole 14 – 368 yards – Par 4
We’ve got a dogleg right here with another obscured fairway. The marker is well-placed for aiming your tee shot.
The green provides a large target but don’t miss right or long.
Hole 15 – 474 yards – Par 5
If you can manufacture a fade, now is the time to do it. Good drives will definitely provide a chance to get home in two.
Standing in the fairway and looking back at the tee provided a nice view that I wanted to share.
Getting home in two will still require some guts with a big hazard cutting in front of the green.
Hole 16 – 166 yards – Par 3
Playing quite downhill, this hole will require some calculations. The green is pretty large though so there is some margin for error.
Notice the pronounced slopes that aren’t as visible from the tee.
Hole 17 – 286 yards – Par 4
The driveable par four is always a fun challenge. This version features an elevated green that is a difficult target to hit. The presence of multiple bunkers up the left side makes playing a safe shot to the fairway pretty appealing.
Hole 18 – 345 yards – Par 4
The finisher is a bit of an awkward hole. A yardage book goes a long way in determining your strategy because the fairway runs out on the far side before the hole veers left toward the green that is fronted by another hazard.
Lake of Isles (North) is a difficult resort course. With Rees Jones’s reputation as “The Open Doctor”, I wasn’t that surprised. That said, I still enjoyed it. If you play the proper tees, you can certainly have a good time. Worst case scenario, the views are wonderful. Adding to the positives on the day was a brisk pace of play and pairing up with a lovely couple I caught on the fifth hole.