Myopia Hunt Club – Played June 2024
- Rankings: Golf Magazine #90
- Location: 435 Bay Road, South Hamilton, Massachusetts
- Year: 1894
- Original Architect: Herbert Leeds
- Additional Work By: Geoffrey Cornish & Gil Hanse
- Course Access: Private
- Walking Rules: Carts & Caddies Available
Score Card Information:
- Red: 6,555 yards, Par 72, 72.7 Rating/138 Slope
- White: 6,190 yards, Par 72, 71.1 Rating/134 Slope
- Yellow: 5,495 yards, Par 72, 72.4 Rating/137 Slope
History abounds at Myopia Hunt Club. The origins of the club date back to the 1880s. Allegedly, the founding members came from the Myopia Club in Winchester, Massachusetts where that club’s founders all had myopia, hence the name of the club today. The golf course came later in 1894 as a nine-holer before it was redesigned and expanded by 1898.
The club hosted the US Open four times between 1898 and 1908. The winning score of 331 in 1901 remains the highest in the tournament’s history.
With the US Open pedigree and reputation, Myopia Hunt Club normally plays ultra firm with high heather all around the course. However, I caught it on a day where it was a little more benign while still putting up a fight with it’s quirky and unpredictable bunkering. Keep that in mind as you go through this tour. Personally, I thought it was no pushover and quite enjoyed the conditions.
I was lucky enough to find a mutual friend that is a member and who was able to host me while I was up visiting family. The golf community never ceases to amaze me and I’m continually flabbergasted that a regular guy like me has been this blessed. These were the thoughts I was having as I drove into the club’s incredibly idyllic setting on a lovely summer day. Let’s get into it.
Hole 1 – 276 yards – Par 4 – First
Right from the start you are introduced to Myopia’s half-par holes. Many players can drive this green but that doesn’t make it easy. Rough and bunkering guard a sloped green. It’s easy to envision birdie or double on your card.
Hole 2 – 488 yards – Par 5 – Lookout
This short par five is made even shorter by the elevated tee. I was kind of blown away by this place starting right here. The elevation is playing all kinds of tricks on your depth perception and the remaining shots are awesome. An added bonus is the view of a bunch of the other holes.
The second shot plays to a blind green…
Where you have the option of running the ball on via the slope or carrying something in high. You must have some serious stopping power though.
Hole 3 – 252 yards – Par 3 – Brae
Two straight birdie opportunities are followed up by a severe dose of difficulty. You can easily shoot for a four here and walk away happy. For those laying up, the cross bunker 45 yards short of the green is a factor. Once you clear that, the path to the green is open. If you cannot hit the green, the open area in front of the green might be the best place for your tee shot to finish.
Hole 4 – 385 yards – Par 4 – Miles River
My host mentioned this hole was the site of the highest recorded score in US Open history. Back in the day the green used to run off down to the water. Thankfully it isn’t as severe today and that route is blocked by trees. A draw plays well from this tee box.
The hole really comes alive on the approach shot. You can see the slope of the green and you’ll know that you have to be precise with your second.
Some gnarly bunkers and severe slope provide all the defenses this hole needs.
Hole 5 – 417 yards – Par 4 – Lone Tree
This hole ratchets down the quirk but with the rough and hazard, you’ll need to hit good shots to reach this green.
This is one of the more benign greens you will see all day at Myopia.
Hole 6 – 255 yards – Par 4 – Brook
The sixth is only a few yards longer than the par three third! With the placement of the pond and creek, I believe going for the green is the only play here if you have the distance. Even from the tee you can see the tilt of the green from right to left.
Hole 7 – 401 yards – Par 4 – Myopia
This is a straight hole but you cannot see that from the tee box. Once you get to the fairway the hole opens up to reveal massive land movement and the green. Getting the proper line is very important here.
Hole 8 – 473 yards – Par 5 – Prairie
We’ve got another blind landing area here with rough on each side. Don’t let the yardage on the card fool you, this hole can pack a punch.
Once you get to the fairway, there is more severe land movement.
It might not look it but this green is severely pitched. If you get your ball running to the left, it will keep going for a while.
Hole 9 – 138 yards – Par 3 – Pond
Before we get to this hole, there is a unique feature here that is worth highlighting. The water coolers on this tee box have iced tea in one and lemonade in the other so you can get one or the other or mix them. Outside of an actual halfway house, I’d not seen anything like that in my travels.
Like the drink options, the hole itself in intriguing. The green is super narrow and the bunkers make for difficult recoveries. While it is a short shot, the small landing area requires precision. The bunkering here serves as a good summary of Myopia Hunt Club’s eccentric design of sand traps. I loved them!
Hole 10 – 404 yards – Par 4 – Alps
The run of blind tee shots continues. Even though you can’t see where to go, you just need something straight to a fairway that is not too narrow.
The tenth hole is the home of the “Taft Bunker” where former President William Howard Taft had a tough time escaping. The story suggests that horses were needed to help him get out! That’s probably the reason that there are stairs here now.
Looking back up the hole gives you a feel for how the land movement can be perceived differently depending on the angle.
Hole 11 – 349 yards – Par 4 – Road
The fairway slopes hard from left to right here, so playing up the left side is required. With another heavily sloped green, staying below the hole is imperative.
Hole 12 – 451 yards – Par 4 – Valley
This is the nest example for my thesis that the course should mostly be played in these conditions. When the heather is way up, this hole becomes exceedingly difficult. In these conditions, I thought it still played hard, but fair. You’ve got to hit the fairway.
The challenges don’t get any easier on the approach shot with a longer club in your hand.
Hole 13 – 358 yards – Par 4 – Hill
From the tee, this looks like a benign dogleg left. Just plop one out there in the fairway and have a go at the green, right?
Not so fast! The second shot makes a steep climb to one of more sloped greens on the course. You absolutely have to control your spin on the approach shot. Walking off with a par here will feel like an accomplishment.
Hole 14 – 393 yards – Par 4 – Ridge
You get a break from the severity here with a straight hole that is not overly long. The fairway does cant right to left and the green is sloped, but for Myopia Hunt Club this is a breather.
Hole 15 – 529 yards – Par 5 – Long
For many, this is a true par five from these tees. Left is obviously a bad miss but this is one of the easier tee shots of the day.
Beware of the cross bunkers here that sit farther back from the green than you think. No one wants to play that shot!
This is another green with a heavy pitch from back to front.
Hole 16 – 192 yards – Par 3 – Paddock
We swing back to the clubhouse for this downhill par three. As long as there hasn’t been a recent rain, landing your ball short of the green is the play here to have a good chance at birdie. Due to the topography, you cannot see all the bunkers around the green.
Hole 17 – 394 yards – Par 4 – West
The penultimate hole plays straight directionally, but the fairway slopes hard to the right. Play up the left or utilize a draw to stay in the short stuff.
Missing to the right of this green is going to repel your golf ball. However, chipping from the left side is no picnic either.
Hole 18 – 400 yards – Par 4 – Home
We flip directions from the last hole and thus flip the slope of the fairway. Heather and a bunker guard the right side with the trees up the left. Pick a window on the clubhouse for a good aiming line.
You might have an audience for your approach shot since the clubhouse has tables on the patio. Don’t hit it thin! There are some deep bunkers guarding the green to give you one more challenge to finish the round.
Myopia Hunt Club was a revelation to me. I’d read about it and knew the history, but seeing it in person and getting to play the shots was such a cool experience. As I mentioned, I thought the conditions I had were perfect, so it might have beaten me up more on a different day. That being said, the quirk and thoughtfulness of the shots is still going to be there regardless. Playing here on a lovely day with a very welcoming host was such a pleasure.