YORK — Pat Rocheleau, one of the owners of The Ledges Golf Club in York, let out a whoop after sinking a 60-foot putt from just off the green for a birdie on the 17th hole.
Seconds later, head pro Matt Blasik put one on top of him for his own birdie from about 50 feet.
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EDITOR'S NOTE
Sixth in a series reviewing some of the best public golf courses in southern Maine. The series runs Tuesdays in the Press Herald.
The Ledges Golf Club
Route 91, York
Par-72 (6,981 yards, black tees; 6,357 yards, blue tees)
Course ratings: 74.2 (black); 71.3 (blue)
Tel. no. 351-3000
The Ledges is known for its large, undulating greens, and Rocheleau and Blasik had mastered one of the most difficult ones at the scenic course.
There’s a lot to like besides the greens at The Ledges, which opened 18 holes in 1999. Several holes are memorable.
“I like to talk about them in bunches,” said Blasik of the holes.
Early in the round, Blasik mentioned the sixth hole as one of his favorites.
The sixth is a 391-yard, par-4 dogleg left. A hazard starts about 200 yards off the tee and runs down the left side of the fairway, then cuts back into the fairway. A well-placed tee shot is a must.
“There’s 10 and 11,” said Blasik. “You get a break on holes 14 and 15, then you have to strap it on for the finish. This is a fun course to play. The greens are large and easy to hit, which golfers like. They’re kind of laid out in sections. You have to be on the right section to have the best chance at two-putting.”
The Ledges offers elevation changes. From the seventh and 17th fairways you can see the Kitttery-Portsmouth Bridge. There are tree-lined fairways, and lots and lots of rock outcroppings. It wasn’t tough to name this course.
“We had to do a lot of blasting,” said Rocheleau of building the course, which is in great shape. The greens are smooth and run fast. The fairways are lush.
Rocheleau, who builds custom homes, felt there was a need for a top public course in the area.
“There wasn’t a lot of places you could play golf in the 1990s,” said Rocheleau, whose company is headquartered in York Harbor. “They had private courses in the area but not much for the public golfer.”
Rocheleau and his partners, Ken Sullivan and Tom Donegan, purchased approximately 300 acres off Route 91. The property was adacent to the York landfill.
“I knew the landfill was going to close. This was going to be a golf course. It wasn’t going to have homes. It wasn’t called The Ledges at first,” said Rocheleau.
Sullivan died in 2001 and Donegan in 2008. Rocheleau is now a business partner with their widows.
The course might have been called York Highlands because that was the name of the development corporation. During the permitting process, one recurring theme was heard whenever someone needed directions.
“I kept saying ‘go to the ledges, go to the ledges’ if you needed to find someone,” said Rocheleau.
“They might have needed to find Brad Booth, our course architect, or someone else working on the land. He’s right near the ledges.”
This was, of course, before any fairways were cut, so the land was still pretty dense. There’s ledge all over the course, but the most prominent one forms a large hill near the center of the course, where the eighth tee is positioned.
The par 3 is the signature hole, measuring 220 yards from the black tees, 196 from the blue and 173 from the whites. The green sits 50 feet below. A pulled shot will meet a watery grave in the adjacent pond. Bunkers are left and right of the green.
“We have juniors and women wanting to hit from the men’s tees to get the full experience of the hole,” said Blasik.
The first hole is a straightaway, slightly downhill par 4, measuring 405 yards. It’s a challenging but fair opener. Nos. 2 and 3 are short par 4s. The second is 313 yards uphill and the third is 344 yards from the blue tees with an elevated tee. A large rock is the target off the tee.
“The first three holes really define the golf course,” said Blasik. “The second and third are framed up nicely by the trees and the bunkers.”
Then the course opens up with the wide, par-5 fourth followed by the 148-yard, par-3 fifth.
“The fifth green was the first one we seeded, followed by the fourth,” said Rocheleau.
The seventh is the second par 5 on the front.
The back nine starts with another standout hole. The 10th is 388 yards from the blue tees. The best tee shot sails over the left corner of the fairway trap down the right side. The second shot is uphill to another large undulating green.
The rest of the back nine offers diverse, challenging holes. The 13th, a straight uphill par 4, was recently rehandicapped. It’s now the No. 3 handicap hole and for good reason. It takes two good shots to reach the green. Another good hole, starting back to the clubhouse, is the par-4, dogleg-left 16th.
It’s all leading to the 18th, one of the toughest closing holes in Maine and perhaps New England. It’s a par 5, measuring 547 yards from the blue tees and 618 yards from the black.
A well-placed drive should be left-center of the fairway but there’s a pond on the left that snatches many a pulled drive. A decision has to be made on the second shot – whether to lay up before the large wetland or gamble and try to hit it over. The third shot is to an uphill green.
“When people think of Maine they usually don’t think of golf, but we have some great courses in the state,” said Rocheleau.
The Ledges is a public course with private course amenities. Thirty percent of members are from the North Shore of Boston.
“When people come here for the first time, they think they’re in a sanctuary,” said Blasik. “There are no houses and no condominiums.”
Those qualities are what attracted John Cassidy and Paul Thompson, retirees from Georgetown, Massachusetts, to join. They travel 45 minutes each way twice a week to play.
“The people here are incredibly friendly,” said Cassidy. “I love the golf course.”
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