Golf Course Spotlights
Golf Course Spotlights
Swing into Your Next Round of Golf
Photos Courtesy of Rich Longer
Now that warm weather is here to stay, there’s no better time to dust off the clubs and head out to one of the area’s beautiful golf courses! Whether you’re in it for the fresh air or the friendly competition, golf is a great sport for people of all ages and abilities and offers the perfect opportunity to spend time with friends and meet new people. Not sure if swinging a club is for you? Consider giving disc golf a try! With minimal equipment and plenty of local opportunities to learn, it just might be the sport that gets your whole family outdoors every weekend this summer!
Birch Run Golf Club
Located at 4130 Birch Run Road in Allegany, Birch Run Golf Club is a regulation length par 35 golf course owned by Bob Ketchner. While memberships are available, the course is also open to the public and hosts several tournaments throughout the season. “We pride ourselves in giving the best golf situation and golf experience for your dollar,” said Ketchner. “Our course is in great shape. We try to give a friendly environment for people to come and enjoy themselves and still respect the game of golf, have a good time, and challenge themselves.”
Unlike other golf clubs, Birch Run doesn’t require tee times. “We just do open golf,” Ketchner explained. “Basically, you can show up and play. We do receive phone calls (716-373-3113) to check on the status of play and the pace of play. If we’re exceptionally busy, we’ll let them know but most of the time they can get out on the course in a relatively timely manner.” Ketchner is looking forward to great weather this summer, though he’s glad Birch Run can handle the occasional downpour. “Fortunately, the course does take a lot of rain very well,” he noted. “It drains very well so we can get a lot of rain, but then we’re back and able to let carts out with really no restrictions.” For more information about Birch Run, visit www.birchrungolfclub.com or follow them on Facebook.
Elkdale Country Club
Elkdale Country Club is a semi-private golf club located at 4676 Route 353 in Salamanca. Now that May is here, the course and driving range are open daily from 8:00am to dusk Monday through Thursday, and from 7:00am to dusk on weekends. The 6,132-yard par 70 course provides plenty of fun, as well as an enjoyable challenge for golfers of all skill levels. Those who want to put their skills to the test will appreciate the challenge of the 555-yard par 5 followed by a 215-yard par 3!
Flexible membership options with no monthly minimum charges are available, as well as men’s and women’s leagues and golf lessons with Steve Hirst, PGA. Club members and the public can book tee times by phone at 716-945-5553 or online at www.elkdalecc.com. Elkdale’s bar and grill is also open to the public and features lunch daily, Friday night dinners with reservations, and Sunday morning breakfast. Stay up to date on this season’s events, including tournaments, by following Elkdale Country Club on Facebook.
Springville Country Club
Located at 14445 Route 219 in Springville, Springville Country Club was established in 1922 and is known for being one of the most unique golf courses in the region. The course, which lies at the foothills of the Allegany Mountains along Cattaraugus Creek, features fairways atop a natural gravel bed that drains water quickly and allows more play throughout the year. This private country club has affordable membership options; to learn more, contact Danielle Rola at 716-401-2226 or email drola@springvillecc.com.
The 14,000-square feet clubhouse, patio, and dining facility provides members and guests a beautiful place to enjoy a great meal, host a family gathering, or larger event. Learn more at www.springvillecc.com or follow Springville Country Club on Facebook.
Twin Tiers Disc Golf
Twin Tiers Disc Golf is a volunteer-based non-profit organization devoted to providing the community with opportunities to play disc golf, especially for youth. Rich Longer, who’s been enjoying disc golf for over 10 years, is pleased to share that disc golf is going strong at Olean’s Gargoyle Park, which was Twin Tiers’ very first disc golf course. While Longer was collaborating with the city of Olean to install this course, he worked contemporaneously with other municipalities to install disc golf courses, thus providing more opportunities for the community to engage in the sport. Shortly after completing the course in Gargoyle Park, Twin Tiers was awarded a grant by the Ralph Wilson Foundation to put in a youth disc golf course in Franchot Park. “There’s a course in Callahan Park in Bradford, Pennsylvania that just had its ribbon cutting this Sunday,” Longer said. Twin Tiers is also in the process of working with Allegany State Park to install a disc golf course.
Joe Henton of Twin Tiers has been thrilled to see participation in disc golf grow exponentially over the past few years. “We just hit 10,000 rounds played [at Gargoyle Park] in the few short years since it’s been installed,” Henton explained. “During the first year it was maybe 1,500 rounds, the next year we had 3,000 rounds, and the year after that we had 6,000 rounds and there’s just no sign of it slowing down.” He noted that interest was almost nonexistent in the early days, but now weekends are so busy that there are sometimes wait times in the park! “The response from the community has just been amazing,” he added.
Both Longer and Henton note that one of the best attributes of the sport is its accessibility, both in terms of player ability and cost. Henton said, “The vast majority of disc golf courses [including Twin Tiers’ courses] are free to play and there’s no need to schedule tee times. If there is someone there already, you’re able to go to a different hole and start your game as normal and finish as normal – it’s not going to affect your pace of playing. The way to get started is to just acquire your first disc, which is a $20 investment at most.”
Henton noted that people of all ages and ability levels can be seen at Gargoyle Park enjoying disc golf, from young children to adults using electric wheelchairs and walkers. For those who are interested, it’s easy to get involved! Visit www.twintiersdiscgolf.org for the 2024 schedule of tournaments and events, as well as league nights, at Twin Tiers’ courses. There is also a contact form available on the website for those who would like to get involved. For the latest updates, the Twin Tiers Disc Golf Club Facebook group shares events and information at Twin Tiers’ courses, as well as other disc golf events throughout the region.