Golf in Somerville

A two-tiered driving range and two 18-hole miniature-golf courses welcome visitors to Branchburg Family Golf Center’s 27-acre golf complex for game improvement and friendly competition. Each tier at the range comprises more than 30 hitting stalls and features a natural-grass tee area that remains open from April through September. In colder months, 12 recently installed heaters keep golfers cozy or help them sweat off pounds to drop a weight class in golf-cart jousting. Professional instructors roll in when players reach an improvement plateau, offering their keen expertise to develop consistent swings that lead to lower scores.

The center’s two miniature-golf courses summon putts past crashing waterfalls and through lush landscapes, fostering a sense of friendly competition in a pint-sized oasis. When swatting stationary spheres becomes too easy, visitors can head over to the batting facility to work on baseball swings and tackle techniques when charging the mound at a cyborg pitcher.:m]]

The course at Stonybrook Golf Club weaves along verdant paths buttressed by dense walls of foliage, creating a relatively short 3,514-yard track from the back tees. Course architect Robert Krieger incorporated frequent misdirection that leads to blind shots, including double doglegs on the 6th and 15th holes, the course’s only two par 5s. Water hazards come into play on seven holes and speedy greens can cause further complications for golfers with the yips or roller-skate golf shoes. When walking, a round can be finished in under three hours, letting players quickly return to daily life or the scene of the accident.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 62 course
• Total length of 3,514 yards from the back tees
• Course rating of 57.3 from the back tees
• Course slope of 91 from the back tees
• Three sets of tees per hole
• Scorecard

Miry Run Country Club unravels across a 6,657-yard track of tight fairways and fast greens to form its 18-hole, par 72 golf course. Groves of trees line the relatively narrow fairways throughout the course, placing a premium on accurate tee shots and precision golf cart driving so that players aren't forced to test out prototypes of golf bag floatation devices in the water hazards. With three tee options, the course offers a fair par-hunting test for clubbers of all abilities.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course

• Length of 6,657 yards from the farthest tees

• Course rating of 72.0 from the farthest tees

• Slope rating of 127 from the farthest tees

• Three tee options

• Scorecard

The pristine, recently renovated fairways at Meadows Golf Club snake around 12 ponds that vary in size and factor into play-making decisions on at least 14 holes. Water makes itself a prevalent threat to golf balls that are afraid to swim on the 9th and 18th holes, where larger ponds loom ominously to finish out the front and back nines. The 9th, a 240-yard uphill par 3, demands steely nerved shots over two ponds: one that stretches past the tee box to the player's center-right and another that runs along the left all the way to the green. On the par 4 18th, players again face down a tee shot over water, this time being forced to keep their drive to the right to avoid water along the length of the fairway, as well as packs of ravenous ball washers that roam the course in search of prey.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 70 course
• 6,345 yards from the back tees
• Three sets of tees

Horsham Family Golf takes up more than 16 acres of space where players of all ages can fine-tune their skills. Guests can practice putting at a gold-rush-themed 18-hole mini-golf course, aiming for holes in one while avoiding dips and obstacles. The facility also houses a driving range equipped with laser-precise distance markers and buckets of high-quality golf balls yearning to feel the wind in their dimples. 28 of the 50 golf stalls are private and remain lit for evening play, and a new practice bunker challenges golfers with a large sand trap. After practice, guests can visit the onsite pro shop, where they can stock up on golfing accessories or purchase a set of custom-fitted clubs.

Designed by 10-time PGA Tour winner Mark McCumber, Knob Hill Golf Club’s 18-hole course bobs and weaves through 145 acres of scenic, dense woodland terrain. The first McCumber course to grace the American Northeast, the 6,408-yard layout seamlessly incorporates imposing tree lines and 15 manmade, natural, and caddy-tear ponds into an elegant, golf-clap-worthy fairway chain. The course’s most difficult hole—the 464-yard, par 4 fourth hole—showcases characteristic challenges with a tee shot that must carry a pond and bisect a tree-ensconced fairway on its path to a green fronted by a sandtrap. After rounds, duffers can replenish with a sudsy drink and a nosh from a menu of casual, gourmet fare at The Sycamore Grill, named for the 185-year-old sycamore that casts its shadows on the clubhouse and sheds celebratory leaves for players who score under par.

Course at a Glance:

• Designed by Mark McCumber

• 18-hole, par 70 course

• Length of 6,408 yards from the farthest tees

• Course rating of 71.3 from the farthest tees

• Slope rating of 131 from the farthest tees

• Three tee options

• View scorecard here