I'm Going to Play Every Course in Massachusetts!

It’s an idea that should come to someone in the middle of winter in Boston, maybe while watching the PGA’s Florida swing when my wife walks through the living room on a Sunday, stares at the green paradise then out our window into a winter wonderland and says, “Where is that?”

Instead, the idea to play every course in Massachusetts popped into my head in June, during a pandemic, just when the courses were opening up and I had a few rounds under my belt. First, it was just a question to some friends, “How many courses are in Massachusetts?” I had no idea, turns out there’s around 400. Maybe it was the scotch, maybe it was the feeling of being stuck and unable to travel, but my next question, well more a statement, was “I’m gonna try and play them all.”

James Clear, the author of Atomic Habits, says in order to form a habit or set a goal, you have to hold yourself accountable. A former golf pro I know said the best ideas survive the hangover, so when I woke up the next morning and the idea had planted itself in the back of my mind, I doubled down and started telling other friends this was a goal I was setting. It’s a huge one, to be sure. It will take years, and trips out to the far reaches of Western Massachusetts and the Islands. It will take some planning, 36, 45, or 54 holes in a day every now and then to make a trip worthwhile. There might be summers when golf is on the back burner for a number of reasons that I don’t care to forecast. But every hole will get me a little closer to the ultimate goal. Whether the hole is a 100 yard par 3 or a 600+ yard par five.

I have played a ton of golf in Massachusetts, but I decided to start this all from scratch. I am starting at zero, even though I’ve played Maynard CC, Concord CC, Worcester CC, Butter Brook endless times along with the smattering of rounds all over the state. I wanted to mark every round with a bit of writing and a bit of proof.

If you want to follow along, I’ll be writing here about every single course I play and you can find me on Instagram and Twitter, too. I hope I can dial in my writing, my golfing, my golf writing, and my understanding of design and architecture. I also hope to meet some people along the way and write some stories about the courses and the people.

Sign up for my weekly newsletter if you’d like reminders about my journey. I’m looking forward to getting started. My first round is with a college buddy, Matt, at Thorny Lea today (June 16).