Mere Creek Golf Club
Brunswick, Maine
Forrest Dillon, of Brunswick, Maine, has been practicing with his hickories since early May. His favorite track in the 9-hole Mere Creek Golf Club, which he says is just right for hickory golf. A recent member of the SoHG, Dillon often takes friends to the range and has them try a club or two. “They invariably like it,” he says.
With the optimism born of a true golfer, not to mention a hickory golfer, Dillon thought he would invite others to a hickory club outing at Mere Creek. That’s how hickory golf spreads, with the joy and enthusiasm of one person who hopes to share the game with others. So, he asked the pro, who gave his blessings, and Dillon put up a few modest posters and let his friends and others know what he was up to.
“It’s not going to be a large gathering, I’m afraid, but maybe a start,” he says. He’s thinking of easing any potential newbies in slowly, with nine holes and a two-person team scramble. “They can share clubs,” he says.
Dillon also leaves a few hickories in the pro shop, should the fancy strike someone to give them a try. These are exactly the methods that many of us have employed to encourage the discerning golfer to turn away from the mass migration toward par with modern tech and find out what a pure game is all about.
Will Dillon cull a few from the great herd? We shall have to stay tuned to find out. He is up against a September hickory calendar chock-a-block with events both grand and small. There is a Long Island SoHG Special at St. Georges and Southward Ho on Sept. 22-24, and there is a budding new event called the North/South Challenge match at French Lick Resort on Sept. 17-19. Both are sounding the clarion call for players. And there are other regional events around the country.
Still, you can’t help but admire Dillon’s optimism and his hope that other golfers in his area will come on to experience a few shots with the great old clubs. If you are Down East in mid-September, see if you can cadge a day from the calendar to join him at Mere Creek.
No matter if it is a one-person event, or two dozen, we wish you all the best with the Hickory Club Open, Forrest. It is sure to be a fine day on the course at Mere Creek.
Call Forrest at 207-729-1785 for information.