The 13th Hole at Harrison Meadows
By Dan Murphy
Very few local governments can offer their residents the option of joining a full-service golf club, at a fraction of the price of a traditional Westchester club. Currently, three Westchester golf courses are owned by local governments and offered to their residents at a reasonable yearly rate.
The Rye Golf Club and Lake Isle Country Club in Eastchester are the two clubs that have been around for decades, and have successfully operated their golf courses, tennis courts, pool and other facilities for their homeowners and families.
In 2021, Harrison Mayor Ron Belmont saw an opportunity to purchase Willow Ridge County Club, which was up for sale and in financial distress. Belmont, and the Harrison Town Board acquired the property through Eminent Domain, paying $13.65 million for the facility.
Additional bonding was made for improvements and the first players teed off at the Town of Harrison owned Harrison Meadows Country Club in the spring of 2022.
I had the pleasure of playing Harrison Meadows this Spring and enjoyed the layout, friendly staff and condition of the course. It is a hidden gem that deserves your consideration for a golf outing or membership.
Harrison Meadows sits between two other country clubs: Westchester County Club, and the Apawamis Club. This location offers golfers the serenity of a large area of greenspace in the middle of Westchester County.
Like most country clubs in the Harrison-Mamaroneck-Rye area, some of the holes at Harrison Meadows run next to large Harrison private homes, which added to the ambiance of my round.
Harrison Meadows is a fair test for the average golfer. Measuring 6425 yards from the gold tees, the 18-hole layout rewards a straight drive on the fairway, with most 2nd and 3rd shots to well protected or elevated greens.
I especially enjoyed playing the 6th hole, a par four with a second shot over water. The 9th and 18th holes are also memorable; both are uphill Par 5’s that take you back to the clubhouse and the restaurant.
Water is a factor in several holes that require an accurate wedge or short iron onto the green. And even though it was early in the golf season, the greens were rolling true.
The investment and work invested in Harrison Meadows show that it is ready for a summer of golf, and the club offers full service lessons. A full service tennis club, new pickle ball courts and a large pool, round out the offerings.
A new restaurant, The Meadows Social Kitchen & Bar, is getting rave reviews, and is open to the public. The club also offers the capability to cater for your special event or golf outing.
This year 100 annual passes were made available to non-Harrison residents. At the time of my round, those passes were going fast. Daily fee options are also available for residents only.
We spoke to GM Patrick Wynn about Harrison Meadows “We want Harrison Meadows to be a center piece of the Harrison community. The golf course is very important to us and it’s overall conditions are the reflection of the hard work put in by the golf and agronomy teams. For all the residents who aren’t golfers, we have a full service restaurant operating Tuesday-Sunday for both lunch and dinner. We offer a wide range of food options, live music and delicious cocktails. We look forward to seeing what the summer has to bring.”
PGA Director of Golf Nick Schremser said, “We offer a full tournament schedule and a variety of instructional programs for the club. We are a fun family-oriented facility and a lot of what we do is centered around that. We hope this is a place Harrison Residents can come to and enjoy and create memories year after year.”
Harrison Mayor Ron Dioniso said, “I’m extremely pleased with how far Harrison Meadows has come in such a short period of time. The club just had its one-year anniversary on April 17th and in that time, we had completely reshaped the course and had numerous successful events and tournaments. Harrison Meadows has a great community and we hope it will continue to grow.”
If you have a chance to play Harrison Meadows, give the course and the club an opportunity which will not disappoint you. And for the residents of Harrison, you are fortunate to have the option of joining a full-service country club at a fraction of the usual cost. Enjoy.
Visit https://www.harrisonmeadowscc.com for more information.
