You Ask, Patch Answers

When Will Melrose's Golf Courses Open This Spring?

Find out when Melrose golf courses open this spring in our latest You Ask, Patch Answers column.

With several snowstorms hitting the city this winter, Melrose golf courses are opening about a month later than last year.  Mount Hood Golf Course Opened Wednesday With temperatures rising and conditions at the course looking good, Mount Hood Golf Course opened on Wednesday, according to Joan Bell, superintendent of Mount Hood and Public Open Space. "With the snow and the water we had to deal with afterwards with the soft greens and soft grass, we had to wait until we could handle having carts and equipment out there," Bell said. "But now that the ground has firmed up, we have the crews out there cleaning and tee markers are in and we're going." Due to the delayed opening, Bell estimated the projected lost revenue to be roughly $30,000, …

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Whiz Kids

Whiz Kid: High School Golf Star Alex Foley

The 16-year-old has challenged herself in the classroom and out on the golf course.

Know a student or group of students who should be recognized? Scroll down for instructions on submitting a nomination. Melrose Patch Whiz Kid of the Week How she did it: Alex has played on the Varsity Golf Team since her freshman year, according to her father, Craig Foley. She played at the No. 1 and No. 2 spots on the team this year as a junior and will be named the captain of next year's team at an upcoming banquet, he said. As a sophmore, she qualified for Girl's Individual State Tournament due to her scores on the boy's team and finished 36th in the state. She hopes to improve on that finish this spring as she has qualified for the tournament again. Alex was also recently named an Otis Scholar at the high school for her interest and …

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Amateurs Cream of 2011 Mass. Women's Open Crop

A pair of amateur golfers outpaced the pack at the 2011 Massachusetts Women's Open golf tournament yesterday at Bellevue Golf Club in Melrose—23-year-old Ellie Dutch won the overall title in a thrilling playoff against 13-year-old Megan Khang of Rockland.

Professional golfers are used to giving lessons, but the 15 assorted pros who entered the 21st Mass. Women’s Open at Bellevue Golf Club in Melrose were consigned to the classroom yesterday as a pair of amateurs schooled the field and ended the tournament with a thrilling playoff on day number two. Thirteen-year-old Megan Khang of Rockland and 23-year-old Ellie Dutch of Moodus, Conn. ended the 36 holes of regulation play deadlocked at 143, forcing a decisive three-hole sudden death playoff. After Khang narrowly missed a putt for par on the third playoff hole (par-3 No. 8), Dutch needed to cover some 45 yards in two shots to capture the overall Open crown and was able to do so. “I was very nervous,” said Dutch of playing in her first Mass. …

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Massachusetts Women's Open Returns to Melrose's Bellevue Golf Club

The 21-year-old tournament is back where it started.

The Massachusetts Women’s Open golf tournament will be returning to its roots this year. The 2011 edition, scheduled for June 27 and 28, will be contested at Bellevue Golf Club in Melrose—the same course that hosted the inaugural tournament back in 1990, and each one through 1994. “Bellevue is a great nine-hole golf course,” said open coordinator Susan Bond of the Melrose links. “They are really excited to have us back.” Bond, who won the Open at Bellevue in 1993, is the Head Professional at Weekapaug Golf Club in Westerly, RI and one of only two golfers to play in all 21 Mass. Women’s Open tournaments. The other, Beth O’Kelly of Black Rock Country Club in Hingham won the debut Open in 1990, and again in 1996. “It is one of the premier …

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Course Repairs, Alcohol Ban Concerns In Mount Hood Management Review

Park maintenance contract with Golf Management Company up for a vote in August.

Maintenance and repair costs at Mount Hood Golf Course, enforcement of the course's alcohol ban and safety throughout Mount Hood Memorial Park were concerns raised by the Melrose Park Commission during a review of Golf Management Company's (GMC) management at the commission's meeting Monday night. GMC's current contract expires at the end of the year and Park Commission officials will determine whether to renew the contract with GMC at their next meeting on Monday, Aug. 9. GMC owner Phil Friel said the Mount Hood Golf Course hosts approximately 45,000 rounds of golf per year. He said one of the biggest challenges is maintaining the walk-offs around the putting greens because of heavy foot traffic. Another concern Friel had was increasing …

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Daniel DeMaina

11:50 pm on Thursday, July 22, 2010

That seems to be the overall consensus about GMC's management, based on a previous Park Commission meeting where the Commission sought public input about the job GMC has done: http://melrose.patch.com/articles/melrosians-praise-mt-hood-golf-management-but-seek-park-improvements   more ›