The Oaks Golf Links

The Oaks Golf Links opened in 2004 in Somersworth, near the Maine border in New Hampshire's Seacoast region, as an 18-hole course open to public play. The course was designed by William Bradley Booth and was routed through a dense forest of mature oaks, which gave the club its name and its quiet setting, with no housing development lining the fairways. Booth built a par-71 layout that played from about 4,955 to 6,825 yards depending on the tee, and he made accuracy the priority. Fairways were framed by bunkers, and wayward tee shots could find wetlands, trees or thick rough, so a shorter, straighter club off the tee often paid off more than a driver. A handful of risk-and-reward holes gave longer hitters chances to gamble, but a good score had to be earned. The club offered a driving range, short-game practice areas, a putting green and teaching professionals.