Graphic by Chandler Littleford/The Choate News
Choate’s very own golf course has recently risen to popularity after the official nine holes were set in place earlier this year. Patrick Mullowney ’18 and Crawford Sargent ’19 first began playing campus golf last spring, and others soon began to dedicate time after school and on the weekends to “hitting the links,” as Spencer Witter ’19 puts it. Mullowney and Sargent designed the 9-hole golf course, where the first tee is in front of the steps outside of the St. John Student Activities Center and the other eight holes loop through the library, the Humanities building, down to Atwater, outside of Lanphier, onto the varsity football field, and end in front of the Combination dorm.
Many on the Choate Campus Golf Team decided to play campus golf — where golf clubs are used to hit tennis balls rather than golf balls — because it was less of a time commitment than playing golf on a regular course. Mullowney said that while he and campus golf course co-creator Sargent both enjoy playing and watching golf in their free time, “At Choate there aren’t that many opportunities to play real golf, so we compromised and designed our very own campus golf course.” Crawford, a life-long golfer who began playing golf at a young age, similarly added, “This year we decided it would be more fun if we had a set course that we could play and keep track of scores for. Since we designed the course, a lot more people have started playing campus golf and using the course.” Most times, a large group forms on the weekends or after classes on Wednesday, and they attack the course. Crawford said, “If you are playing at a reasonable pace, 9 holes takes about 30 minutes on this course.” Witter agreed, adding on, “[We play] any chance we get. It’s always a good time when we round up the boys and hit the links.”
Caden Dumas ’18 was introduced to campus golf last year when he arrived as a new junior. Dumas said, “I fell in love with the game instantly. You could say I’m married to it at this point. I love to just head outside and hit the links on a nice day to clear my mind. The beauty of Choate Campus Golf is that it doesn’t take a great golfer to play. I’m awful, but I’m a pretty good campus golfer to say the least.” Whether you’re like Charlie Barnett ’19, who plays a good amount of golf off-campus during the summer, or like Dumas, who claims that he is “lit at mini golf,” while “real golf” isn’t his strong suit, campus golf encourages inclusivity. It also helps that one doesn’t need a caddy, a golf cart, or more than one golf club to play the campus’s 9 holes; it’s a quick and interactive way to spend half an hour.
