Cedar Knob Golf Course is a public par 72 course measuring approximately 6,734 yards from the tips. The course was originally designed in 1963 by Geoffrey S. Cornish and is located in Somers, Connecticut.
Cedar Knob emerged during Geoffrey Cornish’s independent practice years when the Canadian-born architect was establishing his reputation for creating accessible public courses throughout New England. Cornish, who designed over 240 courses during his career, applied his “functional” design philosophy emphasizing minimal earth movement while maximizing strategic interest. The course represents mid-20th century public golf architecture at its finest, built during the post-war golf boom to democratize the game for Massachusetts-Connecticut corridor golfers. Cornish’s agronomic background influenced every design decision, creating a layout that balances challenge with maintainability across approximately 130 acres of rolling Connecticut terrain. The routing winds through mature cedar forests utilizing natural elevation changes, pronounced swales, and existing landforms to create strategic corridors. Cornish’s signature oversized bunkers, styled after British Isles sand hazards, serve as both visual intimidation and strategic punishment for poorly positioned approach shots. The design philosophy emphasizes accuracy and course management over distance, with water hazards deployed sparingly but decisively on holes 10, 11, and 18. Green complexes feature mild contouring with characteristic back-to-front slopes, requiring approaches to stay below pin positions. The course maintains its original 1963 design integrity under current owner/superintendent John Gale, preserving Cornish’s vision of affordable, strategic public golf.
Cedar Knob exemplifies the architect’s commitment to creating “honest” golf courses that reward thoughtful play while remaining accessible to golfers of all skill levels. The mature forest setting creates dramatic cedar backdrops throughout the round, with the namesake evergreens serving as both aesthetic enhancement and strategic framing elements. Course conditions consistently earn praise from players who appreciate the balance between challenge and playability that Cornish embedded in his design. The layout demands precision over power, making it an ideal test for golfers who value course management and strategic thinking over raw distance.
Strategic Test
Cedar Knob presents a sophisticated strategic examination that rewards course management while punishing reckless aggression. The Geoffrey Cornish design philosophy creates multiple decision points throughout the round, where players must weigh risk against reward on both tee shots and approaches. The course’s slope rating of 129 from the championship tees indicates significant strategic complexity, while the 72.4 course rating suggests scoring opportunities exist for players who navigate the design intelligently.
The slope rating represents the relative difficulty of a course for bogey golfers compared to scratch players, measured on a scale from 55 to 155. A slope rating of 129 places Cedar Knob in the “moderately difficult” category, meaning higher handicap players will find the course proportionally more challenging than low handicappers. The course rating of 72.4 represents the expected score for a scratch golfer under normal playing conditions, indicating the course plays slightly more difficult than its par 72 suggests.
Strategic decision-making opportunities present themselves consistently throughout the round, particularly on holes where Cornish employed his signature risk-reward design principles. The architect’s use of centerline hazards, alternate approach angles, and corridor framing creates multiple playing options that favor different skill sets and playing styles. Players who embrace conservative positioning often find themselves rewarded with easier approach angles, while aggressive players face heightened consequences for marginal execution.
| Handicap | Course Strategy |
|---|---|
| High Handicap (18+) | Focus on course management from forward tees (5,920 yards, 67.2/121 rating). The lower slope rating reduces penalty severity while maintaining strategic interest. Emphasize accuracy over distance, targeting fairway centers and green centers to minimize big numbers. |
| Mid Handicap (8-18) | Play from white tees (6,298 yards, 70.3/125 rating) to balance challenge with scoring opportunity. Strategic positioning becomes crucial, with calculated risks on holes offering clear reward for precise execution. Course management skills directly correlate with scoring improvement. |
| Low Handicap (0-8) | Championship tees (6,734 yards, 72.4/129 rating) demand precision and strategic sophistication. The elevated slope rating punishes marginal shots severely, requiring consistent execution and advanced course management to score effectively. |
The 18th hole exemplifies Cedar Knob’s strategic sophistication, serving as a demanding closer that epitomizes Cornish’s risk-reward philosophy. This 405-yard par 4 features a severe dogleg left with a forced water carry over the pond from the 10th hole. The narrow landing zone at the dogleg’s apex creates intense pressure, while stately evergreens frame both tee shot options and approach angles. High handicappers must accept conservative center-fairway placement, avoiding water and trees while accepting a 150+ yard approach. Mid handicappers can position strategically right of centerline to open the approach angle, though club selection becomes critical due to the downhill lie. Low handicappers face the ultimate risk-reward decision: aggressive corner-cutting over small trees to shorten the approach, but only precise execution yields reward. The hole’s architectural brilliance lies in its escalating penalty structure, where even conservative play demands two quality shots while aggressive angles offer reward only through precise execution.
Nearby Course Alternatives
Keney Park Golf Course in Windsor, located approximately 25 to 30 minutes south of Somers, offers a compelling alternative with a deep historical pedigree. A public facility measuring 6,449 yards from its back tees to a par of 70, Keney Park carries a course rating of 70.6 and a slope of 127. The course’s origins date to 1927 with an original nine holes designed by Devereux Emmet, a celebrated architect of golf’s “Golden Age”. A recent and highly acclaimed restoration by Matthew Dusenberry has revived the classic features of the design, including bold green complexes and strategic bunkering. While Cedar Knob is an excellent example of mid-century parkland design, Keney Park provides a journey further back in architectural history. A player who prioritizes Golden Age character, with its often more dramatic and naturalistic features, and who enjoys the unique challenge of a par-70 layout would likely find Keney Park to be a fascinating and rewarding experience.
Topstone Golf Course in South Windsor presents a more modern public alternative, located a convenient drive from Somers. Opened in 1997, this Al Zikorus design is a par-72 championship layout that stretches to 6,546 yards from the tips, with a course rating of 70.9 and a slope of 124. Built more than three decades after Cedar Knob, Topstone reflects a different era of design, often utilizing more pronounced shaping and taking advantage of its “rolling hills” to create more significant elevation changes throughout the round. The course is known for its excellent conditions and presents a strong, modern test of golf. With a slightly lower slope rating than Cedar Knob, it may prove marginally more forgiving for the average golfer. The player who enjoys a more contemporary aesthetic, appreciates varied topography with uphill and downhill shots, and seeks a layout representative of late 20th-century architecture would find Topstone Golf Course to be an excellent choice.
Final Word
Beyond the 18 holes, Cedar Knob provides a well-rounded and accommodating golf experience. The facility includes an on-site driving range, allowing players a proper space to warm up before a round or to work on their game. The club also offers professional instruction for those seeking to improve their skills. Off the course, the clubhouse serves as a comfortable hub for players. It features a fully stocked pro shop to handle equipment needs and a restaurant and banquet facility that has been beautifully renovated, providing a pleasant atmosphere for post-round relaxation and social functions.
What makes Cedar Knob Golf Course a special and enduring place is its commitment to the core principles of enjoyable golf. It does not rely on dramatic vistas or modern contrivances to prove its merit. Instead, it offers the quiet confidence of a soundly designed course by a respected architect, set on a mature landscape that rewards strategy and precision. The challenge is straightforward but not simple, engaging the mind as much as the swing. It proves its value by providing a consistently fair, strategic, and pleasant test of golf that has stood for over half a century and remains a distinguished public asset for the golfers of north central Connecticut.
David is an avid golfer who loves walking Connecticut’s courses and playing alongside his family. He’s passionate about golf course architecture and one day hopes to play at Pebble Beach.
