The
Olde Sawmill Return
to Connecticut
page
345 Oxford Rd
Oxford, CT 06478
(203) 888-3954
Par: 42
Cost: $10 for adults
2001 Rating 2003 Rating 2024 Rating
Difficulty: 6 Difficulty: 4 Difficulty: 3
Creativity: 5 Creativity: 5 Creativity: 5
Atmosphere: 10 Atmosphere: 9 Atmosphere: 6
This course is very beautiful and has an overall good feeling to it. It has some interesting setups for holes, such as one in a gazebo and one in a replica sawmill. Additionally, there is a natural river that runs through it, creating much fear, for if the ball goes in the river, your game is over (or so the sign says.) Another interesting hole has two separate cups, one is real, and the other gives you a two stroke penalty. There’s plenty of good seating along the course for those much needed rests to write down scores. Many of the holes are simple and plain, but interestingly enough, there are several designed in a very phallic manner. This is definitely a course for our good friend Freud.
2003 Update
Since this course is close to home and it was a couple years since we originally played it, we thought we’d go back reevaluate the course. It was one of the first we played, so we really didn’t have much to compare it to. As you can see, not a lot changed. The difficulty rating only went down because we’ve seen how hard some of the other courses can be and the fact that one of the players in our group came in eight under par (with 4 hole-in-ones) gave it a slightly easier rating. Even though it does feature many easier holes, one of the best holes is the deceivingly simple gazebo hole. Let’s just say that it’s only about three feet long but requires some excellent skills for a hole-in-one. The same holds true for the atmosphere of the course. It didn’t actually get worse in the two years since we first played it, it’s just that we’ve seen how great some other courses are. All the wooden pieces are still in great condition and the brick boarders are excellent. We really enjoyed the 50’s-60’s music they had playing throughout the course although we did notice that the course was much buggier than the average course. There really didn’t seem to be any stagnant water or anything to attract the bugs, but you did notice them more than on other courses. Overall, we reaffirm our good rating of this course and definitely recommend it to people looking for a good night of fun. The course also has an extensive snack bar to provide you with a wide variety of food while you add up your score and relive those wonderful shots you had during the round.
2024
After 20 years we had a chance to pop by this course again and see how it has aged. We knew it had some setbacks with storms and flooding over the years and it looks like that took a toll on the course. Our ratings decline this time around is much more to do with the state of the course versus more experience on our part. We played on Memorial Day weekend so there were plenty of people and not a “pre-season” visit, though it was the first weekend of the year they were open. The turf is threadbare in spots, worn and sandy, throughout much of the course. There are a lot of loose bricks and most of the carpet was duct taped down near the starting pads. The pads themselves were very hard rubber and warped in many ways making it a challenge to have a clean hit off them, especially with the rubber course putters. These factors also made it somewhat easy to go out of bounds through no fault of your own. We had two balls go down a hill at a normal speed and they bounced out of bounds due to the carpet and bricks.
This time around there was no music and we didn’t check out the snack shop, though don’t think it was open when we visited. Given the state of the course we thought it was a little bit pricey for adults at the $10 mark but $7 was more reasonable for children. That is good because the redeeming factor for this course is that most of the holes are short and simple. While that might not always translate into a great overall score (we saw plenty of people in front of us not do well) it does mean that the balls are not really scattered all over the place and little arms can get some good shots in without having to crush the ball. Even with the flaws there are plenty of ace opportunities and Pat got a 35 while Malcolm (8 at the time) got a 44, so it can be low scoring.
This course also seems to have added something with their final holes that they didn’t have before. There was a choice to make at the 18th hole. To the right you had a more traditional 18th hole that collected the ball at the end and was labelled “difficult.” To the left you had both an 18th and 19th hole labelled “difficulter”, though the 18th hole was easier that way. For sure the 19th hole was quite difficult with a narrow channel up, which then got narrower with some blocks of wood. We had a group behind us otherwise I would have studied it a bit more and I think the chances of making it will a clean putt are quite low. However, unless the course is busy, and you need to get going we’re not sure why you wouldn’t select the left side and get extra minigolf.
The general consensus for the course is that we wouldn’t promote it over other courses in Connecticut but given that it is a good play for kids and there isn’t much else in the Oxford area it isn’t a bad play if you need something to do.
Reviewed by Pat, Malcolm, Mandy, Will, Putt and Skipper
Reviewed in 2001, 2003 & 2024
Course Pictures (click to enlarge)
2024 Pictures
Check out or Flickr album for more pictures.
Map
Par: 42
Cost: $5 for adults
Difficulty: 5
Creativity: 5
Atmosphere: 8
Full disclosure - many years ago when this course first opened I was friends with the original owner & played many rounds here - including their one tournament. (I took 4th place) I recently played the course after a long absence - still liked the location & the atmosphere but the younger generation has sadly not kept up with the maintenance - carpets & some of the wooden obstacles not in good repair. A fairly easy course after playing many if not all of the others in CT.
Reviewed by: Glenda R.
Reviewed in: 2018
Visitor Review #2 (2007)
Par: 42
Cost: $5 for adults
Difficulty: 5
Creativity: 5
Atmosphere: 1
I've only played this course a few times over the past 3 years but I usually do well and enjoy my game there. It's mostly an obstacle course but also uses contours and other 'natural' features to make it interesting. A handful of 'easy' holes and a few difficult ones balance out the difficulty factor to 'average'. The atmosphere is fairly rustic but not unpleasant at all. Ample parking and a well-stocked snack bar. I can recommend 'The Olde Sawmill' putting course for anyone seeking a slightly different type of minigolf venue, with a rural atmosphere.
Reviewed by: Jim Sweeters
Reviewed in: 2007
Par: 42
Cost: $5 for adults
Difficulty: 4
Creativity: 2
Atmosphere: 7
While the course looks attractive from the roadside, what with its raging river and replica sawmill, actually playing it reveals little more that a few putting greens interspersed with rocks or logs that the owners apparently found in the woods. Seriously, if you're looking for any obstacle besides a rock or a log, leave at once. Even the sawmill hole, which looks quite seductive, is in fact simply a putting green inside a shack, with an old non-functioning wood stove in the middle. To add insult to injury, the cheese fries and ice cream were below par (ha ha ha) and to add injury to insult, my stomach and my wallet both hurt. Stay away from the Olde Sawmill or risk getting cut to shreds.
Reviewed by: Ahmed Kazikian
Reviewed in 2003