I was out of town when the news broke that Hickory Meadows was closing.

I spent a lot of time on the dear, wonderful course in Enfield. It was my refuge for hours and hours when the temperatures were favorable.

Hickory Meadows was my kind of links.

You didn’t need a tee time. I don’t even know if they gave tee times. Show up, pay a fee that could sometimes be less than 18 holes of miniature golf and be on your way.

I have to admit I don’t play golf as much as I simply hit balls.

One of my favorite things is to play golf with others; my very favorite thing is to hit balls alone.

After badgering Larry Maxwell, a self described “part-time retired guy in the pro shop” for a cart with the number five on it, and not the number six, I was off to play a not-so-quick nine holes.

The holes I would play were determined by how many other golfers I could avoid.

With a quick glance you could determine who was coming down No.2 or No. 9 or going off No.1 and No. 10.

Ideally I wanted to start on a hole where no one was within three holes behind me and three holes in front of me.

You could find those situations at Hickory Meadows.

For the longest time, before Ford’s Colony debuted, I touted Hickory Meadows as the best driving range in the area.

I regularly exhausted myself with buckets of balls under the searing June, July and August sun.

Maxwell, who worked there just short of four years, supplied the perfect description: “It was a country course,” he said, “with a very nice setting. And there were a lot of nice folks out there.”

I agree with those 
sentiments.

The nice folks included Maxwell, former head pro Rock Crum, Chris Jolly and way back, Aubrey McDaniel. I wish I could remember more names.

I liked the back-nine the best and often would tee off on No.11, a long par-4 that played beautifully to my eye.

I loved how the green sat on the subtlest of rises.

My other favorite hole was No. 17, where I put a few balls on I-95 before I learned to tame a vicious duck-hook.

I’m sure the statute of limitations have expired. How are they going to prove it was my ball anyway?

No. 17 was the most troublesome for the greenskeeper.

It took the biggest hit whenever there was a rainstorm and it could be CART PATH ONLY for weeks.

If there’s one lesson in Hickory Meadows closing, it’s that we must support the courses that are still open.

Please.

Ron Grillo