The Leatherstocking Golf Course follows the western shore of Lake Otsego in the classic American village of Cooperstown, N.Y., home of the Baseball Hall of Fame and the historic residence of author James Fenimore Cooper. Between the town, the course and the vintage Otesaga Resort Hotel, the setting evokes a slower, more relaxed era that’s easy to savor.
The Otesaga, a grand Federal-style hotel built around 1909, features an impressive portico supported by towering 30-foot columns. A member of Historic Hotels of America, the Otesaga offers an atmosphere of quiet elegance that extends to its meticulously maintained, 72-par golf course.
Designed in 1909 by Devereux Emmet, Leatherstocking provides panoramic views from nearly every hole and is regarded as one of the East’s most scenic and rewarding resort courses. Built on the natural terrain instead of reshaped land, the traditional-style layout plays 6,416 yards from the back tees. Narrow fairways, deep bunkers and small, fast greens demand thoughtful shot-making. Though not extraordinarily long, the course presents a stern test that emphasizes placement, strategy and short-game precision.
Hole 1 (340 yards, par 4)
Slightly uphill, the opening hole rewards a solid drive with a short-iron approach. Bunkers protect the green on both sides. Missing long forces an uphill pitch back to a green that slopes away, so distance control is key.
Hole 4 (513 yards, par 5)
Playing slightly downhill, the fourth offers big hitters a chance to reach in two with a strong tee shot. Those who lay up should avoid the bunkers about 100 yards from the green, with deep pot bunkers guarding the left and right sides of the landing area.
Hole 6 (360 yards, par 4)
This slight dogleg right features trees along both sides and a brook skirting the right edge. Favor the left side of the fairway so the slope can feed the ball toward the center. A good drive sets up a medium- to short-iron into a green again protected by deep bunkers.
Hole 7 (404 yards, par 4)
A narrow uphill fairway bordered by two deep bunkers about 75 yards from the green, which will punish any second shot that isn’t struck cleanly. Expect a medium- to long-iron for your approach. The green has a false front that will reject shots that don’t carry fully. A plaque at roughly 350 yards commemorates Johnny Bench’s legendary drive on this hole.
Hole 11 (560 yards, par 5)
The 11th sits at the course’s highest elevation and typically plays as a three-shot hole. Avoid a second shot pushed too far left, which drops into rough and trees. Bunkers around the green make accuracy on the third shot essential.
Hole 12 (137 yards, par 3)
Severely downhill, the 12th often plays much shorter than its listed yardage. Club selection is critical. Miss the green and you risk one of the eight bunkers surrounding the target or a long out-of-bounds result.
Hole 16 (366 yards, par 4)
This straightaway offers a striking view of the Otesaga and Lake Otsego. Accuracy from the tee is vital to avoid water along the right that carries to the green. Long hitters should beware a stream that bisects the fairway. A solid drive leaves a medium-iron into the green; the left bunker receives many approaches from players avoiding the right-side water.
Hole 17 (182 yards, par 3)
No. 17 is a nerve-testing par 3 with Lake Otsego guarding tee to green. Precise ballstriking is required: anything short or pulled risks water, while even the only safe miss to the right still demands a substantial carry.
Hole 18 (515 yards, par 5)
The finishing hole is a dogleg that begins on a tee set in the lake, reached by a bridge from the 17th green. To shorten the hole you must carry the water off the tee. After clearing the lake, water runs down the left side and behind the green. Players attempting to reach in two have a bailout area to the right; the green is two-tiered and demands a precise approach.
Leatherstocking Golf Course
The Otesaga Resort Hotel
60 Lake St.
Cooperstown, NY 13326
tel 607 547 9931