Fabled course gets a makeover

New owners revamp Tennanah Lake club

By Marge Feuerstein | Manor Ink Mentor

Roscoe, NY – “Our objective is to make this the jewel of the Catskills.” 

That is how one of the new owners of the Roscoe Mountain Golf Club described his vision for the property. Opened in 1926, the golf course, previously known as Tennanah Lake, is the oldest in Sullivan County.

Once it became known that Burt Handelsman, the previous owner, was willing to sell the facility, a number of developers came forward with ideas for hotels and townhouses. That was not, however, what Handelsman envisioned for the property, and he reached out to an acquaintance who had played the course for years. A group of investors called the Tennanah Lake Conservation Group was subsequently formed and they agreed with Handelsman on what the future of the club should be. In 2022, the TLCG acquired the property.

Although the course architect recommended that opening the newly renovated facility be delayed, the principals decided to proceed with opening the Roscoe Mountain Golf Club, as the property is now known, this year. They were reluctant to inconvenience golfers who had been playing the course for years. 

“We will just work around it,” one TLCG official said. In addition to the changes to the course, all of the property’s accommodations have been completely remodeled. Individual rooms and hotel suites are currently available, and hot tubs and fire pits have been installed. Six pickleball and two tennis courts are now also open. Envisioned as a total outdoor facility, the Roscoe Mountain Golf Club, when completed, will have numerous hiking trails plus paddle boats, canoeing and kayaking on the lake. The management plans to occasionally open the facility during the winter months as well.

Bob Menges, a native of Sullivan County and the resort’s golf pro, outlined the improvements that have already been completed on the course itself. First, a large-scale removal of trees that had overgrown the fairways was undertaken. Greater amounts of sunlight and circulating air will encourage much better growth of grass. Some of the bunkers have been filled in and the remaining ones were emptied, with new drainage constructed and new and better sand installed. Players will find a few new hazards making the course better and “requiring more thinking,” as one golfer remarked. “The greens are in the best shape they have ever been in.”

The whole property is a work in progress that will undoubtedly take some time to complete, but the new owners hope it will be a welcoming destination for golfers, visitors and local residents of the county and surrounding region. To learn more, visit roscoemountainclub.com. The club is located at 100 Fairway View Drive in Roscoe.