WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – There’s a golf course just outside Watertown that’s been in business since 1995 and continues to get rave reviews from golfers throughout the area.

On State Route 342 is Highland Meadows Golf Course. The 18-hole course is owned by James Doolittle.

Doolittle built the course you might say out of necessity.

“Well, I used to do work at the paper mill, state jobs, so on and so forth, and the paper mills are dying,” he said, “so I bought the property and built the golf course.”

He came up with the idea for the layout of the course by ones he had played.

“I had just started playing golf down in Florida so I kind of picked up a few different courses down there and kind of designed it around that,” he said.

There’s a plaque on the first hole that commemorates the building of the course.

“Well, when we built the course, it was family members and friends,” Doolittle said, “and we worked on weekends and everything and got it done in one year.”

Amber Black is the manager of the course. She’s proud of the way the course looks this year.

“Lots of mowing and we have several guys that work outside,” she said. “We’re busy all the time.”

Not only do local golfers like the playing conditions but also visitors to the area.

“This weekend we had several people from Canada, from Rochester playing and they all said they love the course and it’s in good shape,” Black said, “so that’s good to hear.”

Highland Meadows, a gem of a course on State Route 342, just outside Watertown.

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