Blackstone National lost its greens in the summer of 2020. GolfPass reviews from that August call it the worst conditions in Massachusetts, with the fourth green almost entirely dirt. By 2024 the same site had it ranked #14 among public courses in the state. That recovery is the whole story of the course right now. It's a 1999 Rees Jones in Sutton, 6,909 yards to a slope of 139 from the black tees, and it costs $57 to walk 18 on a weekday. Here's what it plays like, the verified 2026 rate card, and the weekend cart rule that doubles the price.
What Blackstone National is
Blackstone National Golf Club is at 227 Putnam Hill Road in Sutton, about 50 miles from Boston via the Pike and Route 146. Rees Jones designed it with Keith Evans and it opened in 1999. It plays par 72 at 6,909 yards from the black tees to a 74.6 rating and a slope of 139. That is the current GolfPass listing. Older directory pages still say 132, so the course has either been re-rated or the old sites are wrong. The blues play 6,655 yards at 73.5 and 134, the whites 6,396 at 71.8 and 128, and the greens 5,804 at 69.3 and 124. Bent grass greens. The property also runs the National Grill, a public restaurant with a deck over the 18th green, and the Barn, an event venue.
Jones describes the design as dictated by the contours of the land, which on this site means big elevation, tree-lined corridors, and holes that stay isolated from each other. The second is a 589-yard par 5 from the tips. The 16th is 588. The 13th is a 208-yard par 3. There is nothing short about the back tees.
The 2020 collapse and the recovery
The GolfPass review history reads like a timeline. August 2020: greens are 25 percent dirt, hard as concrete, more than 30 temporary pins counted. May 2021: still bad, groups started on 1 and 10 with tee times booked between, seven holes in three hours. Then the turn. July 2022: greens in amazing shape, best layout around. June 2024: a reviewer who came expecting dead greens called the place immaculate. One October 2022 review still complains about unfriendly staff, so the service fix lagged the turf fix. The club's own homepage now leads with a testimonial that opens “Blackstone is back.”
The all-time GolfPass score is 4.1 across 29 reviews, with 85 percent recommending it. Category scores: conditions 4.5, layout 4.5, friendliness 4.6, pace 4.1, value 4.0, amenities 3.6. Those conditions and layout numbers are pulled up by the recent reviews and pulled down by 2020. Read the dates before you trust the average.
2026 rates
The rate card from bngc.net, non-member prices:
| Round | When | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 18 holes | Mon–Thu, open to 3:20pm | $57 |
| Super twilight | Mon–Thu after 3:30pm | $32 |
| 18 holes, cart and range included | Fri–Sun and holidays | $115 |
| Super twilight, cart and range included | Fri–Sun after 3:20pm | $50 |
| Senior 18, cart included | Mon–Thu, open to 10am | $55 |
| Junior 9 / 18 | Any day | $20 / $35 |
| Cart, 18 holes | Per person, plus tax | $21 |
| Cart, 9 or super twilight | Per person, plus tax | $13 |
The midweek number is the value. $57 to walk a 6,900-yard Rees Jones is cheaper than Juniper Hill on a weekend and about what a non-resident pays at George Wright. Add the $21 cart and it's $78 riding. Carts have Visage GPS.
The weekend number is a different course. Carts are mandatory Friday through Sunday and on holidays, and the $115 rate bundles the cart and range. There is no weekend walking rate at all. The senior rate at $55 including cart is midweek only and only before 10am. Weekend super twilight at $50 with cart is the best weekend deal on the sheet. For courses that never force a cart, see the walking golf guide.
The Blackstone Card
For 2026 the club sells a Blackstone Card for $235. It includes two free rounds, 14 buy-one-get-one green fees, half-price Monday and Tuesday green fees, a range pass of 50 buckets, and BOGO lessons. The free and BOGO rounds work any time Monday through Friday and after noon on weekends. Carts are not included and the weekend cart rule still applies. Cardholders book 6 days out instead of 7, which is odd, and the BOGO can be used twice a month. If you'll play here four or more times, the card pays for itself on the BOGO alone.
How booking works
Blackstone runs on Chronogolf by Lightspeed. Public tee times open 7 days in advance online or by phone at (508) 865-2111 during pro shop hours. A credit card is required to hold the time, and the max per booking is four players. The club asks you to check in 30 minutes before your time. Dress code is a collared shirt and no jeans. Golf Genius runs the leagues, and the course hosts weekday and weekend leagues plus outings, so some blocks disappear from the public sheet. The season runs roughly mid-April to the start of December.
Where it fits
Sutton is 55 minutes from Boston with a clear road, which is further than MetroWest and about the same as Worcester. The competition in that band is Shining Rock in Northbridge, harder and more expensive, and Highfields in Grafton, a slope 135 Mungeam with no weekday walking rate. Blackstone is the only one of the three you can walk on a weekday for under $60. On a Saturday morning, $115 puts it $60 below Pinehills and $16 above Trull Brook for a much bigger golf course. The full regional map is in the Worcester guide.
Blackstone's tee sheet flips from $57 walking to $115 riding at midnight Thursday, the senior rate vanishes at 10am, and the Chronogolf page doesn't tell you which Saturday blocks a league already owns. Text Carl the day and whether you're walking. He reads the live sheet, knows which side of the cart rule you're on, and sends back the cheapest open time for the round you want instead of a rate you discover at the counter.
