Cam works here. So the rating is biased. But perhaps understand pricey memberships normally don't fare well even if we like the course and the people lol.
Condition
I'm spoiled. The course is always supreme. You never come onto the grounds and think, wow that was really burnt, slow, or poor in any way. The greens are on the faster side come the summer, but are never unfair (there are a few dastardly holes/pin locations...4/6/15 lol). Mike Hughes and Peter Hasak are legends.
The front 9 and back 9 are a tale of two different courses. The clubhouse 9 (on the side of the road towards the clubhouse are mostly situated in Marblehead...a good chunk of the property is actually in Swampscott), is fairly open, little to no elevation change besides the heroic first tee shot, and more of a Ross design. The back 9 is a tricky endeavor that leaves me scratching my head on most holes from misreading greens or firing balls down unfortunate slopes. A ski jump 16th, and some tight fairways along 11-15 are the storyline of how your round is for the day. Both sides are a true test, but in different forms.
A par 70 (34 front and 36 back) always has some teeth, but a fun test and an interesting test overall. You don't generally see back to back par 3s and then back to back par 5s, the course definitely has some funk to it.
Most notably is the first tee ball off the raised patio tee box, it truly is one of the best tee balls in New England, and my favorite hole on the course is #2, which goes directly back into a rock face and look at the clubhouse, it's genuinely a cool golf hole.
Atmosphere
The staff here get's the job done day in and day out, the grounds crew is phenomenal and very friendly, the shop staff and outside staff are pretty tight knit overall. There has been a pretty wild retention of workers in golf ops, meaning you probably recognize the same faces from last year, the year before, and the year before that. That to me is always the tell tale sign of a place that feels a little more like family, than heading to a golf course with employees.
The patio up top is a pretty slick spot to hang out, and the team is pretty geared towards golf. That seems goofy to say, but I've worked at probably...7ish different golf courses and been around a zilllion different staff, good golf is not generally the priority and here that is truly the case. There's no pool/tennis/additional facilities and the pro staff is all dedicated to playing quality golf and continuing to teach the game as well.
Value
Smiling face with the sweat on forehead
Off the cuff I wouldn't say that Tedesco is a deal, there's a huge waitlist and ya, you gotta pay to get your name on here. That being said, that's a giant change from a few years ago, where they were begging for some more members. I can't really speak to what the exact numbers are, but generally with courses like this, the Divots score generally tanks because the ordinary golfer isn't really sniffing this place, unless you're a guest or in a Monday outing (or buying Cam dinner).