KENDUSKEAG – Since Jim and Sandra Poole first looked at it, the former Kenduskeag Valley Golf Course has been about change.

Four years later, the changes at the now-named Kenduskeag Golf and Country Club keep on coming.

It started when the Pooles bought the course from Ed and Lucille Koncinsky in 2003 and moved up from Tampa, Fla.

“I owned my own auto appraisal business,” said Poole. “I was on the road every daylight hour, then at night I’d be on the computer ’til I couldn’t keep my eyes open.”

The Pooles were in the process of adopting a daughter, Lily, now 4, and Jim knew he wouldn’t be seeing much of her as she grew up. That’s when they started checking online for other options.

They picked the Kenduskeag golf course because, Jim said, “My wife wanted to be close to family,” and her sister lived a little farther north.

After they moved to Kenduskeag, the Pooles added to their family by adopting Lily’s brother, Zach, who turns 3 next month.

The switch from auto appraisal to golf course ownership was not a big leap for Jim.

“[Golf] has been my favorite pastime,” he said. “Anytime I had a few hours, it was what I wanted to do.”

Jim said he studied for six months about how to run a golf course.

“I took an online turf management course,” he said, then smiled. “I had trouble taking care of a quarter-acre at home, but I figured if it was a full-time job, I could do it.”

Now that he and his wife are in the process of getting a divorce, he has had to learn other jobs, too. He still mows the greens and fairways, but now he is also “the second-string cook and third-string counter person,” he said.

He was a little hesitant about cooking for the restaurant, which can seat about 50 normally but up to about 80 for special occasions.

“There was a learning curve there, but it’s not as hard as it seems when you get your feet in,” he said, then smiled again. “We put out pretty good food here, and I’m shocked I make it.”

The restaurant is part of a new clubhouse that itself is the biggest visible change, so far. The clubhouse replaced the farmhouse that served as both residence and golf shop. All of the original buildings were torn down and replaced.

There are changes in the works for the course as well.

“We’re going to change No. 3 from a par 5 [which runs along Kenduskeag Stream] to a short par 4,” he said. The new green, which isn’t ready yet, will be just off the elbow of the current third hole. It will play about 251 yards from the white tees.

Then No. 4, which has been a 110-yard par 3, will become a 400-yard par 4.

“The No. 4 tee box is about half the size it used to be,” he said. “The ice [from the spring runoff] takes a big chunk out every year.”

The eighth hole, now a par 3, will eventually become a 265-yard par 4. A chute through the woods to the right of the current tee has already been cut.

Poole didn’t have anything to do with the other big change on the course.

“That huge spruce in front of the fifth green came down during the last windstorm,” said Poole. “You wouldn’t believe how happy the guys are to see that gone.”

While he raised membership prices across the board, he has also instituted other deals.

“Tuesdays and Thursdays and $10 all day. Those quite often are our biggest days, even more than weekends,” said Poole, who also noticed that not many children were playing.

“Kids under 10 play free all year,” he said. “There are kids on the course every day now.”

That sometimes extends to his own kids, even at their ages.

“Lily can take it or leave it,” he said, even as she took one of her clubs and a ball outside to play. “[Zach] loves golfing like you wouldn’t believe.

“His favorite thing, though, is to hit balls in the stream.”

The changes are paying off.

“Play has about doubled and income has about tripled,” he said while also noting that many people voluntarily help him around the course and clubhouse.

“The whole attitude around here is smiling faces,” he said, including his own.

“Now when I come in for lunch, I can have lunch with [his children] … or anytime I have a break, I can spend it with them,” he said.

Despite some of the changes going on in his life, he doesn’t regret his decision.

“I love the lifestyle. I’ll never go back,” he said.

Brianna Rachel tournament

Kenduskeag Golf and Country Club will host the sixth Brianna Rachel Fund for Kids scramble tournament July 14. The rain date is July 15.

It’s a nine-hole event with divisions for men’s, women’s and mixed (two men, two women) teams.

The fee is $30 per person and includes long drive and nearest-the-pin competitions. Also, the first person to ace the par-3 eighth hole wins $10,000.

Brianna Rachel died of brain cancer in August 2000 at age 6.

Ed and Lucille Koncinsky, grandparents of Brianna, run the tournament to honor Brianna’s wish to make other children’s lives more pleasant during their treatments and stays at the hospital.

Tee times start at 7 a.m. Call 884-7330 to reserve a tee time and golf carts.

Dave Barber can be reached at 990-8170, 1-800-310-8600, or by e-mail at dbarber@bangordailynews.net.

KENDUSKEAG GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB

Address: 947 Grant Road, Kenduskeag

Phone: 884-7330

Layout: Nine holes, 2,613 yards, par 35

Green fees: 9 holes, $12; 18 holes, $16

Specials: Tuesdays and Thursdays, $10 all day

Starting times: no