I’ve long been a lover of the old-school ski area; where a red double chairlift still labors up the hill and trails are cut narrow and winding.

Mind you, I love a modern high-speed lift and an impeccably groomed modern mountain too; loving old and new are not mutually exclusive. But old school? It’s a cool, interesting and special way to experience a mountain.

Now I know: I feel that way about golf courses too. I discovered this when I played my very first round at historic, quirky-in-a-good way Marion Golf Club (https://www.mariongolfclub.com).

Known affectionately to locals as “Little Marion,” I was drawn to try a round there after I learned it was the very first course designed by George Thomas, who would go on to design top world destinations like The Los Angeles Country Club where the US Open of Golf was played this summer.

We arrived on a partly cloudy Wednesday midday, having secured a twosome online the day prior. We got there early and when we checked in (there’s a tiny, basic pro shop; I’m told some days there’s just an honor system box), we were told we could head out right after a twosome that was about to tee off.

I’d read that the course, designed by Thomas in 1904 when golf was a bit of a different sport (you teed off of sand mounds you’d create; hazards like stone walls and overgrown gullies were considered key) still had you play through, in and around most of those features. I was ready, knowing that on a few holes, original stone walls encircled the greens.

What I found was a unique, well-maintained, laid back and yet pristine spot where history meets excellent course maintenance, pretty views and where golfers proudly show their true love of the sport. In short: it’s a blast of a course that everyone should try at least once.

It helped a lot that the twosome in front of us were club members and knew the course down to the inch. When I mentioned we were first-timers and we’d follow them (I’d read that some of the pathways can be confusing and I’d read an excellent hole-by-hole description that told me, honestly, some holes can play as a bit of a surprise the first time), they upped the ante.

“Oh, just play with us!” Ron and Stevie said, nearly in harmony. Lucky us. They gave us a preview of each hole at the tee box (“I know you don’t see a flag, but there’s one right up there, just past the big stone wall you have to hit over!”) and their unabashed love for their little nine holes of history was infectious.

So here’s what it’s like: Thomas designed the course out of old farmland, where rocks had been dug up and used to make long stone walls that criss-crossed the fields. As was the custom then, he left the walls and designed the holes with them in mind. It’s not unusual to have to lay up more than once on a hole if you don’t hit far, since you’ll come across walls, gullies and more.

There are crazy doglegs (one is 90 degrees), creative green structure (one is like a bell; only a small area in the middle keeps you from rolling way down; another is a bowl; land your ball in regulation and you’d going to get some added help), and walls that look like deep rough because they’ve let grass grow up over them.

It’s not scary though; it’s fun. The nine-hole course (you can double through for 18; and it’s an easy walk) is relatively short at 2,700, but it plays big because of the obstacles, challenges and fun.

It gives you some gifts, too, like the pretty view straight out to Sippican Harbor and all its magnificent boats on the 6th.

And the course conditions? As modern as the set-up is historic. The tee boxes (no more piles of sand; phew!) are tip-top. The greens are lush and nearly perfect. The fairways are in great shape too, even after some pretty heavy recent rains.

There’s another nod to history here: Greens fees average around $21-$29 for nine holes depending on the time of day. 18 holes clocks in at just a few bucks more. That’s less than I’ve paid for a hot dog and beer on some courses.

I had some great victories out there, and I think the uniqueness of the course — and the company we kept on our round – helped that. I summoned my courage to go for a long shot over a big wall on one hole and succeeded. On another, having landed right up against one of those walls, I dug deep past my recent short game fear and had a perfect up-and-down over it and plunk right onto the green. And on the trick 9th (which appears to be an easy birdie on the card but tells a different story in real time), I landed my tee shot past the crazy wall that felt like a green fortress and right near the hole. Incredibly fun.

I thought Marion Golf Club would be good for one round and I wasn’t wrong. But I undersold it. A round at Lil’ Marion may just be the Lays Potato Chips of golf: No one can have just one.