Golf on Long Island

Public Shotguns 9/29 at Lido Golf Club

The Lido Golf Club is hosting back-to-back public shotguns at 7:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 29.  Sign-up includes lunch in the cafe.  Keep an eye on the Lido website for future shotgun starts and course events.

The waterside 18-hole course in Lido Beach sits between Reynolds Channel and the Atlantic Ocean, making wind a major factor.  Players must contend with the channel and a series of ponds and inlets throughout most of the back nine.  The course was selected by Newsday as one of the Island's best public courses in 2008, and its double-carry 16th hole is part of Newsday's Long Island Dream 18.

Flyover: Spring Lake - Thunderbird Course

[This flyover was updated on April 22, 2013.]

SEE ALSO:
Observations: Spring Lake Golf Club (4/22/2013)

The Spring Lake Golf Club's Thunderbird Course is the main attraction at the 27-hole facility in Middle Island, offering a combination of challenging, strategic golf and a pleasant, park-like setting that cannot easily be topped on the Island.  It is a par-72 that measures 7,035 yards from the championship tees and 6,445 from the middle blues.  Tall trees frame and overlook long, lush fairways and enhance the course's serene and secluded atmosphere.  There is a very natural feel at Spring Lake -- my lasting image of both the Thunderbird and the nine-hole Sandpiper is simply their rich green fairways, a testament to the facility's conditioning and maintenance.

Water plays a limited role on Thunderbird, with small ponds influencing play on only two or three holes.  (The facility's namesake lake is confined to the Sandpiper Course.)  The battle then is mainly with the course's mammoth greens, not only in finding the easiest way to navigate their tiers and turns, but also the best route to reach them.  Trees tighten most of Thunderbird's holes and can be a major nuisance for players unable to control their ball flight. 

LAYOUT:
Standing out at Spring Lake are Thunderbird's large, undulating greens.  It is vital that players take note of the hole locations when setting up for their approach shots.  Green depth is large enough in many cases to make a two- to three-club difference, and discovering once it's too late that an 8-iron to the front of the green left you with a twisting 80-footer to a backside pin will have you exasperated while you scramble for a three-putt.

The course doesn't wait to show off its big greens either.  The first three holes all sport putting surfaces that are more than 40 yards deep.  Play to the left side of the fairway on both the 436-yard opener and the 325-yard second for optimal angles of attack.  The 180-yard third is the toughest par-3 on the course.  Pursuing a right-side pin on its elevated green means flirting with a steep, rough-covered downslope off the side of the surface.  A left-side pin hides behind a bunker and the threat of water short and left.  The mound on the far side of the trap can make it difficult to stop shots near a back-left pin.

Thunderbird starts to make some hefty demands with the driver on the fourth tee.  The fairway on this 505-yard par-5 (up to 575 from the back tees) is sandwiched between two lines of trees, and making it play even tighter is the fact that any shots right of center are cut off from the green.  That's because the fairway turns almost dead right inside 100 yards.  A bunker short of the turn messes with layup attempts.  In contrast, #5 is a short par-4 where it's safe to be a little reckless with the driver.  The 340-yard dogleg left favors a draw, but anyone is free to bomb a drive over the traps at the turn and pitch onto the green. 

Soar over the fairway trap on the 386-yard eighth as well to set up a tricky uphill approach to a green surrounded by five bunkers.  A ridge running across the center of the surface makes attention to pin placement vital.  Another narrow par-5 closes the front nine.  The 480-yard ninth is relatively short with a downhill fairway, but it culminates with one of the course's most challenging green complexes.  A back-left bunker collects balls that overshoot the slope in the center of the green, and deep traps on the right side can easily spoil a bid for birdie or par.  The drop-off from the left side of the green into the bordering rough makes blasts from these bunkers very delicate.

The tenth is an uphill par-4 that, at 336 yards, appears to be a great drive-and-pitch scoring hole.  But when the pin is tucked close behind the large and steep bunker in front of the green, it's best to play the hole a little safer, especially since #10 is one of the few holes where poor drives can be sent out of play.  Sacrifice some distance off the tee to set up a second shot to the middle or back half of the green.  Getting caught in the gaping bunker is foolish if the pin is in front.  Save the driver for the 500-yard 11th, a par-5 with a fairway that climbs uphill and ends abruptly at a stretch of rough about 90 yards short of the green.  Strong drivers can take this patch out of play and take aim at the green or landing area in front on their second shot.  Those who leave their drives shorter than desired may have to lay up in front of the rough to ensure a smooth third shot into the green.

You'll also need controlled drives on the 14th and 17th, long and straight par-4s that both feature sand in the left sides of their fairways.  Neither hole offers much room for error, which is the reality on most of the holes on Thunderbird's back nine. 

Make your way back to the clubhouse on Thunderbird's longest hole, a 566-yard par-5 (586 from the back) that favors back-to-back draws.  Strategic traps in the vicinity of the first and second landing areas do their best to help you close your round with a dud.

CONDITIONS:
Spring Lake can be hard on players who have trouble keeping their ball from going too far left or right.  The trees that surround every fairway and green will force these players to navigate the course defensively.  And those who keep their shots on the short grass aren't necessarily out of the woods.  Some trees spread their limbs wide and dangle over the edges of the fairways, influencing otherwise easy approaches or, worse, simply swatting them out of the air.  In the 2011 offseason, however, Spring Lake added a little breathing room by removing some trees in certain areas around the course to help players find their balls and move along.

Yardage on Thunderbird's par-3s can vary tremendously depending on pin and tee placement.  Both Spring Lake courses feature very long tee boxes.  Two- to three-club differences between the listed and actual yardage are not uncommon.  If the message hasn't gotten across yet, always be mindful of the flags at Spring Lake.

Greens are spacious and sloped, and an overall thorn in the side of anyone who can't keep their approaches reasonably close to the pin.  They do not play overly fast, but speed seems to be less important on these surfaces than proper positioning. 

Spring Lake has the feel of a park.  While there are enough trees to set each hole off on its own, at times you can see much of the sprawling property around and between dozens upon dozens of tree trunks.

AREA(S) TO AVOID:
The wide-mouthed and steep-faced bunker guarding the green on #10 is a poor place to work from when the hole on this short par-4 is cut only a few paces away on the front side.  So close to the pin yet in such a precarious position, you are looking at bogey or worse, barring a sweet up-and-down.

OTHER NOTES:
Spring Lake does not allow singles to make reservations online.  If you book a tee time as a single through the Spring Lake website, you will receive a confirmation number and e-mail, but the reservation will not be honored. 

NEARBY COURSES:
Spring Lake - Sandpiper (on site)
Middle Island CC - Spruce/Oak/Dogwood (2 miles)
Mill Pond (3 miles)
Pine Ridge (4 miles)

CONTACT:
30 East Bartlett Road, Middle Island 11953
(631) 924-5115
www.springlakegolfclub.com

SEE ALSO:
Family-operated Spring Lake Golf Club celebrating its 50th anniversary
Observations: Spring Lake Golf Club (4/22/2013)
Tree-lined Spring Lake Golf Club adds a little "elbow room" for 2011
Chip Shot: Spring Lake - Thunderbird
Give the gift of L.I. golf without leaving your seat
Flyover: Spring Lake - Sandpiper 9

Have thoughts and opinions on the Thunderbird Course at Spring Lake?  Share them with other Golf On Long Island readers by posting in the comments section below.

Fall aeration at Bethpage Yellow

The Yellow Course at Bethpage State Park will be aerated on September 29 and 30.

Call (516) 249-0701 for updates on conditions and availability of all five Bethpage courses.

Pink Rock Classic at Great Rock GC

The Great Rock Golf Club in Wading River is inviting Long Island golfers to "take a swing in the fight against breast cancer" when it hosts the third annual Pink Rock Classic on Wednesday, October 7.  All proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Fund For Uninsured Women at the Fortunato Breast Health Center at Mather Hospital in Port Jefferson.

Participation in the event is $275 for an individual and $1,000 for a foursome.  The day at Great Rock will begin with a hot breakfast buffet and a 10 a.m. shotgun start.  Once the final putt drops, the tourney will be followed by a BBQ lunch, cocktail hour, grand buffet dinner and an awards ceremony.   Those who can't make it to Great Rock on event day can still raise money for breast cancer patients and their families through sponsorships or donations.  All tournament information can be found at the Pink Rock Classic website or call (631) 476-2723.

Great Rock is one of Long Island's newest courses.  It is short and hilly, requiring pinpoint accuracy as it twists and turns over the slopes of Suffolk County's north shore.  Greens notorious for their high speed make players work even harder to stay on target.  The tenth hole, a par-4 with an uphill climb nearly 450 yards long, is rated among Long Island's finest holes by both Newsday and Golfing Magazine.

Last Hope outing at Bergen Point

The Bergen Point Golf Course in West Babylon will host the second annual Last Hope Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation golf outing on Wednesday, September 23.  Entry is $175 per golfer and $600 per foursome, and includes greens fee, cart, dinner, prizes and a silent auction.  Contact Jessica Hanlon at (631) 839-6643 or Jim Pryor at (516) 642-1915 for sponsorship, event information and registration.

Last Hope is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization dedicated to the rescue and rehabilitation of death-due pound, stray and abandoned animals.  Visit the Last Hope website to learn more about the organization and its services.

Bergen Point plays alongside Great South Bay and is often wet and windy.  Creeks, ponds and inlets are present on several holes.  The flat terrain and open layout make it a good course for beginners.  Skilled players will find the course challenging when the bay winds whip across the fairways.

Flyover: Bethpage - Blue Course

[This flyover was updated on July 20, 2017.]

I was first introduced to the Blue Course at Bethpage State Park as a high-schooler with 18-hole golf experience that could only be described as scant.  At the time of my Blue debut, golf to me was a game played over nine flat holes where balls could roll from tee to green and "hazards" consisted of fences, goose droppings and maybe a parking lot.  So it was a whole new ballgame the first time I had to descend a teebox perched 50 feet in the air on the Blue Course.  Then descend another one.  And another one.  Later Bethpage Blue would host my first and last round as a member of a competitive golf team, a trainwreck of a performance that would make Jean Van De Velde look away in fright.

Bethpage Blue will never be mistaken for the Black, and it fails to challenge the Red Course from start to finish, but it does feature what many consider one of the toughest front nines on Long Island.  A.W. Tillinghast designed the original Blue which, along with his Red Course, opened for play in 1935, one year ahead of his famed Black.  Over some of the park's hilliest terrain, the Blue calls for a series of blind shots to hidden landing areas and elevated greens.  The grueling front gives way at the turn to a much flatter, shorter, and frankly much easier back nine.  The Blue is 6,638 yards from the tips and 6,406 from the middle tees, though it feels longer as you battle its rolling nature.  Both nines return to the clubhouse area, making the Blue popular for nine-hole rounds. 

LAYOUT:
Today's Blue is not the same as the original Tillinghast layout, despite the "Est. 1935" on the scorecard.  The course was redesigned in 1958 by architect Alfred Tull to make way for the Yellow Course -- some of its holes were absorbed into the Yellow, others lost some of their original nuances to history.  This would likely explain the stylistic inconsistencies between the two nines.  Blue's opener plays straight out on flat ground.  The small valley at the end of the fairway on this 397-yard par-4 helps stretch the legs for the bigger gullies on the remainder of the front nine, beginning from the elevated tee on #2.  There is no view of the green on the 441-yard second, just the sight of a fairway that drifts slightly to the right.  Looking out from the tee on the 479-yard par-5 fourth reveals another fairway that curls right around a line of trees, only this time the bend is more pronounced as the fairway disappears from view (pictured).  A strong, fading tee shot here will set up a great opportunity to get home in two.  The 298-yard fifth is the shortest par-4 on the course and likely the easiest, as long as the fairway bunker around 200 yards from the tee is avoided.  The uphill approach to a flat green must clear a 40-yard stretch of rough that fronts the surface and dissuades attempts at run-ups (and driving the green).  A bad score here is no way to step up to the wicked #6.

The Blue's sixth hole is in a class by itself.  It is a brutal down-then-uphill par-4 that doesn't relent, even on conservative players -- a misplaced fairway wood off the tee can find itself in equally dismal shape as a wayward driver.  Spray shooters should set the bar at double bogey.  The fairway juts to the left and climbs more than 200 yards, but it's the perilous navigation of the turn that determines the difficulty of the approach.   

Like the 180-yard third, the 175-yard seventh is a peak-to-peak par-3 with another gully separating the elevated tee from the elevated green.  The ideal route on #8, a 545-yard par-5, is to execute the first two shots so that the hole plays just like the preceding par-3.  The fairway careens down a slope inside 150 yards, so a layup short of the gully will set up a level third shot into the green from short-iron distance.  However, without course knowledge, it's hard to tell where to land the second shot without skipping down the slope, thus setting up a dicey pitch from deep below the green.  The predicament is similar on the 348-yard ninth.

During play on the par-4 tenth, you might wonder whether or not you mistakenly wandered onto a different course.  The 362-yarder is flat with room to miss on the right side.  Normalcy returns at the 463-yard 12th.  This sharp dogleg par-5 makes a hard left turn, and like #8, its green sits perched on the far side of another deep gully.  An exciting second shot over the drop can only be attained with a blast of a draw off the tee, otherwise a layup around 150 yards out is the play.  Miss the green short on the left side and watch the ball trickle down into some choppy rough.

From there, the rolling terrain gives way to more level ground.  Players with a draw will love the 13th and 14th, both mid-length par-4s with generous fairways.  Yardage on #15 is nearly identical to its 372-yard predecessor, but a sizable fairway trap and some of the course's more elaborate greenside bunkering step up the challenge and negate the hole's relative openness.  

The Blue concludes with two throwbacks to the front nine.  It's another par-3 from high point to high point at #17, though this one can be tricky depending on pin placement.  A right-side pin coaxes shots toward a fat trap; a pin on the left hides behind a small pot bunker.  The closing hole is an uninspiring clone of its next-door neighbor #9. 

CONDITIONS:
The greens on the Blue Course are moderately sized with soft undulations that don't quite match the exaggerated slopes of the fairways.  Few of them feature any truly distinctive characteristics.  The par-3 third has a false front that could send very short attempts down toward the upslope of the gully.  A hump on the par-3 11th green slides putts away from a back-right pin.

Sand has a very limited role, especially on the front nine.  It garners some attention briefly from holes 13 through 17, where the bunkering around the greens suddenly becomes more intrusive.  The styling of the traps is altered during this stretch as well -- the generally round and symmetrical bunkers throughout most of the course give way to irregular traps on #15 and #16.  The high-faced pot bunker on the 17th is pictured to the left.  There is no water on the course.

The complex is wildly popular, and slow play is the norm.  If you want to play 18 rounds in reasonable time, head east.  Bethpage, no matter the course, is at least a five-hour commitment from first tee to 18th green.  And if you have a reservation, tack on another hour for check-in.

HOLE(S) TO REMEMBER:
Blue #6 is a member of Golf On Long Island's "Nassau 18."  It's no exaggeration to rank it alongside the most challenging par-4s at the entire Bethpage complex.  The sixth is a 446-yarder with steep demands.  Among those demands, the ability to smoke a hard draw or controlled hook off the tee with distance.  Otherwise the second demand is the confidence to fire a long drive over 250 yards of woods, waste rough and a conveniently placed bunker to a blind section of fairway (part of this requirement will also include the possession of extra balls, just in case).  Failing to meet either of those requirements leaves players naked on an uphill dogleg left with pitfalls on every shot. 

The downhill tee shot is deceptive.  Reachable even with a fairway metal is a wide bunker at the far end of the turn.  Go too far and too straight and you can easily sail over the bunker, kick off a downslope and wind up on or near the fourth fairway.  This is not the ideal route to the hole. 

AREA(S) TO AVOID:
It takes a few rounds at Bethpage Blue to know exactly where to leave approach shots on the two gully par-5s, #8 and #12.  Venturing down into the valley is unnecessary -- all it does is net either an uphill pitch from the bottom or an awkward shot from a downhill lie.  Anyone striking their short and middle irons with precision is better off attacking the green from level ground with a clear view of the flag. 

NEARBY COURSES:
Eisenhower Park - Red/White/Blue (7 miles)
Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course (8 miles)
Peninsula Golf Club (9 miles)

WHERE TO GRAB A BITE AND A BEER:
It's hard to make a case against staying put with a burger and a Sam Adams while looking out over the Black Course, but if there's an itch to go elsewhere, the downtown areas of Farmingdale and Bethpage each have plenty to offer.  Farmingdale has exploded recently with a slew of new and upbeat places for food and drink.  There's a classic sports bar/grill (Croxley Ales); meatball-focused sports bar/grill (That Meatball Place); local brewery and tasting room (Lithology Brewing); and one of Long Island's best coffeehouses (Flux Coffee) -- all within about 100 feet of each other.  Keep walking down Main Street and you'll find places ranging from Mexican to Dominican to Vietnamese.  Over in Bethpage, traditionalists might opt for the bar-and-grill experience at B.K. Sweeney's, while those seeking something more modern and with a nice outdoor patio can head to Campagne House.  Both have good food and lively bars.

CONTACT:
99 Quaker Meeting House Road, Farmingdale 11735
(516) 249-0700
bethpagegolfcourse.com

SEE ALSO:
For a brief period 80 years ago, Bethpage was just Blue, Green and Red
Golf On Long Island's "Nassau 18" -- Bethpage Blue #6
"America's Linksland: A Century of Long Island Golf" -- by William Quirin

Have thoughts and opinions on Bethpage Blue?  Share them with other Golf On Long Island readers by posting in the comments section below.

Public Shotguns at Lido Golf Club

The Lido Golf Club is hosting public shotguns this Labor Day week on Tuesday, September 8 at 2:00 p.m., and Thursday, September 10 at 7:30 a.m.  Keep an eye on the Lido website for future shotgun starts and course events.

The waterside 18-hole course in Lido Beach sits between Reynolds Channel and the Atlantic Ocean, making wind a major factor.  Players must contend with the channel and a series of ponds and inlets throughout most of the back nine.  The course was selected by Newsday as one of the Island's best public courses in 2008, and its double-carry 16th hole is part of Newsday's Long Island Dream 18.

September Special for foursomes at Brentwood, Holbrook CC

Just as quickly as a calendar page turns, the Brentwood and Holbrook Country Clubs get moving on a new monthly special.  Following their $84 twosome special in August, both Town of Islip courses are now offering a September deal for foursomes. 

For $160 a group of four can play either Brentwood or Holbrook with carts and reservation fees included through September 30.  All players have to do is make a reservation online and present a printed coupon at check-in.  The deal is valid between 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. six days a week (excluding Mondays at Brentwood and Tuesdays at Holbrook).  Full terms can be found in the "Specials and Coupons" section of the course websites.

Brentwood and Holbrook are also part of Golfing Magazine's free golf program, and there is still time to sign up.  For $49, registered players receive a certificate good for one round of golf at nine Long Island courses plus a one-year subscription to Golfing Magazine.  Golfers are only responsible for cart fees on the day of play.  A round at either Brentwood or Holbrook costs $18 for members of the program.  Visit the Golfing Magazine website or our previous post for details and registration information.

Flyover: Eisenhower Park - Blue Course

[This flyover was updated on April 7, 2011.]

Designed at the hand of Robert Trent Jones and situated side by side in the heart of Nassau County, the Blue and White Courses at Eisenhower Park are the area's fraternal golf twins.  The two share many of the same traits -- wide-open fairways, returning nines, gaping greenside bunkers and numerous fairway traps.  The twins even have twins of their own, the identical par-3 holes used to alleviate slow play.  But the Blue is much shorter, by nearly 900 yards, than the more straight-laced -- with added emphasis on straight -- White Course. 

Eisenhower Blue is a 6,026-yard par-72 that is flat and forgiving, an appealing destination for beginners, seniors and walkers.  It has four dogleg holes, a characteristic of the elder Red Course, the Devereux Emmet classic next door.  Strategy on the Blue is simple -- fire a clean shot off the tee and get your irons in the air.  A strong ground game is useless on a course whose only defenses are hefty traps and sticky rough fronting elevated greens. 

LAYOUT:
Consistently long drives on the Blue Course can make scoring a cinch.  Despite the Blue's dearth of distance, players that drive the ball 250 yards and up benefit from a major advantage over shorter hitters.  That's because tee shots of such length turn most of the course's fairway bunkers into nothing more than helpless bystanders.  Once in position, these players can spend their day popping short or middle irons over the greenside traps and onto the elevated surfaces -- from either the fairway or the rough.  And since three of the four doglegs veer left, long hitters who can smack a draw sit even prettier.

For shorter hitters who drive the ball in the 200- to 225-yard range, the Blue can be frustrating and wearisome.  At this distance fairway traps are poised to gobble up wide tee shots on the majority of driving holes, a nuisance that longer hitters can avoid with confidence throughout the course -- except, maybe, on the 405-yard third.  Staying on the short side of the bunkers means longer approaches, and a round on the Blue for this player will include plenty of high pitches over the traps.  More staggered bunkering in the fairways would go a long way toward removing this bias and introducing the use of brain cells on the teebox.

There is no bend in the 458-yard opener, a par-5 that is reachable in two for long hitters with nothing of concern in the sprawling fairway.  The longest par-4 on the course, the 405-yard third, plays straight out as well, but undulations in the fairway as it narrows between two bunkers require some second thoughts on tee strategy.  Many players will hit driver anyway, seeing an uneven lie in the fairway as little reason to sacrifice yardage.  Finding either of the two traps likely takes par out of the mix. 

On other courses, a hole like the 445-yard sixth might show up as a signature par-4, but here, the left dogleg is a vulnerable par-5.  The bend is close enough to make iron a conceivable play off the tee for the ultra-conservative, but most players will look to blast drives beyond the trees and onto the far end of the fairway.  Two traps inside the turn do little to discourage that plan.  Blue's front nine returns to the clubhouse area with a harmless 342-yard par-4, a 114-yard par-3 and a ninth hole with a center-line bunker deep in the fairway that could thwart the more powerful drivers.  A big hump makes pins on the green's right side difficult to get to.

Like #6, the par-5 11th bends left, though not quite as sharply.  The hole sets up for a nice draw, but with no trees up the left side, the fairway can be easily found with shots of any shape and sort.  Another center-line trap deep in the fairway complicates lay-up attempts (pictured) and a single, spacious bunker -- a staple of the White course -- protects the wide green from long approaches.  Low scores are tempting on the 342-yard 12th and 309-yard 13th, but only through the air -- steep-faced bunkers and stretches of rough front the greens.  Run-ups are a no-go on the 370-yard 14th as well, where two wide traps cut the green off from the fairway.

Left-to-right hitters finally get a break at #16, the only one of the Blue's doglegs that favor their ball flight.  But the break is over once the tee shot is on the ground.  The fairway ends abruptly and yields to the thick stuff about 50 yards short of a green that slopes down hard from the left and sports a raised hump on its right side.  The Blue then ends the way it began -- with a par-5 that is reachable in two.  This one, however, is not straight like #1.  It turns left but offers a clear shot at the far end of the fairway.  The half-pipe shape of the fairway around and beyond the turn helps gather shots in position for attacking approaches. 

The Blue's par-3s vary in yardage, but not much else.  All four of them require the same airborne shots over two bunkers.  Miss short and the result is either a recovery out of the sand or a lob over it.  Rough slopes down off the backs and sides -- short-side misses should be avoided.  Only #17 features a small bunker behind the surface.  As mentioned earlier, each par-3 has a twin hole at its side (pictured).

CONDITIONS:
Sand gets top billing on the Blue Course.  Unfortunately it does not always get the treatment a star deserves.  In the past they were often filled with rocks, some just small pebbles, others massive stones -- great news for geologists, but poor for golfers, especially those who don't care to carve up the face and sole of their sand wedge.  In the early 2010s many bunkers were reshaped and filled with new sand, alleviating the rocky problem.  Players still report though that the Blue's traps are often unraked and generally unkempt.

Like most of Long Island's busy municipal courses, slow rounds are an unavoidable reality during peak times.

HOLE(S) TO REMEMBER:
The sixth hole is a low-risk, high-reward par-5 where a blast through a dogleg can eventually be topped off with a tap-in birdie.  A strong drive will bypass the trees and two bunkers inside the turn and find its way within a long iron's reach of the green.  A draw would help shave some yards from the approach, if you can swing it.  Mounding behind the bunkers can even supply a generous kick toward the center of the green if you land your approach just short of the putting surface.

AREA(S) TO AVOID:
Unlike the Red Course, which keeps inaccurate shooters on the defensive, the Blue does not protect itself against players bombing drives through dogleg turns.  There is no water on the course and trees are far enough from the target areas so that recovery shots are largely unnecessary.  In short, outside of the steep bunkers, trouble spots are hard to find.  The Blue's shortest par-4, the 309-yard 13th, has three partially obscured sand traps off the fairway's left side.  Getting caught up there means wasting a scoring opportunity, as the following shot from the sand will need to clear the greenside traps from 100 to 125 yards.

NEARBY COURSES:
Eisenhower Park - Red/White (on site)
Cantiague Park (3 miles)
Merrick Road Park (8 miles)
Bethpage Black/Blue/Green/Red/Yellow (8 miles)

CONTACT:
Merrick Ave. at Stewart Ave., East Meadow 11554
(516) 572-0327 / 0330 (wait time)
www.nassaucountyny.gov

SEE ALSO:
Golf On Long Island's "Nassau 18" (2011 Edition) -- Eisenhower Blue #11

Have thoughts and opinions on Eisenhower Blue?  Share them with other Golf On Long Island readers by posting in the comments section below.