Golf on Long Island

Eisenhower Red to open March 30

The historic Red Course at Eisenhower Park will reopen for the 2010 season this Tuesday, March 30.  Nassau County residents with a Leisure Pass can begin making tee-time reservations online for any of the three Eisenhower courses.

Home of the 1926 PGA Championship, Eisenhower Red -- designed by famed architect Devereux Emmet -- is one of Long Island's most storied golf courses.  Newsday rates it among the area's top public courses, and Golf Digest gave it four stars in its 2008-09 Best Places To Play list.

If you can't wait until Tuesday to play at Eisenhower, visit the Blue and White courses.  Both have been open all winter.  Once Bethpage Red reopens on April 1 and Bethpage Black tees off on April 13, the Long Island golf season will be back in full swing.

For more information on Eisenhower Red, check out the course flyover.

One week left to sign up for Golfing Mag's $39 Early Bird Special

Until April 1, Long Island golfers can take advantage of Golfing Magazine's Early Bird Special on its annual Free Golf Program.  For $39, participants in the program receive a certificate good for single rounds at several area courses as well as a one-year subscription (five issues) to the magazine. 

The 2010 program will likely include Great Rock, Rock Hill, Brentwood and Holbrook.  Magazine staffers are working to partner with more courses before certificates are sent out to subscribers in April.  Last year's program included nine courses.

Typically, 18-hole rounds at all of these participating courses would run up a tab in the $200-250 range.  Why pay full rates when Golfing Magazine will cover your greens fees for $39?  All you pay for on the day of play is a cart fee.  After April 1, the price for the certificate and subscription jumps to $49. 

The certificate will be honored for tee times Sunday through Thursday after 1 p.m., though conditions vary at each course and general terms may change when the program is finalized.  Those who take advantage of the Early Bird rate will receive their certificates in April.

For more details on participating courses and terms of use, or to subscribe, contact Golfing Magazine at (516) 822-5446 or www.GolfingMagLI.com. 

Goodbye to The Links at Shirley

The middle of March is a time of golf rebirth on Long Island.  For Mel Mindich, owner of The Links at Shirley, this March will instead be an especially cruel one, a time of dark skies and gloomy forecasts.  When courses around the Island get into the full swing of spring, Mindich's will not take part.  The Links at Shirley, though yet to be officially confirmed, is likely gone for good.

A Newsday blog post in early February by columnist Mark Herrmann set an ominous tone.  In it Herrmann said that the "closed for the season" sign on Shirley's front gate was only a half-truth; the course likely would not open again at all.  Updates in any form since then have been hard to come by.  Calls to the course throughout February and March were met with an operator's recording that the number is out of service.

Then today, Herrmann outlined the fate of the course in his opening Golfbeat column of 2010.  The outlook is bleak.  And to rub additional salt in the wound, last week's storm toppled a huge tree on the front nine, Herrmann said.

The Links at Shirley, like the Tallgrass Country Club and Great Rock Golf Club on the opposite end of William Floyd Parkway, was lauded as a public course with a private feel since its debut in 2000.  It was noted for its outstanding conditions and challenging layout.  On the course website, Shirley is described as "the fulfillment of a dream."  Back in July 2009, all signs pointed to a resurgence in Shirley, that the course was not only surviving (after previous reports of a dismal future) but thriving.  But according to Herrmann, Mindich lost millions on his investment financially, and plenty more emotionally.

Golf On Long Island correspondent Rob Dimino echoed the Islandwide praise for Shirley in the past.  "The course is immaculate," he said.  "Some of the best conditions I've ever played on the Island.  It deserved a better fate."

Meanwhile, in his column, Herrmann contrasts the doom at Shirley with the boom at Tallgrass.  The Shoreham course is under new management, and after some recent issues involving land and development held its fate in limbo, Tallgrass is apparently here to stay.

Shirley fans can share their feelings on the matter in the comments section below.

March Special at Great Rock GC

Who needs all the Tiger Woods talk?  The real discussion should be about the combination of 60- to 70-degree afternoons and special March rates at some of Long Island's top public courses.

At the Great Rock Golf Club in Wading River, players can challenge the Island's slickest greens for no more than $49 between now and the beginning of April.  Play "The Rock" before 2 p.m. any day of the week for $49, with cart and reservation fees included.  Rates drop to $29 until 4 p.m on weekdays, $39 on weekends.  After 4:00, get in as many holes as possible for only $20 on weekdays, $25 on weekends.  

In other club news, head pro Tim McAuley reports that Gene McMasters of Mizuno is now on the Great Rock staff as the resident professional club fitter.

Great Rock is a 6,254-yard par-71 that demands accurate shotmaking and sharp putting skills.  It is a hilly course with tight fairways and a series of dogleg holes.  Golf On Long Island flew over the course in July 2009.

Brentwood, Holbrook to open March 17

The Brentwood and Holbrook Country Clubs will reopen for the 2010 season this Wednesday, March 17.  Both Town of Islip courses have been closed since mid-December.  Tee times are available beginning at 6 a.m. on weekends and 6:30 on weekdays.  Twilight rates kick in at 2 p.m.

Brentwood is a 6,173-yard par-72 that is mostly flat and perfect for scoring thanks to a predominance of short par-4s.  Holbrook is a densely tree-lined, 6,252-yard par-71 that is torturous on players who can't keep it straight.

Both courses frequently run tee-time specials throughout the season.  Check back over the summer and fall for details.

2010 Leprechaun Classic at Crab Meadow

Celebrate St. Patrick's Day this year with corned beef and Callaways at the Crab Meadow Golf Course's annual Leprechaun Golf Classic.  The Northport course invites all Long Islanders to participate in the season's first public golf outing next Wednesday, March 17, complete with food, beer and prizes.

The Classic begins at 10:00 a.m. with a continental breakfast in the clubhouse.  The tournament -- in four-person scramble format -- is scheduled for a shotgun start at 11:00.  A spread of corned beef, cabbage and beer will greet participants at the conclusion of the tournament.  Prizes will be awarded to winners of closest-to-the-pin and long-drive contests.

Entry fee for the Leprechaun Golf Classic is $60 per person and includes cart, prizes, unlimited range balls, breakfast, lunch and beverages.  Singles and pairs are welcome to join and will be placed on four-person teams.

Call Crab Meadow at (631) 757-8800 to register or for additional details.

The Long Island Press selected Crab Meadow as one of the top three public golf courses on the Island in its 2009 "Best Of Long Island" poll.  The eighth hole, a short par-5 with a lake guarding the green, is part of Newsday's Dream 18.

Crab Meadow reopens for season today

The 2010 season begins today at the Crab Meadow Golf Course in Northport.  The hilly and scenic par-72 near the Long Island Sound is set to welcome golfers back in the midst of a late-winter wave of warm temps.  If this past weekend is an indicator, there will likely be a nice crowd in Northport eager to battle the course's elevation changes and its par-5 eighth hole, a member of Newsday's Long Island Dream 18.

Crab Meadow was honored last year by Long Island Press readers who voted the Town of Huntington layout one of the Island's top public golf courses in the newspaper's annual "Best Of Long Island" poll. 

Prep for a round at Crab Meadow -- today or in the future -- by checking out the course flyover.

Bethpage Black, Red reopening dates set

Bethpage State Park is slowly but surely shaking off the lingering snow from a rough offseason and preparing to welcome Long Island golfers back for the 2010 season.  The Yellow and Blue courses, open for business all winter but rarely used due to weather, will be joined by the Green next weekend when the course reopens on Sunday, March 14.

A few weeks later, two of America's best municipal courses will cut the ribbon on the new golf season.  Bethpage Red is scheduled to open for play on Thursday, April 1.  Bethpage Black is due for a grand reopening on Tuesday, April 13 -- just in time for the flood of golfers ready to camp out for a spot on tee after Masters weekend.

If you are a New York State resident, now is the time to register for the park's tee-time reservation system -- either in person at the Bethpage clubhouse or by fax.

Swan Lake GC planning to open March 6

The Swan Lake Golf Club will reopen for play this Saturday, March 6, assuming the winter rain and snow take a break from pummeling the Northeast.  Winter rates at the Manorville course are $39 to walk and $49 to ride during the week, and $44/$58 on weekends (breakfast or lunch is included before noon).

A handful of other Long Island courses are planning to reopen during the next few March weekends.  Stay tuned for updated course information.

In the meantime, prepare for an early-season round at Swan Lake by checking out the course flyover.

Tallgrass CC has new web home

The Tallgrass Country Club has been hard to find on the Internet this winter, but the great Shoreham course resurfaced on the web recently at its new and hopefully permanent home -- www.TallgrassGC.com.

A redesign makes the site easier to navigate and a bit more concise than the previous address, which led to nothing resembling golf for the past two months.  Guests today can purchase 10-, 18- and 26-play coupon books for the 2010 season at a discounted rate.

Tallgrass was ranked by Golfweek as one of its "Best Courses You Can Play" in 2006 and 2007, and Newsday lists it among Long Island's top public courses.  The 11th hole is a member of Newsday's "Dream 18."