Golf on Long Island: Flyover: Bethpage

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

SEE ALSO:
Closer Look: Bethpage Red #13

A visitor taking a stroll around the Bethpage State Park clubhouse and taking in the scenery for the first time might wonder why the Black Course is the only one of the quintet with a warning sign beside its opening tee. Surely that course just over there to the left -- the one with the daunting uphill climb to a green far out in the distance, and the one returning home via a down-and-up, sand-fortified 18th -- is ill-suited for all but the most skilled golfers too, right? And if that course can show off merely the best opening and closing holes at the 90-hole complex, then what else does it boast in between?

Well, for one, the Red Course at Bethpage, considered by most to be the toughest of the park's non-Black tracks, offers a fearsome gang of long par-4s. And these holes -- from doglegs curling through the trees to brutal cross-country hikes over the the park's wind-swept flatland -- are strong enough to make the Red a mainstay in national polls and frequent host of local tournaments. Like many of its par-4s, the Red plays closer to a 4-1/2 -- in stars, not strokes -- according to Golf Digest's Places to Play ratings, and it's a fixture on Golfweek's lists of America's Best Municipal Courses and Best Courses You Can Play in New York State.

The Red Course opened with the original Blue Course in 1935 -- one year ahead of the Black. Over parts of nine decades the A.W. Tillinghast beaut has muddied the faces of thousands upon thousands of long irons. If your hybrid and 4-iron are slumping come tee time, hopefully it's not too late to bail and play the Green or the Yellow instead.

LAYOUT:
For all but the most confident golfers, #1 on the Red is as intimidating as it is majestic, and not merely because it is regarded as one of the toughest opening holes to be found anywhere. Waiting groups congregate around the starter's booth above the first tee, likely impatient and on edge from Bethpage's early check-in and backed-up tee sheet. The gallery will do plenty of judging based on that initial swat. If all goes well, the drive will leave a second shot from the fairway -- it's the only hope of reaching the green in two. Even a strong tee shot down the center could require a hybrid approach just to reach the top of the plateau (pictured; click to enlarge). Drives down the left side are fine, though mounding that juts into the fairway blocks a clean view of the target. Once atop the plateau, finish up on a small, slightly back-to-front green.

The second and third are good warm-ups for the longer and equally curvy par-4s up ahead. Both turn near their midpoints inside tree-lined corridors, giving accurate shot-shapers an advantage. Straight drives can breach the edge of the fairway on both holes, and misses inside the bends often result in obstructed approach shots. Play to the outside of the fairways to remove the threat from greenside bunkers.

Trust the scorecard and tee markers on #4, a 181-/171-yard par-3 with distance that's hard to gauge thanks to the falloff behind the green. If the wide, sunken trap in front of the surface discourages you, the alternate route is a short play to a front-right tongue of fairway (pictured left, a rare option on any Bethpage par-3). Long and left is major trouble. While the back side of #4 would be a fantastic place to watch the final holes of a Bethpage Black U.S. Open, it's an awful place to miss on this one-shotter. Up ahead, the par-3 seventh appears as if #4's mirror image. The 184-/154-yarder features another diagonal shelf on the far side of a shallow depression, this one running from near-left to far-right. Beefy bunkers guard the sides rather than the front.

#6 is the last breather of a par-4 for quite a while, as a series of grueling marches looms just ahead. The Red boasts only two par-5s, but at least a few of the par-4s on each side of the turn play like three-shotters, especially when facing into the wind. Back at #6, the fairway makes a sharp left turn -- almost a full 90-degree bend -- toward one of the Red's more sloped greens. In fact, much of the hole is pitched toward the inside of the dogleg -- the fairway funnels balls to the left rough, and the green runs toward the front-left corner.

After the par-3 seventh, Red rolls up its sleeves for a brawl. Unless they repeatedly find the center of the fairway, shorter hitters are the ones who come away with most of the bruises. Six of the next eight holes are par-4s that measure 418, 466, 492, 462, 466 and 482 yards from the back tees. Though middle-tee players will lop off some of that distance right from the get-go, there's no dodging the headwinds present on a few of these holes, and the fescue and fairway bunkering can only be avoided with straight, accurate drives. Holes 8, 9 and 10 parallel each other and share clusters of strategically placed, irregularly shaped sand traps. Angled fairways force drivers to challenge the scruffy stuff, plus the dead-flat terrain and deceptive landmarks (note some of the trees in between holes) hide the best lines.

The march picks up again after brief interruption by the par-3 12th and the split-fairway 13th (see description below in Holes To Remember and in this "Closer Look" post). The final piece of the parallel, fescue-riddled quartet in the course's flat and sandy center, #14 stretches long and left, sharing hazards inside its bend with #10. Playing conservatively to the outside of the turn instead of the aggressive line toward a trio of drive-zone bunkers adds two or three clubs to the approach shot. If the wind is in your face, you won't get a reprieve ahead at #15, which is a touch longer at 438 yards from the middle tees and 482 from the tips. But patience is rewarded somewhat on the 16th, where Tillinghast hands players an elevated tee, a right-angle fairway and an opportunity to slice a 565-/535-yard par-5 in half with one sharp thwack.

A bunker nestles right up against the front of the green on the par-3 17th, a familiar sight for any Bethpage veteran. Looks can be deceiving on a hole that appears level from the tee but actually plays the slightest bit uphill, with the trap the beneficiary of underclubbed shots. Final drives ping from the teebox of what some argue is the finest par-4 on the course. The 18th plays downhill into the same valley as #1, with a sand-guarded fairway leading to an elevated flag. Its stadium green (first photo above) is strangled by bunkers, which ramps up the heroic nature of the final approach. So natural, and so downright cool, is the 18th's amphitheater green that the USGA discussed using it instead of the Black's own 18th for the U.S. Open.

CONDITIONS:
The Red begins and ends as a tree-lined layout with thick rough bordering fairways that traverse the steep native hills of Bethpage State Park. In the middle is a sweeping plain covered in sand and fescue. One constant, no matter the section of the course, is the lack of motion within the greens. The surfaces are quick and smooth, and some, like the back-to-front opener, sport a noticeable tilt. The short par-4 sixth stands out with a green running toward the front-left edge. It also features a backside collection area. On the split-fairway 13th, the green's front-to-back slant favors those heading in from the left-side route.

As at least one course veteran has noted, despite its length, the Red Course can be brought down by short hitters who send the ball straight. With the exception of the sand complex on #13 and some frontside bunkers on the par-3s, there are no center-line hazards on the course, and there is no water. Tongues of fairway in front of the par-3 greens give shorter players a safe option over the ridges and away from traps.

Usually it's a relief when shots come to rest just short of or next to a bunker. Here, it's not. In many cases fairway bunkers are surrounded by the thick stuff (see right).

HOLE(S) TO REMEMBER:
At a complex where the vast majority of par-3s are situated over depressions and gullies (we see you, Blue Course), Red #4 stands out for its angled target, danger beside the green (not just short of it) and awesome scenery. Here, to get to the meat of the green, you'll have to go up and over a diagonal bunker that hugs the front-left corner of the surface. And by attempting to do so, you bring into play the left side of the green, where par attempts can go down the sidehill and up in smoke. Safer shots are directed toward the short-right fringe, a closer, unprotected target from which two-putt or up-and-down pars are reasonable expectations. Whichever route is taken, the end result is a gorgeous view of the Black Course and Bethpage's lower valley from a plateau above the Black's par-3 17th and beside its 18th tee.

Thanks to a heap of simple visual deception and trickery, it may take a few rounds to figure out the 13th, a split-fairway par-4. It stresses strategy and accuracy, a potentially tall order after a stretch of holes forcing you to overcome pure distance. This Closer Look gives a full rundown of the hole and its playing options.

AREA(S) TO AVOID:
The Red Course emerges from the trees after the seventh hole into a flat plain. Without clearly defined corridors, this section of the course offers up so much space you'll barely know what to do with it all. Don't be lulled into carelessness though, because much of that open real estate between #8, #9 and #10 is riddled with traps and long, club-clutching fescue. And once the Red has you on your heels, more often than not, the Red triumphs. The ninth is 449 yards from the middle tees -- go off line here and par is likely a pipe dream.

NEARBY COURSES:
Bethpage - Black/Blue/Green/Yellow (on site)
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

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