Golf on Long Island

Bethpage, Tallgrass, Montauk Downs stay on top of Golfweek's Best Courses list

Golfweek placed Bethpage Black and Red, Tallgrass and Montauk Downs in its annual Best Courses You Can Play listing back in 2010, and since then, the four courses haven't budged. 

For the fifth straight year, this Long Island foursome landed in Golfweek's ranking of the best public courses in New York State.  Golfweek released the 2014 edition of its Best Courses You Can Play earlier this month.  The Black Course, which also made its way into the top 20 in Golfweek's Best Classic Courses list, took the top spot once again.  

Shoreham's Tallgrass Golf Course jumped to #7, trailing only the Black, historic Leatherstocking Golf Course in Cooperstown, two courses at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino, Pound Ridge and Saratoga National.  Bethpage Red and Montauk Downs follow a few spots behind at #12 and #13, respectively. 

On the Classic Courses list, Bethpage Black rose one spot from #21 last year into the top 20 in 2014.  This list, which ranks courses built before 1960, includes eight other Long Island clubs, with Shinnecock Hills and National Golf Links in the top five.

For more on all four courses, including Closer Looks at Tallgrass #8 and Red #13, check out the course flyovers via the above links.

[PICTURED: Montauk Downs #12]

Massive Jones Beach restoration project will signal the end of its oceanside golf course

New York State is preparing to announce a $65 million Jones Beach restoration project that will renovate old, historic structures and add new food and recreation facilities, according to Newsday.  The park's pitch-and-putt golf course, closed since Hurricane Sandy, will be replaced by one of those new additions.

Bordered by the beach on the south and overseen by the park's iconic tower, the Jones Beach course will make way for an "adventure play area" of zip lines, rock-climbing walls and water features, the Newsday report says.  The site is between Jones Beach's Central Mall and East Bathhouse, both of which will be undergoing their own renovations.

The pitch-and-putt course was a frequent victim of flooding and coastal storms.  In 2010, the course was closed until the summer due to necessary turf repairs following a series of nor'easters.  Last May, more than six months after Hurricane Sandy, a Jones Beach staffer said the damaged course had been sitting untouched since the storm.

The $65 million restoration will also include new athletic fields, picnic areas, food vendors and fee booths.  For more on the project, see Newsday's March 20 report.

2014 USSSA Junior Golf Tour tees off next month at Mill Pond

Kids and teens across Long Island have a few more weeks to tune up before the 2014 USSSA Junior Golf Tour gets underway.  Once it tees off it's a race to the top of the leaderboard and a spot in the organization's national championship.

The 2014 USSSA Junior Golf Tour begins next month with a two-day event on April 5-6 at Mill Pond Golf Course in Medford, the first stop on the way to the USSSA Junior Golf Championship at TPC Louisiana outside New Orleans.  The Tour continues later this season with tournaments at Smithtown Landing Country Club and Spring Lake Golf Club.  Boys and girls age 9 to 18 are welcome to compete in any of the qualifying events. 

Registration is open through the Global Recreation Network, which operates the Long Island branch of the USSSA Tour.  Now entering its third season running Junior Golf Tour events, Global Recreation is eager to send more young players to the national championship.  GRN holds around a half-dozen tournaments each season, with past winners earning spots on the national stage in Orlando.

The most notable feature of the Junior Golf Tour is the pro-style treatment that players receive from the GRN staff.  "Our mission with every sport we organize is to treat amateurs like professionals," says Global Rec president and CEO Ray Coyne.  "We want every kid that participates in our events to have an incredible experience no matter what skill level."

Videographers and staff reporters are on hand at the events to conduct interviews with each player, some of which are streamed live on the GRN website, and photographers capture memorable images on and off the course.  Photos, videos and player profiles from the 2013 Tour can be seen in the Junior Golf section of the GRN website.

Players can register in three age groups: 9-11, 12-14 and 15-18.  Contact GRN for information on entry fees, deadlines and other requirements.  

The next qualifier is scheduled for May 17-18 at Smithtown Landing.

For more information on the Junior Tour and all its offerings, visit GlobalRec.net or contact Ray Coyne at (631) 482-3264, ext. 701, or e-mail [email protected].

USSSA, a leading national sports association best known for slow-pitch softball, gives amateur athletes the chance to compete in local and national championships in a growing number of sports.  USSSA's Junior Golf Championship Tour is one of the association's newest offerings.  Based in Mount Sinai, Global Recreation Network runs USSSA events and tournaments on Long Island, including adult softball, youth baseball and junior golf.

Small fee increase at Town of Huntington golf courses

The Town of Huntington has approved a new fee schedule for parks and recreation facilities, according to Newsday.  Included in the changes are small fee increases at the town's municipal golf courses.

Newsday reported earlier this week that green fees are up $1 "across the board" at Crab Meadow Golf Course and Dix Hills Park.  The 18-hole weekend rate for town residents at Crab Meadow is now $30.

"This modest fee increase represents the first increase in nearly four years and applies to only a small segment of the activities and programs we provide," said town board member Mark Cuthbertson.

The full Newsday article is available here.

$39 Early Bird discount available for Golfing Magazine's 2014 Free Golf Program

Golfing Magazine's annual Free Golf Program is back in 2014, and so is its Early Bird Special, which gives local golfers a discount on already-discounted rates at top courses across the Island.

For $39 now through the end of April, the Hicksville-based magazine's Free Golf Program includes a one-year subscription plus a certificate that entitles holders to "free" green fees at nearly a dozen Long Island courses.  (Only cart fees are required.)  After April the subscription rises to $49.  Participating courses will be announced later in the spring.  Certificates are valid for one round at each course until the end of the year.

On top of that, the certificate is also valid at dozens of courses across upstate New York and New England.  Here on the Island, the 2013 program included 12 courses from as far west as the new South Bay Country Club in Oceanside to the eastern tip at Island's End in Greenport.

Visit the Golfing Magazine website or call (516) 822-5446 to sign up.

Tentative April reopening dates set for Bethpage Black, Red

Despite the poor winter weather, the Black and Red courses at Bethpage State Park are slated to reopen on their typical April schedule.  Bethpage Black will open for the 2014 season on April 12, according to a park announcement.  The Red Course will open April 1.

Bethpage's other three courses -- two of which, the Blue and Yellow, normally remain active during the winter -- are tentatively scheduled to reopen for play on March 21.  Uncooperative weather could push those dates back given the fact that there is still a considerable amount of snow on the courses.

For updated March and April course activity, refer to Golf On Long Island's list of 2014 course reopenings.

St. Patrick's Day shotgun at Cherry Creek's Links Course

The Links Course at Cherry Creek is open for play and currently preparing for a St. Patrick's Day shotgun outing that includes Irish eats and on-course contests.  Tee time for the event is 9:00 a.m. on Monday, March 17.

Entry fee is $69, which includes food, drinks and motor cart.  Check-in and breakfast begin at 7:45.  After golf, players can stick around for corned beef, cabbage, pasta and pints.  Prizes will be given to long-drive and closest-to-the-pin winners.  To sign up for the holiday golf outing, visit the Riverhead course or call the pro shop at (631) 369-6500.

Cherry Creek's Links Course is home to Long Island's only par-6, an outsized finishing hole that stretches a grand total of 644 yards.  Cherry Creek's Woods Course -- a tight, tree-lined 18 located across the street -- is scheduled to reopen for play on Saturday, March 15.

For more information on Cherry Creek Links, check out the course flyover.

Timber Point to host annual St. Patrick's scramble and dinner on March 16

Timber Point Golf Course will open for play on Friday, March 14, but it will kick off the new season in festive style a few days later with a St. Patrick's Weekend scramble and dinner gathering on Sunday, March 16.

As usual, Timber Point's annual holiday outing -- a nine-hole, four-person scramble -- will include St. Patrick's-themed contests, including a pre-round longest-putt competition using a shillelagh.  On the course, compete for prizes in nearest to the leprechaun (pin) and "Luck of the Irish" birdie bonuses.  The $50 entry fee covers all contests and also includes cart and unlimited range balls with tips from the staff.

Check-in and pre-round events begin at 10:00 a.m., with the scramble to follow around 11:00.  The festivities continue across the river in Oakdale, where corned beef, cabbage, oysters, Guinness pints and live acoustic music will be available at the Snapper Inn from 2:00 to 6:00 (food and drinks not included in the entry fee).  All players will receive a few dollars back in tickets for redemption at the restaurant.

Sign up at the Timber Point pro shop, call (631) 581-2401 or send an e-mail to [email protected].  Players can also register on the day of play.  Groups with less than four players will be teamed with others.  For full information about the St. Patrick's Day outing, visit the Timber Point website's March calendar page.

2014 public golf course reopenings on Long Island

There is light at the end of this long, cold tunnel -- the spring golf season is about to start on Long Island.  Opening Day for some of Long Island's seasonal golf courses is only a week away.

Spring will be greeted with a hero's welcome following an offseason that began with an ominous forecast for one East End course, continued with surprising news about another, and in between saw nothing but snow, ice, sleet and a public course's official conversion into a private club.

March, however, represents a fresh start.  Eager golfers hit the range, take an early-season lesson or put together a foursome for a cold, windy St. Patrick's Day outing.  Most courses will be back in full swing when the calendar turns again into April.

The following is a list of tentative reopening dates for Long Island's seasonal golf courses.  (The list does not include year-round courses that have been closed due to weather.)  Many public courses on Long Island are sending golfers out by the middle of March; others like Bethpage Black and Eisenhower Red hibernate until April.  Courses will be added or updated as information becomes available.  Be sure to check back through the month for the latest info.

*All dates listed below are subject to change.  Call the courses directly for updated dates and times.

GOLF COURSE REOPENINGS:

• Brentwood CC -- March 14 (delayed to 3/20)
  
• Holbrook CC -- March 14 (delayed to 3/20)
  
• Timber Point -- March 14
• Woods Course at Cherry Creek -- March 15
• Town of Oyster Bay GC -- March 18
  
• Poxabogue -- March 19
• Harbor Links Championship/Executive -- March 29
  
• Bethpage Red -- April 1
• Bethpage Black -- April 12
• Eisenhower Red -- OPEN

The following courses typically reopen in mid- to late March:

• Bay Park
• Christopher Morley Park

The following courses typically reopen in April:

• Cedars GC

[This post was updated on March 28, 2014.]

No fee increases this season at Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course

If the weather cooperates, the Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course in Woodbury will open for the 2014 season on Tuesday, March 18. 

Oyster Bay councilman Anthony Macagnone announced in a town press release that there will be no fee increases at the course for the 2014 season.  This includes annual membership fees, daily green fees, gas cart and tee-time rates.  Registration for seasonal membership is currently underway.

All fees and rates are posted at the Town of Oyster Bay website.

For more on the Tom Fazio-designed course, visit the Oyster Bay flyover.