Golf on Long Island

Timber Point to host annual St. Patrick's Day scramble and dinner on March 13

Timber Point Golf Course will reopen for play on Friday, March 11, and won't waste any time getting right into the holiday spirit.  The Great River course will host its annual St. Patrick's Day scramble and dinner on Sunday, March 13. 

The Irish-themed outing, complete with a shillelagh putting challenge and leprechaun-related contests, is a nine-hole, four-person scramble typically played over the Red Course.  After the longest-putt competition, the scramble will begin with an 11:00 a.m. shotgun start.  The $50 entry fee covers all contests and also includes cart and unlimited range balls.  Winners of the contests will receive gift cards valid in the Timber Point pro shop.

At the conclusion of the scramble, the outing continues across the river in Oakdale, where corned beef, cabbage and drinks will be served at the Snapper Inn along with live acoustic music from 2:00 to 6:30 (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.

2016 public golf course reopenings on Long Island

Nothing accelerates the long, boring drive through the offseason quite like a warm late-winter weekend.  All it takes is a couple of unexpected 50-degree days and the search for tee times and open golf courses begins.

There's still some distance to cover, but the spring golf season is in sight.  The handful of courses that close for the winter start preparing to reopen as soon as the first half of March, and those that have been open this whole time start working back up to full capacity (goodbye temporary tees and greens).

Of course, one big storm can still bury all that optimism beneath eight inches of snow.  However, by the middle of April, pretty much all of Long Island's courses are back in business.

The following is a list of tentative opening dates for Long Island's seasonal golf courses.  (Year-round courses reopen as soon as weather allows and are not included in this list.)  Opening dates range from the middle of March through the first half of April.  Courses will be added or updated as information becomes available.  Be sure to check back through February and March for the latest info.

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

GOLF COURSE REOPENINGS:

• Timber Point -- March 11
• Glen Cove -- March 11
• Bergen Point -- March 11
• Brentwood CC -- March 16
  
• Holbrook CC -- March 16
  
• Sumpwams Creek Par-3 -- March 17
• Woods Course at Cherry Creek -- March 18
• Harbor Links Championship/Executive -- March 25
• Bethpage Red -- March 25
• The Golf Club at Middle Bay -- April 1
• Bethpage Black -- April 16

The following courses typically open by late March:

• Town of Oyster Bay GC (approx. April 1)
  
• Bay Park
• Poxabogue
• Christopher Morley Park

The following courses typically reopen in April:

• Eisenhower Red

[This post was updated on March 17, 2016.]

Best of Long Island poll: Bethpage, Heartland, Unique Golf Shop are 2016 winners

Bethpage State Park's reign continues in the annual "Best of LI" poll conducted by the Long Island Press.

Long Island Press readers who voted during the months-long survey selected Bethpage as the "Best Golf Course" on Long Island for 2016.  The 90-hole mega-complex is the only golf facility to earn top course honors since the newspaper contest was launched more than a decade ago.  Led by its two headliners, the famed Black Course and the mighty Red Course, Bethpage outpaced a massive 17-course field comprised mainly of fellow public facilities.

Meanwhile, the much more volatile "Best Driving Range" category went to Heartland Golf Park in Edgewood.  The bi-level range near the Deer Park train station includes automatic tees and other modern amenities, as well as a nine-hole golf course (and mini golf) on site.  Heartland took the crown from 2015 winner Skydrive Golf Center in Farmingdale.

The "Best Golf Store" on Long Island, according to Press voters, is Unique Golf Shop in Babylon.  Like Bethpage, Unique Golf has dominated its survey category in the recent past. 

For more on these "Best of LI" winners, as well as medalists in all surveys across more than a dozen categories, visit the Long Island Press website.

2015-16 Winter Rates Roundup II

The post-blizzard melt is almost complete, and more and more Long Island golf courses are getting back up to speed.  It's been a few seasons since golf was an option in February, so players should take advantage.  After all, the best way to pregame for the Super Bowl is to skip the hours-long studio shows and hit the links instead. 

Golf On Long Island loves winter golf, and you should too, if only for the chance to play quality courses with limited crowds for a discount price.  Below is a sampling of offseason 18-hole rates at area courses.  For full details about rates and course conditions, contact the course pro shops or visit their websites.  Note that these do not represent discounted rates at all courses.

For offseason rates from previous years and a primer on winter golf in general, refer to Winter Golf on Long Island.

• Great Rock:  $49 with cart on weekdays until 11 a.m., $39 until 3 p.m., $29 after 3 p.m.; $69/$59/$39 on weekends

• Island's End:  $49 to ride, $29 to walk, Monday to Thursday; $59 with cart Friday to Sunday, $49/$29 after 12 noon

• Rock Hill:  $45 to ride, $32 to walk on weekdays; $49/$36 on weekends; $29 every day after 2 p.m.

 SEE ALSO:  2015-16 Winter Rates Roundup I

The post-blizzard melt is almost complete, and more and more Long Island golf courses are getting back up to speed.  It's been a few seasons since golf was an option in February, so players should take advantage.  After all, the best way to pregame for the Super Bowl is to skip the hours-long studio shows and hit the links instead. 

Golf On Long Island loves winter golf, and you should too, if only for the chance to play quality courses with limited crowds for a discount price.  Below is a sampling of offseason 18-hole rates at area courses.  For full details about rates and course conditions, contact the course pro shops or visit their websites.  Note that these do not represent discounted rates at all courses.

For offseason rates from previous years and a primer on winter golf in general, refer to Winter Golf on Long Island.

• Great Rock:  $49 with cart on weekdays until 11 a.m., $39 until 3 p.m., $29 after 3 p.m.; $69/$59/$39 on weekends

• Island's End:  $49 to ride, $29 to walk, Monday to Thursday; $59 with cart Friday to Sunday, $49/$29 after 12 noon

• Rock Hill:  $45 to ride, $32 to walk on weekdays; $49/$36 on weekends; $29 every day after 2 p.m.

 SEE ALSO:  2015-16 Winter Rates Roundup I

Former Calverton Links site to be used for zombie runs, races and other events

The abandoned, unkempt remains of the Calverton Links golf course will soon host a variety of outdoor events, according to the Riverhead News-Review.

The owners of Cousins Paintball, located nearby on Edwards Avenue in Calverton, signed a three-year lease on the former golf course property and plan to use the grounds for their seasonal zombie runs and themed races previously held in Riverhead.

Nicole Smith of the News-Review writes:

“It’s just a beautiful piece of land that’s not utilized,” Mr. Sattler said of the new property. “It was just a wise choice for us. Now we don’t have to look for properties. We can focus more on creating new events.”

Mr. Del Prete and Mr. Sattler, who have owned Cousins Paintball since 1987, said they have no initial plans to expand the paintball and airsoft fields onto the new property, though they wouldn’t rule it out in the future.

A pro shop on the new site will sell paintball gear. People can purchase gear there and then drive a few feet down the road to the next entrance, Mr. Sattler said.

While the new space will solely be used to host events right now, the owners said they hope to expand to eventually host concerts, festivals, art shows and more. The site also came with a catering hall, which Mr. Del Prete said he doesn’t have any plans for yet. -- Nicole Smith, Riverhead News-Review, 1/30/2016

Calverton Links closed for good in October 2013 and has sat vacant ever since. 

[PICTURED: The 11th green, summer of 2013.]