Golf on Long Island

Lenney Peters Junior Golf Tournament tees off next week at Crab Meadow for first time in two decades

The Town of Huntington is bringing back a long-gone junior golf tournament next week, much to the satisfaction of teenage golfers eager for some friendly competition.

After two decades off, the Lenney Peters Junior Golf Tournament will return to Northport's Crab Meadow Golf Course on Tuesday, August 30, and is open to boys and girls age 10 through 17.  Peters, Crab Meadow's first golf professional, created the annual tournament in 1968 to promote youth golf and sportsmanship.  The event was popular enough during its initial run to attract as many as 100 junior participants.

Entry fee is $35 and includes 18 holes, a barbecue dinner and an awards ceremony.  Tee time is 1:30 p.m.  Players can compete in a Junior division for boys and girls age 10 to 14, a Senior division for boys and girls age 15 to 17, or an Elite division for players with a Metropolitan Golf Association handicap. 

Registration is open until August 29 through the Town of Huntington website or in person at either Crab Meadow or Huntington's Parks and Recreation Department.

Two days left for free junior golf at Spring Lake's Sandpiper Course

Junior golfers age 14 and under have two opportunities left to play free golf this month at Spring Lake Golf Club in Middle Island.

On Wednesdays and Thursdays in August, juniors play for free with a paying adult on the Sandpiper Course, Spring Lake's nine-hole layout and the home of its namesake water hazard.  The lake calls for a double water carry on Sandpiper's opening hole.

The special covers green fees only and is available on Thursday, August 25 and Wednesday, August 31.  Call Spring Lake at (631) 924-5115 for details, or just show up and play.

For more on the Sandpiper nine, or Spring Lake's 18-hole Thunderbird Course, check out the flyovers at the preceding links.

Harbor Links offering Golf & Grub special through August

Harbor Links golfers can beat the heat with a nice meal and a cold drink to top off a round this month on the sun-splashed Port Washington course.  Harbor Links is offering a Golf & Grub special through August that includes a full round with cart included, followed by an entree and drink at the course restaurant.  The special is available Tuesday through Friday at a cost of $59-79 for Town of North Hempstead residents ($89 for non-residents).

Happy hour at Harbor Links combines beers, burgers and ball-striking, as well.  For $20, players can work through a large bucket of balls at the Harbor Links range, then grab a burger and draft beer in the grill room.  The happy-hour deal is offered Mondays from 3 to 6 p.m. and Tuesday/Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m.

Built over what was formerly a sand mine along Hempstead Harbor, Harbor Links is made up of the 18-hole Championship Course and a nine-hole Executive Course.  For more on current specials, visit the Harbor Links website.

Golf historian Phil Young talks Bethpage Black on Scorcia On Par radio show

Anthony Scorcia, whose "On Par with Anthony Scorcia" radio show airs Saturday mornings on WGBB 1240-AM, spoke with golf and Bethpage historian Phil Young this morning to discuss the Black Course in advance of The Barclays later this month.

Young, an A.W. Tillinghast expert with several books on Bethpage and its legendary architect, spoke about his concerns regarding the Black Course's setup and its move away from the fundamental aspects of Tillinghast's original design.  Narrowed fairways and "dumbed-down" greens are an insult to the designer, he said, and have taken away from Tillinghast's masterpiece. 

"You wouldn't go into the Louvre and say, 'You know, I think Mona Lisa would be better as a blonde,'" Young said.

The Black Course will host The Barclays from August 25-28.

To listen to the entire discussion, visit the On Par with Anthony Scorcia website.

Join the Islanders at Bethpage Red next month for the ninth annual ICF Outing

The New York Islanders are swapping out their ice skates for Footjoys next month, and you can play right alongside them as part of the Islanders Children's Foundation Golf Outing at Bethpage State Park.  Islander players, coaches and alumni will take on the Red Course to benefit an organization that has raised more than $10 million for Long Island children in need since its inception.

The ninth annual ICF Outing will take place on Tuesday, September 20, with tee time scheduled for 12 noon.  Foursomes will be joined by a celebrity golfer.  Registration is $750 for individual golfers and $2,900 for a foursome. 

Included in the entry fee are a pre-round brunch, a BBQ lunch served on the course and a post-round cocktail and dinner reception after the round.  Prizes will be awarded during the reception and all attendees will have an opportunity to bid on Islander memorabilia and unique experiences.

For registration and sponsorship information, see the event brochure on the Islanders website or contact Ann Rina at (516) 501-6870.