The "Suffolk 18" is a collection of some of the county's best public golf holes by hole number, organized as a fantasy golf course with a typical par-71 to par-73 layout. Suffolk has so many great holes to offer that we put together a second course. You can review the first 18, as well as the general guidelines used to come up with the layouts, by clicking on the links below:
Golf On Long Island's "Suffolk 18" - Front Nine
Golf On Long Island's "Suffolk 18" - Back Nine
Now, the front nine of the "Suffolk 18", No. 2 Course:
1) SPRING LAKE, SANDPIPER COURSE -- par-5, 464/414/400 yards
It's hard to find many courses that begin with a double-water-carry par-5, and it's even harder to come across such an opener on a nine-hole course. But #1 at Spring Lake Golf Club's Sandpiper Course is a rare exception, especially since the 27 holes at Spring Lake are known more for their narrow, tree-ringed corridors than for expansive water hazards. The tee directs opening shots over the course's namesake lake to a fairway that leads golfers up and over a second smaller pond. At a mere 414 yards from the middle tees, this par-5 is reachable in two for many players, which makes up for the daunting nature of the first shot and the fact that, yes, a third pond is lurking beyond and right of the green.
2) STONEBRIDGE -- par-4, 442/432/299 yards
Stonebridge's uphill second is a nod to the "Alps" par-4 frequently used by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor in some of their classic designs. At Stonebridge, #2 begins with an intimidating tee shot recessed behind a pond and facing out toward a narrow uphill chute. What makes this an Alps-style hole is the approach shot to a deep, partially blind green surrounded by punchbowl mounds. Macdonald's and Raynor's menacing cross-bunkering -- typically hidden in front of the surface -- is not present, but the claustrophobic feel, especially off the tee, offers a mental hazard.
3) SPRING LAKE, THUNDERBIRD COURSE -- par-3, 207/180/160 yards
Two bunkers -- one short left, the other long right -- defend the diagonal green on Spring Lake Thunderbird's first and toughest par-3. More than 40 yards deep, the green is a large target, but its edges fall off down steep, rough-riddled slopes, complicating greenside pitches and chips. Also, when chasing a left-side pin, shots must go over the front trap, but mounding behind the bunker rolls into the surface and can make it tricky to stop balls close to the hole.
4) MONTAUK DOWNS -- par-4, 427/411/391 yards
Montauk's fourth is a simple, no-frills par-4 that asks only for accurate work with middle to long irons. Without it, the hole doesn't give away many pars. A single bunker in the left fairway is all that disrupts the straight path from tee to green, and after a strong drive that steers clear of the sand, it's time to test the 5- or 6-iron. The target is a wind-whipped flag pushed up behind two big bunkers. Around the green is...not much. Outside the small surface and the slopes that tumble down off its sides, there is a scarcity of flat ground for redeeming poor iron work.
5) ROCK HILL -- par-4, 420/360/275 yards
Players with a tendency to lose their ball to the right have a rough 400 yards to traverse at Rock Hill's par-4 fifth. When a hole is tilted in one direction and spills off down a slope, a fairway pond in the drive zone just throws salt in the wounds, but that's what awaits those who flirt with #5's right side. Driving toward the wooded left is a better bet. It takes a well-struck uphill approach to reach the elevated green and some precision to avoid plummeting downhill toward the #2 fairway on the right.
6) STONEBRIDGE -- par-4, 278/269/205 yards
The sixth at Stonebridge is one of C.B Macdonald's "Principal's Nose" holes and one of the shortest par-4s on Long Island. The namesake schnozz, a grassy bulge protruding from the center of the fairway, sits about 50 yards short of the green. Three small bunkers surround the hump. The idea is to complicate conservative shots or merely serve as an unusual distraction. Whatever the intent, sand and snout put together, the Nose complex takes up a large part of the far fairway, and combined with a more traditional greenfront trap, it can frustrate many shots left short of the green. The temptation might be to just grip-and-rip off the elevated tee to cover the driver-length yardage, but there's OB left, and the green is severely tilted in that direction as well.
7) MIDDLE ISLAND CC, SPRUCE COURSE -- par-4, 425/405/385 yards
A decade ago, Middle Island CC transformed what had been a fairly mundane par-4 with a tree-shaded putting surface and opened it up into a more interesting hole with an "island" green. Adding a pond across the front of the green and two more deep jacked up the difficulty level and, combined with a now-watery par-3 eighth, gave the Spruce Course a more memorable finish to its nine-hole run -- so memorable, perhaps, that Middle Island's website still touts the renovations as "the highlight of 2008." A drive between two fairway bunkers leaves a middle iron into the green, and while it's not a true island, only part of the left side offers dry footing for wayward approaches. If you go into the bunkers or settle in rough near the treeline, you have a dilemma on your hands.
8) WILLOW CREEK -- par-4, 402/377/350 yards
A risk-reward tee shot heightens the excitement on Willow Creek's eighth, where a tee-to-green pond steals the spotlight as a diagonal hazard that forces players to decide how much of the fairway they want to bite off with their drives. Outside of a lone fairway bunker, the dry side of the fairway is roomy, but clever mounding short and left of the green hides the flag from many left-side approaches. Attacking the far end of the fairway requires challenging more of the lake. Succeed and you can have just a wedge in; misfire and you're digging deep for a new ball.
9) GREAT ROCK -- par-3, 180/173/133 yards
The elevated stack of tees at Great Rock's ninth hole provides a long view over the treeline and toward the horizon. Refocus on the green below and try to figure out which club will work best to navigate the downhill drop and the unpredictable winds that make the conclusion of the Rock's front nine trickier than it appears at first glance. Over-clubbing brings two backside bunkers into play, but an accurate strike sets up makeable birdie putts on one of the course's flatter greens.
OUT: Par-35 - 3,245/3,021/2,598 yards
IN THE HUNT
The following holes were tough to leave out of the Suffolk 18 courses (you can only have so many par-3s and par-5s, even on a fake golf course), but they still deserve some cred:
Tallgrass #1, par-5: Rounds at Tallgrass start with a great-looking approach shot to a green isolated behind 30 yards of rumpled rough.
Middle Island - Oak #1, par-5: A double dogleg with water in front of the green, all closely surrounded by Oak's namesake trees.
Timber Point - Blue #2, par-3: Like "Gibraltar" just ahead at #5, the "Harbor" par-3 (pictured), with its raised tee and thumb of a green surrounded by water, is a leftover from the course's original 1920s design.
Indian Island #5, par-3: The course's signature hole is propped up where the Peconic River meets Flanders Bay, and the back tee brings much of the water into play.
Montauk Downs #7, par-5: The full water carry to a tiered green is definitely cool, but awkward yardage makes it brutal for shorter players.
Timber Point - Red #7, par-5: A long, left-bending par-5 with a partially blind tee shot and an intrusive water hazard hidden behind reeds.
Tallgrass #8, par-3: On a course with lots of variation between its par-3s, the reverse-redan eighth (pictured) is arguably its toughest. The bunker in front is massive -- aim away from the sand to the left and try to use the slope to run balls toward the cup.
Wind Watch #8, par-3: Diagonal par-3 demanding bold shots over both water and sand to reach back pins.
Crab Meadow #8, par-5: Out-of-bounds marshland all the way up the left side makes Crab Meadow's signature hole feel like walking a tightrope, and that's before you consider the pond in front of a tiny green with little room for error.
Middle Island - Dogwood #9, par-4: The Dogwood nine ends with a downhill approach shot to a dramatically sloped green.
NEXT WEEK: The Back Nine
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