Golf on Long Island

New tees add variety, altitude to Harbor Links' par-3 17th

The finish to a round at Harbor Links -- starting at the high-altitude 16th tee and ending at the long dogleg 18th -- remains as daunting of a challenge in this 2018 season as it's been in the past.  Catch the Port Washington course on the right day, however, and the final stretch will be a bit less grueling of a gauntlet as expected.

A new set of tees on Harbor Links' 17th has added a different, more pleasant dimension to the course's penultimate hole, a treacherous par-3 that has long combined length and hazards with fully blind views.  Since they were built atop an adjacent hill in summer 2017, the new tees, on days they are in the rotation, give players the opportunity to attack the pin from up high with an unobstructed look at the green.

Renovations on the adjacent 18th provided the course's grounds crew with enough extra soil to build up the new tees and, in doing so, address some concerns about the demanding nature of the signature par-3.  Stretching 185 yards and up from all but the forward tees, #17's original design challenges players to land a long-iron or hybrid shot on a peninsula green bordered by water deep and to the sides, and do it blindly.  Reeds and fescue block any sight of the green, and once the ball's in the air, finding any offline shot is a guessing game.

The new tees -- measuring anywhere from 100 to 152 yards -- come in from more of a side angle and allow a full, elevated view of the water short and left, and the safe area to the right.  It makes for a more scenic setup, and with water still largely in play, it maintains the hole's difficult nature while opening up birdie and par opportunities for a broader range of players.

Special thanks to GOLI follower Glenn Reeder, who snapped a photo of the hole (above) late in 2017.

For more on Harbor Links, check out the Championship Course and Executive Course flyovers.

Last Chance Animal Rescue Golf Outing scheduled for June 14 at Mill Pond

Mill Pond Golf Course in Medford will host the fourth annual Last Chance Animal Rescue Golf Outing on Thursday, June 14.  All proceeds benefit the Southampton-based non-profit organization dedicated to rescuing animals from inhumane kill shelters and relocating them to safe facilities and foster homes.

The outing begins at 12 noon with a BBQ lunch and practice on the driving range.  Shotgun tee time is scheduled for 1:45 p.m.  The $175 entry fee also includes a Bloody Mary at check-in, beverages on the course, a post-round dinner and open bar, as well as gifts and the chance to win raffle prizes.  Dinner-only guests can attend for $75.

Participants can register online at the outing website.  And to learn more about Last Chance Animal Rescue, including information on adoption, fostering and volunteering, visit the organization's website at www.lcarescue.org.

Peninsula Golf Club rolls out new website, tee times and revamped cafe for 2018

Nestled inside a quiet residential Massapequa community, the nine-hole Peninsula Golf Club is as close to a neighborhood golf course as you'll find on Long Island.  For every handful of shots that land safely on a green in regulation, one misguided attempt might settle inside someone's front lawn.  And while the course remains the same quaint throwback it's been for decades, this year Peninsula is taking several strides into the 21st century.

Peninsula launched a new website earlier this spring, complete with an online booking system and updated information about the par-37 course.  Long a spot for cash-carrying walk-ups only, Peninsula now allows players to reserve tee times online up to three weeks in advance.  The check-in desk is equipped to take credit cards, as well.  Reservations are an additional $3 for nine holes ($23 total) and $5 for 18 holes ($40 total) over the base 2018 walk-up rates.

Inside the clubhouse, The Peninsula Cafe is under new management with a unique dual setup.  From morning until early afternoon, the Cafe turns out a familiar selection of breakfast sandwiches, hot dogs, burgers and wraps.  At 3 p.m. from Tuesday to Saturday, local chef Anthony Marengo transforms the kitchen into The Sizzlin' Griddle Supper Club, with a menu of modern, made-from-scratch American and global fare like beer-simmered sausage and peppers and cold sesame noodles.  Rotating specials include wing nights and discounts for first responders.  Sundays are reservation-only family dinners for six or more.  As a bonus for both golfers and hungry neighbors, Marengo also offers text ordering and curbside pickup (call/text 516-325-6452).

And to keep Massapequa golfers aware of what's happening on the course and in the grill room, Peninsula has put a newfound focus on social media.  The course and both versions of the restaurant have been actively promoting the facility on Facebook this winter and spring, even including a little touch of nostalgia.  Photos and documents detailing Peninsula's evolution from players' club to actual golf course were posted earlier this month.  Starting in the 1920s, the original Peninsula Golf Club members -- all caddies at Inwood Country Club -- held their competitions on courses around the Rockaway peninsula (hence the name).  In 1946, the Peninsula members purchased their own course at the abandoned Nassau Shores Country Club in Massapequa, where it remains today.

For more on Peninsula, check out the course flyover.

Bethpage Red to host St. John's Tobin Alumni Association outing on May 17

The third annual St. John's Tobin Alumni Association Golf Outing will tee off on Bethpage State Park's Red Course on Thursday, May 17.  Shotgun start is scheduled bright and early at 7:30 a.m.

Entry fee for the outing is $175 per player or $650 for a full foursome, with proceeds going to the Tobin Alumni Association Scholarship Fund.  Registration includes breakfast, cart, drinks and on-course instruction from PGA professional James Field.  Also included is a post-round BBQ lunch, plus contests and raffle prizes.

Sign up online at the alumni association website.  For more on Bethpage Red, check out the course flyover.

Spring specials at Brentwood, Holbrook CC

The golf courses at Brentwood Country Club and Holbrook Country Club are open for the season, which means their usual spring specials are currently in play.  Through May, the two Town of Islip municipal courses are offering discounts on late-morning and afternoon rounds.

Terms are the same as in past years.  After 11 a.m., rates are $42 per player, with cart and reservation fees included.  For those who prefer to walk, 18 holes are $24 after 11 a.m. and $20 after 2 p.m.  Brentwood is closed most Mondays and Holbrook most Tuesdays for private outings.

For more on the Town of Islip munis, check out the course flyovers at the above links.

Bethpage Black opens tomorrow with renovated greens, bunkers

Bethpage Black lifts the curtain tomorrow on the 2018 playing season and will feature several renovations made by park staff with the 2019 season -- specifically, next May's PGA Championship -- in mind.

With the pros headed back this way come next May, some of the Black's more familiar holes have undergone or will soon receive some tweaks, and it won't take long into their rounds for the everyday golfers to notice.  Five elm trees were moved from the left side of #1 fairway to the right, building on the wooded presence already in place inside the dogleg.  The aim is to make players "think twice before trying to take too much off the corner," says Andrew Wilson, the park's director of agronomy.

Nearby, the final stretch toward the 18th green will take a slightly modified route, as park crews are currently working on bumping out the left-side fairway bunkers and widening the fairway between the two clusters of traps.  Gone is the hourglass shape of the final fairway; instead, the short grass will be of equal width from tee to green.

"The most eye-catching project for our golfers is the green extension on #11," Wilson says.  "We worked with architects Rees Jones and Greg Muirhead to expand the green's back left."  Extending the green and reshaping part of the existing surface creates "four or five new pin locations that we are excited about," according to Wilson.  The reworked left greenside bunker will be ground under repair until new sod takes root.

Also around the Black Course:

• Early-winter bunker renovations included #9 green and the fairway traps on #6.
• Bunker renovations around #6 green should be complete by opening day.  The walk-off area behind the green has been reworked to provide better drainage.
• Drainage improvements -- "equal to foundation work in a house," Wilson describes -- are complete on parts of the course and ongoing on others.  Some areas have been resodded where drainage and irrigation work was done.
• Part of the pond bank on #8 was sodded and will be planted with native grasses grown on site.
• New sod is in place where this March's series of nor'easters resulted in turf damage.

Elsewhere at Bethpage, golfers will find new low-profile tee fences on the Red Course that will prevent damage from carts.  "The fence looks great and is an improvement on the green ropes and stakes we use," Wilson says. 

Bunker work is nearly complete on Blue #5 and Red #8.  The most significant of the non-Black bunker renovations, however, are on the Green Course, where Muirhead recommended removing the approach bunker on the par-3 11th and the fairway trap on #17.  "We felt the approach and fairway bunkers were not a hazard to more skilled players and instead punished others while negatively impacting pace of play," Wilson says.  Around the greens though, the right-side trap on #11 is now larger and closer to the surface, while a brand-new trap was installed on #17.

As the season progresses, new forward tees will be added around the non-Black courses, and possibly one or two new back tees.

Wilson credits superintendents Mike Hadley, Kevin Carroll, Vincent Herzog, Erik Feldman, Eric Newell, Hamilton Lopes, Shawn Brownell and their maintenance crew for carrying out the work while battling the winter's early arrival of blizzards, rain and frost that then lingered into spring.  Nearly all renovation work is done in-house.

View photos of the offseason and ongoing renovations by visiting Wilson's and Bethpage Golf's Twitter pages at @Greensideup17 and @BethpageGolf.

Cherry Creek offering "Double Play" spring special for Woods and Links courses

Cherry Creek is pitching a spring special that makes it easier -- and cheaper -- to play 18 at both its golf courses.

With a "Double Play" card available for purchase at both the Woods and Links clubhouses, golfers can play one round at each of the two courses, with cart included, for $75.  The special is valid for weekday rounds now through May 18.

For more information, call the Woods at (631) 506-0777 or the Links at (631) 369-6500.  And for details on the two Riverhead courses, check out the Woods and Links flyovers.

Proposed Nassau County fee hikes would affect golf-cart rentals, range balls

Fee increases proposed by new Nassau County Executive Laura Curran would impact golfers renting golf carts and buying range tokens at the county's municipal courses, according to Newsday's analysis of the administration's latest budget proposal.

Curran, citing the need to address Nassau's dire fiscal situation, plans to increase both cart rentals and buckets of range balls by $1, in addition to fee hikes in other areas like traffic violations, home-improvement licensing, beach cabanas and more.  Green fees will not be raised, according to Newsday.

Nassau County operates the three 18-hole golf courses at Eisenhower Park and nine-hole courses at Bay Park, Cantiague Park, Christopher Morley Park and North Woodmere Park.  Eisenhower, Cantiague and Woodmere also include driving ranges.

Island's End to host a two-person scramble on April 14

Greenport-area golfers can pair up for an opportunity to win prizes at an Island's End Golf & Country Club team event this month, barring any additional springtime snowstorms.

Island's End will host a two-person scramble on Saturday, April 14.  Shotgun tee time is scheduled for 9:00 a.m.  The $99 entry fee includes food and drink, plus the chance to take home prizes.

Call the Island's End pro shop at (631) 477-0777 to register or for additional details.

GOLI Visitors' Guide to Long Island Golf updated for 2018 and US Open attendees

Golf On Long Island's Visitors' Guide to Long Island Golf is now updated for 2018, including information on which area courses are catering to out-of-town golfers who are looking to play while here for the U.S. Open in June.  Also featured is the latest information on the new NYS Parks online tee-time system.

That's in addition to general info on Long Island, how to get around, how to find the nearest public courses, and more.  Be sure to check the Visitors' Guide through the spring for updates on course offerings related to the U.S. Open.