Golf on Long Island

Topgolf Long Island now hiring as summer grand opening approaches

The parking lot is paved with lines painted.  A new sign stands at the entrance, and a "Now Hiring" banner waves at the top of the three-story building's nearly finished exterior.  Topgolf Long Island -- New York's first in the international golf/entertainment chain -- is nearing its debut.

There is no official opening date just yet, but barring any surprise delays, Topgolf Long Island will open in mid-summer just west of Nicolls Road in Holtsville.  Brookhaven Town Councilman Kevin LaValle told Golf On Long Island this week that the company still projects a grand opening between late July and the first half of August.

"Turf is down, and the exterior is just about done," LaValle said.  "Things are moving along quickly."

On site, there is plenty of activity as construction workers, contractors and employees move in and out of the fully Topgolf-branded facility.  A look through the glass-paneled walls reveals ground-floor hitting bays with couches and TV screens, with bright-green turf and target flags in the distance.  Netting is complete and stands prominently over the Long Island Expressway at exit 62.

Behind the scenes Topgolf is currently hiring for food-service, cleaning and maintenance positions.  In its initial project announcement, Topgolf estimated it would bring 500 jobs to Suffolk County.

The triple-tiered Holtsville range will offer 102 climate-controlled hitting bays with TVs, food/drink service and WiFi, as well as live music, year-round events, golf instruction and dining, in addition to the innovative, arcade-style targets and gaming features that Topgolf facilities are known for.  It will also include private rooms for corporate events and parties. 

According to price information on the Topgolf website, hourly rates for each bay range from $40 to $60 depending on time of day, with half-price rates available on Tuesdays.  Bays are designed to accommodate up to six players.

SEE ALSO:
Topgolf Long Island moving quickly toward possible August opening
Progress at Topgolf site ahead of projected summer 2021 opening
Topgolf Long Island opening now expected for summer 2021
Long Island Topgolf taking shape in Holtsville
A New Decade of Long Island Golf, Part 1 -- A Changed Landscape, On and Off the Course
Topgolf inches closer to to first Long Island location with latest board approval

Tee times open to public at formerly private Tam O'Shanter Club

The clock is ticking on the Tam O'Shanter Club in Brookville, and public golfers have access to tee times this summer and fall at the formerly private golf course, which is shutting down for residential development later this year.  Reservations are available only on GolfNow. 

Standard-rate tee times range from $75 to $105 with cart.  A small daily selection of GolfNow's popular "Hot Deals" are priced as low as $68 per player.

Located next door to Long Island Lutheran High School in a quiet corner of Brookville, Tam O'Shanter is scheduled to close for good on November 1, if not sooner, just shy of its 60th-anniversary season.  The course debuted in 1962 during a heavy golf-building boom on Long Island.  It was reportedly constructed in just three months by Long Island course builder Charles Martin and a 64-man crew.

The club was sold in 2019 to Titan Golf LLC, an operator that specializes in rehabilitating financially challenged private clubs.  Titan's owners are in the middle of a long-standing battle with the Town of Hempstead over similar development of The Woodmere Club, a century-old country club purchased in 2017.  Woodmere's golf course was abandoned last year.

Public feedback on GolfNow has been mixed so far at Tam O'Shanter.  Some players have complained about delayed tee times due to cart shortages; others describe a facility with few amenities and minimal maintenance. 

New owners preparing to reopen Great Rock Golf Club in Wading River

A new ownership group that includes a part-owner of two Riverhead-area golf clubs is preparing to resurrect the dormant Great Rock Golf Club in Wading River, according to an article published last week in the Riverhead News-Review.

The sale to Chris Vene and Anthony Lomangino was expected to close this past week on May 27, wrote the News-Review's Tim Gannon.  Vene has an ownership stake in the nearby Baiting Hollow Golf Club in Baiting Hollow and The Vineyards Golf Club in Riverhead, as well as a golf course maintenance company that would service Great Rock.

Vene told the News-Review that a priority of the reopened golf course would be providing a "member for the day" experience.

[Vene] said some people might not play that often or might not be able to afford membership costs at other clubs. 

“So you go to Great Rock and you’re a member for the day,” he said. “You have a great facility, and you have access to the locker room, the sauna, the showers, the driving range. You can hit as many balls as you want and then, hopefully, get a great meal at the restaurant.”

As for who will operate the restaurant, Mr. Vene said, “We’re working on it,” adding that he has interviewed “multiple local restaurateurs.” -- Tim Gannon, Riverhead News-Review, 5/18/2021

Great Rock abruptly closed in October 2019 amid rumors of a sale, some naming Vene as a potential buyer.  The closure capped an abbreviated season filled with player complaints about course conditions, lack of maintenance and limited facilities.  The course immediately began promoting its 2020 season, though the course never reopened.

Last month, Great Rock dropped vague clues of a potential return on its Facebook page.

Vene, who lives near the course, said he plans to meet with neighbors after the sale to discuss their concerns.  One long-standing issue has been noise from weddings and other events held in the club's temporary outdoor tent, though Great Rock was granted town approval last year to expand its clubhouse.

A golf course reopening date is not available at the moment.  Stay tuned to Golf On Long Island this spring and summer for updates on the course.

Bethpage modifies tee-time policy amid "unprecedented demand" for reservations

Bethpage State Park is updating its tee-time policy starting next week in order to address the "supply and demand" issue that has escalated since the start of the pandemic last spring.  Golfers in the online reservation queue typically outnumber available tee times by hundreds on a daily basis, according to the park.

According to a notice distributed by the park this weekend, Bethpage will limit tee-time account holders to four reservations per week on the Red, Blue, Green and Yellow courses, and extend the cancellation window for all courses from six hours to 12, in an attempt to make tee times available to more golfers.  Changes will go into effect on Sunday, May 23.

The Black Course policy of one reservation every 28 days will not change.

"It's simply an issue of supply and demand," according to the park notice.  "Way more golfers available to play and no way to increase the number of available reserved times without compromising course conditions and/or pace of play."  The park says nearly 500 people log on to the online system each night to book fewer than 200 tee times per day for the following week.

Total rounds at Bethpage increased over the previous year by nearly 25,000 in spring/summer 2020 despite intermittent closures at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.  Rounds at all Long Island state parks jumped by more than 40,000 in the same time frame.

Tee times are made available through the NYS Parks online portal.  Golfers register on the site and can book tee times at any state park, subject to residency restrictions and current tee-time policies.  For more information, visit NYS Parks.

Topgolf Long Island moving quickly toward possible August opening

The nets are up at Topgolf Long Island, and the company's familiar graphics adorn the building's facade.  New York's first location of the nationwide golf and entertainment chain is starting to resemble the new-age driving range local golfers have been waiting for, looking down over the Long Island Expressway in Holtsville.

After years of speculation followed by Covid-era delays, Topgolf Long Island is entering the stretch run, and the finish line, according to Brookhaven Town Councilman Kevin LaValle, is a summer 2021 debut.  In recent weeks, construction crews put the range netting in place, prepped the ground for Topgolf's targets and gadgetry, and paved access roads and parking areas along the LIE's north service road.  LaValle says the company is likely shooting for an August opening, if not sooner given how quickly construction has progressed.

"There is so much excitement for this project," LaValle says.  "Every day I have people asking me about Topgolf."

The councilman is planning a walk-through of the facility in June once crews build out the interior of the building.  By then, LaValle expects Topgolf to begin filling the 500 jobs the company projected to bring to Suffolk County in its initial announcement.  "They'll need to begin hiring soon so that their employees are trained and prepared for an opening this summer," he says.

The triple-tiered Holtsville range will offer 102 climate-controlled hitting bays with TVs, food/drink service and WiFi, as well as live music, year-round events, golf instruction and dining, in addition to the innovative, arcade-style targets and gaming features that Topgolf facilities are known for.  It will also include private rooms for corporate events and parties.

SEE ALSO:
Progress at Topgolf site ahead of projected summer 2021 opening
Topgolf Long Island opening now expected for summer 2021
Long Island Topgolf taking shape in Holtsville
A New Decade of Long Island Golf, Part 1 -- A Changed Landscape, On and Off the Course
Topgolf inches closer to to first Long Island location with latest board approval

Heatherwood Golf Club remains closed amid real estate fight

A years-long battle over a proposed senior housing complex in Centereach that would cut the Heatherwood Golf Club from 18 holes to nine has instead reduced the entire course to overgrowth as the future of the development dims.  Heatherwood has been closed since early 2020, and it appears likely the course will stay closed for good.

Heatherwood slowly grew into an eyesore along busy Nesconset Highway during its abandoned 2020 season, Kyle Barr of TBR News wrote in October.  At one point a sign that read "What Should We Build?" was erected over the dormant golf course.

The deserted course and weedy lot are the culmination of a lengthy struggle pitting the Town of Brookhaven against a Commack-based real estate developer that wants millions of dollars in tax breaks to build 200 housing units for seniors on part of the golf course property.  Arguing that tax breaks would take revenue away from local school districts, the Brookhaven Town Industrial Development Agency rejected several requests in 2019 for economic-aid packages for the developer, Heatherwood Golf and Villas, ranging from $2 million to $7 million in exemptions.  Heatherwood contends that the project -- which would keep nine of the club's 18 holes -- is dependent on the tax breaks.

The developer was originally granted a zoning change for the project in 2014 and already has most of the approvals it needs to start construction of the housing complex, according to Newsday.   Local residents and civic associations spoke out against the development at the time, and after continued opposition, some feel that the abandonment of the golf course is a "vindictive" counter to the town's aid rejection, Barr reported.

As for Heatherwood Golf Club, part of the Long Island public-golf scene for more than 50 years, it filled a niche as the Island's only 18-hole executive-length course.  The 4,100-yard course featured six par-4s and a dozen par-3s, most of which played longer than 150 yards.  Its signature hole was the 148-yard ninth, where shots to a deep green needed to sail over a small pond.

Tee times will be a hot commodity again at local golf courses in 2021

On this first morning of spring, the season of new beginnings, opening day at Bethpage Green was slowed by a frost delay.  It was a fitting way to follow a winter season that was largely snowed out.

The cold thaw will do little to dampen local golf enthusiasm though, or the prospects for 2021.  The rush on tee times that became one of the main storylines in the pandemic-affected Long Island golf season of 2020 is likely to carry over through this year, Newsday golf writer Jeff Williams said in a St. Patrick's Day column, as more and more courses begin to shake off the winter freeze.  Harbor Links also reopened on Saturday, joining courses like Timber Point and Cherry Creek Woods that raised the curtain on 2021 last week.

And with sunny skies and temps projected in the 50s and 60s this week, expect a preview of this spring and summer's run on reservations.  Pent-up demand helped one Suffolk County course send out 150 players as far back as a sunny, freshly snow-thawed March 3.

"Tee sheets filled up in an instant, a week in advance or more," Williams said of 2020.  "And that trend isn't showing any signs of slowing down."

It's not just the push for golf itself that is driving demand for reservations.  "Tee times are like gold," Sunken Meadow head pro Judy Alvarez told Golf On Long Island in the fall, because most courses are still not allowing walk-up play amid the focus on pandemic safety.  Just about everyone needs a reservation to get onto any local first tee.  Players accustomed to dropping by a nearby course to join a group, or who might decide to sneak in nine holes one afternoon on a whim, are now at a severe disadvantage.  

Courses like the nine-hole Nassau County munis at North Woodmere, Bay Park, Cantiague and Christopher Morley are offering tee times for the first time ever, and without walk-up play, the difference is clear.  On a warm weekend last November, every tee time at North Woodmere was booked in advance from Saturday morning through Sunday afternoon.  "Normally on a nice fall Saturday like this I'd come down here at 9:00 and get on after a little wait," said one Woodmere golfer.  "Today I can't get out."

As of noon today (Saturday), a search for Sunday tee times turns up almost nothing for twosomes at North Woodmere and Cantiague.  (The other two courses are still closed for winter.)  Singles can find three slots in total before 2 p.m.

At Cedars Golf Club in Cutchogue, the neighborhood nine-hole course transitioned in 2020 from a fully walk-up facility to prepaid tee times.  "We expect to keep the tee-time system going forward based on positive feedback from customers," said Cedars co-owner Tim McManus, who added indoor simulator play at Cedars was booked every weekend this winter.

The Golf Club at Middle Bay still has some time before the course opens on April 1, but the tee sheets are filling fast.  "We have a very limited number of tee times available for sale on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays," said golf director Ronnie Wright.

Once on the course though, golfers should find the experience well worth the fight for their spot on tee.  Pine Hills golf director Jimmy Conway told Newsday that faster rounds were one of the byproducts of pandemic-era golf in 2020.

"For the first time we saw four-hour rounds being played on weekends. That brought joy to a lot of people’s games," Conway said.  "A tee time on Saturday wasn’t so bad anymore."

Peninsula Golf Club owners considering sale to Florida firm

Peninsula Golf Club shareholders will meet next week to discuss the potential sale of the Massapequa nine-hole golf course to a Florida firm, Newsday reported on Thursday.

On the table is a $4.4 million offer from the Florida company for the 50-acre property, which must remain a public golf course, according to Nassau County covenants.  The shareholder meeting is scheduled for March 18.

In a Feb. 15 letter to shareholders of owner P.G.C. Holding Corp., company president Nicholas DeSibio, a Hewlett-based attorney, wrote that a $4.4 million offer had been made for the approximately 50-acre, nine-hole golf course.

"Our board members and officers believe that the ‘time has come,’ as we are having difficulty devoting the time to manage the operation," DeSibio wrote.

DeSibio said in an interview Thursday that the price was good "only as a golf course" but he wanted to see whether the stockholders agreed. The proceeds would be distributed to its 68 stockholders, according to the letter. -- Ted Phillips, Newsday, 3/11/21

At least one shareholder has already voted against the current offer and asked the ownership company president for a renegotiated price.

Both the golf course itself and the golf club that operates it have roots as far back as the 1920s.  Originally the Nassau Shores Country Club, the golf course emerged during the 1920s building boom and fell victim to post-Depression financial distress -- the club went bankrupt in the 1940s and the course was neglected.  Meanwhile, a group of Nassau County golfers who formed their own club while caddying at Rockaway Peninsula golf courses in the 1920s -- hence the name Peninsula -- swooped in to purchase the Nassau Shores course in 1946.

For more on Peninsula, see the course flyover.

Progress at Topgolf site ahead of projected summer 2021 opening

There is activity at the future Holtsville home of New York's first Topgolf venue, which is on schedule to make its long-awaited debut this summer, Brookhaven Councilman Kevin LaValle told Golf On Long Island on Thursday.

LaValle confirmed that Topgolf Long Island remains on track to open "in the third quarter" of 2021, likely around August. 

When complete, the triple-tiered Topgolf complex -- located along the Long Island Expressway's north service road near exit 62 -- will feature 102 hitting bays along with professional instruction, live-music events and dining.  Construction crews have been working on the interior of the facility during the winter months.

"There's a lot of excitement about this project," said LaValle, who plans to take a tour of the facility sometime this spring.  "People are constantly coming up to me asking, 'What's going on with Topgolf?'"

That's been a popular question among local golfers over several years of rumors and government approvals, and the answer seemed to come just about a year ago when Topgolf announced an early 2021 opening for the Long Island venue.  Just weeks later, the coronavirus pandemic halted business and construction projects in New York State.  The skeletal structure completed to that point stood untouched for the rest of the year.  In October, LaValle told GOLI that construction would likely resume in early 2021 to line up with a pushed-back summer opening. 

Mixing elements of a high-energy sports bar and grill with a modern driving range, Topgolf facilities allow players to hit microchipped golf balls toward arcade-style target areas for computer-scored games and contests.  Climate-controlled hitting bays are rented by the hour and typically include televisions, WiFi and access to food and drinks. 

The Long Island facility will bring 500 jobs to central Suffolk County, according to a Topgolf press release.

SEE ALSO:
Topgolf Long Island opening now expected for summer 2021
Long Island Topgolf taking shape in Holtsville
A New Decade of Long Island Golf, Part 1 -- A Changed Landscape, On and Off the Course
Topgolf inches closer to to first Long Island location with latest board approval

Lido Golf Club, famed Macdonald masterpiece, to be recreated in Wisconsin

A replica of Long Island's very own Lido Golf Club is currently under construction with renowned designer Tom Doak at the helm, and will open to members and public guests sometime in 2023 near the Sand Valley Golf Resort in Wisconsin.

Why does the bustling Town of Hempstead municipal layout need a tribute course built halfway across the country, you ask?  Well, it doesn't.  The 1950s-era Robert Trent Jones course abutting Reynolds Channel that draws thousands of Long Islanders each year will remain unique to the barrier island and Lido Beach.

Doak's course near the Sand Valley resort will bring back to life the original Lido Club, the famed C.B. Macdonald course that was built from sandy scratch near the end of World War I, vanished in the early days of World War II, and now lives on in the hearts and minds of golf architecture and history enthusiasts. 

Old Lido -- whose only living remnant is the majestic Lido Towers condo complex that dominates the beach skyline -- has such a following among golf writers and historians that years of chatter about restoration somewhere, anywhere, have breathed the project into existence in central Wisconsin.  The Fried Egg covered the details of the project earlier this week, including a podcast with Doak on both the new course and the original.

So how did Lido jump from the pages of internet forum fodder, grainy photos and newspaper clippings onto the ground in a scenic spot next door to one of America's modern destination golf resorts?  It took more than the course's historical charm and romance.  First, Lido was considered by several writers of the early 1900s to be one of the finest American courses ever built, so its recreation, Doak says in the Fried Egg podcast, was worthy of consideration on its strategic merits. 

But much of the legwork and inspiration came from an unlikely source.  Peter Flory, a Chicago-area golfer with a deep interest in lost golf courses and a fluency in virtual-golf software, took those archived photos and clippings and got to work -- hundreds of hours worth.  Previously, Flory told Golf On Long Island in 2018, he had dabbled in recreating lost courses in his area at Olympia Fields and Mill Road Farm. 

Lido, though, offered a different challenge.  Over the course of the next two-plus years, Flory posted incredibly detailed renderings of all 18 Lido holes on the Golf Club Atlas forums, where golf historians and designers, including Doak, discussed and scrutinized his virtual fairways, hazards and greens.  Using aerials, models, ground-level snapshots and news descriptions, Flory was able to digitally resurrect Lido's slopes and undulations, in some cases using details like shadow lengths and angles in old photos to estimate the precise dimensions of mounds, bunkers and other features.

[PICTURED RIGHT: A 1933 Brooklyn Daily Eagle sketch of Macdonald's #4 "Channel" hole, one of the course's most notable designs -- and the inspiration for today's double-fairway 16th.]

Flory's work drew the attention of Michael and Chris Keiser of Sand Valley, who used the digital imagery to gauge interest from future members.  When it opens in 2023, The Lido -- renderings and descriptions available on its newly launched website -- will be open to members and resort guests.

Back here on Long Island, the Lido muni lives on just to the east of its famous predecessor.  The original Lido spread from channel to ocean on land that is now occupied by Long Beach High School and residential streets.  For more historical context, take a look at these past Golf On Long Island features:

• A brief look back at the original Lido Golf Club in its "centennial" season
• Street Names: The Ghosts of Long Island Golf's Past, Part 2 (Lido Club)
• Original Lido Club featured on Golf Channel, golf history podcast
• Newsday slideshow features 11 places that were formerly golf courses
• Closer Look: Lido Golf Club #16

The Lido Club is also prominently featured in the photo-history book "Images of America: Long Island Golf" by GOLI's Phil Carlucci.  Follow the preceding link for more info or click the book image at the top of the page.