Golf on Long Island

Topgolf Long Island opening now expected for summer 2021

If you drove near exit 62 of the Long Island Expressway in June, you might have caught a quick glimpse of the shell of a new driving range -- New York's first Topgolf location -- along the north service road.

And if you made the same drive in September, you might have noticed -- well, you might have noticed the same exact shell.  No construction, no progress.

There's no cause for concern, however, according to Brookhaven Councilman Kevin LaValle, who told Golf On Long Island yesterday that the $25 million Topgolf facility in Holtsville is expected to open sometime during August or September 2021. 

LaValle said he recently spoke with Topgolf representatives and noted there are no issues with the project, despite the lack of activity at the site this summer.  (Topgolf has not responded to multiple inquiries by Golf On Long Island regarding location status.)

"With a project like this, you want to make sure you open at the right time," LaValle said of the planned summer debut.  Back in February, Topgolf announced an early 2021 opening, but that was just weeks before the coronavirus pandemic halted business and construction projects in New York State.  A summer 2021 completion pushes the timetable back for construction, marketing and other pre-opening work.

"You'll probably see construction pick up on the site in January and February," LaValle said.

Topgolf Long Island will offer 102 hitting bays on three tiers, as well as live-music events, year-round lessons and upscale dining, in addition to the arcade-style bells and whistles that its facilities are known for.  It will also bring 500 jobs to central Suffolk County, according to a company press release.

SEE ALSO:
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

Great Rock sign confirms course is out of business

No further confirmation was really needed -- the abrupt closing last fall, the disconnected phone line, frozen-in-time social media and lack of a 2020 playing season were all dead giveaways regarding the fate of the Great Rock Golf Club.  And without an official notice or a brief snippet in the newspaper, it seems a three-word sign on the course's locked gate is as close to a confirmation as local golfers are going to get.

Great Rock Golf Club is out of business.  The sign reads "CLOSED for Business" -- obscured behind it is a previous posting that the Wading River semi-private golf facility would reopen in the spring. 

From the time the course suddenly closed last October until early January of this year, "closed for the season" and "See You Next Year!" were the main messages sent out to area golfers on the club's website and social media outlets.  But as Golf On Long Island wrote in May, next year never arrived.  Before the course closed last fall, golfers complained about deteriorating conditions as rumors of a sale lingered.

Public golf on the East End has taken a couple of heavy blows since 2013 when Calverton Links closed in similar sudden fashion, and that includes Long Island National turning private that same year and The Vineyards switching back to fully private play in 2020.  (A detour while apple picking in Riverhead featured a drive past the remains of Calverton Links, a stop at Great Rock and could have quickly added a visit to the massive solar farm now occupying the former Tallgrass Golf Course.)

Great Rock opened in 2001 during the latest course-building surge and came to be known for fast greens and elevated service.  Holes like the signature tenth (with the namesake rock) were featured by Newsday and Golfing Magazine.  In 2010, Newsday highlighted Great Rock's staff -- some of whom were brought over in 2008 from Shinnecock Hills  -- and its focus on customer service and pristine conditions.

The course briefly closed prior to the 2014 season but reopened later that year under new ownership.  A year later, the club completed a dramatic remodel of its on-site restaurant and opened Pure North Fork, a modern American bistro.

Last year, golfers turned to review sites like Golf Advisor to voice their displeasure over what was essentially an abandoned golf course, complete with crabgrass-strewn fairways, weedy bunkers and bare greens.  Unfortunately, for some, that will be the lasting image of the Wading River club.

Bethpage still in recovery mode following Isaias

More than a week since Tropical Storm Isaias powered through the northeast, Bethpage State Park remains in recovery mode, with the Yellow Course and part of the Blue still shut due to extensive tree damage.

In the hours following last Tuesday's storm, fallen trees were a common sight across Long Island communities, a good indication that areas like Bethpage -- no stranger to post-storm tree damage -- would be heavily impacted.  The park slowly reopened its courses over the next few days, but Yellow and Blue were hardest hit.

"All tree damage and hanging branches," says Andrew Wilson, Bethpage's director of agronomy.  "We're working our way through the courses."

Slowing down the recovery process is regular maintenance and mowing that can't be interrupted even by a powerful storm.  "Grass doesn't get the hint, so we do have to keep up mowing," Wilson says.  "We can't let tees, fairways and greens go a week without it."

There is no update yet on when the Yellow and Blue front nine will reopen.  Stay tuned for news.

Bethpage Black to close for NYS Open in late August

The annual New York State Open will be held at Bethpage State Park's Black Course next month after receiving the green light from state government to play the tournament amid the coronavirus pandemic.

As a result, the Black Course will be closed to the public from Monday, August 24 through Thursday, August 27.  The course will reopen on Friday, August 28 unless tourney play is pushed back an extra day due to weather.

The other four courses will remain on a regular schedule.

Contact the park at (516) 249-0700 for schedule updates or changes.

Long Island's future Topgolf taking shape in Holtsville

Just weeks before the world was turned upside down by Covid-19, Topgolf quietly publicized specific details about its planned Long Island location.  Included in that announcement was a broad target opening date of early 2021.

Whether or not that exact timeline still stands (the company did not respond to requests for a schedule update), here in early summer 2020, after several years of rumors and governmental hurdles, there is a structure in Holtsville that's starting to resemble a Topgolf facility.  The shell of the main building and its three driving-range tiers have been erected about a 1/4 mile west of Nicolls Road.

Topgolf broke ground on its new Holtsville facility in January, and in mid-February a company press release offered golfers a glimpse of New York's first Topgolf venue -- 102 bays spread out on three tiers, live-music events, year-round lessons, upscale dining and more.  On the economic side, Topgolf expects to bring 500 jobs to central Suffolk County.

From the press release:

"Topgolf's mission centers around building and connecting communities and we have been working very hard with the Suffolk County community to design a custom venue that fits their needs including added vegetation, updated fencing and more," said Topgolf Chief Executive Officer Dolf Berle. "We're looking forward to not only entertaining Guests here, but also being a good neighbor to the community through volunteer projects, fundraising efforts and other events geared toward giving back to local organizations.  We truly can't wait to open our first venue here in the state of New York."

Topgolf also added Long Island to its list of "Coming Soon" locations, complete with photo renderings and other info.  Topgolf Holtsville will be located at 5231 Express Drive North, just off the Long Island Expressway near exit 62.

Coronavirus Update: Motor carts permitted at county, town courses

Motor carts for single riders only will be available as soon as Saturday at some Long Island county and town golf courses, according to Newsday's Jeff Williams.

The Suffolk County municipal courses at Bergen Point, Indian Island, Timber Point and West Sayville will allow the use of motor carts for golfers age 65 and over, and disabled players of all ages, beginning this Saturday. 

Town-owned golf courses at Brentwood Country Club, Holbrook Country Club, Gull Haven, Mill Pond, Rolling Oaks and Smithtown Landing will also permit single-rider carts under Suffolk County's guidelines.

In Nassau County, all players can rent single-rider carts beginning Monday, May 11, at Eisenhower Park's Blue and White courses.

Following the reopening of golf courses in late April, seniors and players with disabilities complained that New York State's walking-only restriction prevented them from returning to the course.  Under the state's revised business guidelines, as a non-essential business, golf courses can allow play with only security and maintenance personnel on site.  With no golf employees, facilities like the clubhouse, pro shop and presumably a cart shed are to remain closed.

However, municipal facilities are exempt from the state's essential and non-essential classifications.  There is no word yet on when non-municipal public courses will be able to rent motor carts.

Business regulations are expected to be loosened when the state's "NYS On Pause" shutdown expires on May 15.

Coronavirus Update: More courses set to reopen May 1

By the end of this week all but a tiny handful of Long Island's public golf courses will be open for play with a variety of social-distancing measures in place.

This Friday, May 1, Island's End Golf Course in Greenport and the Town of Huntington municipal courses at Crab Meadow and Dix Hills Park will reopen.  All three had been open at times in March and April and closed based on the state's changing business guidelines.

The Town of Islip municipal courses at Brentwood CC, Holbrook CC and Gull Haven are scheduled to open for the first time this season.

Reservations must be booked online and social distancing must be followed.  Unlike the guidelines in place at most other area courses, Brentwood and Holbrook posted that they will be allowing single-rider motor carts and on-site payment (credit cards only).

Coronavirus Update: Suffolk County munis reopening this week

A recent Newsday article indicated that Suffolk County would follow the lead of New York State when it came to making golf courses open again for play, and that's exactly how the county's golf relaunch is taking place.

Following the state's decision late last week to reopen its golf courses, Suffolk County announced that West Sayville and Indian Island will reopen for play tomorrow, April 27.  Timber Point will reopen on Wednesday, April 29.

Bergen Point, the other of the four Suffolk munis, already reopened on Saturday.

There will be no motor carts available and no walk-ups -- reservations must be made and prepaid online.  Tee times will be 15 minutes apart and social-distancing regulations are in effect.

Coronavirus Update: State, county munis begin to reopen

New York State municipal golf courses on Long Island -- Bethpage, Montauk Downs and Sunken Meadow -- will reopen for play on Monday, April 27, with social-distancing guidelines in place.

Bethpage's Black Course will follow with its 2020 reopening on Friday, May 1.  Starting that day, four Bethpage courses will be open daily.

On the county level, Nassau County announced that the Eisenhower Park golf courses and driving range, plus the nine-hole courses at Cantiague Park, Christopher Morley Park and North Woodmere Park are currently open.  The Cantiague Park driving range is open as well.  No word on Bay Park.

The Suffolk County municipal course at Bergen Point reopened today.  Its fellow munis at Timber Point and West Sayville are still listed as closed; phone calls to Indian Island were not answered.

[EDIT: The other Suffolk munis will begin to reopen on April 27.]

As previously posted, the Town of Oyster Bay muni reopened on Friday.

State courses will have 16-minute intervals between tee times (18 on the Black) and there will be no motor carts or pull-cart rentals available.  All reservations must be made online and payments must be made over the phone prior to play. 

Full details can be found for each course on the NYS Parks website.

Coronavirus Update: Public courses announce openings following NYS relaunch

The second leg of Long Island's spring golf season will soon be underway as public golf courses plan for reopenings following New York State's business revision that permits play during the "NYS on Pause" shutdown.

By early Sunday afternoon, a handful of local courses began to announce reopen dates, including Cherry Creek and Swan Lake, both of which will open tomorrow.  Sandy Pond, the nine-hole course in Riverhead already familiar with "honor system" green fees when the clubhouse is empty, posted Sunday afternoon that it is open effective immediately with under-the-door payments accepted.  Other reopening dates were announced by Peninsula (Wednesday) and Stonebridge (Thursday).

Even though play is permitted, golf is still designated as a non-essential business according to Empire State Development guidelines, meaning employees cannot be on site and facilities like clubhouses and locker rooms cannot open.  Maintenance and security personnel can be present, however, and security (in many cases a golf pro or starter) will be responsible for letting players onto the course and enforcing social-distancing measures.  No motor carts will be available, and tee times must be reserved and prepaid online.

Also today, an alert on the NYS Parks golf website was amended to say that "state parks will continue to evaluate the situation and will announce any change in status."  The alert previously read that all park courses were closed until May 15.  Expect the new date to be much sooner.

There will likely be a steady stream of reopening announcements.  Check back here for the latest updates.