Golf on Long Island

Observations: Tallgrass Golf Course #6

There is no shortage of interesting par-4s at Tallgrass Golf Course in Shoreham, but the gradual conversion of the sixth hole from a strategic par-4 to a long, uphill par-3 -- as documented here in 2012 and again last spring -- still feels like a significant loss.

What had previously been a 295-yard par-4 with risk/reward potential is now an approximately 190-yard par-3 with a shallow green not designed to accommodate lengthy iron or hybrid shots.  The reason for the change: a high frequency of overzealous drive-the-green attempts hooked far off the property and into adjacent homes and yards.

In 2012, former general manager Phil Tita said the goal was to keep #6 as a par-4, even if the lack of space made that a challenge.  By last spring, those plans were scrapped, signaled by the addition of a new par-3 teeing area.  Golf On Long Island visited Tallgrass last week and played the course for the first time as a par-70 (though scorecards and hole signage have yet to be updated to reflect the change).

Results on #6 were a mixed bag.  One long-hitting member of the GOLI twosome held the green with a middle iron; the other lifted a high-arcing tee shot that landed on the rain-softened front apron and stuck a few paces short of the green.  Another member of the group -- a senior player with limited distance -- needed a fairway wood to get up the hill and, as a result, his shot rolled off the back of the green and down the steep embankment. 

When the hole was a par-4 ranging from 295 at the tips to 214 from the forward tees, the deep descent behind the green was the red flag dissuading aggressive runs at the pin.  Long hitters could throw caution to the wind and envision short eagle putts with an understanding that seemingly great shots might run hot through the green and down the slope.  The smart play was to the right side of the fairway, away from the big sand trap on the left.  In between cautious and heroic, players could challenge the big bunker and try to gain strong position on the far side of the sand, just short of the putting surface.

Now with the hole playing as a par-3, the safe shot is simply leaving the ball short, then chipping or putting on.  Long irons or more needed to cover the distance and the climb will need some spin, finesse or luck to hold what is one of the shallowest greens on the course.  The drop off the rear edge is prominently involved on all shots.  Meanwhile, the hole's other notable feature -- the huge sand trap up the left side -- rarely comes into play.

[TOP LEFT: The hole as seen from the front of the tee.  ABOVE RIGHT: One of Tallgrass's shallowest greens falls straight down off the back edge.  LEFT: Looking back over the less intrusive sand complex.]

Observations: Timber Point - Blue Course

Six months ago, on a blustery Sunday morning, Timber Point opened its 2013 season with a St. Patrick's Day outing on its Red Course -- the only one of the three nines fully operational long after Hurricane Sandy.  About 60 golfers made their way around the inland Red while a handful of early-season players teed off on the White for nine holes on a makeshift White-Blue routing. 

Down by the water, the core of the bayside Blue Course remained out of commission.  The forecast for the famed Gibraltar hole and the two par-4s that followed -- fully exposed to the water and ravaged by the storm -- was a possible June reopening.

That reopening day eventually arrived, nearly on schedule in the beginning of July, and today, the Blue Course is back to its old self, with little evidence of the debris removal, the saltwater damage and the spring reseeding that had the course offline for eight months.  The course, amazingly, is in nearly pristine condition, its fairways lush and greens smooth with nothing more than the typical stray ball mark.  The walk from the tee to the summit of the Gibraltar par-3 -- where the flag is just a few paces from Great South Bay -- is like a stroll on a new green carpet.

GOLI visited Timber Point earlier this month for the first time since that March outing and got its first look at the post-Sandy Blue.  The recovery is hard to believe.  Other than some rocky rough along the water on #6, and a few roped-off, low-lying spots still being reseeded near the tee on #7, the Blue is as strong as ever.  It's hard to tell that just over two years ago, the bayfront portion of the course was torn up by Hurricane Irene, its turf damaged and irrigation system exposed to the elements.  It reopened briefly that fall but closed early for repairs.  In 2012 the Blue was home again to summer and autumn rounds along the bay.  Then Sandy arrived.

No signs of this ordeal on Blue #2 -- the "Harbor" par-3 -- where a peninsula green sits down below in a basin.  The vibrant turf blends with the brown reeds at water's edge and the blue horizon.  In the distance is Gibraltar, whose green is perched on top of a bluff that provides a scenic and uninterrupted view of Great South Bay and the mouth of the Connetquot River.  It also looks back on the bulk of the course all the way to the clubhouse. 

The walk to Gibraltar's bluff is squeezed by tall brown brush.  The putting surface and approach meld together in a vivid green.  Looking up at the flag, there's nothing behind it but the sky.  To the right, #6 tees off along the edge of the bay.  A rocky, sandy strip separates the fairway from the water.  On #7, another hole with nothing but the bay to the left, a couple of patches near the tee require additional seeding.  The hole continues without issue to a big, round green.

Timber Point closes in the offseason.  The Blue Course's fairways and greens have already been aerated.  Given the conditions and the pleasant early-autumn weather, now is the ideal time to revisit the historic and revitalized bayside nine.

[NOTE: Newsday ran a column earlier this week about Timber Point's recovery.  Read it here.]

Observations: New driving range open at South Bay Country Club

Two months into its grand reopening season on the water in Oceanside, South Bay Country Club is quickly working its way up to full speed.  The Sandy-damaged facility had the course up and running in time for Memorial Day weekend this spring, but the driving range and halfway house remained in the very early stages of reconstruction.

While work on the halfway house continues, the adjacent driving range is complete.  Its 16 stalls direct practice shots to an expanse between South Bay's opening and closing holes.  A chain-link fence protects players from tee shots off #1.  Buckets go for $5, $7 and $10 for 30, 60 or 90 balls.

The pro shop, simply an empty room with a counter back in May, is now lined with golf shirts, shoes, clubs and other apparel.  The South Bay Cafe halfway house could be ready for thirsty golfers as soon as the middle of August, according to golf director Ron Wright. 

Rounding out the list of course developments, tee times can now be made online at the South Bay website.

For more on South Bay, check out the Golf On Long Island flyover.

Observations: Calverton Links

Our preferred route to the North Fork farms and wineries is a scenic one that begins at exit 71 off the Long Island Expressway.  The first bit of "scenery" en route to Sound Avenue -- for the golfer in the car -- is the front nine at Calverton Links.  After dozens of day trips taking me past the Links' doorstep, it was only a matter of time before I got the itch to head east and actually step inside again.

A case can be made that Calverton Links has the most diverse set of greens among Long Island publics.  Just down the road, Swan Lake's are the biggest, and also nearby, Great Rock might have the fastest.  But Calverton's mix of irregular shapes, pronounced slopes and closely lurking hazards creates a variety of green complexes matched locally by very few courses.

In the event there's nobody on your tail and you have time to drop a few balls on and around the greens, do it.  There's the diamond-shaped fourth with a slope running toward the front corner; the diagonal ninth wedged between sand and water; and the shallow tenth -- shaped like the Nike swoosh -- elevated and sandwiched between bunkers while falling from right to left.

The greens get funkier on the other side of the woods.  A swale precedes the surface on #11, and the green itself features a thumbprint depression (pictured above; note the pin near the edge of the slope).  Safe players on the risk/reward 12th might find the green nearly impossible to hold -- it's about 15 paces deep and lifted behind three traps.  Ahead at #15, a three-lobed surface boasts one of the steepest drops you'll find.  And on #16, the right lobe of the heart-shaped green is protected by water, while the left side is completely exposed to attack from the highly elevated tee.

Pictured right, the par-4 eighth is an anomaly at Calverton for its geometrically identifiable shape (it's an oval).  But it fits in with the rest of the greens thanks to a ridge separating front and back.  (For a clearer shot, see the Calverton Links flyover.)

Also of note at Calverton:

If you're playing from the middle white tees, and the markers are up on the par-5 fourth ahead of where the cartpath crosses the road, pay no attention to the scorecard.  The hole plays about 430 yards from there, not 500-plus.  Get your tee shot up the hill and make a run at eagle.

Directly behind the 15th green, mounds of dirt used to overlook your putts courtesy of a neighboring construction site or landfill.  Today that collective pile is covered with growth, turning it into a somewhat natural-looking berm that creates a more appealing backdrop for the hole.

Near the end of a strong round, don't lose one into the greenside trap on #17.  It's far below the surface, there's only a thin sliver of green to work with, and waiting on the far side to collect (and keep) bladed escapes is dense Calverton woodland.  Stay to the right side of the awkwardly angled 17th at all costs.

Observations: "New" 11th green at Great Rock Golf Club

If you've ever helplessly watched as your approach or pitch onto the 11th green at Great Rock Golf Club sprinted straight off the back and into the heavy rough, here's some welcome news:

The newly renovated surface, designed to hold more shots, is in play this season.

Bad news: Your thin 6-iron is still bound for the thick stuff.

Memorable for its wicked left-to-right slant and hard-off-the-back downslope, the 11th green received a bit of a facelift last fall from Great Rock superintendent Dan Wolf, who took about a week in November to raise and resurface the back portion of the teardrop-shaped green.  The renovation softened one of the severe slopes while preserving the general nastiness of the putting surface. 

[For a refresher on #11's dramatic tilt, revisit our Closer Look at #11 from May 2012.]

The modified back section opened this spring.  Walking the 11th green reveals what's hard for your eye to pick up until it's too late -- in the back, the surface holds flat, but still descends quickly from the fringe to the rough.  In the middle of the green, the slope rocks you off balance.

Get off the tee effectively on this unassuming 351-/316-yard par-4 and the added height will be kind to your well-struck short-iron approach.  Burden yourself with a longer iron into the green or a shot from the rough and all bets are off.  The picture above shows the new back segment; pictured left, the slope of the green is most visible when looking from behind.

Meanwhile, ahead at #12, Great Rock's other recently remodeled green continues to be subtly tough yet rewarding.  Shots close to a pin on the green's narrow front segment hold their ground and set up makeable birdie putts.  Others that venture too far from the cup on this 123-/110-yard par-3 will take a ride along or down the green's pronounced ridge.  First-timers in our group had trouble deciphering the speed and slope when putting across the green, much to our amusement.  And that was with slower-than-normal conditions courtesy of Tropical Storm Andrea's 4+ inches of rain.

As always, experience pays up the hills and around the greens at Great Rock.

Observations: Holbrook Country Club

There's no shortage of trees at Holbrook Country Club, a course where all 18 holes are ringed by a dense collection of limbs and leafy branches.  Aside from an occasional generous kick toward the fairway, these trees offer little that's of any aid to golfers. 

One tree, however, does serve a beneficial purpose to Holbrook players.  Rather, it did serve a purpose.  The tree, all alone on the inside of the dogleg on the par-4 ninth, is gone.  It was there on our previous visit in May 2011, but no more.  It served as an important landmark for players unable to see the far half of a fairway obscured by a water hazard and surrounding reeds.  A strong drive launched over the tree would cut the corner of the sloped fairway and tumble down within a short iron or wedge of the green.

All is not lost -- you can still use the edge of the hazard to set your aim. 

While the tree may be gone, still active at Holbrook are the infamous crows that cackle and caw from first hole to last.  Turn your back and they'll make off with that bag of chips you left in the cart.  Lip out on a birdie putt and their well-timed jeers head straight for your last nerve.

[PICTURED: Looking back from beside #9 green (in May 2011), the lost tree can be seen on the right inside the turn of the fairway.]

Tallgrass converting #6 to a par-3

The staff at Tallgrass Golf Course went back to the drawing board last season after a few too many errant drives irked neighbors alongside the course's short par-4 sixth.  Though the plan was to keep the hole a par-4, there apparently wasn't enough room on that drawing board to allow it.  The hole is now a par-3, with new tee boxes currently being prepared for action.

Golf On Long Island's Rob Dimino snapped photos of the redesigned teeing grounds (right) while at the course last week.  The hole will measure approximately 180 to 190 yards from the back tees.

The future of the hole was "up in the air" last fall according to general manager Phil Tita, who said the preference was to modify the par-4 while alleviating the concerns of off-course neighbors who were pelted too often by overzealous players trying to reach a green less than 300 yards away.  Limited space around the hole likely sunk those plans, however.

[See previous post: Redesign in the works for Tallgrass #6]

#6 is the second of three par-3s on Tallgrass's front nine.  It is sandwiched between the sandy fourth and the reverse-redan eighth, which GOLI examined in detail earlier this year.  The change means that Tallgrass drops from a par-71 to par-70.

The hole's main feature is now the steep downslope behind the green, which will turn any long tee shot into a nearly automatic bogey.  With the change, the mammoth sand trap down the hole's left side has been relegated to spectator.

Observations: Spring Lake Golf Club

Spring has been slow to take hold on Long Island, but it seems to have arrived for good at Spring Lake Golf Club, and it doesn't have anything to do with the name.  All that was missing at the Middle Island course this past weekend were the leaves on the trees, which works in golfers' favor for just a short time longer.

Approaching the course from the opposite side of its namesake lake provided the perfect vantage point to admire the deep summer-esque green of the course standing out between the brown trees, themselves just starting to show first signs of color.  The course's fairways were in beautiful shape and the greens rolled fast and smooth -- if you ignored the bare branches and the hand-stinging chill that rolled in as the afternoon round wound down, you'd think you were playing in June.   

Spring Lake's crew deserves credit for having the course in such impressive condition so early in a season of cool, uncooperative weather.  Last fall, new drainage systems were installed on #1, #7 and #10 of the Thunderbird Course, with more planned for this season.  The grounds crew was hard at work this weekend preparing the 13th green for play (a temporary green stood in).

You're running out of time to take advantage of the relatively bare limbs at the heavily wooded Thunderbird Course and the Sandpiper nine.  Once May hits, trees overhanging the rough and fairways will be in midseason obstructionist form.  Good weather or bad, balls that settle inside the treeline sit at the mercy of green-blocking tree trunks.

For the full Spring Lake overview, check out the Thunderbird and Sandpiper flyovers.

Observations: Eisenhower Blue, after Hurricane Sandy

Except for a dark, frigid front desk (kudos to the bundled-up employees manning the windows) and the occasional sighting of grounds crew gathering fallen limbs and branches, all seemed normal from tee to green at Eisenhower Park's Blue Course on Sunday, where golfers could step out onto the fairway under blue skies and imagine a destructive hurricane didn't just blow through the region less than a week ago.

Eisenhower's Blue and White courses opened for play at the start of the weekend, offering a diversion for Long Islanders lucky enough to have the means and enough gas in the tank for a quick round.  The Red Course remains closed with extensive tree damage.

Some trees and limbs were down around the course, but otherwise the Blue made it through the storm unscathed.  Fairways and elevated greens are still intact, and pair after pair (after pair) of fronting sand traps are dry and basking in the November sun.

For Red, White and Blue course updates, call (516) 572-0330.

Redesign in the works for Tallgrass #6

The sixth hole at Shoreham's Tallgrass Golf Course, easily the shortest par-4 in the layout, presents a unique, strategic challenge.  How heavy that challenge remains in the future is uncertain.

A driveable, risk/reward par-4 by design, Tallgrass #6 has played as a modified par-3 throughout the 2012 season due to concerns by neighbors over errant golf balls.  Heading into the offseason, the Tallgrass staff is considering ways to redesign the hole with its short par-4 character intact, or simply leaving it as a par-3. 

General manager Phil Tita says the plan is to keep the hole a par-4 but adds that, currently, the future of the hole is "up in the air."  The problem, according to a Tallgrass pro-shop attendant, is that players aiming to drive the green -- a 295-yard shot from the back tees, 280 from the second set -- can easily hook (or slice) their shots off the property toward several residences next to the course.  Though the fairway is oriented to the right of the tees and away from the property line, the hole's design -- including penal areas left and long -- and a buffer of trees are not enough to protect the homes and their inhabitants from wild drives.

But the strategic nature of the Gil Hanse-designed hole would be lost if the fix is to convert #6 to a par-3.  Slightly uphill, the hole features a tremendous and deep sand trap down nearly the entire left side.  Over the far end of the trap, the fairway banks downhill toward the green.  Players can try an aggressive shot toward this banked fairway or simply lay up shorter in the middle of the fairway.  The glory shot is a drive-the-green attempt, ignoring a major falloff behind the green and two awkward bunkers short of it, not to mention the out-of-bounds potential.

At close to 190 yards, this season's modified setup is still tough, but feels out of place on a course where the par-3s require some finesse, creativity and shot-making skill.   As seen in the image above, simply moving the tees as part of a par-4 redesign is likely not possible due to space constraints.  More dramatic changes could impact at least two adjacent holes.

For more on Tallgrass, visit the course flyover.  Or click on the aerial image above and pitch your design ideas in the comment section.

[Aerial image courtesy of Google Earth]