Golf on Long Island

Vote for your favorite Long Island courses this month in a March Madness-inspired bracket challenge

March Madness is underway in the world of college hoops, which means it's bracket-filling season for everyone from casual observer to Cameron Crazie.  Brackets shouldn't be confined to basketball though, and as it turns out, once you set aside the pitch-and-putts down along the beach, Long Island has exactly 64 distinct public golf courses.  Sounds like it's time for Long Island golf to get in on the madness.

So while college basketball players start the journey to the Final Four, here at Golf On Long Island, we're marching toward The Masters by pitting the local public courses against one another in a bracket battle.  We've sorted and seeded the courses, and from March 8 through the start of The Masters on April 5, we'll post several matchups each day on the GOLI Facebook page and on GOLI Twitter (@LI_Golf_Book), with winners determined by fan vote.  Anyone who participates in the Facebook vote will be in line to celebrate their very own one shining moment -- as in, win a prize, specifically a box of Titleist Pro-V1 golf balls and a copy of "Images of America: Long Island Golf."

How are the courses seeded?  We slotted the nine-hole munis, par-3 and executive courses, with some exceptions, at the bottom of the four regions, and put the big three -- Bethpage Black, Red and Montauk Downs -- up top.  The rest of the Island's courses are separated by location. 

So be sure to check the bracket below as it's updated and place your votes daily on GOLI Facebook and Twitter pages.  Or simply use #LIGolfBracket to view all open polls and see past matchup results.  Also check out GOLI's Instagram page (@golfonlongisland) for a daily photo countdown to spring.

Long Island Press announces nominees for 2018 "Best Golf Course"

Bethpage State Park is the favorite to continue its dominance in the "Best of Long Island" survey, conducted each year by the Long Island Press and now open for voting.  Every October through December, the Press opens up the online polls in dozens of categories that cover recreation, dining, shopping and more across Nassau and Suffolk.  Bethpage has reigned supreme in the "Best Golf Course" category for nearly a decade.  The survey also includes "Best Driving Range" and "Best Golf Store" categories.

The 2018 nominees for "Best Golf Course" -- as determined by Press readers -- include 12 public courses and four private clubs.  Voting is open at the Long Island Press website until December 15.

This year's public-course nominees are:

• Bethpage State Park
• Brentwood Country Club
• Eisenhower Park
• Harbor Links
• Holbrook Country Club
• Lido GC
• Middle Bay
• Rock Hill
• Smithtown Landing
• Stonebridge Golf Links
• Swan Lake
• Timber Point

In the "Best Golf Store" category, Babylon's Unique Golf Shop looks to defend its long-held crown against 14 contenders ranging from course pro shops to national retailers.  The "Best Driving Range" category includes last year's winner -- Heartland Golf Park in Edgewood -- along with, strangely, four ranges that are out of business.

Winners will be announced in January.

Reader e-mail: Favorite Long Island courses

Long Island's 2013-14 winter golf season has been a complete bust, so local golfer and Golf On Long Island reader Ryan Stewart has his eye on the spring.  Stewart e-mailed us on the heels of last week's snow/slop storm to ask some questions and share some thoughts on the local golf scene.  He also credited Golf On Long Island with inspiring him to set out and play every 18-hole course on the Island, a goal that he needed only one summer to reach.

So with all those courses under his belt, Stewart filled us in on his favorites.  It seems that, like us, Stewart enjoys teeing it up out east:

• Tallgrass:  "Fair yet challenging course, and it has a grass driving range, which is a huge plus.  I also think Tallgrass has the hardest three closing holes on Long Island (besides Bethpage)."

• Great Rock:  Stewart says the course plays much tougher than the scorecard indicates.  "The hard fairways and the super-quick greens take a lot to get used to."

• Rock Hill:  "I like the drastic change after nine holes...it's like playing at two different golf courses."  And with Rock Hill's length, Stewart says, "it makes me feel like I'm playing 20 holes instead of 18."

As far as his ideal Long Island golf course:

"If you could take the back nine at Calverton Links and combine it with the back nine at Mill Pond, you would have my favorite course on Long Island.  If you could sprinkle in a waterfront hole from Timber Point Blue, it would make it even better."

Golf On Long Island always welcomes reader commentary -- especially when winter weather halts all action on the course.  Have any local-course comments or observations to pass the time until tee time?  Send them along.

Voting is open for "Best Golf Course" in annual Long Island Press poll

Come January, one local golf course, as well as an area driving range and golf store, will earn the distinction of "Best of Long Island."  Which ones earn that title is up to you.

Voting is open at the Long Island Press website for the 2013 "Best of LI" poll.  Each year the newspaper puts together dozens of categories across a variety of genres and asks Long Islanders to pick the ones that stand out as the cream of the crop.  The "Best Golf Course" category has been dominated by Bethpage State Park, which is seeking its sixth consecutive crown.  This year, nine public golf courses (and three private clubs) in Nassau and Suffolk are in the running to knock Bethpage from its perch.  Voting closes on December 15.

This year's public nominees, in addition to Bethpage, are:

• Calverton Links
• Eisenhower Park
• Harbor Links
• Lido GC
• Rock Hill
• Smithtown Landing
• Stonebridge Golf Links
• Tallgrass
• Timber Point

Vote for the "Best Golf Course" of 2013 at www.LongIslandPress.com, and while you're there be sure to cast a vote for your favorite driving range and golf shop.  Winners will be announced in January.

Reader Favorite: Long Island's golf course practice facilities

Reader Andrew Song, a Golf On Long Island fan since 2009, values his time on the driving range.  And if it's a grass range, all the better.  A Bayside, Queens resident, Song doesn't mind heading east to Suffolk County if it means a break from New York City and Bethpage crowds, and the chance to warm up for a round at some of his favorite course practice facilities.

Song recently passed along some thoughts on his favorite practice areas and courses:

"Pine Ridge has a nice grass range on the weekends and a very large practice green.  Though not overly quick, the greens at Pine Ridge roll very true, and reads can be quite tricky at times.  It's a tight, challenging course that plays a lot more difficult than the scorecard suggests.  Holes 11-13, in particular, are as challenging as any three-hole stretch you might find on Long Island, and one would be extremely happy and fortunate to escape that stretch with just bogeys.  Saving par feels like a birdie. 

"The best public practice facility on Long Island is at Wind Watch.  There's a nice grass range and a great short-game practice area with its own green.  You can hit chips, pitches, bunker shots and even 100-yard shots out onto the main range.  I'm not sure if the practice facility policy will change [under new ownership], but I hope it doesn't, as it's the best place to practice on LI.

"Willow Creek has some of the fastest greens out of the public Long Island courses and the course overall is usually immaculately conditioned.  It's similar to a Floridian resort course, with heavy bunkering, lots of water hazards and a nearly island-green 16th hole.  It's also one of the few courses on Long Island that has a grass range (only on weekends) and a decent short-game and bunker practice area.  Good thing because you will be in a lot of them!"

Reader Postcard: Town of Oyster Bay GC

Tony D. from Valley Stream chimes in with some first impressions of the Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course in Woodbury:

"After the first hole, the course becomes really narrow and doesn't let you breathe until the back nine.  #2 is a long, tight par-5 where it's easy to lose a ball in the trees.  I did a double-take when walking up the fourth fairway.  The green is about 80 feet in the air and has three tiers in it.  Boy!  Made par thanks to a strong drive and approach.

"I really liked #6, a downhill par-3 with some crazy slope in the green.  Actually most of the greens have tiers, ridges or knobs.  You really need some experience to know where to be and where not to be on the greens. 

"The back nine is open and driveable.  I hit sand wedge on the par-3 12th.  Finished my twilight round in the dark.  Putting over the slopes on #18 is not really easy if you can't see them."

What's the best 18th hole at Bethpage?

There are five closing holes at Bethpage State Park, all with varying styles and topography.  Which one is your favorite?  Leave an answer here at Golf On Long Island and be eligible to win a dozen Callaway golf balls when our "Nassau 18" is announced in April.

The Black Course's 18th is the most photographed of the Final Five.  However, some feel it doesn't meet the standard set by the preceding 17 holes.  Its main competitors stretch out two holes to the right and three to the left -- on the Red and Green courses.  Red plays to a green set in a stadium-effect hollow and hugged all around by bunkers.  (If the USGA had a vote, it's clear which hole it would select as best.)  Green has a decent finisher that climbs uphill and tip-toes around a tremendous, sunken trap.

On the other side of the clubhouse, Blue and Yellow wrap things up in their own ways, but neither course is known for an exciting finish.  Blue is a down-then-up replica of #9; Yellow is a short and slightly curved par-4.  They bring to a discussion on closing holes what "Veronica's Closet" and "The Single Guy" brought to NBC's old "Must See TV" Thursdays. 

Leave your answer in the comments section below or on the Golf On Long Island Facebook page (click the tab on the right side of this page).  Two winners of a dozen Callaways will be selected next week from this month's pool of contributors.

What's your favorite water-hazard hole in Nassau?

Most golfers enjoy facing a challenging water hazard.  The more demanding the shot, the better.  NBC and The Players Championship at Sawgrass bank on the dramatic nature of a potential late-round splash landing every May.

"Water-hazard hole" is kind of ambiguous, but you get the idea.  Tell us your favorite public hole in Nassau with the threat of a dip in or around the fairway or near the green.  Whether you pick your favorite based on strategy or simply for the view, you can't be wrong.  Unless you pick a hole without a water hazard.

Leave your answer in the comments section below or on the Golf On Long Island Facebook page (click the tab on the right side of this page) and you're automatically eligible to win a box of GOLI Callaway Warbirds.  The most common response will be selected for our "Nassau 18," which will be announced next month.

You can also go back and answer last week's "Best Par-3" question if you missed it.

So, what's your favorite water hole in Nassau?  (Click here for a list of courses by county.)

Want to win a dozen GOLI golf balls? Help us select our "Nassau 18"

Want to win a dozen Golf On Long Island golf balls?  Just answer a quick question on your local public golf courses and help us put together our "Nassau 18."

Like most sports fans, we here at Golf On Long Island love a good list.  And to help us get through the final weeks of winter and the first few chilly weeks of spring, we are preparing our "Nassau 18", a collection of the county's best public golf holes, by hole number -- much like Golfing Magazine's annual Dream Golf Club.  

The list will be published on Wednesday, April 6 -- the day before the Masters gets underway.  Until then, Golf On Long Island will ask for your opinion each week on Nassau's best golf holes.  All you have to do is leave an answer and you're automatically eligible to win a dozen Callaway Warbirds emblazoned with the GOLI logo. 

Answer in the comments section below (click on the post title if you don't see the comment field) or visit the GOLI Facebook page by clicking on the link in the right sidebar to leave your answer on the wall.  Two winners will be selected randomly from the pool of participants and contacted by e-mail or through Facebook later this month.  The most common answers will be selected for the Nassau 18.

This week's question:

What is Nassau's best public par-3?  (Click here for a list of courses by county.)

Reader postcard from Merrick Road Park

Loyal Golf On Long Island reader Corey W. from Manhattan dropped by the golf course at Merrick Road Park for a quick nine last weekend while in town for a wedding, and was nice enough to provide his take on the course and its conditions.  Corey, who says he normally plays in the Bronx at Pelham/Split Rock, played Merrick on a Saturday afternoon after some pretty strong rainstorms late last week.  "Despite the rain," he says, "the course was actually in very solid shape."

Pace of play was slow, as expected at that time of day, but the three-hour round won't necessarily keep Corey from dropping by again in the future.  "Merrick is easy to play with a wide-open layout and few real hazards," he writes.  "It allows for a fairly smooth round without trips into weeds searching for wayward shots.  The most interesting aspect of play, making up for the lack of major hazards, is the constant wind."

Corey was irked by the absence of yardage markers at the tee.  "One hole was 40 yards longer than the scorecard listed," he says.  "Fortunately I was playing with someone who had a laser rangefinder."