New York golf

[Liquid]

Looking for a course near JFK

Hi all, looking for some help for a good course not too far from JFK. How are Lido Golf Club or Harbour Links? Thanks for any help.

[sabram]

Eisenhower Park is about a 25 minute drive from JFK. The Red course there is quite good.

Bethpage State Park is only about 5 or 10 minutes further and has 5 courses. The famous Black Course and the almost as good Red Course are the best public courses in the area. The Blue, Green and Yellow are not bad either.

Clearview is a NYC owned course about 20 minutes from JFK.

Haven't played Harbour links. I think it is a faux links and it usually gets good reviews, but I'd try Bethpage Black or Red or Eisenhwoer Red as my first choices.

[chas521]

I play a Bethpage course every week and it is actually about 20 minutes from Eisenhower but it's an easy drive because most of it is on parkway - depending upon which way you go that is. You can't go wrong with any course there except that I wouldn't recommend The Green course. It's a nice course but there is a problem [fungus?] on the greens.

The Red at Eisenhower in East Meadow is also nice but it's easier than the Bethpage courses. It used to hold a Champion's Tour event every year for a few years. Many folks consider the White Course at Eisenhower to be the most difficult because of its raised greens and sand traps. However as a non-resident you would need to play with a resident friend [more expensive for you] as a sponsor.

Harbour Links in Port Washington is tougher than Bethpage - depending upon which tee sets you play. It has rough as tough as The Black at Bethpage. With a few alterations it could hold a PGA tournament. The cost can be high though.

[johnnybogey]

I grew up in the Queens area so familiar with most of the courses.

As mentioned above, the public courses in the area are expensive. For instance, Douglaston and Clearview golf courses charge about the same price as Bethpage. This is outrageous because Bethpage blows away Douglaston and Clearview. If playing on a weekend at Douglaston or Clearview, you can expect a 6 hour round.

As for course descriptions:

Douglaston: relatively short course, very hilly so may be tough to walk. Barely any difference between fairway and rough. Greens used to be in decent shape, not sure how they are now as I haven't played either course in a couple years.

Clearview: fairly long, FLAT and wide. Nothing special here. Greens weren't in the best shape when I played.

Problem with Douglaston and Clearview, moreso with Clearview is alot of the holes are adjacent to each other. So I drove my ball into the right rough, I would be worried that someone on the adjacent hole would pick up my ball. Golfers at Douglaston and Clearview are notorious for this. Fix a ball mark? what does that mean?

I could go on and on. Oh the joys of muni golf.

Harbor Links, again, nice course but I believe it's $115 on the weekend.

When are you looking to play? weekday or weekend? if weekday, shouldn't have any trouble walking on at Bethpage.

[alfie]

I usually play the back 9 holes at Forest Park. So, here goes the small break down:

If you wanna park near in the park's parking lot, it's $2.75. Doesn't matter if you're playing 9 or 18, it's same price no matter what. Price on the back 9 is $19.25. Not sure what it is for 18, but it did go up from last year's price. From what I remember from the front 9 holes when I played the full course, the greens are in REALLY poor condition. There was a bunch of holes where I would , pick up my ball and I had green on my hands & golf ball/putter (I'm assuming either it's green dye or spray paint green to make the patches of non-growing dirt on the greens look "green"). There was a few holes where it was some major uphill going on the fairway towards the green, so, if you have issues with uneven lies, "beware"! The rough is pretty high and alot of the tee boxes are beat up. Lots of trees line most of the golf course, so make sure you bring lots of golf balls if you are prone to hooking and slicing. I also noticed that the entire golf course is "drenched"/wet early in the morning, so I don't wear my good golf shoes (already ruined my previous golf shoes here a few years ago). Lots of holes are lined next to each other and the people playing at Forest Park can get "grabby" at time, picking up golf balls if un-claimed. Overall an okay golf course for those desperate enough who wanna play, like me!

[asong77]

Lido is a decent Robert Trent Jones links track, it will play extremely tough when the wind is up, which is pretty much all the time. It's not in the best condition, but it does have some nice holes, particularly 16 and 17. Wide open course with very few trees but water comes into play on a lot of holes. Be prepared for a 6 hour round on the weekends though.

Harbor Links, I play regularly. Definitely pricey and like someone said earlier, a faux links course. Pretty long from the back tees, thick rough and fescue, lots of environmentally protected areas where if you spray it off the tee, you can't enter to look for your ball. Greens are in very good shape, not particularly fast but rolls true, though there's a million little bumps and undulations that are very hard to read. Rounds on weekends can be slow, 5+ hours. Nice facilities, managed by Arnold Palmer, GPS on the carts.

[asong77]

Oh, and this is a great site for Long Island golf course info: http://www.golfonlongisland.com/teebox/

And here's info about the two courses you're asking about:

Harbor Links: http://www.golfonlongisland.com/teebox/2009/07/flyover-harbor-links-championship-course.html

Lido: http://www.golfonlongisland.com/teebox/2008/09/flyover-lido-go.html

[Marrrk]

Avoid all the NYC city courses, just not worth it in your situation. Eisenhower has tough residency rules so forget that. Harbor Links is a high-end public course. Expensive, tough to get good times on the weekend, but you wouldn't regret it for any reason. Bethpage is Bethpage. If you want to play it, play it. Black & Red are definitely worth your time. No regrets.

I'm a big fan of Lido. It's not in great shape but it's inexpensive and it's a unique, fun test. Very windy and about as linksy as you'll get near the city. Mid-season, the greens are typically in fine shape. We mostly play Bethpage and high end public courses, and a few in our group are scratch players, but we always make time to head out to Lido a few times a year. It holds a fond place in everyone's heart. Plus, it's very close to JFK if you're in a time crunch. If you're looking for a more relaxing, luxurious experience, you don't want Lido. But if you want something cheap and unique that will test your entire game plus is close to the airport, go for it.

[Liquid]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I played the Black course 2 years ago, so I think we'll give the Red a go. Cheers!

[Marrrk]

[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1307549962' post='3292672']
Thanks for all the feedback guys. I played the Black course 2 years ago, so I think we'll give the Red a go. Cheers!
[/quote]

you won't regret it. second best public course on the island.

[Liquid]

Marrrk, do you book times on the Red the same as the Black, or can you call in earlier? Thanks.

[Marrrk]

[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1307551992' post='3292775']
Marrrk, do you book times on the Red the same as the Black, or can you call in earlier? Thanks.
[/quote]

the rules are all the same. only thing different is you can only book black on the phone once a month. what day exactly are you looking to play?

[chas521]

[quote name='Marrrk' timestamp='1307552693' post='3292809']
[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1307551992' post='3292775']
Marrrk, do you book times on the Red the same as the Black, or can you call in earlier? Thanks.
[/quote]

the rules are all the same. only thing different is you can only book black on the phone once a month. what day exactly are you looking to play?
[/quote]

Actually the answer is yes and no. Marrrk is correct but FYI, reservations for The Black can be called in starting 7PM while all the other courses the telephone reservation starting time is 7:30PM.

[Marrrk]

[quote name='chas521' timestamp='1307556016' post='3292960']
[quote name='Marrrk' timestamp='1307552693' post='3292809']
[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1307551992' post='3292775']
Marrrk, do you book times on the Red the same as the Black, or can you call in earlier? Thanks.
[/quote]

the rules are all the same. only thing different is you can only book black on the phone once a month. what day exactly are you looking to play?
[/quote]

Actually the answer is yes and no. Marrrk is correct but FYI, reservations for The Black can be called in starting 7PM while all the other courses the telephone reservation starting time is 7:30PM.
[/quote]

i was assuming he was out of state.

[johnnybogey]

ahhhh, the joys of the Bethpage telephone reservation system. I need to invest in a phone turret which has multiple lines.

"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"
"All circuits are busy, please try again later"

ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

[Liquid]

We are looking to play on Friday June 24th. Does booking a time on a weekday help compared to the weekend, or is it always packed?

[chas521]

[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1307572491' post='3293644']
We are looking to play on Friday June 24th. Does booking a time on a weekday help compared to the weekend, or is it always packed?
[/quote]

I play Bethpage every week for the most part. It's ALWAYS busy - weekdays or weekends. Unless you're a single be prepared to camp out. This is basically for The Black. Unless you have a definite reservation for another course [i]I[/i] would get there early.

[Liquid]

Were a foursome looking to play the Red course on the Friday. Being a non resident, what are my chances with phoning in, slim & none?

[Admhowarth]

I would say slim, but keep checking the line. A lot of people make reservations in advance and then plans change or a better tee time becomes available.

[Liquid]

Too risky waiting for Bethpage so I booked Harbour Links. Thanks for all the help!

[chas521]

[quote name='Liquid' timestamp='1308155702' post='3309449']Too risky waiting for Bethpage so I booked Harbour Links. Thanks for all the help![/quote]

You won't be disappointed