3016 Ocean Heights Ave.
Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
609-926-3900
#122 $35 included cart, booked via ezlinks.com for a 11:30am Sat teetime
2.4 on a scale of 1-5
3 - Layout
3 - Condition
2 - Aesthetics
2 - Staff
2 - Facility
This course intrigued me when reading about it in advance as the holes are supposedly modeled after great links course holes in Ireland, Britain, etc. The reality is that no matter how much a course may try to model a par4 to look like the #1 at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, no amount of earth movement is going to make a former landfill site look like a hole near the Atlantic Ocean with wide open vistas! Granted - because of the landfill elevation, this course had WIND!! They do allow walking (but no discount in rate) so I did walk for the exercise figuring it would be just as quick given the cart path only rule after a week of solid rain. They have wild grass meadows between the holes that I'm sure normally would look nice, but they need to mow it down to prevent root growth given the methane mining pipes that litter the course. There is a methane burning structure in the center that is not able to be disguised. The only benefit to the low cutting was I found my balls as well as others by the boatload, especially since I was walking with a bag (no pullcart). This is managed by Billy Casper Golf and it is up to their usual simplified standards. The 7th hole is wonderful, as it makes you wonder - huh? What do I do over several acres of waste bunker? Then the 8th from an elevated tee with all the water along the left is tough if you are facing the wind in the face as I was. They say the 10th is a par 4 1/2 which is so true. Good luck if you can make the drive over it's fairway bump to the plateau as that is the only chance for par. The Gleneagles course in Scotland must be outlandish, as the two holes replicated here are difficult at best, especially the 3rd. Holes 15 and 16 are across the street, and a bit of a gimmick in my opinion. They require short shots on a dogleg, and a par3 that is nothing like a "postage stamp" it claims to replicate. The 17th is another tester, tough into the prevailing wind. Overall, this is a nice layout but I can imagine it would be much nicer visually with the grass wafting in a GENTLE breeze.
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Twisted Dunes
2101 Ocean Heights Ave.
Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
609-653-8019
#121 $65 including cart, twilight rate for a Sat. Walking allowed but no discount.
2.6 on a scale of 1-5
3 - Layout
3 - Condition
3 - Aesthetics
2 - Staff
2 - Facility
This course doesn't look like much from the road and the clubhouse leaves a bit to be desired, but the course is great. I walked it under a blustery day that made havoc with my score, but overall the layout was fair. It seems to be an old sandpit or quarry. The leftovers are piled all around to make the "dunes" and with the grasses planted in them now starting to mature, it does take on the look of a links course. The sandy course drains well as I played the day after a solid week of rain dumped over 18inches. Since it was cart path only, I walked and got a good feel for the course. Water comes into play on only a few holes, and even then it's not too bad. The round did take a long time (1:20pm-7pm) which I will account for the wind throwing everyone's ball around. The cart paths are not paved but rather solid sand paths around the course. The 3rd hole was the first par3, 200yds into what seemed like a 3club adjusting wind: very tough. The 9th hole is a very pretty par5 with the water along the left. I just made the last stretch of grass with a 300yd drive (wind at back) then fired it on the green from 230yds away, something I didn't expect (forgot about the wind effect) and made the guys on the green jump to attention. Sorry to say I only made par though. The 13th par3 will test you with the water so close on the right. It was lapping near the bunkers given all the rain, and the bunkers themselves had rain in the bottom - which is where I ended up. If you are playing the 14th from championship tees, say a prayer and hopefully the wind is favorable for you. The 15th is my favorite hole with the blind shot to a lower elevation green tucked between the dunes. Very much a links course feel. Hole 17 and 18 have the room for you to blast it and try to make up ground that you surely have lost by that point. I enjoyed the course and my rating is realistic. It lost in the small touches such as water jugs that had black ooze on the faucets (clean them please) and there was no beverage cart to purchase bottled water (never mind anything else). It still could be improved on.
Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
609-653-8019
#121 $65 including cart, twilight rate for a Sat. Walking allowed but no discount.
2.6 on a scale of 1-5
3 - Layout
3 - Condition
3 - Aesthetics
2 - Staff
2 - Facility
This course doesn't look like much from the road and the clubhouse leaves a bit to be desired, but the course is great. I walked it under a blustery day that made havoc with my score, but overall the layout was fair. It seems to be an old sandpit or quarry. The leftovers are piled all around to make the "dunes" and with the grasses planted in them now starting to mature, it does take on the look of a links course. The sandy course drains well as I played the day after a solid week of rain dumped over 18inches. Since it was cart path only, I walked and got a good feel for the course. Water comes into play on only a few holes, and even then it's not too bad. The round did take a long time (1:20pm-7pm) which I will account for the wind throwing everyone's ball around. The cart paths are not paved but rather solid sand paths around the course. The 3rd hole was the first par3, 200yds into what seemed like a 3club adjusting wind: very tough. The 9th hole is a very pretty par5 with the water along the left. I just made the last stretch of grass with a 300yd drive (wind at back) then fired it on the green from 230yds away, something I didn't expect (forgot about the wind effect) and made the guys on the green jump to attention. Sorry to say I only made par though. The 13th par3 will test you with the water so close on the right. It was lapping near the bunkers given all the rain, and the bunkers themselves had rain in the bottom - which is where I ended up. If you are playing the 14th from championship tees, say a prayer and hopefully the wind is favorable for you. The 15th is my favorite hole with the blind shot to a lower elevation green tucked between the dunes. Very much a links course feel. Hole 17 and 18 have the room for you to blast it and try to make up ground that you surely have lost by that point. I enjoyed the course and my rating is realistic. It lost in the small touches such as water jugs that had black ooze on the faucets (clean them please) and there was no beverage cart to purchase bottled water (never mind anything else). It still could be improved on.
The Links at Brigantine Beach
1075 North Shore Drive
Brigantine, NJ 08203
609-266-1388
#120 $62 including cart for a 7AM teetime. Walking allowed but no discount.
1.4 on a scale of 1-5
1 - Layout
2 - Condition
1 - Aesthetics
2 - Staff
1 - Facility
This was a disappointment. The pictures on the website made me think this was going to be around the marshlands with "breathtaking bay views", the reality is it's around the cottages and typical beachfront dwellings of a middle class summer retreat. I played by myself as the first one off and finished in 3hrs. An ok layout in regards to it being flat for the walker, but I personally don't like the constant dwelling proximity so gave it a bad mark. After a solid week of over 1ft of rain I expected some wet spots, but overall the course had drained well except for some bunkers. It was also the harvest moon and the highest tide of the fall which led to the 2nd hole being waterlogged (I started on #10 thru kindness of the starter), I had to walk in water to my shins in order to get to the tee box!! Some stagnant pools were already showing signs of sand mosquitos so this place must be a bug haven in the summer. The clubhouse had power outages all last week so the ghin computer was down, the eating area looked like it was ready to close for the season as the chairs were on the tables when I finished at 11:30. It seems like a typical municipal course that is run for money, not for golf. The conditions were still good though (given the recent days of rain), and I did dry my shoes out in time to play another course in the afternoon.
Brigantine, NJ 08203
609-266-1388
#120 $62 including cart for a 7AM teetime. Walking allowed but no discount.
1.4 on a scale of 1-5
1 - Layout
2 - Condition
1 - Aesthetics
2 - Staff
1 - Facility
This was a disappointment. The pictures on the website made me think this was going to be around the marshlands with "breathtaking bay views", the reality is it's around the cottages and typical beachfront dwellings of a middle class summer retreat. I played by myself as the first one off and finished in 3hrs. An ok layout in regards to it being flat for the walker, but I personally don't like the constant dwelling proximity so gave it a bad mark. After a solid week of over 1ft of rain I expected some wet spots, but overall the course had drained well except for some bunkers. It was also the harvest moon and the highest tide of the fall which led to the 2nd hole being waterlogged (I started on #10 thru kindness of the starter), I had to walk in water to my shins in order to get to the tee box!! Some stagnant pools were already showing signs of sand mosquitos so this place must be a bug haven in the summer. The clubhouse had power outages all last week so the ghin computer was down, the eating area looked like it was ready to close for the season as the chairs were on the tables when I finished at 11:30. It seems like a typical municipal course that is run for money, not for golf. The conditions were still good though (given the recent days of rain), and I did dry my shoes out in time to play another course in the afternoon.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
