Numbers 6 through 9 (Heron Glen, Cream Ridge, Gambler Ridge, and Stonybrook)

The next four courses on my journey were all played with friends I met at work. Most of us were not serious golfers at the time, but we were all more than happy to find a course to play and socialize outside of the workplace. It’s interesting now to think about how today – outside of my family relationships – golf defines a large part of who I am. At the time I played these courses, though, it was just something I wanted to do occasionally.

Heron Glen

Date: Undated, sometime in 2010

I switched jobs in 2008, and my wife and I moved to Somerset County shortly thereafter. Having made friends with a few coworkers a couple years into the new job, we eventually began to chat golf and planned to get out for a round together. Someone suggested that we play Heron Glen after work one day.

Located in Ringoes – which features some of the “wine country” of New Jersey – Heron Glen plays over 7,000 yards from the tips (but not from the tees we played) and is typically in pristine condition in season. While I have a soft spot for High Bridge Hills, Heron Glen is touted by many as the best public course of the three in Hunterdon County, and one of the best in the state. These posts from Erik Matuszewski show why.

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Cream Ridge

Date: Undated, also sometime in 2010

Moving from wine country to horse country, Cream Ridge is your average public course, situated in western Monmouth County. The final minutes of the drive to Cream Ridge will likely feature multiple plots of farmland and stables, regardless of which direction you’re coming from. My first round there was with one of said coworkers who, despite having left the company and the area, remains one of my very best friends to this day.

The course features water in a few places, a few interesting tee shots, but overall is relatively run-of-the-mill. I like the approaches into the greens at 3 (across a widened area of a creek at the bottom of this downhill par-4), 4 (really the par-3 tee shot), 8 (a well-mounded green), and 18, which is a par-5 that is reachable in two, but very dangerous as water guards the right side of the last leg of the hole.

*A shot from a 2016 round of the green at 18, looking back at the fairway.*

Gambler Ridge

Date: 3/29/2013 (finally, a dated scorecard)

Three years later, a coworker was getting the word out about a Good Friday golf outing he was hosting at Gambler Ridge. Needless to say, I was excited to join.

Just down the road from Cream Ridge Golf Course – and still in the town of Cream Ridge, NJ – Gambler Ridge is your everyman’s golf course. This is not a place you play to be wowed by layout or conditions. You play Gambler Ridge to knock it around with friends, have a few beers (if that’s your thing), and get a hot dog at the turn (which a friend of mine affectionately refers to as a Gambler Dog). Noteworthy features at Gambler Ridge are three drivable par-4 holes in 5, 6, and 13 (though attempting it at 6 and 13 is treacherous as water is significantly in play) and a double green for holes 15 and 17.

That first round at the outing was one of 16 to date (May 9, 2024) making Gambler Ridge far and away the course I’ve played the most. I’ve broken 80 a handful of times there, though the course does play easier than most and the tees are rated and sloped accordingly. My best round there – a 75 from the 6,294-yard “tips” for a differential of 6.2 – featured one of the craziest things that’s happened to me.

Coming up to the tee box at 10, with the group ahead of us very visibly still in the fairway, the starter asked why we weren’t teeing off. Pointing to the very visible group of people in the fairway, I said, “I don’t want to hit them.” The starter replies, “you’re not gonna hit them,” but he said it in a tone that said, “Given where THEY are in the fairway – and [possibly] considering the caliber of players I watch here on a daily basis – I don’t think YOU are capable of hitting it far enough to hit them.”

So, I indulged the starter.

I muttered something about waiving any potential liability to him (that’s not how it works, for anyone interested), teed my ball up, addressed it, and hit my drive. It was well struck, and we all watched as it drew off the right-side of the fairway, dangerously on a path towards the cart in the fairway. The ball came down, thankfully missing the group, but landing 5-10 yards left of the cart (well within the range of possibly hitting them) and bounded off into the left rough. They looked back at us, we looked back at the starter, and he was silent. Since he was concerned about pace of play, I put my driver back in my push cart, and jogged off to my ball.

It’s probably the one of the dumber things I’ve done on the golf course. It’s also probably one of the more irresponsible things that starter has done. Thankfully, no one was hurt.

*The 10th at Gambler Ridge. 385 yards from our tees, I had about 105 into the green from the left rough.*

Stonybrook Golf Club

Date: 4/15/2013

Finally, the 9th course played on my journey is the now-defunct Stonybrook Golf Club. A 3,514-yard par-62 executive course with four par-4s and two par-5s, it had the interesting scorecard feature of having the same sequence of par for both the front and back nines (4,3,3,4,3,5,3,3,3).

*A satellite image showing the ghost of Stonybrook.*

I barely have a recollection of the course. I remember almost being able to reach the green at the “par-4” 1st hole with a 3-iron (only 226 from the back tees). I’m relatively certain that the par-5 15th finished with a hard left into the green. Other than that, I see a few moments here and there from my round with my coworkers, one of which would be with me at Hyatt Hills later that year when I discovered I would be taking on this quest to play all the publics. But I would only play Stonybrook three times, and much like the course, any other recollection is now gone.

Number 128 (Hominy Hill)

May 21, 2023June 11, 2023 omrosasgolf, golf nj, hominy, hominy hill, monmouth, monmouth county, monmouth county golf, monmouth county golf courses, new jersey, new jersey public golf, new jersey public golf courses, nj golf, nj golf courses, nj public golf, nj public golf courses, public golf, public golf courses, Robert Trent Jones, RTJLeave a comment

Date played: 12/12/2021

I’ve met a number of people on my journey around the state through social media. While most of them are just golfers like me, some of them work in the turf industry, a vocation I have a deep appreciation for. One of those people is Mike Williams.

At the time we first spoke on Twitter, he was at Meadows at Middlesex. In 2020, he became the superintendent at Colts Neck. We had been chatting about getting together and playing, and at the end of 2021, we finally made that happen at Hominy Hill.

While we had to play a winter round to meet, we picked a pretty good day to do it. Reaching around 50 degrees in New Jersey in the middle of December was a blessing, and the course played wonderfully. If you’re looking for a challenging but really enjoyable round of golf, Hominy Hill Golf Course fits the bill. Located in Colts Neck, Hominy Hill is a beautiful 18-hole layout designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. that plays over 7,000 yards from the back tees. It has even hosted the USGA National Amateur Public Links championship on more than one occasion.

While the “hominy” in its name has nothing to do with the food – as clarified in this Monmouth County Park Systems blog post – the “hill” correctly hints at what I would describe as the perfect amount of elevation changes throughout the routing of a course not set on a mountainside. The course winds through gently rolling hills in classic parkland style, but I would say that landing areas are more generous than most public courses. Some greens were challenging even at December speeds, so I can only imagine how well they roll in prime season.

This is a course that came with a good deal of hype and was relatively unknown to me. Unlike big name properties like the Crystal Springs Resort courses and Atlantic County courses like Twisted Dune and Seaview, the average golfer on the outskirts of New Jersey may not know about Hominy Hill. Before I cataloged all of the courses in the state, I was one of them. Yet, a few people over the years had let me know that it would be one to look forward to.

Even in December, the course lived up to the hype. From the conditions, to the variety of holes, to the fact that it’s actually a part of the Monmouth County system, I rate it among the best publics in the state and count it as one of my must-play recommendations.

Apart from being a day at a spectacular course, it was great to have met up with Mike at Hominy Hill. As with everyone that has joined me on my quest, it was great to walk the course and chat about his work. I’ve learned that everyone who dedicates their professional career to turf management puts in a ton of dedication and effort, and Mike is no exception. Not only is he another New Jersey golf enthusiast, but he’s also someone who actually brings this hobby and passion of ours to life.

*Unabashedly proud of my drive at 13, a 370-yard par 4 from the white tees (… it may or may not have taken one or more hops on the cart path)*.

*The final approach at the par-5 14th must cross a creek to find the dance floor*.

*Looking back from behind 14 green, you can see how the hole plays downhill almost the whole way.*

*16, another pretty, but long par 3 with a wide green complex.*

Number 123 (Suneagles Golf Club)

September 21, 2022October 7, 2022 omrosasa w tillinghast, aw tillinghast, fort monmouth, gca, golf, golf course architecture, golf nj, monmouth, monmouth county, monmouth county golf, monmouth county golf courses, new jersey, new jersey public golf, new jersey public golf courses, nj golf, nj golf courses, nj public golf, nj public golf courses, public golf, public golf courses, sun eagles, suneagles, tillinghastLeave a comment

Date played: 10/21/2021

“I maintain that the Suneagles Course ranks among the best of my creations.”
– A. W. Tillinghast

That quote can be found on the scorecard for Suneagles Golf Club, the 123rd stop on my quest. For those familiar with Tillinghast’s courses, that is really saying something. In New Jersey alone, he designed the layouts for renowned private clubs such as Ridgewood, Somerset Hills, and Baltusrol.

Whether or not he meant it, it’s always interesting to play a course designed by a famous architect. For the average golfer playing municipal courses and other daily-fee publics, it’s unlikely you’ll run into many of them. Oddly enough, Suneagles is about two miles from another Tillinghast design, Old Orchard Country Club. However, having the same designer is where the similarities end.

The quality of Suneagles is certainly above what I found at Old Orchard. Granted, while I played them at two very different times of the year – October versus February – the condition of tee boxes, greens, and bunkering at Suneagles were noticeably better. The bunkers in particular seemed brand new, just one example of an ongoing renovation effort.

With that renovation has come increased cost to golfers, which is certainly understandable. Peak season rates can reach over $100 to ride on weekends. Thankfully, I was able to walk the course on a weekday for $37. Apart from knowing that you’re playing a course with some history, I don’t know that I could justify $100 tee time to the average weekend golfer.

The course is in good enough shape, but there are some low-lying holes – like 8, 10, and 11 – that did hold some water which made conditioning difficult. At that price point, though, you’re approaching some of the best publics in the state, and most golfers will want to see that value all around the course.

Having said that, I liked my time at Suneagles. I chose to play from the 6,385-yard back tees and managed relatively well for my game. That is about the course length limit that I enjoy playing and none of the holes felt too long, with its yardage being distributed evenly among the par 3s, 4s, and 5s. One interesting note about the course is that the holes are each named, something which is almost an exoticism for public courses – at least in New Jersey – and that I can only remember seeing at Laguna Oaks. The par-3s, for instance, are named “Puck”, “Lake”, “Clipper”, and “Island”.

Whether you’d like to add Tillinghast to your list of architects whose courses you’ve played, or you’re just looking for another public golf option in Monmouth County, Suneagles is certainly worth a look at its cheaper rates. If you need to play on a weekend, I recommend walking in the afternoon. At the time of writing, that should get you a rate between $50 and $60, a price for which the course can certainly provide adequate value.

*The opening tee shot on “First” at Suneagles. Until the 8th hole, all of the driver holes are pretty straight.*

*Bird’s-eye view of the green complex at the par-3 2nd, “Puck”. I thought it looked like an elephant, but some on Twitter cleverly noted that it resembles Edvard Munch’s “The Scream”*.

*The approach into 6 (“Brook”) if you’re a little left of the fairway.*

One of the two eagle statues that line the clubhouse drive, with the *green* *of the par-3 7th in the background.*

*A look at the landing area, pond, and green at 10 (“Turn”).*

*A wild drive placed me on the wrong side of these trees to the right of the dog-leg-right fairway at 13.*

Number 122 (Colts Neck Golf Club)

September 10, 2022September 10, 2022 omrosascolts neck, colts neck golf, colts neck golf club, golf, golf nj, monmouth, monmouth county, monmouth county golf, monmouth county golf courses, new jersey, new jersey public golf, new jersey public golf courses, nj golf, nj golf courses, nj public golf, nj public golf courses, public golf, public golf courses1 Comment

Date: 10/15/2021

After finishing up at Colonial Terrace, I headed over to Colts Neck Golf Club. Being a semi-private course, I had a short debate with myself about whether or not it should count on this journey. When posting about it on Twitter, most responded that it should, with sentiments like “if you can get on without an invite, it counts”. I’m not sure where I draw the line on what should be considered “public”, but ultimately, I felt like there were enough tee times available to the general public on a daily basis for it to count on the journey.

The course was an absolute treat to walk for $40 on a weekday in October. I’m not sure if that’s just a fall rate, but that is easily one of the best values in the state. I haven’t listed it as one of my “must play” publics – though, as I write this, I’m debating whether I should – but I do highly recommend it, especially if you can get that anything close to that price.

*Hole 2, with a look at the farmhouse style clubhouse in the background.*

The course has just the right amount of elevation change – particularly through the middle third – striking a great balance between a completely flat layout and a mountain golf course. The conditions are some of the best I’ve seen in the state, which perhaps should be expected, given its semi-private status. Were it a strictly daily-fee course, it would be among the very best in that category in New Jersey.

Some of the middle third of Colts Neck. The 5th plays off to the left of the frame. The par-5 6th runs from left to right in the backdrop. A short par-3 7th is in the distance in the top-right corner, with 8 coming back parallel to 6. The tees at 9 and the green at 11 straddle the pond.

I happened to play exceptionally well, scoring my best ever differential to par. While I did not make an eagle at either of the par-5s at Colonial Terrace, I did hole an 18-foot putt on 17 at Colts Neck for my third career eagle. (To be fair to the course, the tees were probably 60-80 yards up from where they should have been, so it was more like a birdie on a long par-4.)

Overall, I felt that most of the course sets up nicely for the average golfer and does well to provide variety in its 6,281 yards. A majority of driving holes have room to miss, a couple of the par-5s are reachable in two shots for long hitters, and there are six par-3s with a decent mix of yardages (as short as 133 to as long as 233).

If I had to pick one blemish at Colts Neck, it would have to be the approach shot at 13. The green is oddly guarded by two massive trees, making 2nd shot efforts like aiming for a railway tunnel. But as you can see from the rest of the pictures, that is me really looking for something to pick on. This Monmouth County course is absolutely worth a play.