At 2,616 yards for its nine holes, Colonial Terrace was a short stop on the journey. Dedicated to William F. Larkin – long-time mayor of Ocean, NJ where the course is located – the course plays to a par of 35, which includes two par-5 holes.
The 4th and 7th holes are 415 and 430 yards respectively. If you’re still searching for your first eagle, this may be the place to do it.
The par-5 4th and 7th holes
Or is it?
The USGA states that in order for a hole to be considered a par-5, it must have a minimum yardage of 450 yards for men, and 370 yards for women. Which raises an interesting quandary: if you hole out in three shots on one of these holes, are you counting it as an eagle?
I say ‘yes’. To me, you can only play what’s presented to you. If the scorecard says it’s a par 5, then it’s a par 5.
The opening hole
The layout is entirely flat and plays generally open, where even the holes around the perimeter have some room to bail out towards the center of the course. The greens are small and will test your approach play.
Loved these bunkers on 9
Overall, I enjoyed my time at Colonial Terrace. For $13 to walk nine holes on a weekday, it’s tough to find a better place to practice. It’s about a mile from Asbury Park and would make for a great casual round on a beach weekend.
Colonial Terrace from above. The 4th hole is in the upper-left corner, its green being the furthest point from the clubhouse on the property. The 7th is in the top third at the center of the frame, coming back towards the bottom-right corner, where you can see the 9th green.
With paid time-off left to burn before the end of the year and a close eye on the weather as we entered December, I spotted a Thursday where it would be around 50° F. I quickly jumped at the opportunity and booked the day. Doing my best to plan for a potential frost delay and limited daylight, I tried to come up with a plan to play two new courses on my list.
With only nine and a half hours of daylight to work with, I knew I needed courses relatively close to one another. I was able to find good candidates in Wedgwood Country Club and Westwood Golf Club, which are only about nine miles apart. With the earlier tee times available at Westwood, that would be my first stop at 7:45 am.
Multiple groups waited at the first tee and there was a buzz about the course in different conversations with the starter. There was talk of plenty of work having been done in recent months, including the removal of trees and the installation of cart paths, something the course apparently had been without in years past.
All quiet into the distance on the first hole, but chatter and buzz were behind the camera.
After about a 40-minute frost delay, I was sent off in a group of three. The first four holes is a fantastic stretch. The round opens with a short par 5 followed by a drivable par 4. The 3rd is a zig-zagging par 5 and although the chicane is subtle, it will likely still demand three shots. The 4th is another drivable par 4, but only if you’re brave enough to take your tee shot over a significant plot of trees that would leave you in jail should you fail to carry them.
The remainder of the course presents its challenges in different ways. The 6th is a beast of a par 4, stretched out to 430 yards with a significantly uphill tee shot. While relatively short overall at roughly 6,200 from the back tees, the 9th, 11th, and 13th are par-3s that all play over 190 yards. The 15th is a short par 4 with a tree in the middle of the landing area that plays a role somewhere between target and nuisance. The greens are a challenge all around the course and the old adage of “stay below the hole” is absolutely true at Westwood.
As we made our way to the 17th tee, I checked the time and saw that it was a few minutes after noon. I had booked a 1:00 tee time at Wedgwood, and I’d have to account for a 20-minute drive and time to get started. Thankfully, pace of play had been great all morning, and we finished the last two holes by 12:25, giving me just enough time to run straight from the 18th green straight to the car and start my 9-mile sprint over to Wedgwood.
Hospitality Note: The gentleman named Matt at the pro shop who checked me in could not have been nicer. He immediately made me feel welcome as a first-timer and made sure I was situated with everything I would need to know. It amazes me that more courses don’t realize how much of a difference this can make in the experience of golfers and Westwood nails it.
Trees behind 9 green, which is in the background rightThe approach at the 90°dog-leg-right 15th. The tree in the foreground left must be considered off the tee.17 green, with 15 green behind it
Designed by Robert Trent Jones, Minerals Golf Club is a nine-hole executive course that rolls along the side of the same mountains that compose the Mountain Creek ski resort. While set in a beautiful mountainside residential community, there aren’t many places where it feels that the homes encroach on the course, giving golfers the freedom to swing away.
A look at the downhill 3rd, with some of Sussex County’s mountains as the backdrop
Billed as the family-friendly choice of the six courses in the Crystal Springs resort system, Minerals is a great place for learning the game that is a step up from pitch-n-putt or par-3 courses. Each of the greens include a second pin that has a larger, 8-inch cup for younger or beginner golfers. The course features four par-4 holes and five par 3s that include some truly picturesque holes, particularly the par-4 third and the long par-3 sixth.
The par-3 6th, from off to the side. At 230 yards from the back, this is a tough green to hit.
It was truly a joy to be out on a course like this. I’ve been playing golf for just over 20 years, the first four of which were played almost exclusively on par-3 and executive courses. Places like Twin Willows in Lincoln Park and – over the border in Rockland County, NY – the Rockland Lake executive course were the next-step training grounds for my golf game after leaving the comfort of the 50-yard pitch-n-putt where I learned to play.
Being at Minerals reminded me of those places, but with considerable improvement in course quality. Checking in on the list of places that remain on my journey, I can see that there are many nine-hole courses, a few of which are par-3 or executive-length. I can only hope to find more that are like Minerals.
The 7th and 5th, straddling the main thoroughfare through the community.All nine holes from the foggy skies over Minerals
At the end of 2017, I thought I had played all of the public courses in Middlesex County after my trip to the Plainfield West 9 course. At the time, that was true.
But, as I’ve written before, this journey is ever-so-slightly amorphous. From the time I began tracking my travels in earnest, the list of public courses in New Jersey has seen some close (see: Beckett GolfClub) and some new ones open (like Skyway). Occasionally, a formerly private course decides to become fully open to public play. That was the case with my 103rd course, Concordia Golf Club.
Located in Monroe, the previously private course is set in a senior-living community. While the routing doesn’t quite follow it, the course is laid out in something of a figure-8 around two large portions of the neighborhood, with most holes flanked by homes. Depending on how wayward your shots can be, water is a factor on at least seven holes, which is a nice feature for a community course.
Behind the teeing grounds at 13, the first water-lined hole on the lengthy back nine.
At just under 6,300 yards from the back tees, the course has a deceptive façade of not seeming long on the scorecard. It’s misleading because while the front will play short at under 2,900 yards, the back nine stretches to almost 3,400. I was lulled into a sense of ease by the front nine, not realizing what was in store on the way back in.
There is also a great variety of holes overall. There are drivable par-4s in holes 3, 5, and 10. Some holes play to immensely wide fairways – like 6 and 8 – while many will challenge your driving accuracy with much narrower targets. My only criticism is that the par 3s were all relatively the same yardages from the back tees (186, 194, 194, 176).
The green at 4, the first of the par 3s. The COVID pins were still in use!
While the conditions of the greens were a bit inconsistent, they were great overall. The fairways could use a little TLC, but the rates are very reasonable (I paid $30 to walk on a weekday). Overall, I really enjoyed my experience here and would recommend it for a first-time visit. I’m glad I got to play it and complete all of the Middlesex County public courses… again.
A look back at my final hole of Middlesex County… again.
My 102nd course came about as another great instance of what social media has added to my journey. Tim Casale is a south Jersey resident who initially reached out on Twitter to ask which courses I had yet to play down his way. I let him know that I still had many to go in a number of southern counties and cited some of the specifics in the counties closest to him.
A couple months later, Tim mentioned that he’d be taking a weekday off to play some golf and asked if I wanted to join and check another course off my list. It was a no-brainer for me, and with time-off-work to burn in the calendar year, I confirmed I would join. Tim looked to find tee times at some courses. We thought we might have something at Indian Spring and then Pitman, but both fell through.
After an exercise in synchronized booking through GolfNow, we were set for a Friday round. Eventually, we landed on a round at Centerton.
Seven years into my journey, this would be only my second trip to Salem County, and three years after the first, which was a 2017 impromptu stop at Town and Country Golf Links. Located in Pittsgrove, it’s only about 20 miles from the Delaware River border at the Turnpike/I-295 crossing. It was a bit of a hike from the middle of the NJ where I’m located, but having played just about everything in the middle third of the state, most of the remaining courses are.
From left to right, 18, 1, 9, and 10 at Centerton
We arrived at the course and made our acquaintances. Tim’s brother and father would also join us, and it was nice to meet them and feel like I was part of a regular group. After chipping and putting on the practice green for a bit, we made our way to the first tee.
While I could not have started the first hole any better – piping my drive down the center of the fairway and making a routine par – it was pretty shaky from there on. I snap-hooked and pulled my tee shots on 2 and 3 respectively, and though I recovered well from 4 through 7, I fought those misses around the remainder of the course.
The first par 3 is a long one. I probably missed this green a cool 30 yards left.
The course is very flat and walkable. There is room to miss, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it a second-shot course. Some tee shots do require attention, like the drives on 2 (which is narrower than most) and 10 (which is a dog-leg right that will require a placement decision). Then, there is the 6th, where a poorly struck tee shot may have you stuck behind Roger’s Tree.
Depending on the tees you play, Roger’s Tree is located anywhere between 80 to 110 yards from the teeing grounds on this straightaway par 4. (OK… so it would have to be a really bad tee shot.) I don’t know why, but I was intrigued by the idea of such a tree.
Roger’s Tree. Or is it The Rogers Tree?
Presumably, it’s a memorial. I’ve seen benches and in-ground plaques that are tributes to those who have passed away or even just member donors. But this one has a relatively crudely thrown together piece of plywood, painted white, with “ROGERS TREE” in black lettering. I’d love to know the story behind it. Who is/was Roger? Did he plant the tree? Was he always hitting it off the tee? If so, did his buddies put the sign up as a joke?
Whatever its history is, I’m glad to have avoided it. I’m also glad to have met up with Tim and his family as I continued my journey.
15 green, watched over by a tree that is not Roger’sCan you spot Roger’s Tree on the 6th?
It took almost four years, but after playing the North course at Charleston Springs in November 2016, I finally made it back to play the South course. I was invited back by my Twitter golf buddy Walt Blasich who is quickly becoming my tour guide for the best public courses in Monmouth County!
Conditions were beautiful at the North, and the South is no departure. Both layouts are some of the most finely maintained public courses you’ll find in the state. You immediately get a sense of that as you walk off the back steps from the pro shop and look onto the flawless (and massive) putting green.
The putting green is big enough to accommodate all golfers waiting to tee off on both courses
If you love a good golf bridge, you’ll cross one on the long walk to the first tee, a great way opportunity to get your mind in the right place before the round. A short uphill walk through the woods after the bridge, and golfers are emptied out into the clearing that is the South course. Where the North is laid out in links style, forcing golfers to contend with many fescue-lined holes, the South is a sprawling parkland course. Although there are trees to deal with, the fairways are quite generous and there are a number of very open holes.
A walk across the bridge on the way to the 1st tee on the South course
From a design standpoint, the way the 6,377 yards (from the Gold tees) are spread across the 18 holes is done really well. The par 3s play as long as 195, but also as short as 115 on the 11th, something most courses shy away from. Of the twelve par 4s, there are four that play over 400 yards, but then there are also a couple that are drivable for long hitters, like the 294-yd 10th. You might be able to lodge a complaint about the par 5s as three of them are between 499 and 505 yards. But whether it’s differences in the way elevation or direction changes from tee to green, they are each truly unique.
A front pin location on the 11th, with the drivable, par-4 10th in the background
As I mentioned when writing about my time at the North course, Charleston Springs is definitely held in high regard. I don’t know that the South measures up to public resort-type courses (e.g. Ballyowen and Crystal Springs), but I think it would be unfair to put either of the two layouts in that category. Nonetheless, it certainly ranks highly in the very next tier and should be considered a great option for public golfers.
Where Cruz Golf Country Club has its uniqueness in the obscurity of its designer, Rock Spring Golf Club is the complete opposite. Designed by Seth Raynor and Charles Banks in 1927, it was born in in the heralded “golden age” of golf course architecture by very prominent names. Like most Raynor designs in America, Rock Spring was private for most of its existence. A mere 92 years after opening, it opened to the public in May 2019.
Hearing about Rock Spring was my first experience with the grapevine of the golfing world. Other than through social media, I don’t consider myself quite connected to the golf community yet. I don’t have any contacts who work at courses. I’m only just meeting teaching professionals. Given that I’m almost always at new courses, I only play with a couple people “regularly”.
But it seemed like one after another, I started to hear and see the same refrain: “You’ve gotta play Rock Spring”.
Quality flag game, but is it a “must play”?
A big part of this has to be attributed to the suddenly vanished exclusivity. If Pine Valley opened to the public, you can bet you’d hear about it immediately. That story would likely make any and all golf news outlets. So, the question for me was really, do you have to play Rock Spring?
I have to say, it took some time through the round, but it grew on me. At $89 on a weekend in November for a now-public golf course, it had to live up to that price. At that rate, you’re approaching the finest publics in the state (i.e. Neshanic Valley, the Crystal Springs resort courses, etc.). But I started to appreciate the design elements after a while. I began to see what the course would look like in prime conditions, without the leaves all over the place, and it is a quality course.
Hole 12
The greens had good speed, even for the middle of fall in cold conditions, and they are relatively large. There are plenty of changes in elevation from tee to green, and the holes that play along the side of a hill – like 12 and 15 – are actually some of the most striking.
15 green
Managed by Kemper Sports – the same company who oversees the beautiful Skyway Golf Course in Jersey City – Rock Spring is definitely in good hands. As for whether “you’ve gotta play it”, I’d say ‘yes’, but you’ll have to check it out for yourself!
P.S. If you get there early, and the place looks closed, it’s probably because you parked in the overflow lot. There is actually parking around the clubhouse, which is also where the bag drop is.
How I played…
I actually played pretty well, but putt poorly.
Highlights: Meeting up with new golfers in New Jersey! Shout out to John Boylan for joining me on a cold November morning. Also making the highlight reel are two approaches that I knocked to a foot-and-a-half. (Yes, I made the putts.)
Lowlights: Definitely putting. I felt good on the practice green, but it didn’t carry onto the course.
The 95th public course on my quest is 95 years old at the time of writing, and one that is rich with (somewhat verifiable) history. Francis A. Byrne Golf Course was built in 1926, and legendary architect Charles Banks is credited as being its designer. Some sources say the design was started by Raynor, while others leave this mention out entirely. Other information you can find about the course states that the original purpose of the Byrne course was an expansion of the neighboring, still-private Essex County Country Club, the oldest club (and possibly course) in New Jersey.
Whatever the history and origins of Francis A. Byrne truly are, it remains a great public option in northern NJ. Located a few miles from the Parkway and just off Route 280, the Byrne course is set in the rolling hills of Essex County just north of the South Mountain Reservation. The course is kept in great playing condition and has actually undergone several improvements – e.g. restoring a Biarritz green at the 2nd – since I’ve played it.
A look from the elevated tee box at 9 with the homes in the distance depicts how much the hills of Essex County come into play at Byrne
I made my way around Francis Byrne with my good friend, Ed, who likely is in the lead for “most rounds played together,” not just on my journey, but in my golf career overall. Ed and I started playing golf together over twenty years ago, and our golf games have progressed similarly. We both broke 100, 90, and 80 at around roughly the same times, and while we have different strengths – Ed is a longer hitter, I may be a better short-game player, Ed is the better putter – our handicaps remain very close to this day. It’s been great to have a close friend to not only share the game with, but also to encourage progress.
Ed actually warming up on the putting green instead of just taking pictures of it, which may explain why he’s the better putter
There are plenty of golfers who enjoy time on the course with friends, without really worrying about the quality of their collective play. I respect that, and I think that can be a lot of fun. Ed and I both approach the game with an ambition to become better players, and we push each other both directly and through each other’s accomplishments.
Another downhill tee shot to the par-3 14th
Our fall afternoon round at this historic New Jersey public was relatively average for both of us. My poor play off the tee was offset by some very good scrambling and putting. I would putt only 24 times for the round, by far my lowest total. We walked off the 18th green at dusk, content with our rounds, and satisfied in having tackled another NJ course together.
Though a rare feat, I had the additional satisfaction of having outdriven Ed on that last hole.
My third visit to Gloucester County for golf was courtesy of an invitation to the 2019 Grint Tour Championship by Chuck Wanamaker. The GTC is an outing of users of The Grint – a score-and-stats-tracking and GPS app – held at a South Jersey public course. In 2019, the venue was Scotland Run.
Situated just a couple miles east of Rowan University, Scotland Run is a gorgeous layout set on sandy terrain. While sights from the clubhouse will evoke a links-style feel, the course has a great mix of holes, especially around the perimeter.
Plenty of contoured greens at Scotland Run, like the 9th here.
As we waited to tee off for our early morning round, the sun drenched the clubhouse in gold. Views of the ninth green and the first fairway were equally stunning, the quality of their design and condition highlighted by the sun’s rays. Though the front nine has a number of bright spots, I found the back nine at Scotland Run to be the better half.
The 10th is a wide, straightaway par 5 that can be reached in two. However, those that opt to do so should make sure they can carry their approach to the raised green complex. It’s guarded by wood pilings that will ricochet short shots in unpredictable directions, as well as a “warning track” bunker, both of which span the width of the fairway.
If you’re gonna lay up on 10, make sure you’re laying up. Otherwise, you deal with the warning track.
The 11th is a short par 4 that has a fairway that’s split by a waste area just as you reach the green, which will force a club choice decision on the tee. The 12th and 13th both bring water into play as they round a large pond, with 13 being a medium-length par 3 that is almost all carry. But the real memories of Scotland Run will be made in the finishing stretch, which is one of the best in public golf in New Jersey.
The 16th can easily be called Scotland Run’s signature hole. You’re presented with a tee shot that looks almost perpendicular to the fairway landing area, positioned at the other side of a wide gully to cross. As if your focus isn’t shaken enough by the visuals of the hole, at the bottom of the waste area, you’ll also see a plane. That’s right, an actual plane!
“Look, boss! It’s the 16th at Scotland Run!”
Moving on to the 17th, you’re confronted with a long par 4, playing at 421 yds from the white tees (two up from the back). The finishing hole is an uphill par 5 with water right that threatens your tee shot, and a snaking fairway from there to the green.
I had as many strokes in the last three holes as I did in the 15 that preceded them and wouldn’t fare well in the outing because of the poor finish. Nevertheless, Scotland Run was etched in my memory as a “must play” public in New Jersey and I highly recommend it.
The 93rd stop on my adventure was the self-proclaimed “Most complete family golf center” in South Jersey. Located in Mount Holly, Springfield Golf Center features a driving range, a miniature golf course, a “chip-and-putt” course (not to be confused with pitch-and-putt, I guess), and a par-68 course. I have to say, if you’re looking to learn the game, it’s difficult to argue with the “complete golf center” billing.
Strictly speaking, the par-68 is what is actually Number 93 on the quest. Since the scorecard for the chip-and-putt does not have yardages for each hole, it’s not counted on the journey. It’s one of the few arbitrary rules I have about what will count and what won’t, but I have to draw the line somewhere.
*whistles* Nice greens…
The course only plays about 5,000 yards from the back tees. Most holes are straightaway, with ample room to miss. A serious exception is the par-5 14th which plays to a narrow fairway with unplayable woods on the left and a lateral hazard to the right. The back tees on the par-4 16th are also awkwardly narrow, pinched between the net at the far end of the driving range and a couple trees with some overgrowth on them.
There’s tight, and then there’s the-tee-shot-on-16-at-Springfield-Golf-Center tight
To be somewhat critical, there are some areas of the course where it seems difficult to keep decent grass cover. I believe the aforementioned 14th is the lowest lying area of the course and it looked like it might have drainage issues. The fairway landing area was very sparse when I played, something I felt was out of place for a September round.
Judging the place as a family-friendly learning course, I think it’s a great example of using the maintenance budget appropriately, focusing on keeping well-manicured greens, particularly for the price point. It was $44 (including cart fees) on a weekend, which is probably right where it should be.
Springfield became the seventh Burlington County course I’ve visited, leaving only Indian Spring Country Club to complete the area.
First we chip… then we putt
BONUS: After my round on the executive course, I decided to play the chip-and-putt while I was there. All holes are par-3s less than 50 yards with some probably as close as 25 yards. You can get around with a single wedge of your choosing, but I happened to play both my gap wedge and my 60-degree for practice. The putter was hot, and I made my way around with five birdies and two bogeys, en route to a three-under 51.
Orson Rosas Golf 