Black Bear Golf Club
About
Black Bear Golf Club is part of the Crystal Springs Resort, which offers six other courses, though, it's hard to remember they're connected since they each offer a distinct character and look. Unlike Ballyowen and Crystal springs, two of the resort's most well known courses, Black Bear has more of a parkland layout. The course tumbles across rolling hills covered with trees, which come into play along the undulating fairways and greens. Water only comes into play on three holes but there are a whopping 65 bunkers coming into play. It's challenging but not frustrating. Both low and high handicappers will enjoy not only the golf course but also the beautiful scenery. Black Bear is one of the best values in the area and has garnered a strong local following.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 72 | 6673 yards | 72.4 | 129 |
| Blue | 72 | 6334 yards | 70.7 | 126 |
| White | 72 | 5883 yards | 68.6 | 123 |
| White (W) | 72 | 5883 yards | 74.3 | 132 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 4785 yards | 67.8 | 120 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black M: 71.3/132 | 384 | 506 | 445 | 406 | 195 | 566 | 204 | 343 | 441 | 3490 | 382 | 148 | 385 | 555 | 164 | 275 | 496 | 389 | 389 | 3183 | 6673 |
| Blue M: 69.7/130 W: 75.3/141 | 369 | 484 | 422 | 396 | 185 | 535 | 193 | 311 | 420 | 3315 | 360 | 143 | 370 | 528 | 154 | 255 | 480 | 357 | 372 | 3019 | 6334 |
| White M: 67.9/123 W: 72.9/135 | 349 | 451 | 394 | 386 | 158 | 500 | 142 | 295 | 400 | 3075 | 335 | 123 | 350 | 496 | 137 | 234 | 455 | 340 | 342 | 2812 | 5887 |
| Gold M: 63.8/118 | 320 | 386 | 371 | 315 | 133 | 441 | 135 | 256 | 307 | 2664 | 281 | 118 | 340 | 368 | 114 | 230 | 384 | 275 | 302 | 2412 | 5076 |
| Red W: 67.5/125 | 240 | 382 | 329 | 310 | 120 | 437 | 122 | 251 | 305 | 2496 | 266 | 103 | 335 | 366 | 111 | 164 | 380 | 267 | 297 | 2289 | 4785 |
| Handicap | 9 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 17 | 13 | 7 | 15 | 3 | 8 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 6 | 10 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 11 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 17 | 1 | 15 | 13 | 7 | 8 | 16 | 10 | 4 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 12 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
Bar, Snacks, Restaurant, Beverage CartsAvailable Facilities
Showers, LockersReviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by SoberDan97 on 04/10/2024
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Photo submitted by SoberDan97 on 10/31/2023
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Photo submitted by jul04 on 09/17/2023
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Photo submitted by fengbingolf on 06/03/2022
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Photo submitted by Keith2180142 on 05/27/2022
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#13 Photo submitted by DilonUnderPar on 08/17/2020
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#4 Photo submitted by DilonUnderPar on 08/17/2020
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Photo submitted by johnpmooney on 11/05/2014
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Photo submitted by u000006480491 on 07/19/2014
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Hole #7 Photo submitted by NiceBalls on 10/24/2013
Beautiful Course
Really well maintained course than last year.
Staffs are real nice and kind.
Pretty good
The course was in good shape. However, the greens were rather slow and a bit inconsistent from one to another.
Rounds here (at least in the afternoon) can take a little while, so bring your patience :-)
Great course to play
Well maintained and fast play. Great course. Excellent service.
great couRse. Great layout
i play 3-4 times a week all over Nj. Best st course I've played in a while. very nice course and layout. Overall great experience. hood rate for this course. You def get what u pay for. I recommend this course to avid players.
Course has some very nice vistas and is very well maintianed
Enjoyed my round of golf at Black Bear .
Situated in the vernon valley area of Northern New Jersey
the course offers some very nice views in the mountains .
There are many very interesting, scenic and challegeing holes.
Although it is a ways away from my home I will be going back to golf here.
Good course for the right price
Black Bear is a fun course and its in pretty good shape. Not worth the standard $95 green fee but I booked through golfnow and we got it for $60 and for $60 its a great deal. Course is not long but its fairly challenging, its tight and you can get yourself into trouble with an errant shot. Greens were in good shape but not very fast.
due to aeration it was hard to evaluate tee box.
I used locker room for shower after play. there was no towel, and when I asked staff to give me one, he took one from used towel box. I do not know whether he knew where new towel was. They need to train staff properly.
Decent Course for the money
I found a 12:15pm teetime for 50 + golfnow fees, so it came to 121.60 for 2 people. I thought that was a decent deal so I booked it. I have played Great Gorge and Cascades before so I wanted to try another Crystal Springs course.
I thought Black Bear for the money was good. If I was paying retail price for it, I would have thought I overpaid. The fairways were in great shape and some holes were quite challenging, but overall I was floored by the course. The tee-boxes were quite sandy and not too green. All the greens were in good shape however.
Basically, if you can't afford Ballyowen, Wild Turkey or Crystal Springs I would say this is the next best course.
Probably the best value of the Crystal Springs Resort courses.
Course is well maintained and challenging but not a quick play. In years past have seen marshals on the course to maintain pace of play/assist high-handicappers but not in last few years. The course is usually full so you can figure it will be a 5 hour round. There is a beverage cart on the course. The staff and facilities are pleasant but short of the high end marque of Wild Turkey or Ballyowen.
ok
course is in good shape, friendly staff, needs to be a little more manicured.
Greens
The greeens that didn"t have a lot of replacemnt sod are still recovering from being aerated. Condition of greens drags the course ratings down. Lefty3
Very friendly staffs & they allowed me to drive cart to fairway. Some green is rough but everything was fine.
Some green was rough and some area were wet. But this is excellent course. I love it.
Some pretty holes. Friendly staff.
If greens condition is important to you, then I would recommend that you look for another course to play. The fairway was only comparable to a county course level. The grass on the fairway need to be cut and much smoother. There were places where the grass in the fairway was unevenly cut. The greens were simply horrible. Bumpy, slow and not smooth at all. They need to either cut the greens more or press it down. Will not go back there again soon. It used to be a good course to play even if you have to drive to get there. Not any more. Also, incredibly slow people on the course and the ranger is no where to be seen. Waited on EVERY hole from # 4-18.
This course is in a great shape for April.
The golf course is very challenging especially playing from the black tees. The course is very well maintained but greens are very bumpy and slower than what it was in the past. Overall, I was very pleased with my round.
Enjoyable Round
Course was in great shape with the exception of a couples greens that had some new sod layed in recently......Slow players in fron t of my group were moved up from the blue to white tee's and started playing ready golf when asked to by the ranger 4 1/2 hour round as promised could have been much longer if not for the active rangers
Course condition
The greens are in HORRIBLE shape. Considering the amount of play this course gets, I foresee the greens only getting worse as the season gets into full swing. I play BB alot. They are in trouble with the greens.
The great golf course
some course was easy but some were very chanllenging
it was great
not the best around
there are so many good courses in the area. pick another one.
Black Bear Franklin, NJ
The course was very nice i felt the greens could have been kept a touch shorter than they were but wasnt a huge issue. The staff was very accomodating and freindly, the food was amazing, and the pace at which they sent golfers out was perfect, I would recomend visiting this course for sure.
Fun and Challenging
Always love to play this course as there are some great holes on it. Too many holes were cart path only at this time and greens were very bumpy, that should change as season gets on.
Seaview Stay & Play Golf Package