Galen Hall Golf Club

Played with brothers (Dan & Derrick) and a friend (Zach). I've traveled from CC Philadelphia a few dozen times to Galen Hall to play. There's a lot of golf challenge and a ton of history here. Alex Findlay laid out the original 9 circa 1912 then Tillinghast came in 10-15 years later to revise and expand the track to 18. There are a couple questionable holes like #2 which disappears over a ridge and #18 that climbs back to the clubhouse but the overall experience is surprisingly good. Anyone (Pete Dye?) who plays GH comes away talking about the moat hole at 15 but the 4th (another one shot proposition) is also a superior golf hole. This was a playground of the wealthy Philadelphia Main Liners in the 1920s. Tillinghast wrote extensively about his work here and elsehere. I've played maybe 30 of his designs/redesigns. This isn't Baltusrol or Winged Foot but as a public course, it fits into a class with Cedar Crest in Dallas, Shawnee on the Delaware, or Bethpage Blue. Conditions are invariably good. Staff is about as nice as can possibly be. The restaurant is outstanding.. Give me a course that's 100+ years old every time. That's golf! No disrespect to the 21st Century architectural genius today (Coore & Crenshaw, Doak, Dye, Strantz) but a century has a way of weeding out weak sisters. My advice... if you see a Golden Age club for reasonable money and it has a name like Tillinghast, Ross, Thomas, Findlay, or Wilson attached, play it! You won't be sorry.

Greens and fairways are excellent . Rough is to high . Lost balls slow play . Rough makes it difficut for seniors-ladies .

Have lived 2.5 miles away for the last eight years and never played until yesterday. Short but interesting, lots of undulations on greens and fairways. Features what is believed to be the first sland green built in the US.

I played Galen Hall on the recommendation of several friends - it's about 50 miles from home but worth the trip. The course design is unusual to say the least, but really interesting. There were several memorable and beautiful holes. The greens are very contoured, and it helps to stay below the hole. Great value for the price. Not easy to walk if you don't like to ride carts.

Great course with tricky greens!
This is a short but very challenging course!

Very nice old golf course. First time playing. Small fast greens. Blind shots.
Bar and restaurant didn't open till noon on a Saturday, eat first. Snack shack was open after the turn.

Course was fairly well kept for April on a mountain. Gentleman in the clubhouse was very accomoddating and nice. A full list price of $40-$50 is steep, but hot deal brought the cost into a reasonable price range. Course design is very unique if a bit frustrating.

for the past couple of years this course was struggling with the fairways and greens, this year it seems for now that they are realizing the problems and trying to fix them. 2 greens are still struggling with disease holes 4 and 6. fairways are in great shape with the bunkers are getting new sand in them. as always with this course greens run fast with falloffs on most greens

A bit further a filed, but well worth the trip. Classic designed, well maintained at the right price point.

Course in great shape. Greens were very fast
The course is hilly with some interesting lies.

Found this course not in good shape, ball marks all over greens, also some disease spots on greens. Tee boxes not In good shape either. Fairways were iffy, some ok others not so. Severe side slopes, balls getting lost in rough.

Great course that was well maintained. The value was unbeatable for the area and the difficulty of the course. Would definetly go back again.

very nice course-only downfall-manu pebbles on greens--just dressed that morning--oh well for 10 bucks-great scenery.

I am a local player to this course and have played there as part of the local rotation pretty frequently over the last 15+ years.The last two or three times i have been there, however, the conditions were very poor. For a course known for their immaculate greens, i was very disappointed.

Quite challenging for the first time but worth playing if the price is right. I will probably play it again.

I was impressed by the course layout and the way the greens were maintained. The "Moat" hole was a great experience as well! Definitely would recommend this course to others.

the course is a lot of fun, many blind shots. hills, slopes, par 5s

Very nice layout, quick greens that roll very true. Staff were not very friendly, acted as though we were bothering them. Also, be sure to take plenty of drinks and any food you may need as you do not return to the clubhouse after 9. There is a snack shack after 10, but they are only open limited hours and basically handle chips and soda.

Went to Galen hall for the first time yesterday and I was shocked by how much the course is on a hill. Was very challenging. A lot of elevated tees and greens. Greens looked pretty good and were super fast. And the fairways were great. Very well cut and maintained. Went there and it was very wet due to all the rain but was drying up nicely. All kinds of great views to see as u walk/ride around. A lot of the hills really push your fitness level and your ability to hit the ball above/below your feet. The staff that worked the bar were very friendly and quick to fill up your adult beverage. Will go back again for another challenging 18

My friends and I often refer to Galen Hall as a psychedelic golf experience. Of course, this typically draws some laughs, but it is a true original. I can't say I've played a public course with downhill putts as fast as they are here and that's only the start. It's about as close to Meadows Farms in Virginia(google it) as you can get without intentionally being quirky. (By quirky I mean a large scale miniature golf course) Two holes have roads running through them, there's the infamous moat hole, a green-side barn, a straight up-hill par 3, built-in-the-bar chilled coasters, and I love it...There's nothing cookie cutter about Galen Hall. It was designed, redesigned and altered again before the idea of "what a golf course should be" by today's standards. Whenever anyone I play with complains about GH I often ask, "What do you think of the 17th at St. Andrews?" It's completely unique and that's what I think makes it great. My Favorite holes are 1,4,7,8,12,14,15. If you haven't played it before check it out.