Black at Bethpage State Park Golf Course

My wife and I were planning on the early AM parking lot wait but got lucky and secured an online tee time for 2:27 the day before. Bethpage Black is a great championship golf course but very difficult for the average golfer. Narrow fairways, long and very lush rough in addition to elevation changes, tough bunkering and firm fast greens make for a challenging yet fair test of golf. Very tough for ladies as the forward tees are 6,200 yards. Wonderful conditioning adds to the experience. The starter was very helpful and friendly. Walking only so bring your carry bag or your push cart. I would love to play this course again but perhaps just once or twice a year.

Very good experience. My day started when I arrived around 3:30am to wait on my golden ticket. You can opt to book your tee time online but it’s hard to get an early round. I also wanted the full experience, so I show up at 0330 and I find 16 other guys already waiting in front of me. By the time the Marshall came around there were probably 60 vehicles that had shown up. The locals were very friendly and helpful. The greens had been punched a week before but there was very little signs. They rolled true (a little slow) and the fairways were rewarding. Stay out of the rough. Even cut back, it’s a game changer. I can’t wait for my next visit. I highly recommend this course to any mid to low handicap player.

Mythical Bethpage Black reputation is fully warranted. I’ve never been so happy and miserable at the same time on a golf course. It’s long, so long, and unforgiving — the rough is brutal and even the first cut isn’t gentle. The greens are mostly flat and fair and in good shape, not great, which is understandable given the amount of play.

But I can’t wait to go back. It was just a fantastic experience in every way. And I was able to grind and make a lot of shots and even post decent numbers. If your budget allows, take a caddy for sure and listen to their advice.

What a day it was!

Played here 10 years ago. Still ranks as hardest I have ever played. We took caddies. they were very helpful. It was 90 degrees and 90 % humidity. Made for a long day 5 hr 15min. Paid for a locker and shower afterwards and there were no towels. Not often you get your butt kicked and want to go back.

What a tough test of golf. Over 6600 from the whites isn’t overall challenging, but when you throw in brutal rough, sometimes tight fairways and blind shots you have a recipe for a triple digit score. This course really knows how to humble a golfer. Played it today in near 100 degree heat so that wasn’t pleasant. The greens were in great shape and fast, the rough was super thick and the fairways were in great shape. This course truly is a gem and worth the NYS price to get your behind kicked. My only issue is not with the course, but Bethpage State Park itself. It was almost 100 degrees today and we shouldn’t have played, but it’s so hard to get a foursome at a decent time so we kept the tee time. The course has a ton of water jugs out there which was amazing, but we didn’t see the cart girl once! There’s one for all 5 courses and that’s ridiculous. I’ve said this before and it goes upon deaf ears over there. Today was super dangerous not to have someone around with Gatorade if needed. Lastly, in case you don’t know the “halfway” house on Black is on hole 6 and then you have to run from 12 to get something on the way back towards the clubhouse. With groups behind you that doesn’t always work well

I have never felt so defeated, mentally and physically, after a round of golf. That being said I loved it. The course is renowned for being difficult, so I decided that I was going to let it kick my butt and just take it all in. The course condition was honestly incredible, especially considering it's public. Not tons of divots, not tons of pitch marks, overall perfect condition. Only thing I wasn't a fan of were the bunkers. I really struggled to figure out why I couldn't hit out of them even though I'm usually good out of the sand. The design is incredible and the bunkering is beautiful. This is in my top 2 courses played and I will be back again for another whooping!

Bethpage is fantastic. Enough said. Fun and challenging layout and picture perfect conditions. You must be able to find the fairway to score well here. It’s a physical and mental challenge but even at $150 for non-state residents, it’s well worth the money. Only thing not to like is the pace of play (expect AT LEAST a 5 hour round to walk here). But enjoy the nostalgia and challenge of the US Opens and the PGA and Ryder Cup to come. Can’t wait to see the pros play here next May!

OVERALL: 9.2/10

Fairways were perfect, greens were perfect. Rough was very thick and the fescue was terrible; I wish they'd cut the rough lower and eliminate the high grasses. It also appears they changed the sand type in the bunkers since I last played, it was very thick, especially up in the flashed faces; I was not a fan of the new bunker sand. There was a bit of construction on 18, they're adding new bunkers, as if they need more of those.

Minor critiques. The course is five stars, it'll always be five stars. Extremely difficult. Pace of play is always an issue, we played in about 5:15, that's reasonably fast for the Black. If you're out on the weekend, bring a magazine. You know what you're getting here...go with proper expectations, expect to take 6 hours, expect to have your golf game made to look like a beginner's, and expect to feel beat up when you leave. There's no better golf course for the price in America.

Was in NY for a company trip and had to get out. It’s ridiculous to try and book a tee time through the reservation system, unless you want to play late afternoon. But had my pro from my home club call and we got set up. The course was absolutely amazing and couldn’t have asked for better weather. My first time and would recommend a caddy as they know the layout of the course. The greens were slower than expected but rolled very true. A little steep in price, but seeing as how they’re having the 2019 PGA Championship there, guess it’s understandable. Would highly recommend and most definitely a bucket list course.

Really incredible public golf course. The rate for New York residents makes this the best golf course for the money by a huge margin and even for out of state, the relative cost is excellent. The strength of this course is in the routing and flow of the design. The greens are very simple, without bold contouring. However, the strength of the rest of the course more than makes up for this. Holes 4, 5, and 12 are the best on the course. The 18th is often criticized because of the way tour professionals play the hole, but for the vast majority of golfers, it is a very strategic hole that will test a player right up to the final shot.

At the end of a physically and mentally draining round, I turned to my playing partners and reached out for a handshake. "Guys, this was fun," I said. They laughed. One asked, "Was it?"

But it was! Yes, it's a kick in the pants. But the Black course is the most architecturally sound course I've ever played. The layout is spectacular, the bunkering is breathtaking, and the greens are fair. The fairways aren't the biggest in the world, but they're big enough to get around on.

Everyone is familiar with the fact that this isn't the easiest course in the world to get on, but it's worth the headache. You will be talking about Bethpage Black for a long time. Make it happen.

For all the golf courses on this rock in the Atlantic Ocean called Long Island, this is the best course anyone can play. Is Shinnecock Hills on LI? Yes. Can you play it? Good Luck. If you are lucky enough to know a member who will invite you, awesome. For the rest of us without $100k, the Southampton Police will be called if we go thru the gates. But not at BP Black. Bethpage is a state park in the NYS park system. Residents will pay anywhere from $39 to $75. Non-residents, and they are strict about proof of residency, will pay $78-$150. That's the bargain of the highest magnitude in terms of greens fees for a course that the PGA frequents every few years. They played the US Open on Black in 2002 and 2009, the Barclays in 2012 and 2016, will play the PGA Championship in 2019 and the Ryder Cup in 2024. Good luck trying to play Copperhead or TPC Sawgrass (yes I have played them) for less than $250 at any time of the year. If you are looking for the greatest challenge at a reasonable price, it doesn't get much better than this. And when you do, get your "money's worth"...play from the tips, that's the real challenge. That is the secret about BP Black. While other courses you can get on will let you ride in a cart, "The People's Country Club" is walking only all the time.

I showed up as a single at 8:30 am, teed off at 9:45 am. The course was in absolutely perfect condition! About 4.5 hours to play 18 holes, reasonable time considering the challenging walk.

An unforgettable experience, worth the extra money paid because I'm out of state.

Our foursome made the trek from Baltimore to Long Island to play the Black Course this past Friday. Two of the members of our foursome have single digit handicaps and have been playing golf for more than 25 years. We have never experienced the level of indifference, rudeness and overall absence of professional customer service. The course was hit with severe thunderstorms throughout our round which forced us (and other golfers) to take cover in course gazebos for safety and cover. We stayed in one for approximately 35 minutes and another for almost an hour waiting for the storms to pass. When the storms finally passed we attempted to continue playing. At that time a gentlemen came out in a cart to inform us the course was closed and we had to vacate and drove off (not offering a ride or even directions to the clubhouse). Of course we were at the farthest point from the clubhouse you could possibly be and being unfamiliar with the course we walked a serpentine path back which took us another 30 minutes. Finally when we asked for a rain check they told us we were "out there long enough to reach the 5th hole" which of course is the hole they use to decide if a rain check will be issued. As a native of Long Island I warned my group on the long walk in that we would likely receive the treatment we did. It is important to note that we would have finished out our round in the terrible conditions as we would likely not be back for a while but we were kicked off the course. The course is beautiful and would be an excellent experience on a nice day (maybe even a bad day) but you should know you will get treated commensurate to a place that has a full tee sheet every day and is getting $135 per round from out of state players.

Bethpage Black lives up to its warning sign on the first tee; it is EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. Need to keep the ball in the fairway to make par or better. Conditions are absolutely perfect and live up to their US Open reputation. Only problem was the pace of play (5 and a half hours) but then again, is it really awful to spend a long day at Bethpage?

Course was immaculate greens rolling true and fast

Fairways are perfect and rough is thick

Take a caddie and truly enjoy the experience

If you are an out of state resident, it's not that easy to get a tee time at Bethpage Black. However, if you call enough times you will eventually get one. That said, the black course is a must play for anyone in the Northeast. For the price, you can't beat playing this major champion venue.

This is one of the most memorable rounds you will ever play. Long holes, wide fairways, and monster bunker complexes around the greens. You start out with three good holes, then you step on the 4th tee and monster starts. Heroic design on lots of holes; long carry or layup decisions abound. Not difficult greens. Just a great course. I'll love watching the Ryder Cup played here.

My first time playing this course and it felt like I had played it a thousand times; my playing partner had actually played this course a thousand times. If this course is not already frustrating, imagine having the guy who just set the course record from the tips breathing down your neck. This guys frustrated with pars on par 3's and I'm glad when I get the same score. I had the most unique experience playing this courses or well, getting on it. The day before I was playing another fantastic course, Pound Ridge, when I began to talk to my playing partners about further into my vacation. They told me that sense the Barclas was going to start in a few weeks, tomorrow was th LAST DAY to play the black! My dad and I realized that there was no way to get on the course the last day to play it and plus we were from out of state. But then I remembered, all of the articles about sleeping in your car. Well that's what we did. Got there at about 10:00 and we were 7th in line looking to get a Sunday tee time. This is an ALL DAY AFFAIR to play this course. But anyway the 6th guy in line was who we ended up playing with. He told us that he does this 4 times a week. He walked us through the whole process, very un- New York like. The staff was very chipper for 4:30 am when you had to get your ticket for your tee time. Once we got to the desk we realized the we were definitely getting a tee time. We ended up getting a 8:45 time, a dream come true. We ate at a dinner just down the street from the park. Got back at 7:45. YOU MUST BE BACK AT THE LEAST AN HOUR BEFORE YOU TIME and even more if you need to get a caddie. The practice facilities are ok; the pull carts are good and worth the money. When walking up to the first tee you can feel the history of the course on you shoulders. You see that sign and you know your in for a heck of a round. The fence that the sign sits on is called the line of death by the black and green course starters. The first tee is pretty simple shot, but the small gallery that always gathers behind the tee makes the shot harder. I bombed one right down the middle leaving myself 142. But just when I thought I hit a great shot my playing partner absolutely smashed a ball over the trees on the right about 345. The seventeenth is a great par three and I hit my six iron about 180 just short of the green but just short of the green is a five foot deep bunker couldn't get up and down but saved a four. Number 18 is a pretty simple hole: just don't, no matter what, hit it in the BUNKERS. Well, that's exactly what I did. This course was so cool with all of the grand stands up. But anyway I hit my shot after a hack that played with us as well had already hit. I took my six iron again and hit it pure, I followed that ball with my squinting eyes just to hear a noise. BANG! My ball had flown directly over the green and under neath the grand stands after hitting them. I played my ball and ended up with a terrible double bogey. This course all around is one of the best in the world. Play it even if your visiting Pennsylvania it's worth the drive.

Going into, I knew it would be tough. I've heard all the stories and watched all the professional tournaments, specifically the two Opens played here, but actually walking the grounds and playing the holes, you don't really understand how difficult it can play until you experience it.

The first challenge is the walk. The undulations and elevation changes, specifically getting to/from the tee boxes was surprising. With the exception of hole #9 however, I wasn't faced with too many awkward lies.

I played really well, and was fortunate that I drove the ball well. I played from the white tees, which still measure at 6700 yards, but was fortunate to keep the ball in the fairway on most holes. The approach shots are intimidating and tough. There is no room for error. Hole #16 may be the only hole I can remember where you can run the ball on the green, but event that is a narrow gap. Most greens are elevated and guarded by massive and deep bunkers. Hole #16 and #18 are really the only holes where you can stand on the tee box and see the entire hole. If you miss a fairway, you have an extremely tough time holding a green. If you miss a green, you have an extremely tough time getting up/down. The only fair element of the course were the greens. Although they were small and tough to hold, there wasn't much slope or speed issues. A few holes have challenging pin placements, but they were not the most difficult element of the course.

All in all it's a great experience. It needs to be on every serious golfers' must play list. I was fortunate to play extremely well, and I look forward to getting a chance to play it again and moving back a tee box.