123 Route 94, Vernon, New Jersey 07462, US
(973) 827-2000
Location Map

About Mountain Creek Resort

Mountain Creek Resort is a four-season destination in Vernon, N.J., just an hour outside of New York City. It features a waterpark; the 27-hole Great Gorge course, which was purchased in 2018; the Treescape Aerial Adventure Park, home to zip-lining, climbing obstacles and rope walks; and a Bike Park of 52 trails that is loaded with jumps and 1,000 feet of vertical drop. The course was part of the old Playboy Club in the 1970s and 1980s, attracting famous names such as Dean Martin and Bob Hope for a game. It’s a beautiful property with wonderful mountain views and elevation changes. Guests can stay in the Appalachian hotel or enjoy more space and privacy in a one- to three-bedroom townhome rental at Black Creek Sanctuary. Both accommodations offer outdoor pool and hot tub facilities. 

Facts

Price Range$$$
Property Class★★★★
Acres532
Year Opened1965
Number of Units100-300

Amenities & Services

RestaurantsCasual, Bar
Room TypesRoom, Suite
Fitness CenterYes
Practice FacilityYes
Banquet SpaceYes

Rules

Is the resort pet friendly?No
Is resort stay required for a tee time?No

Golf courses at Mountain Creek Resort

Reviews

4.2
1084 Reviews (1084)

Reviewer Photos

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 19
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

great golf

if you don't like this you don't like golf.. cart paths need work and could use a real senior tee, maybe just on tougher holes, 375 plus par 4s bit much for most over 60 players. great value and always challenging and fun!!!

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Played On
Reviews 4
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Previously Played

Review

Course was in great condition. Pace of play was very slow fairways and greens in good shape. Played here several times this summer and never saw a ranger to encourage pace of play.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Poor
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 28
Handicap 0-4
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Great Gorge Country Club. Nice Comback

Played the Quarry and Lake Nines. Quarry was excellent and has arguably the Best Second Shots views in the State. The Lake Nine had condition issues on half the holes due to the amount or Rain, which is understandable. The Greens putted well. All in all, good value and nice to see it make a Comeback after being closed for a couple of years.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Response from on 09/27/2018:
Hello, on behalf of Great Gorge at Mountain Creek staff we appreciate you taking the time to address your concerns as we are always looking to improve. We are disappointed to hear that you were not happy with the conditions of the course but still hope you enjoyed your round. Again, we appreciate your feedback and hope to see you again soon.
Played On
Reviews 243
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 27
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
2.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

No Playboy Bunnies here

The drive into the course takes you past the shuttered hotel that was once the Playboy Club. It’s an odd sight. Signs direct you to the club drop which is a good idea here since it is a walk from the parking to the club house.

We played the Quarry and Rail 9’s. Lake 9 was not in use due to the recent rain.

We had an 8 am tee time and we got to the par 3 first tee on the Quarry 9 only to wait. That was the theme for the entire round which took 4:45. No ranger ever appeared and given there were not a lot of groups ahead of us the problem was solvable if the course wanted to speed up play.The course is not overly long which means that there is a tendency to play from the back tees when you shouldn’t.

The course has a combination of elevation changes, narrow fairways and wide fairways. Water comes into play on a number of holes and stray shots disappear into the rocks and trees if you stray too far. The rocky terrain in this part of NJ gives the course a unique look and feel similar to Crystal Springs.

The second hole has a old silo on the left side of the fairway that’s an unusual look. Stay to the right are the instructions. The tin roof on the silo makes a great sound if your tee shot lands on it and veers into the woods.

The par 3 railroad hole has a bunker with remains of and old concrete railroad trestle. Hit in there and you may have no shot at the green.

With all the rain we were limited to the cart path on some holes and there was a fair amount of water damage in some fairways. Greens and bunkers were in good shape.

There was no drinking water on the course and we saw the beverage cart three times which was not enough on a hot day.

At $51 with a cart I thought this was a fair value if the course played faster. I would play again only if the course was dry and I had an earlier tee time.

Conditions Average
Value Average
Layout Fair
Friendliness Average
Pace Poor
Amenities Average
Response from on 09/25/2018:
Hello, thank you for taking the time to review us, Great Gorge at Mountain Creek, in the McAfee area. We're very sorry to hear you may not have had the best recent customer experience with us due to the pace of play, and we greatly appreciate your feedback regarding the rangers so we may work towards any necessary improvements. We also appreciate your dedication to playing our course over the years and hope we can continue to provide you with a valuable golf experience. Thank you for golfing with us, and we hope to see you again soon.
Played On
Reviews 19
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

timeless

great old course, needs a few trees trimmed and cart path work.

love it

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 3
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
3.0
Previously Played
Perfect weather
Used cart

If you go pace of play very slow. Bring water

I really like this golf course . Very happy it is open again. I played here twice in the last 3 weeks., course is in very good condition and not overly crowded. Pace of play is very slow 5 hour rounds both times. NO RANGERS! to move pace along. This alone would make me think twice about going here again. Bring water no water on course and is $2.50 a bottle. Gatorade is $4.50. They have some loose ends to tighten up to make this a better expierence for all.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Average
Pace Poor
Amenities Average
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Response from on 09/11/2018:
Hello, thank you for taking the time to review us, Great Gorge at Mountain Creek, in the McAfee area. We're very sorry to hear you may not have had the best recent customer experience with us due to the pace of play, and we greatly appreciate your feedback regarding the rangers so we may work towards any necessary improvements. We also appreciate your dedication to playing our course over the years and hope we can continue to provide you with a valuable golf experience. Thank you for golfing with us, and we hope to see you again soon.
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a month
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
2.0
Previously Played
Wet weather
Used cart

They need to have rangers patroling and better drainage

First, the Quarry course was closed, due to water conditions, so everyone was pushed onto the other 2 courses, thus causing a backup. Second we had extremely slow players, a foursome, playing 2 balls each who would not move up their play or stop hitting multiples. 80% of the holes were cart path only adding to the slowness. It should never take 6 hours for a twosome to play 18..

Conditions Poor
Value Poor
Layout Good
Friendliness Fair
Pace Poor
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
Response from on 09/13/2018:
Hello, thank you for taking the time to review us, Great Gorge at Mountain Creek, in the McAfee area. We're very sorry to hear you may not have had the best recent customer experience with us due to the pace of play, and we greatly appreciate your feedback. We also appreciate your dedication to playing our course over the years and hope we can continue to provide you with a valuable golf experience. Thank you for golfing with us, and we hope to see you again soon.
Played On
Reviews 44
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
3.0
Previously Played

Great Gorge Disappointment

After having heard some good reviews about the reopening of Great Gorge, I was interested in playing there again.

I was disappointed in the fact that over a 2 year shutdown, the course didn't seem to have much work done to make it better.

The tee boxes were worn and thin, the cart paths were suspect at best, the greens were very good though.

Price of $39 was good and fair for what was offered.

In defense of the conditions, the extremely wet fairways were nothing more than the horrendous amount of rain that everyone was experiencing this summer. I won't be going back for a long time to come.

Conditions Average
Value Good
Layout Average
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Response from on 09/11/2018:
Hello, thank you for taking the time to review our course, Great Gorge at Mountain Creek, and for the 3 stars. We are sorry to see that the course may not have been in the best shape when you played and your feedback is appreciated. It looks like you had a friendly experience with our staff and that your round was a great value for you, so we hope this improved your overall experience with us. Thank you for your choosing our course, in the McAfee area, and we look forward to seeing you again soon.
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played

Heaven

I love Great Gorge. My favorite east coast course. Like walking into a painting.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 8
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great Gorge, Rail and Quarry courses

Nice design. A lot of interesting holes. Elevation changes and shape of holes will hold your attention. Conditions are not pristine but good. Pace of play was very good. My threesome was not playing particularly well and we let faster players through. Even though it’s a 2 hr drive, we are looking forward to playing again.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 15
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Super Hot Day at GG

Very hot and humid conditions, but course was in nice shape. Greens fast and true. Cart paths in bad shape. Staff was very friendly. Pete especially nice as starter.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Fair
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 7
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great Course/Great Price

Played the Rail/Quarry. First time playing since the club reopened. Course was in excellent shape, greens and fairways are well kept. Challenging holes, quick greens. Wish I could say the same for the bunkers - mostly stones, they need work. . Played Holiday morning, expected slow play but had a leisurely 4:15 round without holding anyone up or being pushed. At $51 the price can’t be beat for the course especially with the prices of the Crystal Springs courses. Worth the 50 minute drive.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 2
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Great layout. Great value. Great staff

Fantastic place for a day of golf. We'll worth the trip from NYC. 3 great nines with gorgeous views and wonderful staff. The greens were top level. Very true and fast. Only critiques were the tee boxes and fairways were pretty beat up. Definitely a challenging course. I'd recommend this place to anyone.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 12
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played

Holy beautiful!

Not sure the 3* folks are reviewing the right course. The fairways, tee boxes, greens were all fantastic! A lot of the traps do need some work though, and the prices did go up a bit from last year. Still not as high as South Jersey!!! Views from this course are pretty amazing also. Cant wait to play again. Good job folks, now go fix the traps!

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Played On
Reviews 1
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Previously Played
Hot weather
Used cart

Close to home

Live down the valley from Great Gorge, Have played there since the seventies. Currently the course is in the best shape I remember. Very accommodating staff. Have put a lot of work into course since reopen in 2017. Agreed the cart paths are horrendous but well worth the money for senior Monday through Friday.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Difficulty Extremely Challenging
Played On
Reviews 13
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great value

I played quarry / rail this is truly a unique layout course was in exellent condition greens were particularly good condition but pin setups were tough. They are offering great value rounds my second time there this year and will be back

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 5
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Previously Played

Good Conditions on Tee Boxes, Fairways & Greens

Good quality conditions on the tee boxes, fairways and greens. Rough was low and a non factor. The cart paths are horrible. Much of the course have the pavement paths and they are in terrible condition. Management needs to either repave these paths or make them all stone. Pace of play was great. Fix the cart paths and this place will be back to pristine condition all around.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 17
Handicap Don't know
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Hot weather
Used cart

Very Good Value

We played the Quarry Course and the Lakeside Course on a very hot day (there are 3 nine-hole courses). One objection is that there are no drinking water facilities on the course itself - bring your own water. The Quarry Course fairways were browned out due to the very hot and dry weather, but the greens were in good condition. The Lakeside 9 was in better shape. The course layout on both was very good. Suitable for golfers at all levels of skill. The staff was very friendly. Great Gorge is, unfortunately, well

over an hour away from our home, but the plus side to that is that the course was not at all crowded and the pace of play was therefore very good.

Conditions Average
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
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