Golf In New York City Blog

Hidden Creek Golf Club

Address: Hidden Creek Golf Club, 75 Asbury Road, Egg Harbor Township,
NJ 08234

Phone: (609) 909 2990

Website: Hidden Creek Club

Reservations: Private Club – Members Only

Description: Hidden Creek Golf Club is an exclusive, for-members-only golf club with uncompromising quality and old-world charm. It was ranked 78th in the most recent listing of ‘America’s 100 Best Modern Courses’ by GolfWeek Magazine.

Hidden Creek Golf Club is an 18-hole healthland style golf course located in the pines of southern New Jersey. Opened in May of 2002, the course offers an enjoyable and playable experience for golfers of all skill levels. The champion tees measure 6872 yards, the member tees 6485 yards and the forward tees 5486 yards. Every hole is distinct, visually striking and uniquely appealing.

Sculpted out of 750 acres of magnificent aged woodlands and adorned with gently rolling hills, this course is truly a sanctuary. The finest bent grass fairways, strategically positioned bunkers, surprisingly dramatic elevation changes and subtle green contours enhance this masterpiece of nature.

Nestled amidst a backdrop of natural pines, maple and oak trees, Hidden Creek is truly the pearl of the Jersey Shore.

Yardage: 6872 / 6485 / 5486

Par: 71 / 72

Rating / Slope: 70.4/120; 70.5/127; 72.2/131

Architect: Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw

General Manager /
Head Professional: Ian Dalzell

Superintendent: Jeff Riggs

Directions:

From Garden State Parkway South Bound– Exit GSP at exit 36 (Northfield), you will come up to light at Fire Rd and make a right. Follow Fire Rd. to Mill Road (Rt. 662) make a right. Take Mill Rd. to the end where it meets Ocean Height Ave. (Alt. Rt. 559) and make right. Go straight through the light at English Creek Ave. and travel approx. 1.3 miles and make left on Pine Ave. Take Pine to the stop sign and make right on Asbury Road. Take Asbury to the entrance of Hidden Creek Golf Club.

From Garden State Parkway North Bound – Coming north after the Great Egg Harbor toll plaza, stay right and take exit 29 (Somers Point) onto Route 9. Follow Route 9 to the light and make a left onto Mays Landing Rd. (Alt. Rt. 559N). Go approximately 3.3 miles and make a right on School House Rd. Go 1 mile to stop sign and make a left on Zion Rd. Go ¾ mile and turn right on Asbury Rd. Take Asbury to the entrance of Hidden Creek Golf Club.

From Atlantic City Expressway East (from Philadelphia) - Take the Atlantic City Expressway to Exit 9. Turn right off the exit onto Delilah Road. Continue for approximately 1mile make a left onto English Creek Road (Rt. 575). Continue on English Creek Road approximately 5.5 miles to Ocean Heights Avenue and make a right. Go about 1.3 miles and make a left on Pine Avenue. Take Pine to the stop sign and make a right on Asbury Road. Take Asbury to the entrance of Hidden Creek Golf Club.

The City Parks Foundation has offically broken ground on a new $6 million junior golf center to be located on 11.8 acres adjacent to Dyker Beach Golf Center.

The new facility, which will include a six-hole golf course, nine-station driving range and 4,275 sq.-ft clubhouse/classroom, will be provided free to children ages 5 to 17.

The project will be built with both public and private funding. NYC and NY State are contributing approximately $2 million to the costs and the remainder will be funded through provide donations.

Mayor Bloomberg and several other officials attended the ground-breaking ceremony last week at the site. It is expected to open by September, 2007.

While the ladies of the LPGA are teeing up for dollars and to benefit the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation at the Sybase Classic in New Rochelle, Mayor Michael Bloomberg will also be on the links looking to raise money to help teach city kids how to play the game.

Bloomberg will be joined by some 25 foursomes Friday (5/18) morning at Split Rock Golf Course in the Bronx for the annual Mayor’s Cup Tournament 2006. Played as a “Scramble” and always held on a public New York City course, all proceeds from the event go directly to City Parks Golf, a junior golf education program conducted by the City Parks Foundation.

Last year’s event held at adjoining Pelham Golf Course raised more than $120,000 for the program.

City Parks Golf provides free golf instruction to more than 1,200 boys and girls from age 5 to 16. Beginners are taught the basics of swinging the driver, pitching the ball and putting.

Offered during July and August with instruction provided by local teaching golf professionals, the hour-long classes are offered twice a week at city parks across the five boroughs with all the equipment provided being free.

As the students advance they’re taught golf etiquette, scoring and eventually play on a small target course set up at the park. Those young golfers with the best grasp of the rules, safety and skills are then invited to play on a local course.

Skilled graduates of these programs are then invited to attend the Junior Golf Academy, a five week curriculum held at local golf courses. Students who complete the Academy program are awarded a card by American Golf which allows them to play on any of their managed courses for $1.

The program is only open to New York City residents, spaces are limited and all students must register in advance. For more information visit: http://www.cityparksfoundation.org or call 718-699-4200.

When you get there (preferably early, around 8:30 a.m.) have a plan. This will save a lot of milling around the clubhouse area deciding what do to: follow a specific player or group; walk the course; or grab a seat in the grandstand. Free pairing sheets are distributed at the entrance will tell you who is teeing off when and on which nine. For practice rounds consult the appropriate scoreboard at the course.

Here our ideal plan – not because it’s necessarily better than any other, but just to start you thinking about how you might adapt it to suit your preferences.

Unless you’re a TV cameraperson or commentator, a blimp pilot, or a tournament official or volunteer, there are only two ways to follow a golf tournament in person: follow a particular group through 18 holes, or plunk yourself down in some good viewing spot and watch the passing parade. Of course, you can come up with your combination of both options, depending on how you feel that day, the nature of the golf course, the size of the crowds, the weather, or your horoscope for the day after.

Our plan’s first step is for you to pick a group of golfers to follow (most often three to a group). Keeping in mind that crowds tend to follow the “name” golfers, you should usually pick someone whose name you recognize but who is not likely to draw a huge crowd. Then follow his or her group so you can see more and get closer to the action. Following Tiger Woods or John Daly may be glamorous, but you are likely to see less and walk more. Once you have selected a group, off you go, following along for the first nine holes.

When your group finishes their first nine, wish them well and head back in the direction you came from, about a hole or two from the clubhouse. The idea is to find a good vantage point, not too far from a refreshment stand and a restroom, where you can watch the rest of the field come through.

Since you are walking half the course and hopefully are traveling light and have left your cell phone at home, try to find some natural (preferably soft) seating or a viewing grandstand. That’s our plan, and we hope it helps in putting yours together. To further help in your planning, we’ve listed some of the good points of sitting and walking.

Sitting

If you’d rather not walk the course, there are some definite advantages to sitting in one spot. For example:

• Sitting on a comfortable beach chair is undeniably easier and probably more relaxing than walking the course and trying to keep up with a group. You’ll get a good spot if you get out there early.
• You’ll become an expert on the hole you’re watching. Binoculars may be a help on long par 4’s and 5’s.
• You’ll get to enjoy the surroundings between groups. There is something relaxing about the ebb and flow of activity while watching, say, from behind a green. Staying in one spot also lends itself to getting to know your fellow sitting spectators, perhaps more so than walking, and also the volunteers posted at the hole.
• You’ll get to see at least a good part of the field as they pass by your spot, and you can compare how different players handle the same hole.
• At Wykagyl for the Sybase Classic, a good spot is behind the 8th green. It is shaded by trees and affords a terrific view of the second shots as the women pros come over the hill and into the green. The 9th hole is to your left, and restrooms and refreshments are a relatively short (but steep) walk up the hill to the clubhouse area.
• At Westchester for the Barclay’s Classic, a superb spot is to the golfer’s right of the 11th hole, under a huge tree. You can see where drives end up on this difficult par 4 and the long second shots it requires to a well-trapped and sloping green. Be prepared for second shots rattling around in the big tree. Restrooms and a refreshment stand are steps away, and during lulls in the action you can view golfers coping on the 16th green after tee shots on a long and difficult par 3.

Walking

• You’ll get some good exercise. Just so you don’t overdo it, remember that a course of 6,800 yards covers almost 4 miles just from tees to greens, and you can add another mile just getting from one hole to another through l8 holes. If the layout is hilly, of course, that adds to the effort and both Wykagyl and Westchester are mountain goat courses.
• You’ll get a feel for the course, and you can enjoy some varied scenery on the way. Sure, golf courses are not truly natural environments, but for the urban or suburban dweller, they sure beat malls and parking lots, which incidentally don’t supply habitats for plants and animals.
• You’ll see how the players in your group handle different situations and how each manages his or her game and the course. You’ll also get a good idea of the way the round is going for the players and how each handles adversity or success.

A side benefit of following a particular group is that you may, depending on the size of the gallery, get to know, at least in passing, relatives and spouses of the players, which will make the experience just that much more enjoyable.

Whether you walk or sit (or both) is up to you. The important thing is to get off the couch and out in the air in person.

Enjoy the show.