Golf In New York City Blog

Are you starting to make plans for the cooler weather golf? Look into the excellent Hilton Head golf in South Carolina and play some of the best courses in the area at great prices.”

The Golf Commissioners at Hyatt Hills Golf Complex, located on the borders of Clark and Cranford, certainly has vision when they transformed this once condemned brown site, into a wonderful place, which now offers something for everyone in our community.

For children, the Hyatt Hills Golf Complex features Mount Hyatt, a beautifully landscaped miniature golf course. The 18-hole course, nine of which are handicap accessible, boasts picturesque waterfalls, wandering streams, and stepping ponds. The generous and playable putting surfaces bring together the elements of chance and challenge, making play interesting and fun for all age groups.

Youngsters can have their birthday party right at Hyatt Hills. Packages combine Miniature Golf, with affordable food & beverage packages. Also available are driving range tokens, supervised professional golf instruction, clowns, and lots more. Packages start at $15 per person, and include 18-Holes of Mini Golf, Choice of:  Hot Dog, Hamburger, or Grilled Cheese Sandwich, Soda, Chips, and a Cupcake.

Hyatt Hills also offers a nine week-long Summer Camps. These camps operate Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. PGA Master Professional Bill Castner oversees all camp instruction. Besides being one of only three master professionals in New Jersey, Castner was awarded the 2006 New Jersey PGA Junior Golf Promoter award. Castner said, “I am proud of the quality of the facility and the instruction that is offered during our camp. Student to instructor ratio is an outstanding four to one. Children learn all aspects of golf and really enjoy learning and playing on the golf course.”

For the more serious golfer, Hyatt Hills offers a well-conditioned, par 36 nine- hole golf course, gorgeous driving range, a practice bunker and practice chipping and putting greens.

The golf course consists of two par three holes, five par four holes, and two par five holes. The New Jersey State Golf Association/ USGA gives Hyatt Hills a course rating of 69.5 and a slope rating of 130. This makes Hyatt Hills one of the most challenging nine-hole golf courses in the New Jersey. Hyatt Hills was also named as one of the best conditioned nine-hole golf courses.

For people interested in learning to play golf, Hyatt Hills offers many lesson plans and packages. You can learn in small groups, clinics, golf schools or with individual private instruction. Four full time PGA Golf Professionals call Hyatt their home and are available seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m..

For the diners in the family, Hyatt Hills offers Lanas’ Fine Dining and Birdies Grill. Lana’s features the elegance of fine dining in a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere. The expertly trained service staff is committed to making your dining experience a memorable one. Executive Chef, Jerry Stulpin, is a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute. Jerry began working at The Pearl, located on Nantucket Island. It was there, where he was hired and mentored by the world famous chef Seth Raynor, who helped sharpen his culinary skills. Whether you stop in for a cocktail at our handcrafted oak-wood bar or a multiple coursed tasting menu in the main dining room, Lana’s caters to everyone’s needs and taste. From french fries to foie gras! For Reservations please call 732-669-9024. For additional information log onto their website, www.lanasfinedining.com.

Also located at Hyatt Hills is Birdies Grill. Here you will find a fast and inexpensive snack bar. If you want a quick snack, Birdies is your choice.

For the stylish golfer, Hyatt Hills offers the latest golf fashions in their well- stocked golf shop. Managed by PGA Golf Professional Dan Hollis, a two-time winner of the New Jersey PGA Merchandiser of the Year Award, the shop features selections from such well-known brands as Footjoy and Etonic shoes, Greg Norman and Vardon & Ray shirts, and Duck and Hyde sweaters.

For the equipment buffs, Hyatt Hills offers a full time club repair and club fitting operation. Run by Tom Murphy, a Class A club builder, Tom is one of KZG and Mizuno top 100 club builders. Tom has been involved with creating and building clubs for people with various disabilities. Available for demonstration and fitting are Ping, Macgregor, Infinity, Mizuno, Nakashima, Titliest, Cobra, Callaway, and KZG.

For more information about Hyatt Hills, call the pro shop 732.669.9100 or log onto www.hyatthills.com.

For years, people have flocked to popular golf destinations in South Carolina including Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach. Most people don’t realize that there are more than 380 golf courses in South Carolina, which is often called
the “Golf Capitol of the South.” Now, a new destination is emerging and it might just be South Carolina’s best-kept secret of them all.

The 10,000-acre Kiawah Island, is located just 20 miles (approximately 35 minutes) outside of Charleston. The small, but affluent community encompasses not only beautiful oceanfront scenery and natural wildlife, but also a terrific golf atmosphere.

Serious development on Kiawah (pronounced KEY-o-wah) Island began in the mid-1970s when a Kuwait-based development company purchased the island from a local family for just over $17 million. By the late 1980s, the Kuwaitis had grown inpatient with the slow progress on the island and sold their investment. Today the Kiawah Development Associates (KDP) controls most of the island’s development and unsold plots.

“The original overriding premise for the area’s development was to protect the Island’s spectacular natural wonders, while creating an upscale residential and resort community.” With the help of many strong planners, scientists, historians and some environmentally minded people, plans were put into place for this
residential-resort community.

On a recent visit to the island, I was amazed to see how an area could be so well developed, yet maintaining so much of the natural beauty preserved.

With its extensive wildlife, many believe the Island’s habitat looks much the same today as it did centuries ago. There are more than 200 species of birds and waterfowl inhabiting the island. One of Kiawah’s most prolific wildlife animals is the loggerhead turtle, and one can also find many deer, bobcats, alligators, raccoons, foxes and much more.

The area made its first big splash on the golf scene when it hosted the 1991 Ryder Cup matches on the Pete-Dye designed, Ocean Course. Since than, the course has undergone over $5 million in renovations, including architectural chances to seven holes, new irrigation, and converting all the greens to a
blend of salt-tolerant (obviously important for a course which hugs the Atlantic Ocean) Paspalum grass. The Course
is currently in the process of building a new 24,000-foot clubhouse, which will open in Spring, 2007, before the Senior PGA Championship is played there. It will be situated only 150 feet from the 18^th green, facing the
Atlantic Ocean. The Ocean Course has also already been selected to host the 2012 PGA Championship.

The Ocean Course consistently ranks in the top courses by Golf Digest (#8 among Public Courses in 2005-2006) and #3 on GOLF magazine’s 2006 list of the Top 100 You Can Play. It is open daily for public play.

While much of the golf attention on Kiawah Island is directed at the Ocean Course, the Island also has six additional golf courses – of which five are open to the public – Cougar Point (Gary Player design), Turtle Point (Jack
Nicklaus design), Osprey Point (Tom Fazio design), Oak Point (Clyde Johnston design), and the two private courses – The River Course (Tom Fazio design) and Cassique (Tom Watson design).

Complementing the golf in Kiawah Island is a full array of other recreational activities. Besides a 10-mile beachfront, there are more than thirty miles of biking and hiking trails throughout the community. There is a large children’s playground and pool complex with basketball and volleyball. Tennis is another big attraction
on the island.

Perhaps the centerpiece of the Kiawah Island’s growth was the opening in 2004 of the $125 million award-winning ultra-luxury oceanfront hotel and spa, The Sanctuary at Kiawah
Island. The five-star hotel features outstanding resort amenities, upscale restaurants and shopping, and miles of beautiful beachfront. The hotel’s entrance is filled with two beautiful gardens where dozens of butterflies can
be found flying through the colorful plant life.

The hotel hosts many corporate meetings and conventions, including the recent annual meeting of the PGA of America. In late March, theywill host the annual Golf For Women Weekend Retreat. A perfect weekend event for golfers of all playing abilities, will feature golf on the Ocean Course and Turtle Point Golf Courses, clinics and accommodations at The Sanctuary. Join LPGA professional Carol Preisinger for daily clinics and instruction. Preisinger, who is a top 100 ranked teacher by Golf Magazine and a former LPGA Teacher of the Year. Anyone interested in further information can contact the Special Events department at the Sanctuary Hotel (877-683-1234).

Just one word of advice to those visiting the area–bring your credit card along. This is an upscale community and the lodging, food and golf costs can run on the high-end. But don’t let this deter you, Kiawah Island is a wonderful place for the golfer (and non-golfer) to play and relax.