The Perfect L.I. Golf Course: A Composite (1935, Brooklyn Daily Eagle)

[Joe Bausch]

In August of 1935 Ralph Trost, the Daily Eagle golf writer, penned a series of articles where he puts together what he called the perfect Long Island golf course.  The first in the series includes the first three holes:

1.  par 4 (355 yards) at St. Albans
2.  par 3 (132 yards) at Garden City
3.  par 4 (416 yards) at NGLA

(click on a figure to expand it for easier reading if your browser doesn't automatically do so!)

[Patrick_Mucci]

Joe,

# 2 at GCGC remains one of my favorite par 3's.

There's nothing exotic about it, just an angled green surrounded by bunkers with a huge pit and fronting bunker that must be carried.

Surprisingly, it has held up rather well against the modern player.

That may in part be due to the fact that the putting surface and putting surface perimeter isn't discernable from the tee.

[Joe Bausch]

Ok, time for part 2 of the series, holes 4-6:

#4.  The 486 yard 4th hole at Lido (the Channel hole)
#5.  The 378 yard par 4 5th at Lido (the Cape hole)
#6.  The 431 yard par 4 6th at Fresh Meadow.

[Joe Bausch]

Part 3 of the series, holes 7-9:

#7:  the 142 yard par 3 7th at Cherry Valley
#8:  the 510 yard par 5 8th at Timber Point
#9:  the 409 yard par 4 9th at Rockaway Hunt

[Joe Bausch]

We begin the back nine:

#10.  The ~300 yard par 4 10th at Seawane.
#11.  The ~160 yard par 3 11th at Shinnecock.
#12.  The 560 yard par 5 12th at Wheatley Hills.

(click on a figure to expand it for easier reading if your browser doesn't automatically do so!)

[Tom MacWood]

I'm confused. Doesn't the article state the 11th hole is Shinnecock's and the 12th is Wheatley Hills'?

[Joe Bausch]

I'm confused. Doesn't the article state the 11th hole is Shinnecock's and the 12th is Wheatley Hills'?

Yes.  My bad.  Now corrected (although the picture header is obviously incorrect).

[Joe Bausch]

Only six holes left! 

This afternoon brings three more:

#13.  The 406 yard par 4 13 at Seawane.
#14.  The par 4 14th at Piping Rock.
#15.  The 200 yard par 3 15th at Timber Point.

[Joe Bausch]

Our series concludes today with the last three holes:

#16. The 355 yard par 4 16th hole at Timber Lake.
#17: The par 5 17th at Garden City.
#18: The par 4 18th at Lido.

(click on the article to expand it for easier reading if your browser doesn't automatically do so)

[Dónal Ó Ceallaigh]

A nice series of articles Joe.

It's a pity that the newspapers of today don't do something similar now and again.

Dónal.

[Tom MacWood]

Three holes each from Lido and Timber Point, two courses that are essentially gone, although the 15th at TP still exists.

[Mike Cirba]

Timber Point, like Shawnee, Cobbs Creek, Essex County (East), and probably very few others, is one of the classic courses that today could be fully restored to it's original glory because ALL of the original land for the golf course is still available.   

Like Shawnee, an 18 hole course was turned into 27, which only goes to prove that bigger does not necessarily equate to better.