I stumbled across Stonebridge earlier this year when I began searching for new places to play twilight rounds after work. I knew nothing about it except that I could get to the first tee from the seat in my office in about 20 minutes, and that a Long Island golf map I picked up last year listed it as one of its “can’t miss” courses. So late in the Spring, I took the ride out to Smithtown and gave it a shot – and I’m glad I did. Of all the courses that I sampled for the first time in this 2008 “season,” Stonebridge has been my favorite.
Formerly the Hauppauge Country Club, Stonebridge Golf Links is a semi-private par-70 (members only on weekends) that weaves its way around a residential golf community sitting directly in the center of the club property. On some holes, houses are close enough to make you feel a little claustrophobic and impact how you play your shots, but overall, they do not play nearly as much of a role as do the large, often severely sloped or tiered greens, or the water hazards that make appearances on half the holes. The course is not long (6,200+ from the back), but it is a little tight in spots, and its quirkiness will steal a few strokes on its own. You’ll understand when you find yourself on the wrong side of a green.
LAYOUT:
Despite its name, don't head to Stonebridge expecting links golf. The closest thing to links that you might find will be cooking on a grill on one of the patios along the 10th or 16th fairways. If you're in search of something close to a traditional links layout, you'll have to look elsewhere. It is a tightly packed course, forming a rectangular perimeter around the development, with holes running side by side in close proximity to one another. Pockets of trees influence play on some holes and small ponds and streams cloud your judgment on others.
You open on a rather simple downhill par-4 that eases you into your round. You'll appreciate the soft start when you step up to the second tee. Hole #2, a 432-yarder named "Alps," gradually works its way uphill toward a slope that protects the approach to the green. But the tee shot on #2 can be a little intimidating. Two ponds sit in front of the tee, and while they won't come into play as long as you put your drive in the air, they do serve as somewhat of a deterrent. There is a thin line of trees on the right that can disrupt your second shot, and on the left, out of bounds is not too far from the edge of the fairway.
All those factors combine to
create a view from the tee (right) that is super narrow with trouble every
which way.
There are three par-3s on the front, beginning with the 4th, "Redan," where the pin is guarded in the front by a bunker and small stream, followed by a 7th hole -- "Biarritz" -- that measures 194 yards and falls off to the sides. Sand makes its most significant appearance on #9, aptly named "Sahara," where a series of bunkers await anyone who plays the short and simple downhill shot with too much finesse.
Knowing your way around a tricky green becomes vital after the turn. The par-5 11th plays straight out and wide open, but a hump running from front to back through the center of the green can turn an unfortunately located birdie opportunity into a string of muttered expletives. The double-tiered green on #14, elevated atop a mound, is followed by the shorter-than-it-appears 15th ("Short," formally) that features a green with a big bowl cutout in the center. "Hog's Back" at #16 is severe enough that a playing partner stopped me in mid-practice stroke to tell me my line wasn't even close to correct. "Course knowledge," he put it.
Water makes an appearance on about half the holes, but it is a major factor on #10, where the fairway curls around a pond and coaxes players to forgo a safer shot to the right in favor of the shortcut over the water.
CONDITIONS:
The greens at Stonebridge are not too speedy, but they are large, and many are a pain to deal with. Reading them isn't as frustrating as keeping your ball in the proper spots. It will take some time to get used to the ridges, humps, twists and turns. The houses, mainly on #2, #10, #14 and #16, might have no impact on some, but for others, they may be an annoyance and a turn-off. In some spots, a ball can be sitting in plain view no more than a few paces from the fairway, but will be considered out of bounds on private property. On the third tee, one can theoretically split the fairway with their 3-wood and high-five the neighbors on their patio, all in one motion, before heading up toward the ball.
Many of the holes at Stonebridge are designed with the characteristics of classic courses -- specifically the works of architects Seth Raynor, C.B. Macdonald and Charles Banks -- in mind. This can be seen mainly within the course's putting surfaces and complexes. With such distinct features on and around the greens, some holes can take on a completely different identity -- and require an adjusted strategy and approach -- with each change in pin placement. This gives the course an added dimension of playability, and makes it so that Stonebridge players must always be on their toes.
HOLE(S) TO REMEMBER:
Quirkiness plays a big part at Stonebridge, so much so that one worker I spoke to my first time around was downright giddy about it. "So what'd you think of #6 and #14?" he asked excitedly. "Fun holes, right?" Both are short par-4s (269 and 290 from the whites, respectively). You can drive the green from the elevated sixth tee, but the "Principal's Nose" -- a grassy bulge in the far end of the fairway, with a hump surrounded by three small bunkers -- threatens anything short and center. Get overzealous and pull-happy and you might find yourself in someone's pool. The 14th is short and harmless, but the two-tiered, elevated green can quickly cause fits of rage if you misplay a putt from the wrong level.
I also enjoy #3, a 322-yard par-4 with a green (right) surrounded on three sides by water and rolling mounds protecting the front, and #8, by far the longest hole at Stonebridge (555 from the whites). Ponds sit in hiding beyond the fairway on your tee shot and off to the left on the second shot, and a deep bunker guards the left side of an elevated green.
AREA(S) TO AVOID:
Until you've played Stonebridge a few times, it's impossible to know exactly where and where not to be. But as a quick guide, try to keep yourself on the pin-side of the 11th, 15th and 16th greens, and know the pin location on #14 before pitching up to the green.
Also, my suspicions were finally confirmed the last time I played -- the 15th is listed at 133 yards (white), but it plays much shorter. There is sand and then water behind the green.
OTHER NOTES:
If you've never been to Stonebridge before, look for the sign out front for ZZ's Grille -- Stonebridge's restaurant. It's easy to miss the entrance, and the fewer U-turns and quick merges you have to make on the busy 347/454 corridor, the better.
NEARBY COURSES:
Hamlet Wind Watch Golf & Country Club (3 miles)
Brentwood Country Club (4 miles)
Smithtown Landing (6 miles)
CONTACT:
2000 Raynors Way, Smithtown 11787
(631) 724-7500
www.stonebridgeglcc.com
SEE ALSO:
Ten-round special available at Stonebridge
This post was modified on August 17, 2009
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