Golf on Long Island - Much more than the Ryder Cup course

Long Island is a true golfer's paradise. In addition to Bethpage Black as the venue for the 2025 Ryder Cup, many other famous courses in the USA have their home here. These include Shinnecock Hills Golf Club - the venue for the 2026 U.S. Open - and National Golf Links Of America. However, both are classic private clubs, so you can only gain access via a club member. However, Long Island's golf repertoire also includes numerous public golf courses - with a bit of luck, you can also get a tee time here around the Ryder Cup 2025. More information can be found on the Discover Long Island website, and some courses are also represented on the GolfNow tee time booking portal. During the Ryder Cup, the four remaining courses at Bethpage State Park are also closed - but if you are traveling to Long Island outside of the Ryder Cup, you should definitely play the Red Course as well as the Black Course.

Bethpage Red - The underrated brother of the Black Course

In the shadow of the famous Black Course, the Bethpage Red is underestimated by many golfers - wrongly so. This Par 70 course, designed by A. W. Tillinghast, also offers a sporting challenge at the highest level. With lengths of between 5,686 and 6,921 yards over three tee boxes, the Red Course is a real test of strategy and precision. The very first hole is considered one of the most difficult openings in golf: a Par-4 up to 471 yards long, leading uphill to the green. As the course progresses, challenging doglegs, cleverly placed bunkers and small greens alternate - such as on hole 5, a 528-yard par-5 with a strong right-hand bend. The course runs through dense tree cover, which makes precise shots from the Tee essential. The second half of the course also shows its challenging side. Particularly striking is hole 13, where a central bunker landscape cuts through the driveland zone. On hole 16, a 565-yard Par-5 with an elevated fairway, the course once again demands length control and tactical skill. The final hole is reminiscent of the Black Course: a long dogleg with an elevated green framed by bunkers. Although the Red Course is somewhat more accessible than its famous neighbor, it is by no means easy. The course maintenance is excellent, the design varied and the price is extremely fair at under 100 dollars during the week.

Eisenhower State Park - Another major course

Just a 20-minute drive from Bethpage, near East Meadow, Eisenhower State Park offers three 18-hole golf courses, making it something of a "little brother" to Bethpage State Park. Residents of the state also have reduced rates at Eisenhower Park, but even for guest players the price level is very moderate at a maximum of 70 dollars - in some cases the cart rental fee is higher than the green fee. The most famous course is the Red Course. It was designed by Devereux Emmet in 1914 and hosted the PGA Championship in 1926. The other two courses, White and Blue, were designed by Robert Trent Jones.

If you want to play, you should book early

The public golf course Bally's Golf Links at Ferry Point, which has its own report here in the greenfeed, is also easily accessible from Long Island.

If you want to play golf during a Ryder Cup visit, you should book your tee times as soon as possible, as demand is already very high. However, many public golf courses only allow bookings five to seven days in advance - here you still have a chance to book at short notice. The following also applies outside of the Ryder Cup: if the golf courses accept long-term bookings, you should take advantage of this, as the renowned US courses in particular are much more in demand than many courses in Germany.