A course like no other

Bethpage Black is renowned for being one of the most difficult golf courses on the planet. Ahead of the first tee, a bleak sign offers the ominous warning ‘The Black Course is an extremely difficult course which we recommend only for highly skilled golfers’. The statement and connotation of the name Black Course arouses all kinds of stressful mental imagery, as if veering away from the fairway here will be akin to hurtling down an expert ski slope. One little slip and you’re in danger.

The course is indeed lined with tight fairways, challenging bunkers, and enough slopes and contours to make any golfer nervous. In September 2020, Golf Advisor officially ranked Bethpage Black as #1 on their list of the ‘top 50 toughest golf courses in the U.S.’ This brutal reputation has often made the Long Island course an ideal location for a major championship. 2 U.S. Opens and a PGA Championship have taken place at Bethpage Black.

With the Ryder Cup now just days away, Bethpage Black will be in absolute peak condition to welcome the best players America and Europe have to offer. This is not going to be an easy competition to win, and whichever players come out on top will need to tame Bethpage just as much as dominate their opponents.

Each hole has been meticulously crafted to provide the player with both demanding challenges and strategic opportunities. The 4^th hole for example is a dogleg left with a multi-tiered fairway that’s split in two segments by a row of vicious bunkers. The 17^th hole is jaw-dropping sight from the tee, and with 5 bunkers circling the small green, there’s quite possibly more sand than short grass to land on.

The course is without a doubt as beautiful as it is threatening, but what comes with the course are the New York patrons eager to catch a glimpse of their golfing heroes. Back when Bethpage Black hosted the 2002 U.S. Open, the atmosphere was that of a football arena rather than a quiet golf course.

The New York Daily News wrote at the time “The real story was the crowds, the 40,000-something folks that walked over me each day…They were loud, funny, obnoxious and, at times, inspiring – basically, they were New Yorkers. It was Yankee Stadium and Woodstock rolled into a bold, beer-swilling throng.”

The players themselves have been living up to the hype and the immensity of the upcoming Ryder Cup. Justin Thomas wrote on social media “I think it’ll hands down be the biggest golf event ever” which is no small praise coming from the two-time major champion.

With another slice of Ryder Cup history eagerly waiting to be calved this weekend, we can only imagine how many eyeballs will be on the first player to tee off on Friday morning. If you’re playing golf yourself this week, we’re available to help you with your golfing needs in the shop.