Its 130 miles of beaches, boardwalks, amusement parks, and honky-tonk thrills have never gone out of style. From Perth Amboy to Cape May and in all 40-plus towns in between, summertime is fun-in-the-sun time at the Jersey Shore. And whether you’re heading to Bruce Springsteen’s old stomping ground in Asbury Park, tapping into the energy of adrenaline-fueled Atlantic City, digging the doo-wop in The Wildwoods, or enjoying the more laid-back lifestyle of Cape May, there’s good golf to be discovered all along the way.
Of course, if you can wrangle your way onto any of the area’s sweet private tracks—places like Hollywood Golf Club, Metedeconk National Golf Club, or Atlantic City Country Club—by all means, play away. But you don’t have to have friends in high places to experience high-quality golf on the New Jersey shoreline.
Keep in mind: that shoreline is a busy place in high summer, especially on and near the beaches. Roads leading to the shore are correspondingly busy, especially on weekends. You’ll need determination if you want to check out all the best courses up and down the strand. But if you’re just looking to augment your shore vacation with a local round (or two or three), the good news is that there are strong options within short drives of just about anywhere.
Here’s a list of a dozen Jersey Shore golf courses to check out, listed from north to south.
Pebble Creek Golf Club—Colt’s Neck
Don’t let the power lines that slice through this course put you off. Monmouth County’s Pebble Creek is a par-71, 6,325-yard, family-owned track that dates to 1996 and offers good playing conditions and a nice variety of holes and challenges. Hal Purdy, who designed many courses in the region, did the design work here, creating holes that wind through corridors of mature oaks and culminate at sloping greens that often have nettlesome undulations to contend with. The rough is healthy here (especially around those greens) so you’ll want to stay out of that—along with the usual strategically placed bunkers and water hazards to avoid. Colt’s Neck is home to some tony clubs, and this isn’t one of them. But you can enjoy golf there in the morning and hit the beach in the afternoon, and that’s what the Jersey Shore is all about.
Colt’s Neck Golf Club—Colt’s Neck
Not far from Pebble Creek, Colt’s Neck Golf Club offers an experience that’s a bit more upscale and a design that has many of the features and the feel of a Golden Age layout. The work of the design firm of Cornish, Silva, & Mungeam, this par-72, 6,455-yard course offers two different experiences on its two nines. The opening nine is a more wide-open affair, with tiered greens, deep bunkers, dogleg holes like the par-five 3rd, and risk/reward opportunities aplenty, as at the short par-four 5th. On the back nine, trees come into play more often (especially at the par-four 13th, where the green is tucked in a grove of tall oaks), as does water. In summer, the fescue grows tall here, too. Venture into it at your peril.
Hominy Hill Golf Course—Colt’s Neck
The third Colt’s Neck-area course to consider is Monmouth County-run Hominy Hill, site of the 1983 U.S. Amateur Public Links and 1995 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. A Robert Trent Jones Sr. design, Hominy Hill’s magic lies in its subtlety, and the myriad ways in which what appear to be straightforward holes can lull you straight into bogeys. The terrain here is gently rolling former farmland, so it’s not visually dramatic. But it’s a worthy test, as exemplified by the do-or-die, over-water, par-three 11th. From the tips, the course tops out at over 7,000 yards, so it’ll stand up to stronger players. But you’ll need a good short game—and a deft touch with the flatstick on Jones’s often flummoxing greens.
Eagle Ridge Golf Club—Lakewood
Eagle Ridge offers three nines—Ridge, Pines, and Links—that feature several large and cattail-rich water hazards, dozens of bunkers, and more trees than you could count (some of which you’re likely to engage with during your round unless you’re a consistently straight hitter). All three nines have a natural feel to them that’s a world away from the Shore’s bustling boardwalks, making it a welcome change of pace from the action at the shore. Of the three, the Dan Schlegel-designed Links nine is the newest, longest, and boasts the fewest trees. But the Brian Ault-designed Ridge and Pines nines don’t take a back seat in terms of the challenges they offer. Whichever nine you choose, play from the tips if you can—or at least go view from the holes from there, as they’re often nicely elevated or call for careful tee shots through chutes of sentinel trees.
LBI National Golf & Resort—Little Egg Harbor
Formerly known as Sea Oaks before it underwent bankruptcy and was purchased by a new owner, this Ray Hearn-designed track in the pinelands of Ocean County stretches to over 6,900 yards from the tips, but there are seven sets of tee boxes so players of any caliber can find one that’s suitable. There’s not a boring hole to be found here. It’s tree-lined, with sandy waste areas coming into play often, so you’ll want to hit it straight. But wherever you hit from, you’ll appreciate Hearn’s vision for each hole, and the way he shaped and contoured both the fairways (which have a lot of movement to them) and the greens (ditto). The par threes, like the 235-yard 12th and 200-yard 14th, are particularly memorable (and tough). The affiliated Inn offers nice accommodations if you feel like spending the night and having a nice dinner at a remove from the bustle of the Shore.
Vineyard National at Renault Winery & Resort—Egg Harbor City
Egg Harbor’s Renault Winery, located 20 miles from Atlantic City, came into being more than 150 years ago when Louis Renault left his hometown in Mareuil-sur-Ay, France and brought some precious, old world grape vines with him to America, where he realized his dream of producing fine champagne—so fine it was served at President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration. In more recent years, the vineyard expanded to become a full-fledged resort offering not just wine tastings but festivals, classes, culinary events, luxe accommodations, and golf amongst Louis’s treasured vines and the property’s orchards. The 7th tee is ringed by grapevines, but for the most part, the Ed Shearon-designed course from 2007 is pretty wide open. It certainly calls for strategy, though, as is readily apparent at the closing hole, a par five with bunkers and trees on the right and a round-wrecking pond situated right of the green. After your round, retire to the champagne garden and toast your birdies with a glass of Renault’s finest.
Ballamor Golf Club—Egg Harbor Township
Once a private club, Ballamor outside Atlantic City is considered one of the top courses not just on the Jersey Shore but in all of New Jersey. The work of Dan Schlegel again, its peaceful, secluded setting on 350 acres of southern New Jersey is one where no real estate developments (or power lines) will intrude on your round. The course tops out at over 7,000 yards and plays to a par of 72, but you’ll need to use every club in the bag and be skilled with all of them to scare par here. The drivable par-four 17th and reachable par-five 18th always give players the chance to save a good score, so finish strong!
Twisted Dune Golf Club—Egg Harbor Township
Twisted Dune puts a different twist on Jersey Shore golf. A links-style course where undulating fairways, fescue-covered dunes that pinch fairways, and deep, hairy-lipped bunkers are the chief challenges, it’s a course where you’d really need to hit it crooked to spend any time in the trees. From the tips, it’s over 7,200 yards, but one of the nice things about this course is that if you’re playing the appropriate tees, you won’t be reaching for driver off every tee. There are great moments everywhere. After the short par-three 8th, the 565-yard par-five 9th brings water into play on the left and has a dune the size of a lunar crater on the right. The drama just ramps up from there all the way to the 495-yard par-four 18th with its amphitheater green. Twisted Dune isn’t Ballybunion, but it’s as close to a links golf experience as you can come in these parts, and a fun diversion from its decidedly parkland neighbors.
Harbor Pines Golf Club—Egg Harbor Township
Just south of Atlantic City, Harbor Pines is a 6,800-yard, par-72, Stephen Kay-designed course that does everything big. It’s set on over 500 acres. You’ll have your choice of seven sets of tees (plus combo tees). There are 17 acres of water hazards in the form of 12 ponds to keep things interesting. And the greens are both large and undulating. One of the nice things about Harbor Pines is that only a few holes run parallel to others, so it’s a peaceful, secluded trek through the southern New Jersey pinelands. Some of the holes play tight—starting right at the opening par four, whose fairway is bordered by trees right and water left. There’s some creative bunkering, too, including the ribbon-bunker at the par-five 7th and a 170-foot-long sand monster guarding the par-four 17th. If you don’t get enough water and sand at the beach, you’ll find plenty here.
Blue Heron Pines Golf Club—Galloway Township
You will see pine trees at Blue Heron Pines, but its fairways are more often bordered by oaks and maples. Those fairways don’t tend to have a lot of movement to them. They’re generally flat. But many of the greens are elevated, and the green designs, courtesy of Stephen Kay again, are where this course shines. From the back tees, it plays 6,810 yards with a par of 72, so it’s a real golf course (there are five sets of tees in all). You’ll cross a road to get to holes 13–16, and they’re the course’s best. Water comes into play on several holes, including at the signature par-four 15th hole, which has water on the left all the way to the green and a large waste area on the right, making it a tough driving hole. Brandt Snedeker won the 2003 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship here.
Shore Gate Golf Club—Ocean View
Continuing southward, we come to Shore Gate, whose beautifully sculpted 7,200-plus yards wind through stands of tall pines, with water, rough-covered mounds, and waste areas providing not just visual interest but serious hazards to contend with. Ron Fream and David Dale kept the bulldozers busy to realize their vision for this course, and the earthmoving they did adds considerably to the variety, enjoyment, and challenges you’ll face on this track. The fairways often resemble a tumultuous ocean, while the yawning, white-sand bunkers (like the monstrous example that runs up the right side of hole 7) stand ready to swallow golfers along with their errant shots. It’s one of the most visually stunning courses on the Shore, and one with 18 holes that could all vie for signature status.
Cape May National Golf Club—Erma
The southernmost on the Jersey Shore, Cape May National puts nature on center stage, which earned the course its nickname, The Natural. The course surrounds one of the largest private bird sanctuaries in the state, so you’ll share the day with ducks, heron, osprey, hawks, and lots of other wildfowl. Its location near the tip of Cape May between the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean means that there are not just lots of migratory birds around but also ocean breezes to cool things down, even in summer. The par-71, 6,900-yard course is a mix of wooded holes and more open ones, with water hazards and marshland putting in regular appearances. There are a few blind/semi-blind shots along the way that add to the drama and keep you honest. The course’s finish is terrific. The par-three 17th is a gorgeous hole calling for a precise tee shot over a pond, and there’s more water on the finishing hole, where it borders the left side of the fairway all the way to the railroad-tie-fronted peninsula green.
