Review: Brigantine Golf Links (Part 1)

Sometimes, you have to acknowledge reality. Sometimes your golf game isn't where you want it to be, but you're going on a trip soon and you know you'll have some time to play a round. Do you pay a hundred dollars to play the good course, then get super angry the whole time because you're struggling to break 100? Or do you go to the cheap, less difficult place where you know you won't care so much? That's the situation I found myself in as I headed to Atlantic City in early April for a bachelor party. I knew I'd have time to play, but my round at the Woods not even a week earlier had gone so badly, it just felt silly to spend upward of 75 dollars to play one of the multitude of good courses in the vicinity. I wanted golf, but I didn't want to break the wallet doing so.

And that brings us to Brigantine Golf Links. This is a housing development course, full stop. There is no hole where the playing corridor isn't lined with houses. Interestingly, this is one of the first housing development courses ever made, dating back to the 1920s, though the course was closed during the Great Depression and reopened in the 1950s. Maybe not quite as historic as Atlantic City Country Club over on the mainland, but it's something, right? Just be prepared to see lots of houses in the pictures.

The first hole is a short and gentle par 5, doglegging gently around a pond that never really comes into play. A gully cuts across the fairway about 150 yards from the green, but unless you're stupendously long or very short, it won't come into play. The green isn't exactly big, but it's not small either, and there are no bunkers around it, only gentle mounding. I imagine quite a few people walk off this hole under par, it's really quite easy.

The first hole. I told you there would be lots of houses.

Approaching the first green.

The first green.

The short little flags were one of my favorite things about Brigantine.

The second hole is a fairly short par 4 that is significantly less wide open than the previous hole, though you can't quite tell that from the picture. There's a native area just left of the fairway, and the long pond that crosses in front of the tee reaches much of the way down the right side. If you can, a drive down the left side is preferable, as the green -- guarded by bunkers long left and short right -- is angled to more easily accept shots from the left.

The second hole.

The second green.

The third hole is, at 210 yards, the first and longest par 3 at Brigantine. Water fronts the green, but it's far enough short that only a really chunked shot would go in. The two bunkers right and short left are more of a concern. The green is once again of a reasonable generous size, not too small but not overly large. Not a hole you'd expect to make birdie on, but not one you'd see too many doubles or triples.

The third hole.

The third green.

The fourth hole is a mid-length par 4 that is pretty simple. The one bunker on the hole is barely even in play, well short of the typical landing area. The green is average sized and has no trouble around it. Brigantine gets off to a pretty gentle start, with two decent birdie opportunities in the first four holes.

The fourth hole.

Approaching the fourth green.

Looking back down the fourth hole.

The fifth hole isn't a tremendously long par 4 at 405 yards, but it is the most difficult hole the golfer has encountered up to this point. The doglegs right between one fairway bunker right and two left, and it does so pretty close to the tee. A ditch crosses the fairway at around 300 yards, so that eliminates driver for the longer hitters. Even so, the ability to hit a fade is very helpful off the tee, as there are pine trees right that prevent the golfer from cutting the corner. If you hit a draw, you won't be able to hit much more than a long iron off the tee. The green also has one bunker right and two left. This is easily the toughest hole on the front nine.

The fifth hole.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is a 510 yard par 5, and is also the best hole on the front nine. The hole is reachable if you take a direct line, but that means cutting the corner of the dogleg, bringing bunkers and water into play. If you lay well back with the drive, it brings a series of crossbunkers about 100 yards from the green into play. Of course, the green is best approached from the left side, which is where the crossbunkers are. If you can go for the green in two, a faded wood or long iron will suit you well.

The sixth hole.

The group in front of me was letting me play through, so this is the only picture of the sixth I got from the fairway.

The seventh hole is, at 150 yards, the shortest hole at Brigantine. There are three bunkers around the green, but otherwise it's a pretty simple hole. The green isn't especially undulating and it's decently sized. Definitely a decent birdie opportunity.

The seventh hole.

The eighth hole is another mid-length par 4 that looks very simple. However, the direct line may not be the best option, as the bunker short right of the green makes shots hit from the middle of the fairway more difficult. To open up the best approach, the tee shot should be hit down the left side.

The eighth hole.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is yet another mid-length par 4, but this one plays ever so slightly uphill. There's a pond right, but a decently hit drive should easily get past it. The green is guarded by two bunkers left and one right, and has a fairly significant back-to-front slope. When you get to the green, you'll notice that this is the one spot on the golf course, other than maybe looking back from the first tee, that you can see the ocean.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

Despite being on a small island, this is the only ocean view.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.