Review: Neshanic Valley Golf Course (Lake Nine)

It's time to check out the Lake Nine at Neshanic Valley, go here to see the Meadow Nine. Also, since the course treats each nine as its own entity, I will do the same, so we're going to go one through nine again.

The first hole of the Lake Nine is 435 yards, which is on the longer side for par 4s, but as the hole plays dramatically downhill it doesn't feel quite that long. The fairway is pretty wide, but with three fairway bunkers left and a sharp slope leading down into a native area right, there isn't a huge margin for error if you are a bit wayward off the tee. The second shot is a short iron down to a green filled with broad undulations protected by two bunkers left, with the native area lurking off to the right.

The first hole.

Approaching the first green.

The first green.

The second hole is not a long par 4 at 360 yards, but it features a tee shot over a marshy native area to a fairway well protected by three fairway bunkers, with the marsh continuing to threaten right. Because the hole is not long, the best play is a 3 wood or long iron out to the wide part of the fairway out left; this will leave a wedge or at most short iron into the green. You'll even have a better angle that if you try to squeeze a driver between the bunkers and native area. So, no reason at all to be aggressive, as you don't gain anything from it. Play for par here and move on.

The second hole.

Approaching the second green.

The second green.

The third hole is a mid-length par 3 benched comfortably into a hillside. The green is fairly narrow and sloped from right to left, though the most noticeable feature of the hole is the large and very deep bunker covering the entire left side of the green. Missing right may leave you with an awkward stance on the chip, but if you're not confident out of bunkers, it's easily the better place to miss. It's a pretty simple hole, but a solid one nonetheless. 

The third hole.

The third green.

The fourth hole a long par 4 at 460 yards, and it's a tough one too. The fairway is generous, but with multiple bunkers right and a native area left, there isn't much in the way of wiggle room. To make matters more difficult, the last fairway bunker drastically narrows the fairway right at the point where many people will hit their driver. Of course, one could use a 3 wood to give yourself more space, but that really does turn this hole into a par 5.

Provided you do hit a solid drive, the second shot will be a long iron to a fairly open target. The green is large and slightly punchbowl-like, gathering slightly wayward shots and bringing them in closer. There's a bunker left, but plenty of fairway and open space right if you're looking for a bailout. I would say this is a good example of the Robert Trent Jones maxim of "hard par, easy bogey."

The fourth hole.

Approaching the fourth green.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is nearly 600 yards from the tips and routed straight into the prevailing wind, which was blowing quite strongly for us. No getting to this one in two. Obviously, the lake left of the fairway is attention grabbing, but it's not as in play as you might think; even a mediocre driver will get past it. What it does to is encourage you to play out to the right, which brings a pair of fairway bunkers into the equation. The smart choice is to ignore your instincts and favor the left side.

While there is no grand decision to make on the second shot, it does have to negotiate three large fairway bunkers scattered around the lay-up zone, so simply blasting away isn't a great idea. And while the green is bunkerless, it is far from an easy proposition. A swale of sorts eats into the left center of the green, and all the slopes feed toward it. Front hole locations are particularly tricky here, as the green slopes away, making it difficult to get even a wedge to stop close to the hole. The fifth isn't a hole for the thinkers, but there is something to do on every shot, which is something a lot of par 5s struggle with. This is no easy task and no birdie hole, so I do appreciate it for that, at least.

The fifth hole.

Approaching the fifth green.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is a mid-length par 4 that doglegs hard right around a large fairway bunker. The fairway turns about 250 yards out, so if you want to comfortably hit driver without worrying about running out of fairway, you do need to challenge the dogleg. Carry the bunker and you'll have just a wedge into the green, which is also bunkerless but does have a subtle front-to-back slope to it. A careful second shot, landing just short of the green, will work well here.

The sixth hole.

Approaching the sixth green.

The sixth green.

The seventh hole isn't a particularly long par 4 at 380 yards, but with bunkers down the left side and water lining the right, there isn't much room for error on the tee shot. Of course, since the hole does bend left, you can use driver to try and cut the corner, but that brings both the water and sand more into play, since the fairway is narrower the further you go. A 3 wood to the heart of the fairway is the safe play, followed by a wedge or short iron into the green, which has water right and a bunker short left.

The seventh hole.

Approaching the seventh green.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is a fairly long par 3 at 220 yards, and while the tee shot looks intimidating with the water right and short, it isn't quite as in play as you think. The small bunker right of the green is really the most important hazard here, as I'm confident not too many people overclub enough on a hole this long to find the back bunker. The green is tilted pretty sharply from back to front, so it's definitely beneficial to leave the ball below the hole.

The eighth hole.

The eighth green.

The ninth hole is not a tremendously long hole on paper, playing 525 yards from the tips, but on a rapidly cooling evening with a fresh wind straight into our faces, even a par 5 of modest length can become a long slog. The fairway is pretty wide, though there are three bunkers scattered around and O.B. left to catch big hooks. A good drive is vital in order to carry a strip of native area cutting directly across the fairway about 150 yards out from the green. Obviously, carrying 400 yards in two shots isn't usually a big deal, but in adverse weather conditions, even that can become difficult.

Once you cross the native area, the hole climbs dramatically, with two cross-bunkers from the right cutting in about 20 yards short of the green to give long hitters something to think about on their second shots. The green is medium sized and a bit lumpy, with bunkers short left and long right. In better conditions, I don't imagine this hole is tough, since it's very wide, but through in cold and 20 MPH winds and even this hole can wreak havoc.

The ninth hole.

Approaching the ninth green.

The ninth green.

Neshanic Valley is obviously a very different animal to Hendricks Field and has very different strengths and weaknesses. This is a beefy, broad-shouldered sort of golf course, whereas Hendricks Field is much smaller scale and ultimately easier. That said, I generally enjoyed them about the same; they're both good golf courses, but both lack something to really elevate them beyond that level.

In Neshanic Valley's case, it feels like a golf course I've played before. You could switch out a hole from a course like Worthington Manor or Dauphin Highlands and place it here, and it would fit in just fine. You'd never know you'd added in a puzzle piece from a golf course a couple hundred miles away, because they're all basically the same. A solid, pleasant modern design, not overly tricky but far from easy, somewhat lacking in pizzazz or charm. The whiff of upscale daily-fee "country club for a day" is strong here. Yes, it is a fairly affordable round – $75 with cart included isn't terrible, especially considering where Neshanic Valley is – and unlike the municipal courses closer to New York City, getting a round here wasn't an exercise in futility, but still, this isn't a course I'd go out of my way to play again. The golf here is good but relatively uninspired, with no real standout or memorable holes. You'll have a good round here, but not a great one.