Without a doubt my favorite public golf course in the area, the beautiful Howell Park Golf Course is truly a gem. Located in Howell Township across from Howell High School, the course is immaculetly manicured and absouletly gorgoues. From the moment you tee off to the last putt you sink, you will see this is one of the best courses around. The course is owned and operated by the Monmouth County Park System, but it truly feels like a private club. The course measures 6964 yards from the backs and is rated 73.8 and has a 128 slope. The course is quite challenging with a mix of strong par 4's, long par 5's, tough par 3's, and fast undulating greens. The 2nd hole is a long challenging par 5, requireing a great tee shot to score well on the hole. Other tough holes on the front include the 202 yard par 3 4th hole, the 547 yard par 5 6th, and 206 par 3 8th, and the 440 par 4 9th. Notable holes on the back include the 221 par 3 13th (argueuably the toughest hole on the course), the 539 par 5 15th, and the 451 par 4 18th. The course is set in a rustic setting making for a wonderfully scenic and beautiful round. The course has great facilities including a great driving range, a short game practice area, and a large, beautiful putting green. Only real complaint is that there is no restaurant on site. Otherwise, Everything else is great. Overall I rate it a 4.5 out of 5. It is also great value for such a good course.
I recently returned to another local Neptune course, The Shark River Golf Course. I have not played here in a while, so i figured why not give it a try again. The course is owned and operated by the Monmouth County Park System. The course is nothing special. Designed by Scottish golf pro Joesph "Scotty" I'Anson in 1901, the course has a very slight scottish feel on some parts of it. From the blues it streches to 6507 yards with a rating of 71.8 and a slope of 127, and from the whites it streches to 6170 yards with a rating of 69.8 and a slope of 126. The course is a par 71. It has a few tough holes here and there but overall it is not scenic, nor does it present a great challenge. It is a perfect course for the seasoned citizen, the high handicapper or the beginner. The course appears to be hard through the first three holes, with a dogleg left 421 yard par 4, a dogleg right 405 par 4 with high fescue and a large fairway bunker on the right, and a 185 yard par 3 that is somewhat protected. From there on the course really does give you great chances to score with short par 4's, staright away par 5's, and a couple of nice par 3's. The course starts to pick up again at the 15th, a slight dogleg right, uphill 405 yard par 4. From there you have two hard holes left to deal with coming at the 16th, a dogleg left 431 yard par 4, and finally the 18th, a sharp dogleg left 580 yard par 5, not comonly hit in 2. The course has no special ammenties, just a snack machine and a putting green. Overall I would rate it a 2.5 out of 5. Rates are very resonable for residents of Monmouth County with a county card. For non-residents and non-cardholders that rates are not very reasonable, and I would not reccomend it.
The private Jumping Brook Country Club, located in Neptune, NJ, is a local favorite of mine. The course strecthes 6,573 yards from the back tees and has a rating of 73.0 and a slope of 138. The course is a true gem. Designed by the famed architect A.W Tillinghast, and his assisant Willard Wilkinson, it is a true test of golf. Looking out over the first hole, you say in your head "perfect, a nice short par 4 to get off to a good start" but be prepared this hole is not easy! Once you hit the green the real fun begins. The local legend of the club is to never be above the first pin and its the truth. The green slopes severly from back to front is lightning quick, usually leading to a lot of three put bogeys. Once you get off the first the green the fun only continues. #3 is a 210 yard par 3 with the tee shot going over water. The 7th is long par 4 that seems to always seems to play into the wind. Most members see this as the hardest hole on the front nine. The front nine goes out with back to back par 5's that are both very tough. Once you make the turn the course starts to ease up a little, but beware it can still bite! The 12th hole, a short par 5, very reachable in 2 is another green that sees a lot of three putts. The 13th is a 212 yard par 3 that must travel over a brook. It is without a doubt the hardest par 3 on the golf course. The course comes in with the hardest hole on the golf course, the monsteruous 18th hole. It is a long uphill par 4, that also plays into the wind a lot. Par is a tremendous score on this beast. There are places to score on this course though, coming at holes 5, 6, 10, 15, and 17. The club itself is a beautiful club. It is small and does not have many members, but their members respect golf and the course. They are all very nice people and a pleasure to talk to. All the employees at the club are grascious and freindly. The only real complaints about the club is the warm up range is not the best. Overall I rate it a 4.5 out of 5. If you play here you will truly enjoy the experience!
