Ballyowen Golf Club

Ballyowen has a distinct Irish feel to it (except maybe the use of buggies), great layout, fescue-lined fairways and unmistakenly links-style features. Playing late November, the conditions were still awesome + a bit easier as the fescue was cut down for the off-season. The layout offers some great golf holes, with tough challenges but also some awesome risk-reward opportunities, e.g. with a strong drawn drive, you have only a short iron into the green on your second shot on the Par 5 #10. Miss the drive and you'll drop your knickers in disgust.
No wonder Ballyowen is ranked the #1 public course in NJ.

The course layout is amazing, and it comes with very good conditions. Perfect tee boxes, perfect fairways. The greens were rolling nice too. The sand traps could be better, but they weren't awful. Some had a gravel like material, some were basically dirt, and some had the pure white sand with hardly any rocks in them. They need to update their golf carts, but the place overall is amazing as always.

Let me start by saying the course itself was great. Outstanding conditions. The pro shop was very helpful. My issue is with the restaurant. I walked in after warming up expecting to grab a quick bite. There was a few guys around the bar and a table of 4 as soon as you walk in. The bar staff and waiter (4of them) at various times looked at me but never waited on me. Then a large group [more than 8] was seated and a 2nd table of 4. Still, noone waited on me. Finally a young lady came over and asked if I was helped, but I had no menu. She brought me an iced tea and apologized because they ran out of menus. So, not only was I not waited on but a minimum of 12 people behind me got menus. The manager came over with an armful of copied menus. She apologized for me being ignored and asked if I wanted something to go?? Really. I was sitting, waiting to order a meal for 1hr 20 mins and now I'm relegated to a to go order? Even the table of 4 behind me was shocked. This was to say the least appalling

Great conditions, challenging but not ridiculous. really pretty given the mountain setting. Not as far away as it seemed. Really happy I played.

Definitely one of the best public courses in the state. I'd put it in the same top tier as Seaview Bay, AC CC, Heron Glenn, and Architects as my favorite public courses in the state.

The layout is great, the conditions just as good. The course itself is pristine.

HOWEVER - no course is worth a round being 6 HOURS.

We tee'd off at noon on a Sunday. And we waited on every single shot, on every single hole.
The starter told us "we try very hard to keep everyone playing a 4.5 hour round". And there were 2-3 rangers out on the course, but they did absolutely nothing to enforce the pace of play.

I'd recommend playing the course if you never have before, because the course really is that nice. But try and do it during the week, and expect the round to not be less than 5 hours.

Ballyowen is a very good golf course that does not disappoint. It plays over varied terrain with nice elevations. A number of holes on the flatter part of the course play around two ponds, so it has a bit of a sterile feel but it looks nice and it isn't penal. Some of the holes pinch the landing areas on both sides with bunkers, which I don't really care for. The greens are large with broad slopes and ridges. The fairways are fairly wide. There is a good mix of long and short holes. The elevations and mounding cause some blind shots throughout. The course is nicely walkable except for many long green to tee walks. The course is well conditioned and in a pretty environment, although the greens had lots of ball marks when I played. Not sure why players here don't fix them more often. The par-3s are too similar- broad, shallow greens over water. A number of holes force good decision making off the tee with cape holes or risk-reward carry choices. Overall this is a high quality course.

This has been the best course I have played in all the years I have played. The water plus the bunkers and it being a links course was just a phenomenal site and it was a joy to play. Not to mention I shot my best round there as well. It was a fun experience and the staff and all the employees were as friendly as there could be. I would love to play this course again if I find sometime throughout the summer. It’s unfortunate that it’s not a full year course but the course to me was awesome and would love to play it again!

Ranks up there with the top 10, if not top 3, public courses in NJ. Pricey at peak times but deals can be found. Play the right tees and it can be a really fun day.

Ballyowen is a beautiful and fun course that is consistently in great shape. I played on a warm humid day when there hadn't been significant rain in the past several days. My experience is that they are liberal with the water in the summer to keep the grass healthy in the heat and that seems to still be the case. Conditions were very very good. Fairways were lush and in great shape. Greens were a little spongy but rolled true and at a nice pace (maybe 10-11 on stimp if I guessed) and when you have a downhill, downgrain putt it's easy to run by 10-15 feet.

The holes are generally surrounded by tall fescue that starts usually about 10 yards outside of the primary rough. It looks like they are having some issues getting this to grow as thick as I remember, which isn't a bad thing. When it's healthy, it's basically a lost ball, which is not fun. On the side of holes 12, 13 and 14 it looks like they had to totally replant it as the mounds there are almost barren. I'm sure this will grow in by the fall. I'd be fine if the fescue never gets to the point where it's impossible to find a ball. That's not how Scottish links courses are, and honestly, anyone who misses a 50-yard wide fairway and 10 yards of rough doesn't needs to be penalized by a lost ball. Let's just let that golfer find their ball and keep moving. The course record isn't in danger.

The design of the course makes it the most fun when the fairways and greens are fast and the ball can take the ample contours and undulations that are everywhere. Probably need to wait until post-Labor Day (and fall aeration) to see that.

It's not really a links design, and it's silly that they make the starter (typically NJ-bred thru and thru) wear a kilt. Don't worry about that, there are plenty of links-like mounds and hills that make for a really fun round for any skill level. Fairways are wide, and greens are large but usually with defined sections that reward hitting it close. Long putts tend to have multiple breaks over mounds and through swales.

Practice facilities are good with a nice grass driving range and huge putting green that allows for chipping. The putting green was paced similar to the greens on the course. The only complaint I have is that for $133 they should upgrade the range balls which were in pretty rough shape (as in Tin-Cup-driving-range-scene type of bad).

Overally it's a great experience. The course was prob 75% full and pace of place was great (4hrs on a 9:30 Thursday AM tee time). It's hard to believe you're only 1hr 15min from NYC. Beautiful views of NJ mountains and I'm sure are spectaculr during foliage season. In terms of bang for buck with a $133 weekday price tag, the value is average for the area. Worth a visit.

I booked a tee time for 7 Am this morning (Aug 4th). I arrived at the course at 6 AM and hit balls at the range and putted until about 6:45. I walked to the starter and gave him my name. I was informed that he sent the other 3 people out early and that I would be given a ride to meet them at the 3rd hole.
My tee time was at 7 AM so I was very disappointed that he sent the other 3 people out beforehand. Like I said I was there at 6 AM (60 mins before my tee time) and checked in with him 15 minutes beforehand. I don't understand how this could happen. I was very much looking forward to playing the course and I got up at 430 this morning and drove from Brooklyn, paying many tolls along the way.

I think this is a very nice and challenging course overall.

I can't understand how it is the #1 public course in NJ though- many of the sand traps are rock hard and have hundreds of rocks!! Lots of the fescue is dead and just plain dirt.

Some of the greens are really beat up but maybe that is just due to the fact that it is August.

Overall it is very nice and worth playing at least once but just a bit disappointed for the hype and cost.

Nice course and fairly challenging. Staff could have been friendlier in pro shop and restaurant. Sand traps were also very rocky.

About 30 minutes prior to my time. I saw 6-7 carts going off on the first tee. I proceeded to play a 3.5 hour 9 holes. They were very accommodating in the pro shop and gave me a 9 hole rain check as I left after 9. Absolutely awful.

Early April weather. A bit wet in the morning and temps around 40. Slowly warmed up to a beautiful day around 55-60. Some wind but nothing too crazy. Greens were in very good shape, rolled well and speed was decent. Not as fast as prime time summer but much faster than other courses this time of year. Pace was great, never pushed or waited on anyone.

we had a great time. weather was great. they paired us with a nice couple of young guys. lots of small talk.

Great course; Really beautiful lay out; Pretty steep green fees....however, I was surprised it wasn’t treated like a great course.
1) There were un-repaired ball marks on every green.
2) Big divets on every fairway.
3) The range balls looked to be 100 years old.
For the money, the experience should be a lot better.

Course was beautiful, one of the nicest in No.... greens were shaky but it was toward the end of the day so it was expected

Beautiful course and very challenging. It is extremely well maintained, one of the best I’ve seen. A bit of a far drive for those of us on Long Island, but well worth it on occasion. Would definitely recommend to anyone and would come back without hesitation. Now if only my game could match up!