Pound Ridge Golf Club – Played August 2014
- Rankings: None of the four lists
- Location: 18 High Ridge Road, Pound Ridge, New York
- Year: 2008
- Architect: Pete Dye & Perry Dye
- Course Access: Public
- Walking Rules: Carts Available
Score Card Information:
- Black: 7,165 yards, Par 72, 76.1 Rating/146 Slope
- Oak: 6,773 yards, Par 72, 73.8 Rating/142 Slope
- Granite: 6,261 yards, Par 72, 70.4 Rating/140 Slope
- Sand: 5,653 yards, Par 72, 67.6 Rating/128 Slope
- Pine: 5,151 yards, Par 73, 64.5 Rating/112 Slope
I was in the New York City area for one of my college roommate’s wedding. I figured the best way to spend some time before the event would be to play some golf. I had Bethpage lined up for the day after the wedding so I did some researching on where else to play. I had seen a write up on Pound Ridge in Golf Magazine and Ashley Mayo’s Instagram. I liked what I saw. I played the course with my new buddy Danilo of NY/NJ Golf on Tumblr (publicbirdies on Instagram) and a friend of his. Danilo and I had conversed before my trip and were looking forward to teeing it up.
Pound Ridge is about 35-40 miles from where I was staying in the city. I thought it was funny that I crossed into Connecticut and back into New York before I got there. I definitely thought the GPS was leading me astray. Per the website, the course features some of the highest points in the region providing some great views. In addition, the course has stay and play deals with many hotels in the city. Being a Pete Dye course, I knew I would be in for a tough day. There were plenty of teeing options though, a trademark of Alice Dye, that were marked by suggested handicap ranges. We decided to play the Granite tees and all the distances are from those markers.
Hole 1 – 380 yards – Par 4
The course starts off with a medium length par four. I nice fade up the middle works well.
The approach shot must deal with the large bunker on the right side of the green. Just like the tee shot, working a fade into this green will set you up nicely.
The green is very large with a ridge running through the middle of it. Knowing where the flag is located is critical to playing the correct shot.
Hole 2 – 413 yards – Par 4
The second is a more stout hole. It plays a little uphill and fits either a fade or draw.
If you miss right the approach shot is intimidating.
The green is another large one with plenty of undulation.
Hole 3 – 369 yards – Par 4
This hole gives you options off the tee. You can hit a ling iron for position or bust driver to have a shorter approach.
The green is well guarded with bunkers all around. Be careful when aiming.
The green is narrower than the first two but has plenty of slope.
Hole 4 – 139 yards – Par 3
This is a good little hole. There is danger right and a smallish green. It is best to block out the bunkers and focus on the flag.
You can see what I mean about the small green. Also, with this hole location, the landing area is very narrow.
Hole 5 – 290 yards – Par 4
This is a great strategy hole. It is definitely reachable, but it favors a draw. Faders may want to lay up to their favorite wedge distance.
As you can see below, plenty of bunkers were placed to catch offline layups or attempts at the green. Direction is very important on shots into this green.
The putting surface is a bit wavy and could afford for some tough pins.
Hole 6 – 162 yards – Par 3
It was windy the day we played, which made this hole pretty difficult. Also, the narrow, raised green doesn’t help make it any easier. The best miss here would be short of the green.
Here is a shot of the green from just in front.
Hole 7 – 480 yards – Par 5
This is a beautiful hole with the stone-walled hazard. A good drive can get you home in two so just pipe one down the middle.
The second shot favors a cut.
Here is a shot from a little over 100 yards. The green is slightly raised and obscures the player’s view a bit.
The green is large with plenty of slope. There are also some tightly mown runoff areas as you can see in the foreground of this picture.
Hole 8 – 374 yards – Par 4
This is a solid hole. Not everyone will need driver, but there is plenty of room out there if you want to hit it.
The green is relatively flat for what we have seen so far.
Hole 9 – 521 yards – Par 5
This seemed like a tough driving hole to me. The further you hit it the more pinched the landing area became. I just hit something 200-220 yards off the tee since I knew I probably couldn’t get home in two anyway.
That strategy does leave you with a long, tight second shot.
The green is considerably higher than the fairway and requires precise distance control.
The green slopes from back to front with some ridges running horizontally. It looked to be receptive if you were trying to get on in two.
Hole 10 – 340 yards – Par 4
This hole plays considerably downhill. We didn’t realize how much as I accidentally hit into the group in front of us. I had no idea the ball would carry as far as it did. Everything was ok after some apologetic waves. You will also see some of the raised bunkers that I have seen in write-ups of the Dye Course at French Lick.
The approach also plays downhill and features danger left.
Here is a shot of the putting surface from the ground level. It is pretty flat.
Hole 11 – 181 yards – Par 3
This hole requires a well-struck mid or long iron. The green is very wide, so take note of the hole location.
Check out the photo below. I thought this stone wall was a cool feature. It surrounded three sides of the tee.
Here is a more zoomed-in view of the tee shot.
As you can see this is a large green. This angle is from the front and left side. It looks deep here, but it is wider. It really sets up diagonally to the tee.
Hole 12 – 337 yards – Par 4
This is a fun, short hole. The sensible play is to hit something out there 200 yards or so and have a short iron into the hole. That is what I was trying but tugged the shot a bit.
Here is the approach shot. Left is dead, that’s all the strategy you need.
Here is a shot of the green from the front side.
Hole 13 – 448 yards – Par 5
I thought this hole was a bit quirky, but not in a good way. None of us had played the course before so we were a little confused on what exactly we needed to hit.
The second shot is a little more conventional. It features trouble on both sides.
The approach plays to an elevated green. Long or left misses make for tough up and downs.
Hole 14 – 379 yards – Par 4
This hole gives you a big landing area and encourages you to hit the big stick. The carry can give you some worry, but a well-struck shot will be fine.
Here is a photo of the green from about 30 yards out.
Hole 15 – 144 yards – Par 3
I would say this is the signature hole at Pound Ridge. The rock outcropping is unique and the tee shot is all carry to a narrow green. All around, this is a cool one-shotter.
See what I mean about the green. Shots to back pins must be nerve-wracking.
Hole 16 – 493 yards – Par 5
This hole is reachable depending on the winds. Lace a draw out there.
Here is the second shot. Needless to say I was laying up.
The third shot plays to an uphill green. If you are too far left the tree seen here will come into play.
The green has a big false front you can see in the left side of this photo. You definitely want to make sure you carry your approach deep enough onto the green.
Hole 17 – 396 yards – Par 4
This tee shot is framed by the trees on each side. A solid drive is necessary here to set up a nice approach shot. Any shot too far offline will run the risk of some tree trouble.
The second shot is pretty straightforward. You have to negotiate a greenside bunker, but that is about it.
The left side (closer) of the green has much less slope than the right. We had a much easier pin for our round.
Hole 18 – 415 yards – Par 4
Well, Dye is not going to end on a whimper. This hole requires a good tee shot to a raised fairway. As you can see, you do not want to miss left.
The approach has a hazard and bunker to the left. Any misses will need to be short or right.
Here is a shot of the green. Misses to the right will have to negotiate the slope seen here.
Here is another shot of the green from the front that shows some of the undulations.
Pound Ridge was a fun golf course! I would definitely say that, like many courses, it would help to play it a few times. For a public course, it was in great shape and offers a lot of challenge. If you find yourself in the area or live in the city, I would suggest checking out Pound Ridge. Make sure to account for traffic, however! I missed the wedding because the 30-minute ride to the course took four hours back. Luckily, my buddy was cool and we got to celebrate with them at the reception. Good thing I wasn’t a groomsman!!!
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