I ended up getting out there on a Super Tuesday as a rewards member. I would never play it for $250 but $70? I couldn't say no to that. The course is really challenging but fair, the conditions are second to none that I've played in New Jersey. Greens are quick and roll true, fairways, bunkers and fescue are in perfect condition. Just an incredible golf experience. read more

Ballyowen Golf Club - Golf Near Me - Hamburg, New Jersey

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Overrated and way overpriced. Bunkers were dirt (no sand). Greens were bumpy, slow and inconsistent. read more

Solid layout for the golf course, but seriously lacking in many basic areas and 100% doesn't warrant a price tag of $200pp or more. I played here some years ago and it was a gem. Seems ownership/management has let things slide for the past few years, because this was not what I would call one of the top rated public courses in the area. A few comments: 1) Golf carts (Club Car) were like a thing of the 1980's. Gas powered, old, rickety, noisy as heck and almost no power. I thought it was just my cart, but nope, it was the standard for all the carts. I haven't seen golf carts in this rough condition on some of the worst golf tracks in America ever! Then, beverage holder on both sides of cart were cracked, all our carts arrived dirty as heck and felt like I was in a 3rd world country in the cart. 2) No sand on carts. So while they ask you to replace divots, there are many occasions where divots get obliterated and you have no sand to repair the damage. The course had giant divots all over the place because of this. Then, no towels in carts, no club cleaner, no GPS, nada. 3) Cart paths - the cart paths are in serious need of either completely new asphalt or at least immediate repair. Just about everywhere we drove, there were pot hole, ruts and damage all over the place. 4) Starter and other staff - the restaurant staff and the pro shop staff were very kind. However, we went to the starter booth, and the guy barely spoke with us, growled at one of my buddies for asking a simple question and then started working on his own game with practicing chipping in the short areas (can't make this stuff up!). He then starts waving around a clipboard which had his tip money prominently displayed just to encourage us to leave a tip for him. Starter was rude and a really bad look for the course. 5) No tees, ball markers or water at the first hole or anywhere else. I know this is a public course, but at $200 pp, would be a nice touch. 6) Greens - bumpy, slow and inconsistent. Again, either laziness or someone not knowing how to maintain the greens. 7) Dining room - great food and service for lunch, but had a woman affiliated with the club who was doing a presentation on a clothing line very close to our table and killed any sort of ambience for us and was droning on and on about what the latest golf fashions were. Very inappropriate place to conduct this sort of thing. Sad for me, because I always had such great memories of Ballyowen. 6) As we're pulling up for our tee time, we see a massive group going out for a shotgun tournament. I'm thinking the MUST be starting after we start, but turns out, they put us out at almost the exact same time as the shotgun. I asked the pro shop if we could get out earlier and the answer was no. Had I known, I would have booked a different time. We had 3-4 group waiting on many of the par 3's which is just unacceptable. read more

The place to play golf is very well care and located in a beautiful location close to mountains the scenario is amazing.the staff cheerful and professional. Plus the food at the restaurant is delicious read more

Driving up to the clubhouse you can see that the course is a links type course. It is an impressive layout! I went on a Monday morning and it didn't have a ton of people. This is an awesome course with very nice people running it. It was $95 for 18 holes plus a cart on a weekday which isn't bad. This is rated as one of the best public courses in NJ and I would whole heartedly agree. It is a challenging course too with a lot of hills and tough pin locations. Make sure to bring extra balls because you will definitely lose a bunch. I will definitely be back. 5 stars all the way. read more

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Nice layout but there is plenty of room for improvement. I know it has rained a lot lately but for the money, they should be raking the traps. Most were not tended to, including heresies traps, and were packed down like cement. Others had piles of sand in them that had not been raked out. Really? No GPS on carts. No rangers. Only helped make for a very slow round. I get you want to be a links course but a few tweaks would make for a much more enjoyable round Had lunch at bar. When I asked what the sandwich came on , I was told "bread." Asked what type. Not a clue. Nice driving range and practice areas but they need to up their game for the prices they charge. Everything seemed a bit off. A shame as a few little things would really help make it worth the money. read more

What a beautiful difficult golf course out in the way yonder. We drove an hour or so out of NYC for a charity golf event to enjoy a cool day playing golf. The hilly golf course had high grass or fescue that surrounded the fairways. There was hardly any trees or water hazards. If your ball was not in the fairway, it was buried in the outer part of the fairways and nowhere to be found. I would love to play this course again when we are not playing in a tournament. read more

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We recently had our wedding at Ballyowen golf club. The first time we ever saw the venue, it literally took our breath away. When you pull in, There are rolling hills and beautiful views surrounding the cocktail room and the reception building. I think the views are what sold us on the venue. Overall we were very happy with our wedding. Our guests raved about the view, as well as the food selection during cocktail hour. One of our guests even said it was the best they've ever had at a wedding. The team there (although we had our doubts when we first booked) Was beyond our expectations. They filled all our requests, and went above and beyond. Louis was phenomenal. He was the maître d' for our event, and I highly recommend him. Silje, The event coordinator at Ballyowen was also really great to work with. She was super organized, and always answered emails (even when I asked her 100 questions!). The venue isn't for everyone. I specifically wanted a venue that wasn't a typical ballroom. I wanted something with an outdoor component, that did not share the space with another wedding in the same day. Ballyowen hit all those checkmarks for us. Over all it was the best day of my life, and we are so happy we chose this venue to host. read more

The course, bag drop staff, the beverage cart staff and restaurant were exactly what I expected. The starter, ranger and pro shop staff were are some need customer service and relationship skills. read more

The Ballyowen is a beautiful place. I celebrated my cousins wedding here and the pictures came out beautiful. It is hot especially in the middle of the summer. A nice spot to have an outdoor wedding or celebration. I have to say if you are coming south from here it is a little difficult to find so make sure you have the right directions. Food was okay. read more

The sand traps on this course as of August 4,2021 are worse than municipal courses. The are so bad that you have to take your ball out of each trap on the entire course. I had a ball out of the sand trap on the par 3 15 th hole on Ballyowen to with in 10 feet of the flag . Pure concrete. All this for nearly $ 100 . The traps at Wild Turkey are just as bad . Top Golf Course - you are kidding . read more

My bf held a fundraiser here and rented out the entire course. Grounds are amazing. Staff is very accommodating - pleasant to deal with and very concerned with our happiness on this weekend. Food was good as well. Going back next year and looking forward to it! read more

Gorgeous course! This is the nicest public course on NJ. Costly but well worth it. I play here a few times a year. Great pro shop too. read more

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Hot hot hot! There's absolutely not place for the sun to hide. Thank goodness for the coolers filled with cold water and the ice cold beer truck. The course is tough. The grass is long and tough and the minute it goes out to the tick filled grass areas, your ball is silly gone. I lost about 6 or 7 balls. The bag piper at the 18th hole is awesome. read more

Course was in decent shape in the fairways, but my issue lies in the fact that the greens were freshly aerated within about a week or so and were bumpier than most sub-par municipal courses. If you go on there site it claims "Aeration completed for season" and that's about it. But for $195 it's unacceptable to not have a putt roll flat. Cart could barely make it up half the hills at the course. We were rushed to start a few minutes early because they were "jam packed" and I understand not starting late but I shouldn't feel rushed teeing off before my tee time. Although I think they want to portray a fancy course it's massively overpriced for what it is, they pack in too many groups into the schedule (and put it on the players to rush to keep it moving - and never works). And for the price it's a shame to be playing and can't even get a good putt. For the same value as a guest price at most high end private courses there's many other public options out there in the area that are far better value. I could play Berkshire Valley, Bowling Green and still have enough money for a drink.... And also have a smooth roll on my putts. read more

The crown jewel of the 7 courses at Crystal Springs Golf Resort in New Jersey, Ballyowen has been ranked as the best publicly-accessible course in the state (one might think this would be a backhanded compliment, but next time you fly into Newark, look out your window and you'll see the state is COVERED in golf courses) and second only to Bethpage Black in the New York area. I'll have to admit, the prohibitive greens fee ($110 for a weekday morning in the summer), distance from New York City and a previous bad experience playing the Crystal Springs course in the complex (too many artificial quirks) kept me away, but recently felt like treating myself. Some tips: 1. Bring an extra layer and don't trust the NY weather. At over 50 miles from NYC, at least an hour plus drive without traffic, Crystal Springs resort is in foothills of the Catskill mountains in Northern NJ. Expect the temperature to be at least 5 degrees cooler and plan for stiff winds. 2. Bring extra balls. This is a links-style course with no trees, but water on 5 holes and long, deep fescue close to the fairways. Given the number of forced carries, dog-legs and blind shots, you're going to lose some balls. The fescue is even deeper and thicker than Tallgrass, another links-style course at the east end of long island. Even if you find your ball, you're lucky to get a decent punch out. The second cut of rough is not picnic either...there's a big advantage to playing this course regularly and knowing where to play. 3. Take advantage of the putting green. Greens are large and receptive, but require an accurate aerial game, are undulating and wicked fast. A two-putt from outside 10 feet is a success. Overall, I really enjoyed my round, despite the difficulty of the course (130 slope, a bit over 6500 yards from the regulation mens tees) and cost. For local players, the Crystal Springs rewards program and repeat play offers (they offered me a $165 rate for two rounds if I returned this year) make the course is a pretty good deal for its quality. In addition, the course is well-monitored by marshals who keep the play moving along and the drink/snack cart comes by at least a couple times on the front and back. Still, I'd have to take a star off for a few drawbacks: 1. Found the Irish theme and outfits a bit hokey. This is a golf course, not a theme restaurant. 2. Because of its reputation, the course gets a lot of play and it shows. Pins should be rotated more actively as I found the greens quite scuffed around the hole (not using this as an excuse for my lousy putting). 3. Because it's a resort course and there are so many blind shots, I found the lack of GPS in the golf carts/minimal yardage marking on the course difficult and slowed play. 4. Have to agree with Tomas B. about the driving range, which is only good for warming up. In my case, it was closed in the middle of the day for maintenance. Not helpful. read more

Two Years later it still gets 4 stars but for different reasons.... Still great facitlity inside and out course was in fantastic shape... Private like prestine fairways and fast undulating greens. Super nice staff , free range balls though range could use a bit of a clean up... Downside even with Rangers EVERYWHERE... who were nice and helpful, there was absolutely no urgency to rush the 2 foresomes ahead of us which caused our back nine to be an unbelievable 2:40 Minutes while the front was 90 Minutes.. Sorry but 4.5 hours is not an acceptable time frame to complete a round of golf.. PICK IT UP AND MOVE IT ALONG Course itself was top notch but something has to be done about pace of play on public golf courses ... I can understand if it was a inexpensive Muni Track but with price tag of $130.00 .... This should not happen. read more

Great track fun layout. Water and bunkers are many. The facility should improve it's practice areas and try to keep the bunkers raked. Lots of elevation changed read more

Ballyowen Golf Club - Golf Near Me - Hamburg, New Jersey

Nice course in excellent shape, but didn't live up to the hype. I played Wild Turkey 2 days prior and it was a much nicer course. I enjoyed the links style here, but it wasn't as challenging as I would have expected. read more

Ballyowen Golf Club - Golf Near Me - Hamburg, New Jersey

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REVIEW IS SOLEY ON THE WEDDING HALL IN BALLYOWEN Had a wonderful time at a wedding here. Beautiful scenery, can not beat the view. I loved How everything was in one location, the actual wedding and the reception. The waitstaff was very, very friendly. The food was decent.. I absolutely love this venue and if I lived closer would love to be married here one day. read more

A beautiful setup spoilt by an over used course that is poorly maintained. Everyone knows Ballyowen to be one d the best public courses in NJ. However, the greens are beaten from use, the bunkers are full of rocks and the staff do a poor job of maintaining a pace of play. A gorgeous setup that reminds me of home but again, the course itself is is ruined by a general lack of maintenance. read more

I'd give Ballyowen 4 stars for difficulty, but I will say for the record that there is ABSOLUTELY NO WAY this course is worth the $135 a round they get at the high point of the season. I played this course for the first and only time in late April 2016 (before the rough and gorse were fully grown out - the rest of the course in good condition, however) and got a great afternoon deal of $45 for my round. That said, despite being mid-week and playing alone, it took me far too long to play as I got stuck behind an incredibly SLOOOOWWWW foursome and just ahead of a twosome I eventually joined. The rangers did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about trying to speed up play, which itself is rather amazing considering the thugs they hire to work at their sister course, Black Bear off Rt. 23. As I mentioned above, the course is somewhat difficult due to its many unusual design features, the topography of the land it sits on and the way they do let the rough grow out (think of Scottish and Irish links courses and you get the idea). Ballyowen somehow has acquired a near mythic reputation as being the toughest course open to the public in New Jersey (and certainly one of the most absurdly expensive) but all I can say is that while it was in good shape for when I played, the lack of any attempt to regulate pace of play made for a very aggravating round and convinced me that my one foray to this course would be the first and last time I bothered despite having the Crystal Springs Rewards Membership. I am not originally from NJ and it never ceases to amaze me how NJ golfers (like their counterparts on the roads) are some of the most inconsiderate people in this part of the country. The minute you politely ask someone to pick up the pace, you get an attitude or an outright suggestion that you should go and perform an impossible anatomical act on yourself. The folks I played behind at Ballyowen were no different, were mediocre golfers at best and had ZERO business hitting from the back tees. For me, my one round was like having a tooth pulled without benefit of anesthesia and the course's management left much to be desired. All I can say is that playing public golf at any of the Crystal Springs resort courses makes a great argument for joining a private club if you can afford it. read more

We had a great time playing even though we were behind a slow foursome and blamed for a slow pace of play. Thx to Joe the starter/ranger for smoothing things over. read more

My daughter booked her wedding at the Ballyowen. The wedding was cancelled and we were told that if the venue was rebooked for the same date we would receive out deposit back. The date was book within 2 months, however they kept $1,000 of our deposit. I feel this was entirely to much to keep. We were told it was for paperwork since the didn't lose any money this was not good business. Therefore, I just told two future brides booking a venue not to use Crystal Springs Resorts. read more

Unbelievable - I've been playing in and around NYC for more than 20 years, and can't believe I just found Ballyowen! Easily the most beautiful, championship level course open and easily accessible to the public in tri-state area -- if you're tired of trying to get on the Black Course, try Ballyowen and you won't be disappointed! The staff is friendly and helpful, the prices are good and the links course is world class - what more could you want! I made my next tee time as soon as I finished playing - can't wait to get back. read more

NJ gets a bump rap, but with the skiing, hiking trails, biking trails, Delaware River, and golf courses you are missing out if you don't "get" why we're called the GARDEN STATE!!!! With that being said ....get outdoors. You can't pick a 'bad' golf course and Ballyowen is tops! They offer a "9 and Dine" on Thursday nights. $45 gets you 9 holes, a cart, dinner and prizes. A great way to play the course without spending a fortune. read more

Played Ballyoween last weekend and was very dissappointed in the overall services. Spent 140 for the round, was 85 to 90 degrees out and had no water on the course whatsoever. They were very gracious to sell water at $3/bottle. In addition, they booked a wedding for the afternoon and closed down the pub and locker rooms for the event. Golf course was in average condition. Just a shame that you sepnd that kind of money and get poor quality of services. read more

Second best public golf course in New Jersey- not first because Atlantic City Country Club went public. Links style where wind always effects play even on a hot summer day. Great layout, good condition and just a very nice golf experience. read more

Had a great time as a novice golfer with our Fore Caddy Liam! Will return in the Fall!

I guess it's been the hype over the years, but this course is flat out overrated. It is a links style which is not my favorite, the holes are just not that interesting. Any errant ball is lost in fescue. Also,even though there has been no rain lately the entire golf course was soaked. I am a 8 handicap that takes divots and w ground that wet could not control ball. Not one ranger to speed up play. The other annoying thing playing from 6500 golds, the holes were either really really short. Or really really long. Target golf. Hole 1 4 iron/pw. Hole 2 is 250 yard par 4 hole 3 less than 500 par 5. I won t be back. Especially at full price. But if you really like links golf this is a must play. I prefer the likes of Royce brook architects and the nicest golf course for 100 miles..... Jack Frost national read more

The Mind Reader Where do I start when writing a review on my mind-reading friend Luis? He was the silent, hidden star of my wedding day. Every step I took and every thought I had, it was like he was reading my mind. Before myself, or my husband had a chance to worry about something, there was Luis, reading our minds, and handling "it". Whatever "it" was... "I think I need ice in my drink or my Aunt Betty is getting a little too tipsy and should probably have a seat for a minute".... Luis HANDLED it before we even uttered the words. Everyone tells you on the morning of you're wedding, "All the planning is done, there is nothing left to worry about, things may go wrong today, and if it happens, it'll all be ok". Etc. As a bride, you NEVER stop worrying about everything being perfect. Unless, of course, you are working with Luis and HIS crew at BOGC. These statements are in fact 100% true. You don't have to worry at all! Best Maitre D EVER! 10/1/2016 Wedding read more

Nice course but the staff was unprofessional. I was playing with clients and the older Irish gentleman who was working at the starting gate yelled and was very aggressive. I will not play here again. read more

One of the nicest and well-kept courses I have ever played. Very challenging, but still fun. If you are in the area definitely make a tee time. Great practice facility. read more

WEDDING REVIEW: I am reviewing the wedding service at Ballyowen. Just recently had our wedding there and the entire day was amazing. The setting is just breathtaking and the service was incredible. Everything from the initial contract signing to the end of the night was just so easy and so much fun. The food was amazing, everything was set up perfectly, and nothing was missing. What a wonderful place to get married. Thank you Julie, Silje, and Luis for all your help to make the day wonderful. read more

This is a wedding venue revue: Maître d' was so rude to the guests. By far the nastiest wedding venue I've ever encountered. He was present throughout the whole affair and consistently harassed the guests, gave attitude, and was openly rude to his staff in front of guests. He was invasive and made himself part of the wedding; not 1 picture I took didn't have him in it. The cocktail hour was so hot, it did not have air conditioning after an outdoor ceremony on a 90°F July day with men in 3-piece suits, women in gowns. To be fair, the hors-d'oeuvres were good, but we were barely "allowed" to eat before we were rushed into the other building for the reception. The maître d' made sure to be rude to us instead of asking us to move to the next building, we were curtly reprimanded to LEAVE the building. That building had air conditioning, but the music was so loud. The DJ did not adapt to the size of the room and blew everyone's ear drums out. Most guests stood outside all night, some left because the music was too loud. The food was terrible at dinner. I took samples of everything and could not eat anything it was so bad. This place is a very poor excuse for a luxury resort, Ballyowen being part of the larger Crystal Springs Franchise. We also had a miserable stay at the Minerals Hotel during this trip, which is covered in a separate review for that facility. read more

This is NOT a GOLF review- I had a great round of golf, but then ate there and boy was that a mistake. I contracted food poisoning! The annoying thing about Crystal Springs resort golf is they make it actually impossible for you to call the course directly, at first I just wanted to report what I ate so they could get rid of it, but on has will let me speak with a supervisor. However I have do deal with their call center people. Nightmare read more

The course was beautiful and in good condition. It's a typical Links course so you better be accurate off the tee or bring lots of balls. The traps were terrible; no grooming at the start of the day and then rain made it worse. Unfortunately we went out as a twosome and waited on EVERY hole for a slow playing foursome. The ranger did nothing to speed them along even though they espouse a 4.5 our round. Our forecaddy was a nice kid but provided little advice on the course other than managing our putters. Restrooms on the course are portajohns! All in all, not worth $135 to play this course. read more

My experience after golfing has been great food and service in the restaurant!! Golf course is pristine and surrounding mountains make the view even more beautiful. read more

This review is for Ballyowen's wedding venue... Positives: -A great value. Nowhere else we visited offered the same quality/amount of food for a similar price. -Grounds are beautifully maintained. The rustic simplicity fit our style perfectly. -Silje, the wedding coordinator, is professional, calm and responsive. -Renee Lee, the hotel block coordinator is also professional and responsive. Our welcome boxes were distributed free of charge (some hotels charge a fee to hand them out). Negatives: -The rehearsal for our Saturday night wedding was scheduled for 5:30pm the Friday night prior with dinner to follow at 8pm. Nine days before, we were told that our rehearsal had to be moved to noon because another wedding booked. Silje compromised on timing with us for 3:30pm. We were frustrated because a groomsmen's brother attended that Friday night wedding and was invited to it months prior. We understood that Ballyowen pushed our rehearsal in order to make $$ but we should have been notified of the change MUCH earlier. -When we attended a wedding at Ballyowen prior to our own, I noticed that the handicapped stall in the women's bathroom leaks quite a bit. I informed Julie that this was a huge safety concern. She told me she didn't see the leak and therefore nothing was fixed. The toilet was still leaking during our wedding. -Our guests booked 43 rooms at Minerals Hotel. The discounted rate for August 2015 was $207. Breakfast was not included and was quite pricey. One of our guests found bloody underwear in their bed. Certainly not the "value" that our reception was... -I spoke with Frank the transportation coordinator and let him know that we needed shuttles for 125 people minimum. He assured me that he would reserve the shuttles that day and that it would be handled. On the day of, some of our guests were shuttled in good quality white shuttles, others were transported on the light blue Mountain Creek SCHOOL mini bus. Not the end of the world, but shouldn't have happened. read more

I was married at Ballyowen 3 years ago and go back every year for our anniversary. This place has the most breathtaking views. Owen's pub is a great place to relax, reminisce and enjoy great food! Always feel so welcomed by the staff, especially Louis and Julie who made our wedding day so special. I highly recommend Ballyowen for anyone planning an upcoming wedding. read more