INTRODUCTION Across the Hudson River from Manhattan, the Bayonne Golf Club is home to a waterfront golf course that is unlike anything this side of the Atlantic. Designed to rival the look and feel of the legendary links courses of Scotland and Ireland, this awe-inspiring course is the centerpiece of an exclusive club that has garnered countless accolades since its unveiling in 2006. By any measure, Bayonne Golf Club is a once in a lifetime opportunity to enjoy golf at its very best, just minutes from America’s greatest metropolis.
“I’ve had the pleasure of joining one of the most unique golf clubs in the country. The Bayonne Golf Club offers everything for passionate golfers of all skill levels: dramatic sweeping fairways, challenging greens and tawny fescue rough. The course appears as if it has been there for decades. And yet, it is absolutely golf as its purist, and I look forward to going more every time. Absolutely nothing was over-looked and nothing is forced, and that’s not easy to do. It is truly a special place, and I’m proud to be a part of it.” –Tom Bair, Member Publisher, Golf Digest
The Club/Membership By invitation only, private memberships are available for those discerning few — whether they are Manhattan residents, or national or international visitors — who understand the unique privilege of retreating from the city to golf, while keeping it all in perfect view. While every effort has been made to satisfy all membership needs, Bayonne Golf Club is primarily a club for the passionate golfer who enjoys the timeless joy of playing golf on a windswept links.
“The Bayonne Golf Club is in a class of its own. Eric Bergstol did an amazing job creating a links course minutes from Manhattan. It has been tried often in recent years to create a true links course in the US, but in my opinion never been done better. You have to see it to believe it, but you would swear the course was air-lifted here from Ireland. The Bayonne Golf Club is not only one of my favorite courses, but the overall experience is tough to beat. The facilities are really amazing, the staff is world-class and it’s easy to get to from anywhere.” –Tom Nolan, Member Publisher, Golf World
The Course Called the “most audacious golf course in the world” by Sports Illustrated, Bayonne’s links design pays worthy homage to the great seaside courses of Scotland and Ireland. Twisting and tumbling, the holes weave among the towering dunes like they do at Turnberry or Ballybunion. The unique waterfront setting not only lends itself to fresh sea breezes, but dazzling views of New York Harbor’s dynamic landscape and Manhattan’s iconic skyline. The challenging course has achieved international recognition from some of the finest publications.
“Though I’m based in London and Bermuda, I travel to New York for work quite often. Bayonne is the ideal place in which to be an overseas member. It is always a joy to include a few rounds with friends and colleagues during my stay in the city, and the ferry from Battery Park could not be more convenient.” –Ivan Blinoff, International Member, Financier
THE CLUBHOUSE Designed by an award-winning architectural firm, the clubhouse has exceeded its great expectations. Located high upon the dunes, the sprawling design stands sentinel on the property, casting a magnanimous glow over the links. Replete with a full lockerroom, taproom, library, outdoor veranda, there’s no shortage of options for post-round pints or dining. Wherever it is, the attentive staff make its members feel at home.
“I’ve found that playing golf at Bayonne is the perfect antidote to the daily frenzy of my life in the city. The club has done a terrific job providing a relaxed and tranquil environment where I can bring my friends for a great day of golf. Though separated only by a few miles, it might as well be a thousand miles from downtown Manhattan.” –Mario Batali, Member Restaurateur
The Golf Amenities Not to be overlooked, Bayonne’s members have access to multiple practice facilities and expert golf instruction. The club’s four acre short game area — a nexus of chipping areas, greens, bunkers and putting greens — lets members work on every type of shot from 100 yards and in. Lessons can be arranged with the club’s talented instructional staff on any aspect of the game.
“Having played many of the world’s greatest golf courses, and having the privilege of being a member of a few, I am proud to be a member of the Bayonne Golf Club from it’s inception. The finished product is extraordinary and unique and unprecedented for the New York area.” –Davis Sezna, National Member, La Quinta Golf Properties/ PGA West, La Quinta,CA
Access Members find access to this intimate golfing club incredibly convenient. Just 15 minutes from Manhattan by car, members can also touch down on Bayonne’s private helipad, or dock their own boats into the club’s private marina. By far the most civilized way to get to Bayonne is by club’s private boat — a scenic 20 minute ride to the course, passing the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island along the way.
“I live and work in lower Manhattan so the Bayonne Golf Club, which is visible from my window, can feel like my summer camp. I enjoy bringing clients and friends for a game whenever possible, and the ferry route through the harbor makes for the perfect beginning and ending to the day.” –Blair Fensterstock, Member, Fensterstock & Partners
BUSINESS ASSET East side, west side, uptown, downtown, Bayonne Golf Club members enjoy Manhattan’s fabled attractions: shopping, museums, sporting events, restaurants, nightlife, Broadway musicals...the options are endless. While members indulge in the world’s most dynamic city between rounds, they also place tremendous value on the club as a business asset.
Links Magazine, September/October 2008 “Even for the most jaded golfers — those who have stood over majestic bodies of water like the Pacific Ocean at Pebble Beach, Lake Michigan at Whistling Straits, or the Irish Sea at Royal Count Down — the view of New York Harbor from the 16th tee at Bayonne Golf Club elicits far more than a passing glance. Beyond the green of the 486-yard par 4 that tumbles from the elevated tee, past the Statue of Liberty and overlooking the cruise ships heading for foreign ports of call, the skyline of lower Manhattan offers one of the most memorable backdrops in golf, and you will want to linger longer on the tee box long after your drive has come to rest on the fairway.” Golfweek, 100 Best Modern Courses 2008 “On the waterfront, here’s a real contender. Golf impresario Eric Bergstol is the designer/developer/builder/owner of this private club with a golf-loving membership. The course sits on 7.5 million cubic yards of dredge hauled from the bottom of New York Harbor, then sculpted into dunes that look as if they were airlifted from Ireland. The contrast with the working industrial landscape of an active port makes for an unusual and powerful setting.” Sports Illustrated, November 2007 “The fairway on the 10th hole of the most audacious golf course in the world is nestled in a dell, a sanctuary lined with hillocks that are dotted with fescue and potentilla and juniper bushes. The caddie, Chris, says hybrid; the mind says Ireland. If golf is rooted in illusion — that man can master nature through a fivemile walk as he whacks a little white ball, that a driver resembling a toaster on a stick can add 10 yards and change your life — there is internal logic to the quixotic idea that a man named Eric Bergstol could take 7 1/2 million cubic yards of harbor silt, almost 10 years and $130 million, and create a work of golf and engineering and environmental art.” The New York Post, July 2007 “The place is dramatic, as unique a find as you’ll uncover in American golf given the dune-like mounding, the huge undulating greens, the views of lower Manhattan, both the Verrazano and George Washing bridges, the Statue of Liberty, cruise ships slowly milling in and out of the harbor and Staten Island.”
The Golfer Magazine, Summer 2007 “To the critics who insists it’s not a real links, who cares? That is irrelevant. Of course it isn’t by any strict definition (neither is Bandon Dunes or Pacific Dunes), but the heaving terrain offers an endless array of uneven lies, it drains like a sieve and because Bob Wolverton [course superintendent] let’s it burn to a crisp in the summer, balls bound down the fairways and onto the ‘fast kittle’ greens just as they would at Cruden Bay or Portrush.” Travel & Leisure Golf, January 2007 “A round at Bayonne can seem like Alice’s fall down the rabbit hole. The location — only four miles across the Hudson River from Wall Street — is unreal. Who would have thought that these 150 flat acres sandwiched between waterfront industrial parcels could have been transformed into such a fun rendition of an Irish links? Developer and architect Eric Bergstol fashioned a collection of golf-smart holes that twist and tumble through man-made dunes. Some holes are so compelling they overpower the competing visits of the Manhattan skyline and the Statue of Liberty.” Golf & Travel Magazine, July/August 2006 “Despite the fact it is man-made, Bayonne feels as if it was shaped the way most layouts in the British Isles were: by Mother Nature. There’s no better proof than in the strong winds that whip off the harbor most afternoons and onto fairways which are as undulating as deep-sea swells. Other hallowed features include plant varietals similar to those across the Atlantic, sand traps that looks as though they’ve been wrought by 100 years of ferocious storms, and quirky landscape elements, such as the mound in front of the green on No. 1 that completely blocks a player’s view of the pin from the fairway.” The Met Golfer, October /November 2005 “If you think you’ve seen everything in golf, let me just say this: You haven’t. Not unless you’ve seen the Bayonne Golf Club. There is nothing remotely like it. Correction: There are several golf courses like Bayonne, but they are on the other side of the Atlantic, adn they have names like Royal County Down and Ballybunion. They are links courses exposed to the wind and water, courses known for their towering sandhills, shaggy bunkers and wild heaving fairways. Bayonne Golf Club has all of the above — plus dramatic views of New York City.”
Local, national and international membership inquiries: golfshop@bayonnegolfclub.com www.bayonnegolfclub.com Bayonne Golf Club One Lefante Way Bayonne, NJ 07002 201.823.4800