This course is in our GSPro library — pull it up in any bay and play it wall to wall.

"Confirmed in GSPro; huge draw for members who like the story that anyone can walk up and play the real course for a public-course price."

The People's Country Club. Built as a Depression-era public-works project and opened in 1936 — park superintendent Joseph Burbeck with A.W. Tillinghast consulting — the Black is the hardest of Bethpage State Park's five municipal courses, famous for the first-tee sign warning it's 'recommended only for highly skilled golfers.' In 2002 it became the first truly public course to host a U.S. Open; Tiger Woods was the only man under par. It has since hosted the 2009 U.S. Open, 2019 PGA, and the 2025 Ryder Cup.

Single-digit players who want the most democratic test in championship golf — a muni that has broken major fields — and anyone who believes great golf shouldn't require a membership.

The par-5 4th, with its glorious diagonal cross-bunker staircase, is one of Tillinghast's masterpieces; the 5th is an all-world long par 4; and the uphill 15th is where major championship rounds go to die.

Genuinely brutal: 7,400+ yards, thick rough, huge carries, elevated greens, and it's walking-only. The warning sign is not marketing. Beginners should play the Red or Green course and watch the Black.

In GSPro — one of the marquee sim courses anywhere, and freshly relevant post-2025 Ryder Cup. It's every bit as punishing on screen: long carries, penal rough, elevated greens. The perfect Clubhouse gauntlet for your best players; everyone else should take the front tees and no shame.

Public — it's a New York state park. NY residents get a booking window and pay far less; non-residents pay roughly $150-plus and fight for times. The legendary move is sleeping in the parking lot for a walk-up slot.