Bear Brook Golf Club, Newton, NJ

What a shame this course has not opened this year. Just one of several courses that have closed

This is a very punishing course as other reviews have mentioned. Many of the fairways are narrow and if you are in the hazard, you either don't want to find your ball due to the lie or cannot find your ball - as such, you will take a lot of penalty strokes no matter what. Accept it for what it is, and enjoy the course. The only down side - other than losing lots of golf balls, is that the traps are not as well maintained as they could be and the fairways could be manicured better. In the coming years I suspect these will be corrected and this will become one of the best northwestern NJ courses. One point of note is that if you are used to playing the white tees at other courses, play the blue tees here.

As many previous reviews have said this is a tough course unless you approach it with respect. Apart from a few holes you could even manage without a driver, because so often you are better off laying up. This course needs to be played smartly, measuring distances, and avoiding the rough because the rough when we played in July was brutal. The elevation changes make yardages arbitrary anyway, so you need to take whatever club gets you in the middle and not blocked from the next shot. There are blind tee shots, sharp dog-legs, and sometimes narrow fairways with not much forgiveness, so take notice of the playing advice they offer on the website, talk to the pro in the shop, and think your way around the course. And take extra balls with you. When you have finished there is a nice bar and grill with good prices and very good food. Overall a great day out.

I played this course on a perfect Weds afternoon. The in-bound parts of the course were in immaculate condition. However, the surrounding out-of-bounds areas were a bit raggedy. Not that it matters because the amazing scenery took your eye away from it anyway. The greens were very true. If your good at reading putts, then you will be capable of conquering this extremely hilly course. The course is scattered throughout a complex of LARGE houses and offers 4 tees to play from. As a young and growing golfer, I found this course to have some challenging holes with tight fairways, and other holes as wide open as they come. I would definitely recommend this if you are in the North Jersey area (especially for only $30 w/ cart).