Frear Park Municipal Golf Course, Troy, NY

Frear Park Municipal Golf Course is a very solid course with a historical feel. It officially opened in 1931. The course sits on a 247 acre park on land that was donated by the Frear family to the city of Troy. The course expanded to 18 holes in 1964. It’s been under new management since 2017, and they have improved the maintenance and hired more staff.

The course is split up by two large lakes - Bradley Lake and Wright Lake. Other than those, the course is light on hazards. Holes 1-6 are on the left of the lakes, Holes 7-18 are on the right of the lakes. The distance between #6 and #7 is quite long, so I wouldn’t recommend walking this course. Watch out for the water to the left of the tee on #11, and to the right on tee #18.

The golf course has nice views of the Hudson River Valley and Albany, NY. It was actually awarded best golf course by Hudson Valley Magazine in the early 2000’s. The fairways are a medium width and generally straight. There are 3 tees to accommodate golfers of different skill levels.

Here’s a few tips on what to watch out for. Hole #7 (431 yards from the blue tee) has a sharp dogleg right. Watch out for a thick clump of trees behind the green on Hole #4 (357 yards from the blue tee.) It might take a bit of trial and error to figure out which clubs to play, since the fairways are long but with an uneven slope. Greens play slow.

You’ll find a Pro Shop, putting green and pub on-site. There is no driving range. The pub is a great spot to spend some time for the 19th hole. It also has a historical feel, opening a few years after the golf course in 1935. Try the famous peanut butter and jelly wings.

Since it’s a multi-use park, you’ll sometimes run into groups doing other sport activities. One of the holes backs onto a softball green, so it’s not uncommon to have balls flying onto the green if a game is going on. I’ve also seen groups using the cart trails for power walking. Not a deal breaker, but just something to keep in mind.

Green fees are $28 for 18 holes. You can also buy a yearly membership (these are 30-50% cheaper for City of Troy residents.) Pace of play can be slow (5+ hours.) Overall, this is an enjoyable municipal course that accommodates players of all levels.

This golf course has undergone a great rebirth. It is now in excellent condition with new personnel maintaining the course.
If you haven't played the course in a few years, give it another try!

This course is awful. It's beautiful in April and gets worse as the year goes on. They do no maintenance whatsoever. Often the fairways look like rough and the rough looks like pasture. Its a tough course because the conditions make it so. One hole's right rough doubles as a softball field's right-center field and slicers will find their t shots landing in beer league softball games. I've never finished a round in under 5 hours there either, the pace is painful.

there are some holes with beautiful views of Albany and the Catskills