Worldgolfer's Golf Course Reviews

Designer: John Van Kleek (1929)

Location: Staten Island, New York

History: Silver Lake was designed in 1929 by John Van Kleek and is owned and operated by New York City.

Conditions: 5/10, Conditions at Silver Lake are similar to other NYC munis, with slower greens and patchy fairways and teeboxes.

Value: 7/10, Silver Lake offers good value, with rates routinely under $50 to walk 18.

Scorecard:

Tee                     Par         Yardage         Rating          Slope

Black                 70           6304               70.4              119

Blue                    70           5709               67.5               114

Silver                 72           5324                71.2               123

Hole Descriptions: Located in Staten Island, Silver Lake is one of fourteen municipally-run golf courses in New York City and in the middle of this group in my opinion. Built on a compact property, this design is short, tight, and hilly, with lots of quirk and an old-school feel. The course’s greatest strengths are its land movement and greens while it suffers with conditioning and poor pace of play like most courses in NYC. My biggest critique of Silver Lake is that it feels “tired” and in major need of some TLC, with green shrinkage and tree overgrowth taking away strategic angles and suffocating the corridors. If the City ever put money into conditioning and renovated the course, it could actually be quite good, but I doubt this will ever happen. As it currently stands, Silver Lake is a viable and affordable option for Staten Islanders, but isn’t a course worth traveling to see otherwise.

The course opens with a dogleg right par 4 playing downhill from an elevated teebox. This is not a long hole at 355 yards, but it demands accuracy with a fairway bending to the right the entire way and tall trees down the right. This approach runs back uphill towards a back-to-front sloped green defended by a left bunker.

The 2nd hole runs parallel to the 1st and back the opposite direction as a 363 yard par 4. This hole is fairly open off the tee but runs uphill the entire way, making it play longer. Bunkers flank this narrow, back-to-front sloped putting surface that contains a central hump.

Although it says the par 3 3rd hole is 235 yards from the Black Tees, it has usually been closer to 200 yards when I’ve played. This downhill one-shotter contains a slightly raised green with both short and left fall-offs and rough surronding it.

After several straightforward opening holes, the 4th is a much tougher and more interesting hole as a 384 yard par 4. Featuring a completely blind teeshot over a hill, this is a dogleg right that bends this direction at around 240 yards with trees down the right. The second half of the fairway slopes downhill with a speed slot, offering extra distance to longer hitters. This putting surface is quite dramatic, playing back-to-front with three tiers and is defended by a large left bunker.

The 5th is a somewhat wild hole as a short 480 yard par 5. With another completely blind teeshot, this hole plays steadily downhill with a snaking fairway lined by OB left the entire way. With a good teeshot, this hole is readily reachable in two, but those laying up will need to be wary of a pond down the right for much of the lay-up zone. This green contains multiple plateaus and slopes back-to-front with a right bunker.

After a bit of an awkward walk down the hill and past the pond, you reach the 6th hole, an 158 yard par 3. This is one of my favorite holes at Silver Lake, playing straight up the hill towards a shallow, diagonal green that slopes back-to-front. Despite the short distance, this green is a small target with big penalties for those whose misjudge the slope.

The 7th hole is another quality offering as the shortest par 4 on the course at 316 yards. From an elevated teebox, this hole plays over a valley to an elevated green that’s potentially reachable for long hitters. Those playing conservatively off the tee need to be aware that the fairway slopes severely left-to-right, often leaving an awkward lie or pushing you down the hill into the right rough. Like the previous hole, this flatter green is somewhat of a tabletop, with steep slopes of rough on all sides for those who can’t control their distance.

The 8th is one of the tougher holes at Silver Lake as a tight 396 yard dogleg left with OB down the left the entire way. Golfers tend to bail out to the right here due to this OB, making the 4th green just to the right of this fairway a dangerous place to putt. This green is fairly tame with two bunkers built into the right hillside.

The 9th is another solid hole running along the edge of the property at 379 yards. This par 4 again plays as a slight dogleg left, with tall trees down either side of a narrow fairway also lined by a right bunker. This elevated green slopes mildly back-to-front with bunkers on either side and a false front short.

Beginning at the top of the hill near the clubhouse, Silver Lake’s back 9 occupies the southwestern part of the property over flatter land. This nine is the longer and more difficult side, but plays a bit more straightforward with fewer blind shots or quirk. It opens with the downhill 394 yard par 4 10th, which runs parallel to the 1st. From an elevated teebox, this teeshot plays to a wide fairway that stops abruptly with a diagonal creek at around 255 yards. This creek and marshland extend for about 75 yards, making this a forced lay-up off the tee for longer hitters. This approach plays over the hazard to a small green wedged into the hillside that tilts towards its front left.

The 11th hole plays over another hazard as an 168 yard par 3. This is a pretty forgettable hole but the green does contain a significant swale on its left half.

At 409 yards, the par 4 12th is the most difficult hole you’ve seen so far as an uphill dogleg right. Tight and tree-lined the entire way, tree overgrowth down the right has made this a very awkward teeshot, as anything but a high fade will probably hurt you here. This approach continues steadily uphill towards a back-to-front sloped green lined by a left bunker.

The 13th is the longest hole at Silver Lake as a 563 yard straightaway par 5 sandwiched between several other holes. Playing significantly downhill on the teeshot, golfers must thread their drives through a tight chute of trees on either side. The remainder of the hole remains rather narrow but straightforward until you reach an elevated green tucked into the corner of the property. This is probably the best green on the course, featuring two distinct back-to-front sloped tiers and a front swale leading to some very difficult putts.

The 14th hole is easily my least favorite on the course as a sharp 327 yard dogleg left par 4. With tall trees down the left for the first 170 yards that prevent you from cutting the corner, this tight fairway turns hard to the left at only about 160 yards with OB for those who run through the fairway. Unless you can hit a really hard hook, this teeshot is likely a lay-up, leaving you a longer than anticipated approach into a flatter green lined by a short right bunker.

The 314 yard 15th hole is another short dogleg par 4, but a much better one giving the golfer options. Featuring a forced carry of at least 160 yards over a hazard, this hole moves to the right with tall trees down the left side of the fairway and water continuing down the right. Long hitters who can hit the ball high can get close to the green here, but the majority of golfers will be laying back and trying to find the fairway. This elevated putting surface is another excellent and memorable one, with mounding along both edges that pushes the ball towards the center.

At 216 yards, the lengthy 16th hole is the final par 3 on the course and plays over level terrain. This is a straightforward hole without danger and features a wide, back-to-front sloped green containing a central hump.

The 17th is honestly my favorite hole on a rather messy back 9 as a 382 yard par 4. Playing straightaway along the edge of the property, this hole features OB down the right the entire way and some nice fairway movement including a plateau followed by a speed slot. This elevated green is large and on the flatter side, but features fall-offs on all sides for those who misjudge their approach.

Silver Lake closes with a deserving number 1 handicap as the longest par 4 on the course at 416 yards. Playing tight with trees down both sides and OB right, this is a very intimidating hole that runs uphill the entire way and plays longer than the scorecard. This approach usually requires a club extra to a large green that tilts from back left-to-front right. Par is a great score here.

General Comments: You’ll be starting off cold here, as there are no practice facilities on site. Like other New York City courses, pace of play can be downright brutal.

Verdict: A typical NYC municipal course, Silver Lake features some fun land movement and greens, but falls into many of the pitfalls of other City courses with poor conditioning, tree overgrowth, and slow pace of play. This is a viable option for locals but not a course I’d recommend traveling to see.