Eye-Popping Greens At Forsgate

Scottish immigrant John Forster made many great decisions in his life. He founded Crum & Forster Insurance Company and made a boatload of money. He used some of it to buy 50 bucolic acres of farmland in central New Jersey and developed a dairy farm where he and his family and friends could escape the daily grind of Manhattan. The smartest thing he ever did, though, was buy some additional land and turn that farm into a challenging golf course designed by golf architect Charles Banks. Today, the Banks course is the gem of Forsgate Country Club, a private, non-equity club in Monroe Township, N.J.

The architect, known as "Steam Shovel" Banks due to his fondness for that particular piece of earth-moving equipment, created some of the most dramatic green complexes in the game for Forster's course. Sam Snead said in Golf Magazine that the Banks Course had "the most eye-popping greens" he had ever seen. The course has been upgraded many times since it opened in 1931, but the greens and their protective bunkers, swales, moguls, and fescue rough remain true to Banks' imaginative vision.

The course isn't long, 6,844 yards from the tips with a par of 71, but each hole is unique, making for a fascinating round of golf. Banks drew on his and Forster's favorite holes from other courses they had played around the world. Banks was also an associate of C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor, so many of their trademarks can be found on the course as well. The second hole, for example, is a 420-yard par 4 modeled after the 15th hole at Macdonald's National Golf Links while the fifth hole, "Punchbowl," a 417-yard par four, is a copy of the ninth hole at Hoylake, a fixture on many Banks, Raynor, and Macdonald courses.

The greens on Forsgate's Banks course are what you'll revisit in your dreams, though. I don't believe I have ever seen so many different ways to use tiers, terraces, ridges, humps, hog backs, false fronts, and other severe contours. While many courses have difficult putting surfaces, few of them have greens large enough to enable multiple--and fair--pin positions.

The par threes are truly unforgettable. The 216-yard third hole has a healthy ridge that effectively cuts the target area in half and forces you to challenge the deep bunkers on either side of the green to get close to the pin off the tee. Hole #7 is a true Redan and a real challenge at 216 yards.

Number 12 is a manageable 163 yards to a green completely surrounded by bunkers. It's called "Horseshoe" because the green incorporates a horseshoe-shaped ridge that circles the putting surface. The 17th hole is patterned after Willie Dunn's famous par three at Biarritz, France. This one features a long, narrow green divided in two parts by a chest-deep swale. It also plays 239 yards, so par is truly an accomplishment.

Forsgate is an RDC Golf Group property. The club also has a traditional course, the 6,625-yard Palmer Course, as well as family-friendly amenities like a fitness facility, aquatic center, tennis, and excellent dining options.

The practice facility and putting green are first-rate and you won't find a friendlier, more knowledgeable staff of golf professionals. They are led by Director of Golf Carolyn McKenzie Andrews. Also on staff are head pro Scott Barnaby and former PGA Tour and Nationwide player Bobby Gage.

Dave Donelson, author of Heart of Diamonds a romantic thriller about blood diamonds in the Congo.