Anglebrook Honored as Part of the “Modern Dream 18”

When we promised our members a season-long celebration of our 20^th anniversary in 2017, we had no idea just how interesting the festivities would get.

That June, the Metropolitan Golf Association identified the “Modern Dream 18,” featuring the best 18 holes built in the Metropolitan area since 1982—and that included Anglebrook’s par-three 13^th.

This was the biggest honor bestowed on Anglebrook since it was named the 16^th best course in all of New York State by Golf Digest in 1999—when the club was just a year old.

Anglebrook was listed on the cover of the June / July edition of The Met Golfer, the official publication of the MGA, and was part of a special experience when a VIP foursome played all 18 of those holes in one single day.

On an otherwise typical Tuesday afternoon at Anglebrook, the driving range was closed to clear the way for a helicopter to land, and not long after, VIPs from the MGA, the Golf Channel’s Matt Ginella, two-time MGA Player of the Year Joe Saladino and a few media members were whisked out to our 13^th hole. Three pars later, they loaded back into the helicopter and sped off to play another of the best holes in the Met area.

The lucky foursome started on the East End of Long Island, at Friar’s Head in Riverhead, teeing up at first light at 5:45 a.m. and finishing at Liberty National in Jersey City, NJ, at dusk. They arrived at Anglebrook after playing No. 10 at GlenArbor and left here to tackle No. 18 at Ferry Point. Anglebrook was the 11^th hole they played, and they used a helicopter, a water ferry and a van to accomplish this ambitious undertaking. The experience was later captured on a two-part series on The Golf Channel.

Although this was not part of the selection criteria, the Modern Dream 18—selected by a panel of 125 golf experts—consisted on six holes from Westchester, six from Long Island and six from New Jersey.

It was 35 years earlier, in 1982, that the original Dream 18 was chosen, and 25 years later, in 2007, another Dream 18 was selected. The Modern Dream 18 consists of five par-3s, eight par-4s and five par-5s, a composite course stretching 7,624 yards and playing to a par of 72.

“This was a celebration of an idea that bean 35 years ago at the MGA,” said Michael Sullivan, MGA President, and one of the lucky foursome to experience all 18 holes in one day. “We wanted to do it again to show everybody that we not only have the greatest classic courses, but the greatest new ones, too. With the way it was embraced so strongly by every club to promote the game and our courses and the people here in the Met area and what golf’s all about—we have something great here, and our mission is to make sure it will still be great for some time to come.

No. 13 has seen some interesting history in AGC’s first 20 years. It was there that PGA TAour player Stewart Cink hit a shot with each group as part of a corporate outing in 2001. This happened to be the day after Cink missed a chance to enter into a playoff with Mark Brooks and Retief Goosen by rushing—and missing—an 18-inch putt he thought would be inconsequential at the U.S. Open at Southern Hills in Tulsla, Oklahoma. Nonetheless, he was at nearly the next morning, keeping a commitment to one of his corporate sponsors.

No one dared to bring up the events of the previous day, but Cink took it upon himself to talk about it during a Q&A with guests afterwards, and had a remarkably positive attitude about the missed opportunity.

Another of the classic stories about the hole involves Roger Rulewich, who was Trent Sr.’s lead architect on site, who came back to play the course for the first time during our soft opening of 1997. He knocked his first shot into the pond, and re-teed. Sure enough, he put his next shot into the cup. “That was my first hole in one,” laughed Rulewich years ago, “and it was for par.”

Of course, when Rulewich first stepped onto the property, a three-story house built in the 1800s stood firmly where No. 13 is today. The home was razed, as was a silo where No. 12 is today, to make way for the course. Part of the house’s foundation makes up the steps you take to reach the black tee on No. 17.

So soak in the brief but fascinating history of Anglebrook—and live the dream of experiencing one of the most spectacular holes in the area every time you tee up.