OT: Golf

[Filthy Dangles]

It's that season again, for an avid golfer on the island....

For fellow LI Golfers, has it always been this hard to get a tee time at Bethpage online? I swear it's rigged, it's almost impossible to grab a time using their reservation system. I am often releaged to playing at Eisenhower Park which kinda sucks compared to Bethpage, cause I can actually grab a tee time on their site.

 

[PWJunior]

It's that season again, for an avid golfer on the island....

For fellow LI Golfers, has it always been this hard to get a tee time at Bethpage online? I swear it's rigged, it's almost impossible to grab a time using their reservation system. I am often releaged to playing at Eisenhower Park which kinda sucks compared to Bethpage, cause I can actually grab a tee time on their site.

Before the first Open many years ago, my friend used to grease the Superintendent $100 to put him in the system at like 7:50 every Saturday one summer. It's hilarious how every group between 7:00 am to 8:00 am all had their own little system. It was the same group of guys at the same time every week, they called themselves the Long Island Player's Club. LOL.

One guy worked at the phone company and would block every call except his friend when you could reserve a time (7 days before), haha. Another guy used to offer his team of secretaries a bonus for whoever could get through first and they'd make the tee time.

When Bethpage got the Open and revamped the system, that hookup ended. Those damn bracelets from camping overnight. I hated having to sleep in the car and line up in those parking spots overnight. My dad used to make me do it to get him and his friends a tee time and I'd play the Red instead. Haha, memories. Miss my dad.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Before the first Open many years ago, my friend used to grease the Superintendent $100 to put him in the system at like 7:50 every Saturday one summer. It's hilarious how every group between 7:00 am to 8:00 am all had their own little system. It was the same group of guys at the same time every week, they called themselves the Long Island Player's Club. LOL.

One guy worked at the phone company and would block every call except his friend when you could reserve a time (7 days before), haha. Another guy used to offer his team of secretaries a bonus for whoever could get through first and they'd make the tee time.

When Bethpage got the Open and revamped the system, that hookup ended. Those damn bracelets from camping overnight. I hated having to sleep in the car and line up in those parking spots overnight. My dad used to make me do it to get him and his friends a tee time and I'd play the Red instead. Haha, memories. Miss my dad.

Sorry about your father, but those are some great anecdotes! This was after the 2002 or 09 Open?

I wouldn't be surprised if it's now rigged in other ways letting certain people in the queue earlier and what not. Maybe people are using scripts to grab times. I've tried so many Fri/Sat/Sun nights logging on at 6:58 F5'ing like a MF and still can't get a time before 4-5:00....

 

[PWJunior]

Sorry about your father, but those are some great anecdotes! This was after the 2002 or 09 Open?

I wouldn't be surprised if it's now rigged in other ways letting certain people in the queue earlier and what not. Maybe people are using scripts to grab times. I've tried so many Fri/Sat/Sun nights logging on at 6:58 F5'ing like a MF and still can't get a time before 4-5:00....

This was before the 2002 Open. Back then though, the Black was not THE BLACK yet.

Not sure what the system is now, but there were so many scams back then. It was crazy cheap too. As an LI resident, it was $35ish to play the Black. Add in the $25/each, $60 a pop to have a Saturday 7:50 tee time for a whole summer was amazing.

 

[islesmb]

I used to play the black all the time in the 90’s during my college years. Would show up at like 4:30 or so on a weekday and wait in line. I would usually get out in the first or second group of the day on the black. Good times.

 

[BKIsles]

Last summer I got to Bethpage at 4:30 Sat/Sun mornings to get early tee times. It was worth it, played all the courses. Multiple times we were the first group out on the Green, you can get that course done in about 3.5 hours if you get out early, a solid alternative to the Red. If you want to play the Red or Black this summer, I would recommend just getting there early, the Red is the hardest course to get on, savages get there at like 7pm the night before to get the first tickets in line.

Going back to online reservations, I was as only able to get a tee-time before 4pm once and my friends and I tried about 10 times. I don't know how they went so fast, assuming state corruption.

 

[Tres Peleches]

The Bethpage Back reservation system is WONKY AF.

Basically what I did to get on last year is the moment it comes on, I went on the page and kept refreshing it until a time I liked popped up. I think they kinda stagger release times to avoid bots taking all of the times, but idk for sure

note that when I did that the times randomly popped into and out of existence while doing it

 

[SCMURRAY]

Tee time system for all the state courses is junk. Have to just show up and get your name down. They say the same thing about Montauk

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Thanks for the respones, all helpful.

I realized why it's impossible to get a good time using the res. system. Any Joe in NYS can make a free acount and log in and only a fraction of the times are available online (majority are only available via walk up, which is good if you're local, don't want jergoffs from way out of town getting all the times).

I'm so used to Eisenhower, which requires you to have a Nassau County Lesiure pass to sign in and reserve times, and i'm 95% sure all their tee times are available online unlike Bethpage.

Waking up really early and walking up it is I guess....

 

[Tres Peleches]

Thanks for the respones, all helpful.

I realized why it's impossible to get a good time using the res. system. Any Joe in NYS can make a free acount and log in and only a fraction of the times are available online (majority are only available via walk up, which is good if you're local, don't want jergoffs from way out of town getting all the times).

I'm so used to Eisenhower, which requires you to have a Nassau County Lesiure pass to sign in and reserve times, and i'm 95% sure all their tee times are available online unlike Bethpage.

Waking up really early and walking up it is I guess....

I’m telling ya, at least try to be on the page AT 7 (or whatever time it is) on the first day you can book as a resident (I think it’s a week?). Keep refreshing the page and times might pop into and out of existence

 

[Filthy Dangles]

I’m telling ya, at least try to be on the page AT 7 (or whatever time it is) on the first day you can book as a resident (I think it’s a week?). Keep refreshing the page and times might pop into and out of existence

Yeah, it's a week in advance at 7. Can't tell ya how many times i'm logged in at 6:59 and F5ing for 30 seconds straight. A buddy got lucky once and got a 10:00 time, best i've gotten was like 2:30 a couple times, even that is hard to get.

I did notice Green and Yellow courses are taking reservations now in addition to Blue, so i'll have me and a couple buddies try each course separately.

Thanks again though

 

[Tres Peleches]

Yeah, it's a week in advance at 7. Can't tell ya how many times i'm logged in at 6:59 and F5ing for 30 seconds straight. A buddy got lucky once and got a 10:00 time, best i've gotten was like 2:30 a couple times, even that is hard to get.

I did notice Green and Yellow courses are taking reservations now in addition to Blue, so i'll have me and a couple buddies try each course separately.

Thanks again though

I’m talking about for a few minutes afterwards. I logged on and there was nothing

I sat there refreshing for 5 mins after and times kept popping in and out. Eventually I got a 10:00 am that way

 

[Filthy Dangles]

I’m talking about for a few minutes afterwards. I logged on and there was nothing

I sat there refreshing for 5 mins after and times kept popping in and out. Eventually I got a 10:00 am that way

I'll keep that in mind. I know once you click on a tee time on the webpage, it gets put into a 'hold' for 5 minutes until you complete the checkout/reservation. I've seen crappy times disappear/reappear, presumably people releasing them or letting those 5 mins expire because the time sucks, never seen a prime time do that though. but i usually log off after 1-2 minutes.

ill stay on a little longer next time, maybe i'll get lucky, thanks.

 

[Tres Peleches]

I'll keep that in mind. I know once you click on a tee time on the webpage, it gets put into a 'hold' for 5 minutes until you complete the checkout/reservation. I've seen crappy times disappear/reappear, presumably people releasing them or letting those 5 mins expire because the time sucks, never seen a prime time do that though. but i usually log off after 1-2 minutes.

ill stay on a little longer next time, maybe i'll get lucky, thanks.

Np. Good luck!

 

[Riseonfire]

<3 golf but have hardly played Bethpage. Played green with the wife this December when it was less than ideal temps, yet have never played Eisenhower.

Also while I’m here I need to vent. How the f*** can Long Island be a golf ‘hot spot’ and not have accessible grass ranges and short range practice areas without being a stuck up private club? Honestly I got better practice living in Brooklyn going to Marine Park than living near Merrick.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

<3 golf but have hardly played Bethpage. Played green with the wife this December when it was less than ideal temps, yet have never played Eisenhower.

Also while I’m here I need to vent. How the f*** can Long Island be a golf ‘hot spot’ and not have accessible grass ranges and short range practice areas without being a stuck up private club? Honestly I got better practice living in Brooklyn going to Marine Park than living near Merrick.

Most courses have at least 1 decent putting green and a little chipping green/area. I haven't been to any course that has a fancy pitching area with bunkers or anything though, if that's what you mean. And I doubt many public courses out of LI/NY have those either.

But totally hear you on the grass range, the fact that there's not one (at least public, that I know of) on the island is crazy. Hitting off mats and grass is night and day, mats could hurt your game. they let you get away with hitting it fat and don't really teach you to hit down with your irons.

 

[Riseonfire]

What does everyone here shoot?

Also what's in the bag? I'm a budding gear whore.

 

[islesmb]

What does everyone here shoot?

Also what's in the bag? I'm a budding gear whore.

When I was playing my best I had a handicap in the 1-2 range. That was like 10+ years ago. I did shoot 76 on a relatively easy course on Saturday. Currently I have Titleist T100 irons and Callaway Mavrik woods, Titleist TS2 Hybrid, Vokey SM7 wedges and a new Odyssey White Hot OG 7s putter.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

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