Ballyowen Golf Club has just been named as one of the Top 50 Public Courses in the US by Conde Nast's GolfWorld Magazine. Ballyowen has been masterfully sculpted out of the local landscape by renowned golf course architect, Roger Rulewich. Situated on 250 sprawling acres atop a plateau, Ballyowen is surrounded by rolling farmland and craggy knolls, overlooking the spirited Walkill River. Virtually treeless, with plush green fairways, Ballyowen reflects the Celtic-style characteristics of this most unique golf site.

The links-style layout provides golfers with a kaleidoscopic array of verdant fairways, pristine white bunkering, and wheat-yellow native rough grasses. Tee shots flow into unique valleys amidst towering mounds. Glimpses of surrounding golf holes recede and vanish as golfers meander from fairway to fairway. Interestingly, the 360-degree visual perspective is relieved only by play of the individual holes. The golf season is from May 1-December 31 weather permitting.

Created to satisfy golfers of every skill level, and rated "very good to excellent" by Zagat, Black Bear is a recreational golfer's paradise. Black Bear opened in July of 1996 and has enjoyed tremendous popularity ever since. Boasting a 6,673-yard layout co-designed by famed developer Jack Kurlander and PGA "Teacher of the Year" David Glenz, Black Bear offers you an inviting diversity of terrain, scenery, and shot selections.

Black Bear serves as the National Headquarters of the David Glenz Golf Academy -- showcasing a learning center consisting of 100,000 square feet of natural grass teeing area, multi-tiered synthetic launching stations, and a vast array of target greens and bunkers.

Crystal Springs Resort is currently building the Cascades Golf Course . which will expand the playing experience from 108 holes to 117. Nationally renowned golf course architect Roger Rulewich, of The Golf Group, Inc., is at the helm of the new course's design -- his third at Crystal Springs Resort, including the Wild Turkey and Ballyowen Golf Clubs.

Measuring approximately 3,600 yards, the course's design will stress playability and feature junior tees to make the course more enjoyable for those new to the game. With the majority of the earthwork done, Dave Fleury, a partner at The Golf Group, Inc., commented: "We had to move as much earth on this 9 as most courses would move for 18 holes, to make the landscape look natural."

Crystal Springs Golf Club is recognized as one of the finest golf facilities in the northeastern United States. When Crystal Springs opened in 1992, it was rated among the top 25 new golf courses in America by Golf Digest Magazine. The Jersey Golfer named Crystal Springs "The Best Public Golf Course" in New Jersey in its ranking of the state's best layouts. Year after year, Crystal Springs ranks among Golf Digest's top 10 list for public golf courses in New Jersey.

Crystal Springs is also considered the most challenging layout in New Jersey. Despite measuring just over 6,800 yards from the championship tees, the distinct character of the club can be attributed to designer Robert von Hagge of Houston, Texas. von Hagge has long been recognized as one of the leading golf course architects in the United States. One of the hallmarks of a von Hagge course is sculpted mounds that frame the fairways and greens. Giving definition to each hole while adding an intense contrast of color between the fairways and roughs.

When the limestone quarrying operations ceased in 1929, the site filled with water, forming the many natural springs that now dot the property. The clear waters at the 10th hole prompted the naming of the community, the golf course, and, ultimately, the Crystal Springs Resort.

Great Gorge Country Club is a golfer's paradise. The George Fazio-designed, 27-hole complex - given four stars by Golf Digest -- offers a truly exceptional challenge for golfers of all skill levels. Opened in 1970, as an amenity to Hugh Hefner's famed Great Gorge Playboy Club, this classic course continues to stand the test of time, winning awards and maintaining popularity with golfers year after year.

In spring 2004, Crystal Springs Resort assumed management of the Great Gorge Country Club . enhancing the golf experience at Great Gorge with the expertise gained in the operation of five award-winning resort golf clubs.

Great Gorge Country Club is composed of three separate and distinct nine-hole courses:

The Quarryside Course - From the back tees, this is the most demanding nine. This course plays through spectacular rock outcroppings and diverse water hazards.

The Lakeside Course - Designed to be a fair challenge for all levels of play, this nine is set amid sparkling lakes and mature trees, featuring dramatic elevation changes.

The Railside Course - The most scenic nine is also the most forgiving, as strategically protected greensites are sculpted into the dramatic terrain. The par-3 third hole on the Railside Course features artifacts from the railroad era, in a formation reminiscent of Stonehenge.

Amenities and services include a pro shop, bar and restaurant, driving range and putting greens, a chipping area, lockers, showers, PGA professional instruction, and club rentals.

Known locally as the best 9-hole golf course in the region, Minerals' Robert Trent Jones-designed executive layout is perfect for every member of the family. Advanced players can be challenged on a spectacular mountainside layout measuring over 2,305 yards -- while juniors have their own tees way ahead of mom and dad! Just named by Golf Range Magazine as one of the Top 12 Short Courses in America, Minerals Golf Club is the best golf course of it's kind in the Northeast. Playing up to 2,305 yards, this Robert Trent Jones masterpiece features 9 holes of uniquely scenic golf at the base of Hamburg Mountain.

With its debut on July 7, 2001, Wild Turkey became the Crystal Spring Resort's second Roger Rulewich design -- an outstanding encore to Rulewich's award-winning Ballyowen. Located adjacent to Crystal Springs Golf Club, Wild Turkey's topography is best described as "basin & ridge". The layout's two distinct terrain types combine the sheer expansiveness of Ballyowen with the rugged, multi-elevated nature of Crystal Springs. While it may be easy to classify Wild Turkey as a combination of its two sister courses, Wild Turkey stands on its own merit as a uniquely designed golf course, named one of NJ's Top New Public Courses by NJGCOA.

The basin area of Wild Turkey -- consisting of holes #3 and #12 through #17 -- is reminiscent of the treeless expanse of Ballyowen. The par-3, 14th tee affords golfers a view of the entire hollow, while challenging them with a long iron to a deep green. Many of the par-4's feature limited aprons require both strategy and precision on the approach shot. The green surrounding for the picturesque #15th hole is indicative of this prevailing design concept.

The par-3, 7th signature hole at Wild Turkey shares much in common with Crystal Springs' signature hole. It, too, is a forced carry over a quarry lake to a well-protected and intimidating target. Comparable again to Crystal Springs and Ballyowen, playing Wild Turkey is considered a challenging event. Yet the multiple tee locations, generously wide fairways, and moderately contoured greens make Wild Turkey an enjoyable experience for all skill levels.