La Tourette Golf Course facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
La Tourette Golf Course

Club information
Location	Staten Island, New York, U.S.
Established	1928
Type	public
Total holes	18
Tournaments hosted	New York City Amateur
Website	https://www.latourettegc.com/
Designed by	John R. Van Kleek
Par	72
Length	6,708 yards
Course rating	71.7 / 121

La Tourette Golf Course is a fun public golf course located on Staten Island in New York City. It's part of a beautiful green area called Staten Island's Greenbelt. From some spots, you can even see historic Richmond Town. The old La Tourette House, built way back in 1836, is now the clubhouse where golfers gather. This historic house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Many people think this course is one of the best public golf courses in New York City! It even hosts the yearly New York City Amateur Championship.

A Look Back at La Tourette Golf Course

From Farm to Fairway

The land where La Tourette Golf Course now sits was once a large farm. It belonged to David and Ann La Tourette, who started their farm in 1830. Their farm grew to be 500 acres, which was the biggest private property on Staten Island. The La Tourette family was known for growing excellent produce. They ran the farm until 1910.

In 1928, New York City bought 120 acres of the property. The city wanted to build a public golf course there. The land was given to the parks department in 1955. Later, in 1973, it was named a New York City Landmark.

Course Design Over the Years

The first nine holes of the golf course opened in 1929. These were designed by David L. Rees. In 1935, John Van Kleek designed nine new holes. He also updated the original nine holes. A new restaurant area was added to the clubhouse at this time. Later, in 1964, Frank Duane updated four more holes on the course.

Protecting Green Spaces

In the 1960s, there were plans to build a big road called the Richmond Parkway. A famous city planner named Robert Moses had designed a network of roads for New York City. His plan for Staten Island included roads that would go through the island's green areas. This would have cut right through La Tourette Golf Course.

However, many people on Staten Island did not want these roads built through their green spaces. They felt it was important to protect these natural areas. After a lot of community discussion, the plans to build the roads through the middle of the island were stopped. The parkway was built in a different way, keeping the golf course and other green areas safe. This showed how important it is for communities to protect their local environment.

Famous Golfers at La Tourette

Jim Albus, a well-known professional golfer, worked at La Tourette. He was the head golf professional there from 1969 to 1980. Jim Albus won several important golf tournaments during his career. He is also a member of the PGA Metropolitan Section Hall of Fame.

Exploring the Golf Course

Course Features

La Tourette Golf Course has greens of medium size. Some greens have different levels, like steps (holes 1, 3, 6, 16, 17). Others have unique bumps or mounds (holes 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 15). The 5th hole is one of the harder ones. It's a par 4 hole with trees hanging over the right side of the green. A large mound also splits the green into two parts.

Several holes play uphill to the green. These include holes 4, 6, 10, 12, 13, 15, and 18. For the most part, you can see where your ball needs to go. There are not many "blind shots" where you can't see the target. For many years, La Tourette had two practice putting greens. One was for flat putts, and the other was for putts that curved. Today, these two greens are mowed as one large practice area.

Course Updates Over Time

Since its last major update in 1964, the golf course has had some smaller changes. These changes were made to help with course care and make games faster. For example, a sand bunker near the 1st green was removed. In the 1970s, the 3rd green was made longer, adding about 35 yards to the hole.

On the 4th hole, a large bunker in the middle of the fairway was removed. A second green was also built next to the original one when a bike path was added along Forest Hill Road. The size of the 7th and 12th greens was made smaller. This changed some of the unique putting areas from the original design. In the 1970s, the back tee on the 8th hole was cleared. This allowed players to hit over the lake. Also, some sand bunkers near the 9th hole were removed. Other bunkers near the 11th fairway, which protect Forest Hill Road, were fixed up to protect the new bike path.

Course Scorecard