How To Navigate And Beat River Vale Country Club

By Sam McPherson

Just west of the Hudson River and just south of the New Jersey/New York border, golfers will find a great country club course with moderate greens fees: River Vale Country Club. Established in 1931 by Orrin Edward Smith, who designed courses with Donald Ross for many years, the River Vale course offers everyone an opportunity to experience a classic course without emptying their wallets at the same time. The challenge on this moderate-length layout is to hit the ball straight, because the tree-lined fairways can be unforgiving otherwise.

Layout & Green Fees

The par-72 course has four different tee options: Blue (6,504 yards), white (6,168), gold (5,892) and red (5,378). This means golfers of all abilities can comfortable attack the course in their own fashion, and you can play in a group with various handicaps as well. That's always a plus. Seventeen of the course's holes are relatively straight, with only one dogleg hole (surprise, it's the 13th that hooks hard left). Smith liked his courses to demand technical play, so golfers will need to be accurate to avoid the trees that line the fairways.

Public fees on weekdays range from $40-$80, and on weekends, it's $50-$99, depending on the time of day. Residents of River Vale get a markdown of around 30 percent on weekdays and 25 percent on weekends. For under $100, anyone can play this classic course, and that's something special today. How often do you get to play on a course designed by a legend for so little cash?

Hardest hole

It has to be the ninth hole, which is a par-4, 375-yard tease. There's a relatively wide water hazard right in front of the green, which means any approach shot better carry—or else your score can go up in flames really quickly. The hole is deceptive. Without any bunkers, it just seems like a straight drive-and-wedge hole. But if you come up short with the iron, don't say we didn't warn you. There's not a lot of bailout opportunity around the mid-size green, either.

Easiest Hole

It's a good thing this hole comes before the hardest one; the eighth is a piece of cake. Just a par-3, 160-yard hole, the green is pretty accessible. There are bunkers on three sides of the green, but not in front of the green. This means you can bump and run a shot right up into the green for a calculated birdie putt without having to worry about any obstacles. Two of the other par-3 holes on the course have front-side bunkers to challenge a golfer more directly. This is the easy one.

Craziest Hole

It's the 13th, because as noted, it's the only "crooked" hole on the entire course. At 351 yards, this par-4 layout isn't particularly long, but you must be accurate with the dogleg-left design. Cutting the corner takes skill, and going too long on a straight drive (probably with a mid-iron to stay in the fairway) puts you into some bunkers. If you find yourself in the fairway after your first shot, watch out for the bunker protecting the right side of the green. You'll have to be careful if the hole placement is on that side of the green.

Sneakiest Hole

The 16th hole has six—count 'em—fairway bunkers that make placing your drive properly very important. It's a longer par-4 layout at 381 yards, but again, drive placement is huge. If you're short, left or right on the drive, you will find sand, and you will be forced to lay up. The green itself is somewhat small, too, protected by two bunkers on either side. The hole rates as one of the "easier" ones on the course, in terms of handicap, but like most holes on this course, Smith designed it to demand near-perfect strokes.

Sam McPherson is a freelance writer covering baseball, football, basketball, golf, hockey and fantasy sports for CBS, AXS and Examiner. He also is an Ironman triathlete and certified triathlon coach.