Flanders Valley Public Golf Course

Going to get much better as the fall kicks in, this is when Flanders really shines. I have to say having played this course for over 15 years, its been up and down with some of the drainage issues (namely #14 around the lake has been historically fairway ripped up) and a few holes on the red course with drainage. Went out sunday after a solid day and a half of heavy rain, and it was in great shape. some ponding, however spare was expected. I didn’t practice putt on the green and realized I was in for a long day after getting on the first hole in regulation… the greens were fast! i mean country club fast. not used to this at flanders. on #3 on the white (uphill par 3) took my 8 iron out from the white tees moved up a few yards, put it on the middle of the green about 15 feet uphill from the pin. Pin was on the crest of the hill sloping towards the front. I three-​putt tha green too and my touch was good. right at the hole and stopped, then six feet past. May be frustrating for the average golfer but I enjoyed trying a practice butt again (even better touch than the first one) and nearly the same result.
After the round (which since it was cart-​path only) a lot of jogging back and forth to jockey the cart, over 5 hours even though no one was in front of us. They didn’t cut the rough because of the rain and they should generally leave it like tha, t missing the fairway by a few feet is punitive and that’s what makes good golf.

Played yesterday with 3 of my usual playing buddies… and just felt the overall course was unorganized /​confusing. First off the putting green which I spent about 15 min chipping/​putting on were NOT consistent with the always fast to lightning-​fast greens…
I feel it is also confusing having 3 separate 9 hole courses based on difficulty. We played what we thought was the blue-​to-​white however after the 3^rd hole on the first course noticed the distances and par for holes didn’t match up — whatever thats fine we just went off the plaques for the course and using our Bushnells for distances…
We were walking and at one point we got off the green and there were 2 ways to go with no sign indicating which way was the next tee box — we chose right and then saw it was a tee box for another course so had to walk back again.
Add to all of this the small amount of rough between fairway and mud/​tree line its a course where pace of play was fine but the overall experience, especially for the money is one I don’t think I will be revisiting very soon.

Played my first round of the season at FV.
I and me group were astonished at the outstanding service of the personnel at the shop as well as at the starters hut… Profession, helpful and courteous .
I would also add that for April, the course was in good shape
This managing group is doing great… Keep up the great effort … you seem to be hiring personnel with the right temperament !

I’ve been playing here for years and can say it’s one of the best county courses in the state. For a public course, the conditions are usually above average (With a few areas hurt by poor drainage). The layout is interesting with a few beautiful holes scattered through out the course. Like most have said, Red is the easiest, and Gold is the hardest. Gold is hilly and unforgiving, red is short and flat. White and Blue are similar to one another as far as difficulty.
Prices are decent here. A bit more expensive during the morning on the weekend, but you can easily get in 18 during twilight at the right time of the year.

Even though I live in Essex County, I fork up the $ 250 for an out of county card and play the Morris County courses most weekends. If you play more than 10 rounds a year on those courses, the card is worth it. Most of my groups rounds are at Flanders. For the most part the courses are in good condition, although some of the fairways are starting to show a bit of wear and tear from the crazy weather we’ve had this summer, and drainage is an issue on a few holes. The 2 major drawbacks at Flanders are the lack of a range and the lack of help from the on course staff. «There isn’t anything I can do» seems to be the favorite line of most of the rangers, who really need to learn to push folks who seem to think that it’s OK to hold up an entire golf course. No reason why a round of golf should take more than 4.5 hours.

Have you guys seen «Soup Nazi» from Seinfeld? Well, that is what I thought of when I was at this course. Every attendant, starter, cart guy were course nazi’s. If I put my cart halfway on the grass, so people could get through, they would make it a point to come and flip out. I really couldn’t believe the way they were at this place. Maybe they deal with a lot of kids, tearing this place up, but come on. You don’t treat customers this way.
The course itself was pretty nice. Rough was tough to hit out of. People I played with told me «You should have seen it last week when it was higher». If that is the case, their maintenance needs work.
Regardless, you will never see me at this course again. Every old attendant that works at this place needs to either loosen up or retire. They’re lucky they didn’t get a piece of my mind at this place. At least they can read about this for years to come.

Flanders Valley is part of the Morris County Park System, and runs 36 holes out of this site. White & Blue is the flatter of the two 18’s with Red & Gold being flat on the red side followed by very deep woods tight fairways, giant rolling hills and greens to match.
Small pro shop, snack bar and two putting greens to choose no range to speak of. Course conditions were top notch for a Municipal course but again not 5 star fairways but 5 star greens which were fast & firm but fair. Just make sure your on the proper side of the hole before you putt.
My biggest complaint always on golf courses are the people that simply don’t understand pace of play. the two groups ahead of us. 4 Ladies walking god bless them but come on gals move it along and the 4 seniors who continue to advance the ball no more than 100 yards per shot and plumb bob the green for their snowman has got to be the most aggravating things I’m aware of.
Bottom line pace of play was awful almost 5 hours upon completion which takes this from 4 stars to 3 No rangers to be found.
Great Municipal track if you can deal with the pace of play.

Flanders Valley is part of the Morris County Park System, and runs 36 holes out of this site.
Word of advice: if you golf a lot in Morris County, buy the golf membership card (45 bucks for the year)… you get about 10 off each round so you’ll make that money back in five rounds.
There are basically two layouts Flanders runs here — the Red-​Yellow course and the White-​Blue course. During some weeks, they shut down a 9 hole layout, so you can get odd combinations between the two. I’ll try and touch on each of the four nine-​hole layouts to give you a great idea of what to expect.
Conditions:
REALLY good for a municipal course. You are paying no more than 33 – 38 on a weekend to walk, but more expensive to ride … it’s New Jersey though so this is a steal… the greens at this complex are in great shape.
Facilities:
Nothing to write about — small clubhouse/​snackbar/​bathrooms. Small putting green. NO DRIVING RANGE.
Course:
Red:
Easier course of the four. Very flat with relatively short holes. If you can stay straight you’ll score very low. Toughest hole on this side would be the par 4 7^th. It is a HAUL to even get past the trees on the right to have a shot at the green, and even then youll still be between 175 – 225 out. Par is an amazing score here. Otherwise, very easy to put up a good score.
White:
Fun side, but with a questionable Par 5 #3. This is a double dog leg which, unless you can fade it/​draw it hard, you will be hard pressed to make it in two, let alone think about birdie. Green is well protected. More woods on this side, so keep it straight and the holes will not beat you up too much.
Blue:
Much like the white side, except with better whole selection. I always enjoy courses which start with a par 4– par 5– par 3, and this has that. Definitely even more wooded than the white course, and with a difficult #2 par 3 (uphill) and #4 par 4 (water left, woods right). Keep it in the fairway.
Yellow:
By far the toughest test of the 4 nine-​hole layouts. Woods. Slanted Fairways. Small, slanted greens. Remember the ball ALWAYS breaks from the hill. Even if it looks like it goes uphill. This course is usually paired with the Red course, so if you start on the Yellow (#1 is a par 5) hit 3 wood off the tee and get your par. You can most likely get a par on the #2 downhill 175 par 3, and will set you up well for the rest of the yellow side. HARDEST HOLE: #4 par 5. This is a SEVERE dogleg left par 5. You HAVE to layup as your first shot. You can put a slight draw on it, but you risk bringing the woods into play — keep it in the fairway with an iron (5 or 6). The fairways on this side slope severely, so I would recommend hitting iron or 3-​wood off many tees as you are elevated. Coolest hole would have to be the #6 downhill par 3 which is elevated about 100 feet above the putting surface. Longer than you think!!!
Great 36 holes here, at a great value.