Blustery Friday at McCullough's

Anyone living in the northeast the last couple of weeks are well aware of the blustery conditions facing us. However, the weather has been beautiful. Days in the 60's with sun that won't stop and only a rare, sporadic event of rain over the last several weeks. These conditions make any golfer yearn for the course. When you add the wind factor, you realize just how much this changes the desire to be out on the course. Steady 15-35 mph winds have made Atlantic City Golf an even greater challenge than normal.

Friday it was off to McCullough's Emerald Golf Links (Map) for a jaunt around the course. I got a late start and there was an outing, which made it even more difficult to get out. After slumming around the clubhouse, they modified me of a three-some that is about to go off on the third hole. I raced out and without any warmup I was teeing off.

To say the wind was a factor on Friday is a monumental understatement. Clad in thermals, turtle-neck and a solid windbreaker, it was bearable, even with a 65 degree day in our midst. When playing the Emerald Links in Egg Harbor Township, NJ, always assume it will be at least 10 degrees colder than what it is forecast to be. Seeing people on the course in shorts and collared t-shirt freezing made this piece of local knowledge all the more valuable.

McCullough's retains the honor of having the high-point of Atlantic County. As such, the wind is always more of a factor. The course itself is still in winter mode for the most part. The tall grasses and reeds that frame the holes were still cut short but overall the course was in good condition.

Friday's are usually tough for me with a late start. Every Friday is dinner with my parents. This is one of the most enjoyable parts of my week. My wife and I pack-up my son and off to a restaurant we have been going to for almost 20 years. This 6:00 pm event cut my round short and with a late start, I was only able to squeeze in 11 holes. It was truly a shame, since one of my favorite holes in Southern New Jersey was still to come in the round, but I had to go.

The 15th hole is a short par-4 that is cut behind the trees on the right. You could call this a dog-leg right, but that wouldn't be a great description, but it is none-the-less accurate. This is a drivable hole, but for a lefty, it is quite a challenge. For first-timers to this hole, it is worth laying up in the fairway, just to see the hole from down in the valley.

Every hole at McCullough's Emerald Golf Links is designed after a famous hole located around the world, and this hole is modeled after the Royal Dornoch No. 5 in Scotland. This beautiful hole is always a lot of fun and it gives you a choice of how to play it. At any rate, we will have to leave this hole for another day to play.