There is nothing better than a solid golf course at a good price, but finding that sweet spot is not easy. With Municipal Mondays, I will be seeking out the best municipal golf courses in Western New York (Buffalo and Rochester extended down to the Pennsylvania border) and ranking them at the end of the series. A muni is defined as a golf course that is owned by the state/county/city/town.
Today we will take a look at Hyde Park Golf Course in Niagara Falls. The course has 27 holes and boasts a pretty entertaining layout. Dating back to the 1920’s, you can see the remnants of the old golf course architecture all over the place if you are an architecture nut like myself.
In terms of price, like most municipal courses, Hyde Park is very affordable. But you do get what you pay for, the condition is less than ideal. I wouldn’t call Hyde Park one of my favorite courses by any means but it certainly doesn’t make my dreaded “No-Go-Back List”. The architecture alone is enough to make this course one that I would go back to, and the conditions aren’t THAT bad. Hyde Park is, in my eyes, right in the middle of the pack when it comes to Western New York Munis.
A lot of times Municipal Courses get a reputation for being easy. Hyde Park played easy on about half of the holes in my opinion, but it does have some bite. When compared to other golf courses (not just munis), however, it does play substantially easier in my opinion.
My official rating of Hyde Park (out of 10):
Condition: 3.5
Layout: 7
Architecture: 7.5
Difficulty: 4
Value: 6.5
Overall Rating: 4.5