How you can play Bethpage Black, host of the 2025 Ryder Cup (and it’s surprisingly cheap!)

Want to play Bethpage Black, host of the 2025 Ryder Cup? Here’s how to get a tee time, survive the walk, and tackle America’s toughest public course.

Bethpage Black has hosted the PGA, US Open, and soon the Ryder Cup – yet anyone can play it. Here’s how to book a tee time at one of golf’s toughest tests for as little as $70.

Bethpage Black is one of the toughest and most iconic public golf courses in America – and it’s open to anyone. But getting a tee time isn’t simple. Here’s what you need to know:

Tee times & booking

• New York residents can book tee times online 7 days in advance.
• Non-residents can book 5 days in advance.
• Online slots often go fast, so many golfers rely on the walk-up line.
• There’s no handicap limit – anyone can play.

The overnight line

• Golfers queue in their cars the night before in a numbered parking lot.
• You can’t line up more than 24 hours before tee times are issued. Most locals recommend arriving between 7-9pm the night before if you want to play the following morning. Weekends can be busier, so the earlier you’re in line, the better your chances.
• A supervisor hands out bracelets at 4:30am – if you’re still in your spot, you’ll get a “bakery ticket” you can exchange for a tee time.

Costs

• Residents: $70 weekday / $80 weekend ($44 / $50 twilight)
• Resident senior citizens and juniors: $47 weekdays / $30 twilight
• Non-residents: $140 weekday ($88 twilight) / $160 weekend ($100 twilight).
• No carts – it’s walking only.

What to expect

• The Black Course is a long walk (7+ miles).
• Many golfers struggle with the physical challenge and don’t finish all 18 – “Heart Attack Hill” on the back nine is notorious.
• It has a warning sign on the 1st tee for a reason – it might be the hardest course you ever play.

Pro tips

• Bring water, snacks, and good shoes.
• Manage your expectations – it probably isn’t a day to shoot your personal best.
• Expect an unforgettable day, regardless of your score.

What it’s like staying overnight to play Bethpage Black

The first rule of Line Club is that everybody is welcome in Line Club.

The second rule of Line Club is that you must respect the other members of Line Club.

And the unwritten rule of Line Club is… “Bring beers.”

So advises Jess, a Line Club veteran. “I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t pack at least one or two, and some people drink a lot more than that,” he laughs.

One parking spot to Jesse’s left, best friends Lou, Rich and Joe fall into the “a lot more than that” category. They have beer, they have music, they have camping chairs, they have cards, they have a portable barbecue, and they are going to make this a night to remember. “If you have to queue up to play golf, you may as well make it fun,” shrugs Rich.

Welcome to Bethpage State Park, a world-class golf facility with a difference. And that difference is that there are no suits, no ties, and absolutely no barriers to entry.

No matter who you are, no matter where you come from, and no matter how high your handicap is, you can play on all five of the park’s courses, including the legendary Black, host of this year’s Ryder Cup.

Cheap at twice the price

“One of the reasons we’re known as ‘The People’s Country Club’ is because it is affordable to play here,” says Park Manager Suzanne Friedrichs. “I would have to think we are one of the best bargain golf courses in the world. The fees for non-residents are anywhere from $140 to $160, and for residents of New York it’s $70 on weekdays and $80 on weekends. I believe Pebble Beach charge over $600, and the most you’re spending here is $160 to play a course that hosted the PGA, the US Open, and soon, the Ryder Cup.”

There is, however, one slight catch. New York State residents are allowed to book tee times seven days in advance, while golfers from out of State can only book five days in advance. That means the tee times are usually gone by the time you phone, and this means if you want to play here, you need to get in line.

“We have always had a call line of sorts, from the time I started 40 years ago,” explains Friedrichs. “People queue because we always set aside walk-ups on a first-come, first-served basis. And anyone can play here if they are willing to put in the effort.”

A bad time for a toilet break

All of which explains why, every single day, dozens of golfers pull into Bethpage’s overflow car park and begin the long wait. The rules of the system are laid out on a billboard.

Golfers may arrive no earlier than 24 hours before the issuance of ‘bakery tickets’ or ‘bracelets’ the following day. Vehicles with a maximum of four occupants then line up in numbered parking spots on a first-come, first-served basis.

The first hour on the tee sheet at weekends is always reserved for overnighters. Once those times fill up, campers are slotted into a variety of unclaimed tee times throughout the day.

“As far as I know, it’s the only golf course in the country that does this,” says Kelley Brooke, Director of Golf at Bethpage State Park. “It’s a tradition. On a regular year, without any tournaments, people do it every single day. They don’t have to get there at 11 o’clock in the morning for the next day, but they have to get there by seven o’clock or eight o’clock at night if they want to play the following morning. And it’s amazing to me how many people actually do it. It’s insane.”

The rule about the bracelets only applies to people queuing to play the Black Course. Those golfers must give the night supervisor their name and ID in exchange for a stamp and non-removable bracelet. This data is then logged and passed on to the early morning supervisor, who goes round knocking on car windows to hand out the raffle tickets at 4.30am.

If the occupants are in the same spot and in the same car, they will get what’s called a bakery ticket that they can exchange for a tee time. If they aren’t, they will forfeit their place on the list and will have to come back tomorrow. In other words, no matter how desperately you need to go, 4.30am is a really bad time to go for a toilet break.

“A guy put me on the phone to his wife… she thought he was having an affair”

“A lot of people police themselves, because you’re only allowed to leave the line for up to an hour,“ says Friedrichs. “So if you leave to play golf for four hours, the guy behind you is going to notice and make you move to the back of the line. But a lot of people bring tents, they bring RVs, they bring barbecues, they bring chairs. It’s almost become an event at this point. It is like they’re camping out, but in our parking lot.

“It was a while ago now, but one time a guy put me on the phone with his wife because she did not believe he was waiting overnight to play golf. She thought he was having an affair. But we see all kinds of stuff. It doesn’t happen a lot, but people have come without a car and actually placed a lounge chair in the parking spot. I mean, nothing says you have to be in a car. I’ve also seen people attach a tent to the top of the car.

Traditionally, a lot of people just stay and sleep in the car. We do have to wake people up and bang on the window to get their attention.”

Getting a tee time isn’t the only challenge

Given how much beer people consume and how little sleep they expect to get, the chances of them playing well seem slim. Not that they seem to care. By the end of the night, the people in the queue are a club. Young, old, rich or poor, it doesn’t matter – they bond over a shared love of the game and excitement for the coming day. A day when they will sleep in the cars, at what is affectionately known as the Bethpage Inn, and wake up at the crack of dawn just to experience the only golf course in the world that comes with a warning sign behind the 1st tee. Only the fittest manage to make it to the end.

“I’m on the senior tour in the United States and I’ve only broken 80 twice [on the Black] in six years,” admits Brooke. “It’s a tough course and on top of that, the holes are all elevated. Bethpage is like a seven-and-a-half-mile walk – and that’s if you’re hitting it straight.

“After the 14th, a lot of people just turn left and walk back to the clubhouse. We call it ‘Heart Attack Hill’ because every year someone drops on that hill, and the ambulances have to come. It’s crazy. I would say 20% of the people who play Bethpage walk in and don’t finish the last four holes.

“Our bartender, Sam, will tell you that when people come in, they don’t even order a beer. They get through about three glasses of water because they’re so exhausted.”

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