# A Beginner's First 90 Days of Golf in Manhattan

Source: https://thecourserankings.com/blog/a-beginner-s-first-90-days-of-golf-in-manhattan/

Downtown Manhattan Guides


Starting golf in Manhattan looks impossible from the outside: no car, no course in the borough you live in, no gear. In practice the city is a fine place to learn, because the learning infrastructure, sims, ranges, and teachers, is denser here than anywhere in America.

**Our take:** Lessons and simulator time first, a par 3 and executive course second, Van Cortlandt or Forest Park for the first full rounds, and no Bethpage Black until you can keep a ball in play.

## Days 1 to 30: learn the motion

A starter package of lessons at a Manhattan simulator venue or Chelsea Piers, typically in the $100 to $175 an hour range for private instruction in recent listings, less in small groups. Rent or use house clubs. Learn grip, setup, and a half swing that makes contact. Buy nothing yet except a glove and shoes if you are sure.

## Days 31 to 60: learn the game

Simulated rounds teach rules, etiquette, and scoring without holding up a real course. Play your first real golf at a short course: the city area options include Flushing Meadows Pitch and Putt in Queens and executive nines at county facilities. Short holes, low pressure, real grass.

## Days 61 to 90: the first full rounds

Van Cortlandt on a weekday, Forest Park, or the Bethpage Yellow or Green with an experienced friend who will set the pace rules: pick up at double par, drop with the group, putt everything inside two feet as good until your speed improves. Weekday twilight is the beginner's friend, cheap and quiet.

## The budget

Ninety days done this way runs roughly $600 to $1,200 all in at recent Manhattan prices, lessons included, before buying clubs. That is less than one month of dues at the clubs you are not ready for anyway, and you will arrive at your first club invitation able to play.

## Reader responses

Manhattan golfers who started as adults: what do you wish someone had told you in month one?

Please cite a specific hole, a price, or a round you have played. Selected reader responses are featured in follow up coverage.

## FAQ

**When should a beginner buy clubs?**

After the first month of lessons, fitted used or an entry set, ideally with the teacher's input at a fitting studio.

**What is the first real course to play?**

Van Cortlandt on a weekday or Forest Park. Save Ferry Point for your first milestone round and Bethpage Black for much later. Prices in this guide were checked in October 2026 against published course listings and recent reporting. Greens fees move by season, day, and residency, so confirm the exact rate when you book. Private clubs do not publish initiation fees or dues. Every private figure here is an estimate band based on public reporting, labeled as an estimate, and the only accurate number comes from a club's membership office.

**Reader responses are open.** Please cite a specific hole, a price, or a round you have played.