The Bridges Golf Club:
Created by Nature,
Enhanced by Man

By Travis Espenlaub,
Staff Writer

Recently "Golf Digest" gave The Bridges a 4-star rating and "Golf For Women Magazine" listed the course in its top 100 to play.

The name of the course comes from the 14 bridges that are found along many of the paved cart paths that line the course. The clubhouse, which is actually a refurbished furniture factory from the 1800's, has 12 rooms for overnight stays.

This allows golfers the opportunity to spend the night and set up one of a number of affordable golf packages that even contain unlimited golf and three meals per day from its highly acclaimed restaurant. The staff at The Bridges is also very capable and happy to set up rounds of golf at other local courses for you if you wish to mix your playing up a bit.

There are many attractions around the Abbottstown area for before or after your round of golf. The Gettysburg area is a Civil War buff's dream come true with the many museums and other historically valuable sites to see. There are many fine restaurants in the area and also a few very nice taverns to engage in a few drinks while discussing the days battles fought earlier on the course.

Along with the fine restaurant at The Bridges, there is a small snack bar that serves food for the golfers making the turn after nine or before the round even begins.

The Bridges offers a state of the art practice area with a driving range that offers many different greens to aim at from artificial plastic mats or bent grass tees. There is a chipping green with a bunker to practice from and there is also a green to practice your putting stroke.

The course was designed and built by two brothers, Charlie and Fred Altland. Although they may not have well known names as far as course architecture goes, you would not know it from the beautifully designed Bridges Golf Club. It has two distinctly different bent grass nines.

The front nine is much more wooded and calls for many accurate shots from the tee, whereas, the back nine is more open and places more importance on pinpoint approach shots because of the water that is located on the majority of the holes. Although I played the course during one of the area's worst droughts in recent history, it was still very green with only a few brown spots on the fairways.

• Past Pennsylvania course reviews and features

The greens for the Bridges are usually described as medium to fast but at the current time I would say they are far more towards the 'fast' part of that description. Downhill putts on these severely sloped greens are a must to stay away from if a good score is to be obtained.

There are a few of the holes which only allow a mid to long lay up shot to be struck from the tee because of the environmentally protected areas that come into play with a 3-wood or driver.

The number eight hole on the front side is a lengthy par-5 measuring 558-yards from the back tees. It has a weeded area in front of the tee that must be carried and a creek on the right that runs the length of the hole.

The hole slightly doglegs right, but if you try and cut the corner, you have a good chance of having your ball roll into the creek because of the sloping left to right fairway. Along with the creek on the right side, there is also an ominous tree that hovers over part of the fairway on that side. Further up the fairway there is a small pond that lies in the left side rough.

With those obstacles in your mind, it takes a lot of concentration to keep the ball in the middle of the fairway. And if that is not enough, once you do make it to the approach shot, there is a large bunker on the right front side of the green that makes any attempt at hitting the green a very nervous one.

After battling with number eight, you then go to the next hole, a 430-yd par-4 that heads uphill towards the clubhouse. If the wind is blowing when you play there, as it was the day I played, it may be a wise decision to add a club or two to your shots attempting to reach the green, because if you don't you will most likely turn this par-4 into a par-5.

Number 15 on the back nine is probably the most scenic hole on the entire course. It is a 534-yd par-5 that offers a very tight tee shot to a hill that overlooks the entire back nine. From on top of that hill the next shot is a few hundred yards down past a very large tree that covers the left side of the fairway.

If you decide to hit the ball to the right side of the fairway, you had better watch out for two bunkers that come with a lot of sand and also some high brush that very easily hides many golf balls.

Take it from someone who played out of the brush, you do not want to go in there and try to hit out to the green because it's almost impossible, even if you are lucky enough to find your golf ball in the first place. The chances are very slim you will make it unless you have a weed whacker in your golf bag.

Water comes into play on five of the nine holes after making the turn. The number 16 par-3 which plays 206-yards from the back does not allow for anything to be hit right because of one of the ponds there waiting to gobble up your golf ball.

On the left side of the green, there is a bunker daring you to bail out away from the water. If that isn't enough, there is marshland in front of the green for those hesitantly topped shots to become lost. The wind can also play a big part in club selection on this hole because of the openness of the back nine holes.

There are also a few holes on the course that invite birdie shots because of the short approach shots they allow with decent drives. I found even when I had a good chance at birdie on some of the holes, it was still difficult because of the speed and slope of the greens.

The Bridges Golf Club is an excellent place to spend a day or even an entire weekend. The golf is very challenging but not so challenging that it'll make you miserable to be out enjoying the natural beauty of the layout. After playing The Bridges you will fully understand their slogan of "Created by Nature, Enhanced by Man".

Weekday Fees: $30/18 holes
Cart Fee: $12
Friday Fees: $33/18 holes
Cart Fee: $6 Weekend Fees Until 1 P.M: $43/18 holes
Cart Fee: $12
Weekend Fees After 1 P.M: $33/18 holes
Cart Fee: $12
Seniors(Monday-Thursday): $24/18 holes
Cart Fee: $8
Ladies(Wednesday): $24/18 holes
Cart Fee: $8
Juniors(Under 16 years old): $16/18 holes (Walkers) Blue Tee Course Rating: 71.7

Blue Tee Course Slope: 132
Blue Yardage: 6713
Par: 72 White Tee Course Rating:70.1
White Tee Course Slope: 123
White Yardage: 6283
Par: 72 Gold Tee Course Rating: 67.2

Gold Tee Course Slope: 112
Gold Yardage: 5569
Par: 72 Red Tee Course Rating: 69.6
Red Tee Course Slope: 113
Red Yardage: 5134
Par: 72

The Bridges Golf Club
6729 York Road
Abbottstown, PA 17301
Golf Professional: Walt Rose
Director of Golf: Fred Shultz
Pro Shop Phone: (717) 624-9551