Pittsburgh to Happy Valley

[marks21]

I will be heading to Penn State in October for a game and want suggestions on where to play. We are flying in to Pittsburgh on Wednesday and spending the two nights there. We are looking to play Thursday in Pittsburgh metro area and then possibly early in Pitt on Friday. Any recommendations?

[snoilr1]

Bedford Springs is about 90 min south of State College on the way from Pittsburgh if you take the PA Turnpike. That might be a good option if you want to play a nice course and don’t mind spending a little extra on one round.

 

I can’t help with courses closer to Pittsburgh. I’m from north of town, nothing I can recommend is on the way to PSU

[jwellefson1]

Agree with above. The Toftrees Resort in State College usually has a nice course if you want to play there. Played there before I graduated in November and it was in great shape. Hope you catch a good game, if you need recs in State College for anything let me know, I finished there last December. We Are!

[Hateto3Putt]

Chestnut Ridge just outside of Indiana PA is a nice course on the route to Penn State.. Totter Ridge not to far off that path..

 

Quicksilver, Madison Club and Westwood are all relatively close to the city. Quicksilver gets my vote.

 

Where are you staying?

[snoilr1]

Agree with above. The Toftrees Resort in State College usually has a nice course if you want to play there. Played there before I graduated in November and it was in great shape. Hope you catch a good game, if you need recs in State College for anything let me know, I finished there last December. We Are!

 

Toftrees is nice if you’re going to be in State College before Fri or after Sun. I wouldn’t try to play there Fri-Sun of a football weekend, though. It will be packed with premium rates in place. Same for the PSU courses.

[marks21]

Thanks for the suggestions. How are the Penn State courses? The Blue worth playing? We are staying southeast side of Pittsburgh Thursday and in State College Friday and Saturday night.

[Mozjo33]

Chestnut Ridge is between PGH and PSU. It's in Blairsville, PA. About a 1/3 of the way to State College on Route 22. Toftrees is very nice as are the PSU courses. Either way it should be a good experience. Just realize you're going to be in Western/Central, PA. The weather is a tad bit unpredictable, especially in October. Bring warm weather clothes. Enjoy the game! We Are!!

[snoilr1]

Thanks for the suggestions. How are the Penn State courses? The Blue worth playing? We are staying southeast side of Pittsburgh Thursday and in State College Friday and Saturday night.

 

Toftrees is the nicest of the three courses in State College, but it’s by far the most expensive. PSU Blue course is almost as nice, but close to half the cost. To me Toftrees isn’t worth the price.

 

I wouldn’t try to play any of them on a football weekend, though, Unless you can play Thurs or Mon.

[jwellefson1]

Thanks for the suggestions. How are the Penn State courses? The Blue worth playing? We are staying southeast side of Pittsburgh Thursday and in State College Friday and Saturday night.

 

Toftrees is the nicest of the three courses in State College, but it's by far the most expensive. PSU Blue course is almost as nice, but close to half the cost. To me Toftrees isn't worth the price.

 

I wouldn't try to play any of them on a football weekend, though, Unless you can play Thurs or Mon.

 

The Blue isn't a bad track, the White is just a cheap student option (my membership on the white was $220 per semester). I (personally) never had any issues with getting tee times on football weekends. Sometimes the pace is slower but that's to be expected.

[ani5009]

Thanks for the suggestions. How are the Penn State courses? The Blue worth playing? We are staying southeast side of Pittsburgh Thursday and in State College Friday and Saturday night.

 

The Blue is a solid track, especially if you play it from the tips. White is your basic muni-level course, but its always in really good shape. To echo what a few others above have said, I've never had issues getting a time on a football weekend in the past, but you can expected a 4+ hour round for sure.

[Twism86]

Ill add the same as above. Toftrees is nice and the PSU courses are solid.

[costanza]

Blue seems to be pretty easy to get a tee time Sunday AM after football Saturdays.

[snoilr1]

Don’t get me wrong, the Blue Course won’t be so packed you can’t get on. I just wouldn’t choose to drive from Pittsburgh to State College on a football Friday to play it at full weekend price, (and in relatively crowded conditions), when you could stop somewhere on the way and likely have a course to yourself at off season pricing. If you were heading to State College late Thursday, I would absolutely recommend the Blue early on Friday.

[Wander Bread]

Graduated from Penn State back in 2011 and spent every day I could out on the blue and white courses. Both are great for the price.

[TUGolfer06]

I have to add Skytop Mountain! I played there along with Toftrees in June and enjoyed Skyop Mountain far more. It's not an easy track and some local knowledge definitely helps but overall the course/views were spectacular imo. Toftrees was nice but not quite as nice as I expected. There were bare spots on a handful of greens and some of the bunkers needed work. It's a really nice track but for the price they charge on the weekends I wasn't blown away by any means.

 

The PSU courses are worth a play imo. The blue is a very good test while the white remains a solid second option.

[absdog]

Quicksilver gets my vote. I played the back 9 at a course today called Hickory Heights, and it was really nice as well. There are a few good options, I'm still learning the courses out here, but either of those two you will not be disappointed. Just be prepared for tight tree lined fairways and varying elevation wherever you play.