Spook Rock Golf Course: Suffern's Public Links With a Name Made for Halloween

You could not pick a better place to spend the day before Halloween than a golf course called Spook Rock. The name comes from Spook Rock Road itself, which the course's own site says took its name from Native American lore, and the course followed suit. But there is nothing haunted about the golf. What you get instead is one of Rockland's most storied public layouts: 18 holes, par 72, spread across 150 acres in the Village of Montebello in the Town of Ramapo, at 233 Spook Rock Road in Suffern.

The ground has a past that predates the fairways. The course sits on the former site of Kane's Open, a Boy Scout camp established on land donated in 1928 from the John P. Kane estate. The camp closed in 1956, and the land was sold in 1969, the same year the course's front nine opened, with the full eighteen following in 1970. It was designed and built by Frank Duane, and later redesigned by noted architect Steven Kay.

As a round of golf, Spook Rock is a classic parkland test. Course listings put it at 6,894 yards from the longest tees, with a course rating of 72.7 and a slope rating of 127, numbers that tell experienced players this is a serious layout, while the tree-lined routing keeps it welcoming for everyone else. There is a driving range with 24 practice tees for warming up, and the pro shop can set you up for the day.

It is also genuinely public. Spook Rock is a municipal course, open to anyone, with tee times bookable through the course's free mobile app, which also offers GPS yardages and digital scorecards. Listings estimate green fees around $95 for 18 holes with a cart, with actual rates varying and the lowest prices typically Monday through Thursday and at twilight, so a weekday afternoon round is the value play. The course also runs its own golf academy and summer camp, and sells gift cards for the golfer in your life.

So if you are looking for a round with a story attached, this is the one. Book a tee time, walk the same ground where Boy Scouts camped nearly a century ago, and enjoy the rare Rockland round that is as fun to talk about afterward as it is to play. The only thing scary about Spook Rock is how good the back nine looks when the light starts to fade.