Designed by Donald Ross and Hugh Wilson, the Bay Course at Seaview Golf Resort offers sweeping views of the Atlantic City skyline. (Image: Seaview Hotel and Golf Club)
Longtime host of the LPGA Tour’s ShopRite Classic, the Bay Course at Seaview Hotel and Golf Club in New Jersey relaunched in 2022 following a US$700,000 renovation.
(Last updated November 2023.)
New Jersey’s Seaview Hotel and Golf Club—the host of the LPGA Tour’s ShopRite Classic and where Sam Snead famously won the 1942 PGA Championship—re-launched its venerable Bay Course in May 2022 following a US$700,000 renovation.
The focus was on enhancing the aesthetics and playability of a Donald Ross and Hugh Wilson collaboration opened in 1914 that presents golfers with a test of imagination and accuracy. Located on Reeds Bay in Galloway Township, within sight of the casino towers of Atlantic City, the 6,300-yard Bay Course has the feel of a Scottish links, with deep pot bunkers and small undulating greens. The renovation included the rebuilding of the bunkers and a major cart path upgrade.
Seaview is home to a 296-room hotel and two strong golf courses. (Image: Seaview Hotel and Golf Club)
Seaview Hotel and Golf Club is home to a 296-room hotel and two golf courses managed by Troon Golf. The Bay Course hosted the LPGA’s inaugural ShopRite Classic in 1986. The tournament moved to nearby Greate Bay Country Club from 1988 to 1997, before returning to Seaview in 1998, where it has been held ever since. Recent winners include Lexi Thompson, Anna Nordqvist, Stacy Lewis, Celine Boutier, Brooke Henderson, and 2023 winner Ashleigh Buhai.
Henderson’s thrilling victory in 2022 may prove especially helpful in raising the property’s profile among Canadian golfers. After starting the final round in ninth place, Henderson, a native of Smiths Falls, Ontario, roared to the top of the leaderboard with a bogey-free score of 7-under. The Canadian then bested Lindsey Weaver-Wright with an eagle on the first playoff hole to claim her 11th title on the LPGA Tour.
The Bay Course’s sister layout, the Pines Course, is a 6,800-yard William Flynn and Howard Toomey co-design dating from 1929. Sudden elevation changes, sloping greens and severe doglegs present constant challenges as the course twists through woodlands.
It was on the 16th hole of the Pines Course that Sam Snead captured the 1942 PGA Championship—his first of seven majors—with a 60-foot chip-in. In what was then a match play competition, Slammin’ Sammy won 2 & 1 over Jim Turnesa in the final. Snead began his World War II service in the U.S. Navy immediately after the tournament.
