With its lush and immaculate fairways flanked by century-old weeping willows and its smallish bent grass greens — undulating and fast — protected by high thick rough and forbidding bunkers, the West Course of Westchester Country Club, in Harrison, NY, isn’t your everyday track. But then again the PGA Tour’s Buick Classic, which has been played here under different sponsorship titles since 1964, isn’t your average PGA Tour stop.

Known for producing some of the finest winners of the time, the Buick Classic has emerged as one of the year’s best, toughest and most anticipated weeks, to say nothing of the fact that it remains the seventh longest continuous venue among the 40-plus PGA Tour-sponsored events.

The reasons for its popularity are multifold: The world-class venue is close to New York City and, as such, lures even reticent professionals (Greg Norman and Nick Faldo, among a select few) who nowadays dabble more in their off-course business interests and only play a handful of the top-tier tournaments in order to keep their Tour exemption aloft.

Then there is the facility: Breathtaking in its scope, it’s a lotusland of endless pampering for players, their families and their entourage — with an on-property hotel, headlining eateries, an extensive practice facility and even a petite par-3 course, where spouse and children can experiment.

And last but certainly not least is the classically styled West Course: A long and hilly affair, it remains a test of accuracy and shotmaking for professionals, regardless of how many times they arrive on the first tee.

Add to this heaping equation of superlatives the fact that this year the competition has been scheduled for the week before the U.S. Open on Long Island. This means golf’s biggest names will use, as they have on so many previous occasions, Westchester’s tight and penal U.S. Open-like setup to hone their skills — and to vie for the $5.2 million purse.

And while the 6,722-yard, par-71 West course appears short by today’s “grip it and rip it” standards, it is annually extolled for several of its punishing Walter Travis-designed holes, including the brutal 17th: a 466-yard, par-4 monster.

Through the years, the tournament has produced some very memorable moments, recalls Chuck Stogel, past president of the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association and a contributing editor at Met Golfer magazine who has covered every Buick Classic since 1967.

“In 1976 Jimmy Wright, a local club pro, did the unthinkable: In the second round he equaled the Classic and course record with a 62 that still stands,” he says. “But 1982 produced the greatest shot in Classic history, when Bob Gilder, who won the event, capped off his third round and six-shot lead with a sensational double eagle 2 at the 18th hole,” recalls Stogel, who was standing in the gallery watching. “From 253 yards out, he struck a perfectly arching 3-wood to the green. The ball took a few bounces and rolled into the cup.”

This year’s Buick Classic will undoubtedly produce the same kind of quality golf and, perhaps, portend the winner of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, NY.

The 6,813-yard William Flynn-designed par-70 course, which has already hosted seven previous championships, has been lengthened with the addition of new tee boxes, and toughened with the re-building of a few of the course’s withered-down bunkers.

But the U.S. Open is just one of the many pro tournaments, and one of two USGA events gracing the New York metropolitan area this year — a fact that may go someway toward highlighting the quality of first-rate courses in the tri-state area. “The Met area is a popular region for the USGA because of the wealth of quality courses and clubs in the section,” explains Stogel.

“This year represents the middle event among three U.S. Opens being held in the metropolitan area over five years: in 2002 at Bethpage, 2004 at Shinnecock Hills and 2006 at Winged Foot.”

“Toss in the Buick Classic, the LPGA Tour’s Sybase Big Apple Classic at Wykagyl and the Senior Champion Tour’s Commerce Bank Long Island Classic, and it’s a bonanza of major golf unparalleled anywhere else. Then, next year, the PGA Championship comes to Baltusrol.”

From August 16 – 22, the U.S. Amateur, always a thrilling no-holds-barred affair, will be played on Mamaroneck, NY’s Winged Foot Golf Club’s brutal West Course, which has been stretched from 6,956 yards to 7,266 yards.

The seniors will have their own challenges when they tee-off at the Commerce Bank Long Island Classic, on the prestigious Red Course at Eisenhower Park in East Meadow, NY. The tournament, which runs from June 28 – July 4, will welcome back defending champion Jim Thorpe, who edged out Bob Gilder by one stroke to claim his $225,000 share of the $1.5 million purse.

As for the ladies of the LPGA Tour: They will appropriately kick-start golf in the region with their May 20 – 23 stop at the Sybase Big Apple Classic at Wykagyl Country Club in New Rochelle, NY. In 2003, Hee-Won Han bettered her runner-up performance of 2002 by earning her first LPGA Tour win — carding four birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey en route to a four-day total of 11-under and a two-stroke victory over veteran Meg Mallon.

Not all the golf-related activity will occur on the course. On June 14, the Met Golf Writers Association will bestow their highest honor on Annika Sorenstam, when they will present her with the Gold Tee Award at their 53rd National Awards Dinner.

For fans though, nothing matches the excitement, action and drama of real golf. And thanks to this year’s bountiful supply, nearly everyone should have his or her fill. “We are truly blessed,” says Stogel of the influx. “Great golf tournaments in the Met area year after year. Few, if any, can compete with that.”