Stanford Golf Course

Stanford, CA • Private

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Courtesy of the club

Overview

Home to the top-ranked Cardinal men’s and women’s golf teams, the Stanford Course is a par-70 George C. Thomas and Billy Bell Jr. design that dates to the early 1930s. Tiger Woods, Tom Watson, Michelle Wie, and many more famed Stanford alums developed their games at this sprawling layout that was ranked on our America's 100 Greatest list in the 1970s. Grand oak trees line the fairways and elevated tee boxes provide beautiful views of the surrounding mountain scenery, especially on the 18th tee, where you can see San Francisco in the distance. There is strong layout variety at Stanford, with holes moving in each direction and a mix of wide-open tee shots and others that are quite narrow. Though it's a pleasant walk with few houses on the course, it can be strenous given the elevation changes and distance between some holes.

About

Holes 18

Length 6727

Slope 140

Facility Type Private

Designer George C. Thomas Jr./William P. Bell/(R) Robert Trent Jones, ASGCA

Awards

Ranking history:

100 Greatest: Ranked for eight years from 1969-1976.

Best in State: Ranked inside the top 20, 1987-'89, 1999. Ranked inside the top 25, 1995-'97, 2003. Ranked inside the top 30, 2001.
2023-'24 ranking: 54th.
Previous ranking: Unranked.

America's Greatest College Courses: 7th (2023).

Panelists

Ratings from our panel of 1,900 course-ranking panelists

4.2

100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES

Shot Options

6.8852

Character

6.8435

Challenge

6.9141

Layout Variety

6.9144

Fun

7.0819

Aesthetics

6.8964

Conditioning

6.6125

Reviews

1 / 4

Review

“George Thomas and William Bell, 1930 Robert Trent Jones, Sr. did a remodel in 1968 Located on the college campus of Stanford University, this scenic foothills course is lined by oak trees and includes San Francisquito Creek that meanders thru half the course, with a view of San Francisco 30 miles away from the 18th tee. Excellence conditions, challenging and plays longer than the scorecard suggests."

2023

2 / 4

Review

“Very well condition course which on date and time played exhibited firm and fast playing conditions. Course exhibited a strong mix of long and short holes moving equally straight and left to right with varying elevation changes throughout. Holes played right in front of you with wide expansive fairways bordered by oak trees and well placed / designed bunkers. Greens were well bunkered and bordered by runoff areas requiring accurate approach shots to relatively large greens. Moderate sized greens were relatively flat with subtle breaks which for a first-time player challenged putting accuracy."

2022

3 / 4

Review

“One of the most peculiar walking courses I've ever played. Respect to the Stanford Cardinal team for walking this one every day--I'm not so sure it's a "fun" walk! Quite quirky in spots with the opening tee ball playing over a busy street and the tee ball and/or approach to the 12th needing to navigate over/around large trees in the middle of the fairway. Add back-to-back par threes on the front nine and you've got quite a unique experience. The front nine plays mostly on the north side of Juniper Serra Blvd, with the second nine playing on the southern and hillier side of the road. No water on the course, but there are some barranca areas and other spots to get in trouble. The bunkers are well positioned and difficult to play from. Four of the five par threes play over barracas--three of them play roughly to the east with the back-to-back par threes of #3 and #4 playing to the south--some more variety on the par threes would have been nice."

2022

4 / 4

Review

“The best course on the Peninsula; but not as good as it should/could be. The back nine has a fabulous routing and some unique, wonderful holes. The expansion of Sand Hill Road really hurt the front nine when they had to redo holes #3 "

2018