WM Phoenix Open

TPC Scottsdale (Stadium Course)



    Places to Play

    Here's every course you can play that has hosted a USGA championship

    August 07, 2022

    USGA championships—from the Opens to the Amateurs to the team events—mark the pinnacle of competition for both amateurs and professionals. To test all facets of a player’s game, the USGA stages its championships at our nation’s finest and most demanding courses. Though not every course that has hosted a USGA championship shares the storied history of Pebble Beach or Pinehurst, simply hosting one of our country’s national championships is an indicator of a quality golf course worth playing.

    With the 2022 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur being played at Anchorage Golf Course in Alaska, the USGA has now held one of its championships in all 50 U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia. And while many of those championships have been contested on private courses, there are nearly 150 courses across 40 states that have hosted a USGA championship and are currently open for public play.

    Which of these public courses are worth playing? We've gathered information on each course, as well as feedback from our Golf Digest course panelists as part of the relaunch of our storied Places to Play franchise.

    Alabama

    The Lakewood Club: Dogwood
    Private
    The Lakewood Club: Dogwood
    Point Clear, AL
    The southernmost stop on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, The Lakewood Club offers 36 holes for members, guests of the Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa and RTJ Trail cardholders. Acclaimed course architect Perry Maxwell designed the original Dogwood course, which opened in 1947 and was renovated in 2018. Weaving through pine and magnolia trees, the Dogwood has plenty of water in play, including on three of the four par 3s. The Lakewood Club hosted the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur in 1974, 1986 and 2021.
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    Alaska

    Anchorage Golf Course
    Courtesy of the course
    Public
    Anchorage Golf Course
    Anchorage, AK
    2.5
    1 Panelists
    A longtime fixture near the top of our Best in Alaska list, Anchorage Golf Course offers stunning views of Denali—the tallest mountain in North America—and the downtown skyline. At just 6,600 yards from the tips, it’s not a long course but the fairways are closely guarded by thick pines. The course plays along hilly terrain and features subtle doglegs, requiring proper shot placement to avoid being blocked by the lurking pines. It’s not unusual to have moose strolling the fairways. After hosting the 2022 U.S. Senior Women's Amateur, the USGA has now hosted one of their championships in all 50 U.S. states.
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    Arizona

    Westin Kierland Golf Club: Ironwood/Acacia/Mesquite
    Courtesy of the club
    3.1
    6 Panelists
    There are 27 holes at this Scottsdale resort that hosted the USGA’s 1997 Women’s State Team Championship. All three nines play along rolling terrain with dramatic elevation changes and picturesque views of the surrounding resort.
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    Papago Golf Club
    ©AGA/Tony Roberts
    Public
    Papago Golf Club
    Phoenix, AZ
    3.6
    6 Panelists
    Papago is one of the best values in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area, offering incredible views of the nearby Camelback Mountains and downtown Phoenix. A recent $8 million investment into the course and the impressive Thunderbirds Golf Complex, where the Arizona State men's and women's golf teams train, have reengerized this municipal course that hosted the 1971 U.S. Amateur Public Links. The four-acre short game area boasts one of the most impressive collegiate practice facilities in the country with three acres of rough and fairway to mimic a variety of lies and a six-acre hitting area with 21 target greens and a number of fairway bunkers.
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    San Marcos Golf Resort
    Dennis Murphy
    Public
    San Marcos Golf Resort
    Chandler, AZ
    The golf course at San Marcos Golf Resort opened in 1913 and unlike many desert-style courses in Arizona, San Marcos is a tree-lined parkland design. The course, which hosted the 1973 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, underwent a multi-million-dollar renovation in 2014 that improved the irrigation system, added new tee boxes and expanded many greens.
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    SunRidge Canyon Golf Club
    Public
    SunRidge Canyon Golf Club
    Fountain Hills, AZ
    3.8
    7 Panelists
    Tucked in a canyon 30 minutes northeast of Phoenix Sky Harbor, Sunridge Canyon features an intriguing mix of doglegs and carries over ravines. The course is best known for its closing "Wicked 6," which consists of two par 3s, two par 4s, and two par 5s, and plays generally uphill and into the prevailing wind. The course hosted the 1997 USGA Men's State Team Championship.
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    Omni Tucson National Resort: Catalina
    Public
    Omni Tucson National Resort: Catalina
    Tucson, AZ
    3.8
    11 Panelists
    The Catalina course at Omni Tucson National was a longtime host of the PGA Tour’s Tucson Open and currently hosts a PGA Tour Champions event. It also hosted the 1966 U.S. Senior Amateur. It is a traditional parkland layout with strategically placed bunkers and lakes that tighten the landing areas. The par-4 18th is a uniquely difficult hole with two lakes guarding both sides of the fairway, requiring a precise tee shot. The University of Arizona men’s golf team annually hosts a collegiate event in the spring on the Catalina course, attracting some of the top programs in the country.
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    California

    Pebble Beach Golf Links
    Sherman Chu
    Public
    Pebble Beach Golf Links
    Pebble Beach, CA
    Not just the greatest meeting of land and sea in American golf, but the most extensive one, too, with nine holes perched immediately above the crashing Pacific surf—the fourth through 10th plus the 17th and 18th. Pebble’s sixth through eighth are golf’s real Amen Corner, with a few Hail Marys thrown in over an ocean cove on the eighth from atop a 75-foot-high bluff. Pebble hosted a successful U.S. Amateur in 2018 and a sixth U.S. Open in 2019. Recent improvements include the redesign of the once-treacherous 14th green, and reshaping of the par-3 17th green, both planned by Arnold Palmer’s Design Company a few years back—and the current changes to the iconic eighth hole. Pebble Beach hosted the Women's U.S. Open for the first time in 2023.
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    Torrey Pines Golf Course: South
    Public
    Torrey Pines Golf Course: South
    La Jolla, CA
    Torrey Pines sits on one of the prettiest golf course sites in America, atop coastal bluffs north of San Diego with eye-dazzling views of the Pacific. Rees Jones’ remodeling of the South Course in the early 2000s not only made the course competitive for the 2008 U.S. Open (won by Tiger Woods in a playoff over Rocco Mediate), it also brought several coastal canyons into play for everyday play, especially on the par-3 third and par-4 14th. An annual PGA Tour stop, Torrey Pines received another boost by Jones prior to hosting its second U.S. Open in 2021, this one won by Jon Rahm.
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    CordeValle Golf Club
    Joey Terrill
    Private
    CordeValle Golf Club
    San Martin, CA
    Located in the little known but abundant golfing area south of San Jose, the gorgeous CordeValle was a private club when it first opened, but is a high-end resort destination these days, with climbing and descending soft hills dotted by gnarled oaks. It hosted both the U.S. Senior Women's Amateur and PGA Tour's Frys.com Open in 2013 and the U.S. Women's Open in 2016, won by Brittany Lang in a playoff against Anna Nordqvist.
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    Haggin Oaks Golf Complex: Alister MacKenzie
    Public
    Haggin Oaks Golf Complex: Alister MacKenzie
    Sacramento, CA
    3.5
    1 Panelists
    This Alister MacKenzie design opened in 1932 and has hosted two USGA championships: the 1963 U.S. Amateur Public Links and 1992 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. Interestingly, the course has no fairway bunkers and instead defends itself with small greens that are heavily guarded by deep bunkers. With rates as low as $25 (walking), Haggin Oaks offers an affordable chance to play a course designed by the mastermind behind Cypress Point and Augusta National.
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    TPC Harding Park
    Dom Furore
    Public
    TPC Harding Park
    San Francisco, CA
    3.9
    14 Panelists
    Across the street from the Olympic Club is San Francisco's most famous muny, designed by the same architect, Willie Watson. Framed by eucalyptus, cypress and monterey pines, TPC Harding Park hosted a PGA Tour event in the 1950s and 1960s. And it hosted the 2020 PGA Championship, won by Collin Morikawa, after a significant renovation a couple years prior. The course also hosted the 2009 Presidents Cup, as well as the 1937 and 1956 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Pasatiempo Golf Club
    Evan Schiller
    Public
    Pasatiempo Golf Club
    Santa Cruz, CA
    Pasatiempo is arguably Alister Mackenzie's favorite design. He lived along its sixth fairway during his last years. With its elaborate greens and spectacular bunkering fully restored by Tom Doak and now by Jim Urbina, it’s a prime example of Mackenzie's art. The five par 3s are daunting yet delightful, culminating with the 181-yard over-a-canyon 18th. The back nine is chock full of other great holes: 10, 11, 12 and 16 all play over barrancas. The storied course has hosted two USGA championships: the 1986 U.S. Women's Amateur and the 2004 U.S. Senior Women's Amateur. In 2014, Pasatiempo received a Golf Digest Green Star environmental award for its measures in dealing with drought. Today, water worries are in the past, in part because of a new storage tank that allows the club to capture and store recycled water.
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    Singing Hills Golf Resort At Sycuan: Willow Glen
    There are 54 holes at Singing Hills, located about 20 miles east of San Diego, including an 18-hole par-3 course. Willow Glen has hosted two U.S. Junior Amateurs, first in 1973 and again in 1989, when David Duval defeated Austin Maki in the finals. The course offers beautiful views of the surrounding hills and features narrow fairways often guarded by Sweetwater River, which comes into play on many holes.
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    Poppy Hills Golf Course
    Joann Dost
    Public
    Poppy Hills Golf Course
    Pebble Beach, CA
    When originally built, Poppy Hills had unpopular perched greens framed by massive containment mounds. Following a 2013 remodeling by original designer Robert Trent Jones II and partner Bruce Charlton, it's now a graceful, low-profile layout. "We popped the hills at Poppy Hills," says Trent Jr. A new feature are sandy naturalized areas and pine straw off the fairways instead of manicured rough, part of a concerted effort to significantly reduce water consumption. The renovated course was on display at the 2018 U.S. Girls' Junior, won by current LPGA player Yealimi Noh.
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    Quail Lodge & Golf Club
    Rob Perry Photography
    Public
    Quail Lodge & Golf Club
    Carmel, CA
    3.3
    2 Panelists
    Located in Carmel Valley, just east of the nearby gems on Monterey Peninsula, Quail Lodge plays along scenic terrain with the Carmel River bisecting the course. Not overly long at 6,500 yards from the tips, the course is generally walkable and features a few narrow corridors off the tee. The course hosted the 1975 U.S. Senior Amateur when it was known as Carmel Valley Golf and Country Club.
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    Rancho Park Golf Course
    Public
    Rancho Park Golf Course
    Los Angeles, CA
    3.5
    2 Panelists
    Situated between Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, Rancho Park hosted the Los Angeles Open in the late 1950s and 1960s with Arnold Palmer, Charlie Sifford and Billy Casper all winning here. This Los Angeles muny also hosted the 1949 U.S. Amateur Public Links. With weekday rates under $40 and junior rates under $10, Rancho Park offers an accessible way to play a historic championship course.
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    Colorado

    The Broadmoor Golf Club East Course
    Dick Durrance II
    Private
    The Broadmoor Golf Club East Course
    Colorado Springs, CO
    The Broadmoor Golf Club East is another timeless mountain course, built hard against Cheyenne Mountain with famed green contours that pose optical illusions. Many putts that look uphill are actually running downhill. Few golfers recognize that the East Course is a combination of nine Donald Ross holes (one through six and 16 through 18) and nine more added 30 years later by Robert Trent Jones (holes seven to 15), though a road crossing helps delineate these lower and upper holes. The East Course was the site of Jack Nicklaus’ first U.S. Amateur win in 1959 and Annika Sorenstam’s first U.S. Women’s Open win in 1995. It has also hosted 2011 U.S. Women’s Open won by So Yeon Ryu and the 2018 U.S. Senior Open won by David Toms, their first major victories as well (at least the first on the Senior circuit for Toms).
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    The Broadmoor Golf Club West Course
    Susan G Drinker
    Private
    The Broadmoor Golf Club West Course
    Colorado Springs, CO
    3.7
    9 Panelists
    While the East course has hosted the majority of USGA championships played at Broadmoor (indcluding Jack Nicklaus' 1959 U.S. Amateur victory and the 1995 Women's U.S. Open, Annika Sorenstam's first major), the West course got its chance too when it hosted the 1967 U.S. Amateur, won by Robert Dickson over heralded lifelong amateur Vinny Giles. Compared to its sibling East course, the West plays tighter off the tee with more doglegs and sloped greens that become increasingly frightening as the holes climb higher onto Cheyenne Mountain's steeper topography. It also follows the same format as the East, combining original holes built by Donald Ross near the hotel in 1918 with Robert Trent Jones' 1964 upland hole additions. The Broadmoor's best course would likely be a reunification of the Ross holes (nine holes from the East and nine from the West) were if ever played, but as it stands the West Course offers most of what the East Course does, with slightly more scenic views up on the mountain.
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    Wellshire Golf Course
    Public
    Wellshire Golf Course
    Denver, CO
    2.5
    1 Panelists
    A classic tree-lined parkland layout, Wellshire is one of few Donald Ross designs west of the Mississippi. This Denver muny hosted the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 1946 and 1959.
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    The Greg Mastriona Golf Courses At Hyland Hills: Gold
    Situated just north of Denver with terrific views of the Rocky Mountains, Hyland Hills features narrow fairways and intriguing design variety, with doglegs moving in each direction and numerous lakes guarding greens. The course hosted the 1990 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, a since discontinued USGA championship.
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    Garden of the Gods Club: North/South/West
    Private
    Garden of the Gods Club: North/South/West
    Colorado Springs, CO
    Set hard against the mountains in Colorado Springs, the Kissing Camels Golf Course is a 27-hole facility open to members and overnight guests of the Garden of the Gods resort. This scenic layout hosted the 1982 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur.
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    Murphy Creek Golf Course
    Public
    Murphy Creek Golf Course
    Aurora, CO
    This Aurora muny is a links-style layout that plays over prairie-like terrain with expansive fairways and greens. Given the openness of the design, wind often plays a factor at this course that can stretch to over 7,500 yards (although it is at altitude). Murphy Creek hosted the 2008 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Riverdale Golf Courses: Dunes
    Public
    Riverdale Golf Courses: Dunes
    Brighton, CO
    4
    6 Panelists
    Perry Dye, the eldest son of Pete and Alice Dye, worked alongside his father in designing Riverdale’s Dunes course. Host of the 1993 U.S. Amateur Public Links, the Dunes course is expansive and open, but in typical Dye fashion, numerous pot bunkers, mounds and ponds lurk to punish wayward shots.
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    Sonnenalp Club
    Private
    Sonnenalp Club
    Edwards, CO
    Generally a private club, Sonnenalp’s golf course is open to guests staying at their posh accommodations right outside Vail. The course—host of the 1987 U.S. Junior Amateur won by Brett Quigley—offers stunning views of the surrounding Rockies.
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    Walking Stick Golf Course
    Public
    Walking Stick Golf Course
    Pueblo, CO
    Walking Stick Golf Course, located about 45 minutes south of Colorado Springs, offers a sort of fusion of prairie and desert-style golf, with native grass and sand framing many fairways. The generally flat, open layout hosted the 2006 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, won by Tiffany Joh.
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    Connecticut

    Yale Golf Course
    LC Lambrecht
    Private
    Yale Golf Course
    New Haven, CT
    Yale has always been something of a sleeping giant. For a variety of reasons the course has rarely lived up to its full potential, either due to inconsistent conditioning or some ill-considered changes through the decades that moved the architecture off its brilliant 1926 C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor design. Given the handicaps, it's remarkable Yale has continued to be so breathtakingly profound. The Leviathan-sized golf course bulges with magisterial holes like the Road, Cape, Knoll and the world’s best Biarritz chiseled onto the rocky, tumbling site. Recently made public, it's one of the few places in the U.S. (notably alongside the Old White course at The Greenbrier) where the general public can experience true Macdonald/Raynor architecture. The sleeping giant is about to awaken as Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner will go to work on reestablishing the original hole concepts and upgrade turf and drainage following the 2023 season.
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    District of Columbia

    East Potomac Golf Course: Blue
    Public
    East Potomac Golf Course: Blue
    Washington, DC
    2.5
    1 Panelists
    Dating back to the 1920s, East Potomac has long been a fixture in our nation’s capital, offering accessible public golf with stunning views of the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial. Sitting on the Potomac River across from Reagan Airport, East Potomac hosted the second edition of the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 1923. The National Links Trust, a nonprofit dedicated to restoring the nation’s preeminent municipals, has recently made a multi-million-dollar investment in Washington, D.C.’s three premier public layouts, including East Potomac.
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    Watch Golf Digest's 'Every Hole At' Series

    Florida

    Omni Amelia Island Resort: Oak Marsh
    Private
    Omni Amelia Island Resort: Oak Marsh
    Amelia Island, FL
    3.4
    7 Panelists
    Set within vast salt marsh creeks and lined with moss-draped heritage oak trees, the Oak Marsh Golf Course is a classic Pete Dye design. Built around the same time as Dye’s renowned Harbour Town Golf Links at Hilton Head, Oak Marsh is a challenging but enjoyable wetland course. The layout hosted the 1988 U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur.
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    Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill Club & Lodge: Challenger/Champion
    4
    22 Panelists

    From Golf Digest Architecture Editor emeritus Ron Whitten:

    I've always been fascinated by the design of Bay Hill, Arnold Palmer's home course for over 45 years (although Tiger Woods owns it, competitively-speaking, as he's won there eight times.) For one thing, it's rather hilly, a rarity in Florida (although not in the Orlando market) and dotted with sinkhole ponds incorporated in the design in dramatic ways.

    I always thought the wrap-around-a-lake par-5 sixth was Dick Wilson's version of Robert Trent Jones's decade-older 13th at The Dunes Club at Myrtle Beach. Each of the two rivals had claimed the other was always stealing his ideas. But the hole I like best at Bay Hill is the par-4 eighth, a lovely dogleg-right with a diagonal green perched above a small circular pond. Okay, I admit that it reminds me of the sixth at Hazeltine National, another Trent Jones product, but I don't think Wilson picked Trent's pocket on this one, as both courses were built about the same time, in the early 1960s. 

    For our complete review, visit Bay Hill's Places to Play page here.

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    Ocala National At Golden Hills Country Club
    Ocala National is a challenging layout with sprawling century-old oaks and towering pines framing many fairways, requiring strategic shot-making. The course was redesigned by Rees Jones ahead of the 2009 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur.
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    Disney's Lake Buena Vista Golf Course
    Public
    Disney's Lake Buena Vista Golf Course
    Orlando, FL
    3
    1 Panelists
    Disney’s Lake Buena Vista course was used alongside the Palm and Magnolia layouts when Tiger Woods won his second career PGA Tour event there in 1996. A certified Audubon Cooperative Wildlife Sanctuary, Lake Buena Vista presents a scenic test, winding through pine forests, palmettos and lakes. In addition to co-hosting the PGA Tour event, the course hosted the USGA’s 1995 Women’s State Team Championship.
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    Hammock Beach Golf Resort & Spa: Ocean Course
    Private
    Hammock Beach Golf Resort & Spa: Ocean Course
    Palm Coast, FL
    4.1
    10 Panelists
    This scenic Jack Nicklaus-designed South Florida track has six holes that play along the Atlantic Ocean, with a challenging four-hole finishing stretch nicknamed “The Bear Claw.” The course, which hosted the 2003 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links, is one of two at the resort and features a classic Nicklaus design: generous fairways and well-protected greens.
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    Scenic Hills Country Club
    Public
    Scenic Hills Country Club
    Pensacola, FL
    Host of the 1969 U.S. Women’s Open, Scenic Hills Country Club still retains the distinction as the only course in Florida to host the championship. In fact, it’s the only U.S. Open—men’s or women’s—to have been played in Florida. Redesigned by former U.S. Open champion Jerry Pate in 1992, this challenging Pensacola layout offers rates under $40 on weekdays.
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    Streamsong Resort: Blue
    Laurence Lambrecht
    Public
    Streamsong Resort: Blue
    Bowling Green, FL
    Although congenial rivals, Tom Doak and Bill Coore actually collaborated on Streamsong’s original 36-hole routing, walking the site and mentally weaving holes around stunning mounds, lagoons, sand spits, savannahs and swamp, all elements left after a strip-mining operation. Coore then gave Doak first choice on which 18 he wanted to build, so Doak’s Blue Course includes a few holes routed by Coore. (Coore and Crenshaw’s Red, ranked No. 127, contains some holes originally envisioned by Doak.) The Blue starts a bit more dramatically, with the back tee on hole one atop a 75-foot sand dune. It has more water carries off the tee, and it’s also a bit more compact, since it sits in the center with the Red Course looping around its outside edges. The Blue definitely has the bolder set of greens, some with massive shelves and dips. The new addition of No. 178 Streamsong (Black) by Gil Hanse only adds to the spirited competition among designers. The theme song at Streamsong seems to be: “Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better.”
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    TPC Sawgrass: Stadium
    Dom Furore / Golf Digest
    Public
    TPC Sawgrass: Stadium
    Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
    TPC’s stadium concept was the idea of then-PGA Tour commissioner Deane Beman. The 1980 design was pure Pete Dye, who set out to test the world’s best golfers by mixing demands of distance with target golf. Most greens are ringed by random lumps, bumps and hollows, what Dye calls his "grenade attack architecture." His ultimate target hole is the heart-pounding sink-or-swim island green 17th, which offers no bailout, perhaps unfairly in windy Atlantic coast conditions. The 17th has spawned over a hundred imitation island greens in the past 40 years. To make the layout even more exciting during tournament play, Steve Wenzloff of PGA Tour Design Services recently remodeled several holes, most significantly the 12th, which is now a drivable par 4.
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    Georgia

    Sea Island: Seaside
    Stephen Szurlej
    Private
    Sea Island: Seaside
    Saint Simons Island, GA
    The Sea Island resort continues to credit famed British golf architect H.S. Colt for its Seaside design, but in truth it was never purely Colt's design. It was the work of Colt's partner, Charles Alison, who traveled to the U.S. and beyond in the 1920s and 30s while Colt remained in England. But the Seaside Course isn't even Alison's anymore--it is purely Tom Fazio, who incorporated Alison's original Seaside nine (today's 10-18) along with a nine (the Marshland Nine) designed in 1974 by Joe Lee, to create a totally new 18- hole course. But in keeping with the resort’s heritage, Fazio styled his new course in the design fashion of Alison, with big clamshell bunkers, smallish putting surfaces and exposed sand dunes off most of the windswept fairways. The Seaside Course has hosted numerous USGA championships and has been a mainstay of the PGA Tour’s early season roster.
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    Chastain Park Golf Course
    Public
    Chastain Park Golf Course
    Atlanta, GA
    One of the best public options in Atlanta, Chastain Park is in the Buckhead neighborhood on the north side of the city and plays along rolling hills with scenic views of the surrounding skyline. This Atlanta muny hosted the 1948 U.S. Amateur Public Links when it was known as North Fulton Park Golf Course.
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    Hawaii

    Wailua Municipal Golf Course
    Marco Garcia
    Public
    Wailua Municipal Golf Course
    Lihue, HI
    3.7
    9 Panelists
    One of the best deals for golf in all of Hawaii, this muny hosted three U.S. Amateur Public Links Championships. The par-3 17th photographed here features an elevated green to a green carved out near the water.
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    Ala Wai Golf Course
    Public
    Ala Wai Golf Course
    Honolulu, HI
    Just off the beach with view of the Waikiki skyline, Ala Wai is a flat, enjoyable layout. This often-busy Honolulu muny has hosted a couple of USGA championships: the 1960 U.S. Amateur Public Links and the 1983 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.
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    Kapalua: Bay
    Lance Ehrecke, Living Moments Media
    Public
    Kapalua: Bay
    Lahaina, HI
    3.6
    15 Panelists
    Often overshadowed by its sibling Plantation course (annual host of the PGA Tour’s Tournament of Champions), Kapalua’s Bay course holds its own, having hosted PGA Tour and LPGA Tour events, as well as the 1998 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. The Arnold Palmer design treats golfers to stunning views, including at the signature par-3 17th, which plays directly over the ocean.
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    Idaho

    Banbury Golf Course
    Public
    Banbury Golf Course
    Eagle, ID
    3.7
    3 Panelists
    Banbury is a scenic layout just outside Boise, with numerous lakes and creeks bringing water into play on many holes. When the course hosted the U.S. Girls’ Junior in 2005, future major champions I.K. Kim and Inbee Park squared off in the final, with Kim taking the title over the up-and-coming Park.
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    Illinois

    Cog Hill Golf & Country Club: Dubsdread (Course #4)
    Some tour pros were critical of Rees Jones's remodeling of Cog Hill No. 4, insisting it's too hard for high handicappers. What did they expect? Its nickname is, after all, Dubsdread. And there are three easier courses at Cog Hill for high handicappers. Original owner Joe Jemsek wanted a ball-busting championship course when it was built back in the mid-1960s. Jones's renovation was true to the philosophy of original architect Dick Wilson, who liked to pinch fairways with bunkers and surround greens with more bunkers, all of them deep.
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    Spencer T. Olin Golf Course: Spencer T. Olin
    About 30 minutes northeast of downtown St. Louis and across the Mississippi River, Spencer T. Olin Golf Course has hosted a couple of USGA championships: the 1996 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links and 1999 U.S. Amateur Public Links. The course is generally forgiving off the tee, but undulating greens require quality iron play to get close.
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    Cantigny Golf: Woodside/Lakeside/Hillside/Youth Links
    3.4
    2 Panelists
    Former PGA Tour player and current on-course TV commentator Colt Knost won the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 2007 when it was played at Cantigny. The win was part of a torrid summer on the amateur circuit for Knost, who also won the U.S. Amateur and was a part of a winning Walker Cup team. Cantigny is a 36-hole facility with three distinct nines best described by their names: Woodside, Lakeside and Hillside. A fourth nine, Youth Links, is reserved for juniors ages 8-15.
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    Silver Lake Country Club: North
    Public
    Silver Lake Country Club: North
    Orland Park, IL
    Situated in the Chicago suburb of Orland Park, Silver Lake is owned by the Coghill family, who founded nearby Cog Hill Golf & Country Club in the early 20th century. Silver Lake’s North course is a classic parkland layout with wide, forgiving fairways and receptive greens. The North course hosted the 1958 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    University of Illinois Golf Course: Orange
    The University of Illinois Golf Course is a 36-hole facility located about six miles south of campus. The Orange course opened in 1950 and hosted the fourth edition of the U.S. Junior Amateur a year later in 1951. The course—a walkable parkland design—offers weekday rates under $25 and weekend rates under $30.
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    Indiana

    Coffin Golf Club: Coffin
    Public
    Coffin Golf Club: Coffin
    Indianapolis, IN
    Coffin Golf Club originally opened in the early 1930s and has hosted three U.S. Amateur Public Links championships, including in 1935, when Frank Strafaci, the grandfather of 2020 U.S. Amateur champion Tyler Strafaci, won the title. The course underwent a significant redesign in 1995, but it still plays along the same rolling terrain that it did when it hosted the three USGA championships.
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    Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame
    Fighting Irish Media
    Public
    Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame
    Notre Dame, IN
    4.2
    15 Panelists
    Given there is very little elevation change on Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course, it was an impressive feat by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw to create a captivating design that compensates for the bland terrain with subtle doglegs moving in each direction, with strategically placed bunkers and trees creating high shot values. As is typical of Coore and Crenshaw designs, the course blends into the natural terrain and creates ample challenge not with bold, artificial features but thoughtful hazards and hole shapes. The course sits on 250 wooded acres just north of campus and is an Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary. Home to the university’s men’s and women’s golf teams, the course has hosted numerous NCAA regionals as well as the 2019 U.S. Senior Open. Steve Stricker won his first USGA championship, winning by six shots over David Toms.
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    Eagle Creek Golf Club: Sycamore Course
    Public
    Eagle Creek Golf Club: Sycamore Course
    Indianapolis, IN
    2.5
    1 Panelists
    Eagle Creek Golf Club is a 36-hole facility with two Pete Dye-designed courses. The Sycamore course is a scenic layout with a variety of holes, some tree-lined and others more open with water in play. The original course at Eagle Creek, made up of 17 holes from the Sycamore course and one hole from the Pines course, hosted the 1982 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    French Lick Resort: Pete Dye Course
    courtesy of French Lick Resort
    Public
    French Lick Resort: Pete Dye Course
    French Lick, IN
    Pete Dye’s mountaintop design, Golf Digest’s 2009 Best New Public winner, established that at age 80 the designer still had fresh ideas, including rumpled chipping swales, country-lane cart paths and volcano bunkers. Measuring just over 8,100 yards from the tips, Pete Dye at French Lick is not the first course over 8,000 yards to land on our rankings. That would be Runaway Brook in Massachusetts, now called the Pines Course at The International Golf Club. It was 8,040 yards when ranked in 1967. Today it’s 8,325 yards. The world’s longest is Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in China at 8,415 yards. The yardage may be a talking point, but what golfers will remember about Dye's French Lick course are the multi-mile views in all direction, the roominess of the fairways and greens that hang out over the edges of the sweeping land formations.
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    Otter Creek Golf Course: North/West/East
    Public
    Otter Creek Golf Course: North/West/East
    Columbus, IN
    3.4
    5 Panelists
    Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the original 18 holes at Otter Creek, which is now the North and West nines. The course has equally heavy doses of trees and bunkers, which paired with the meandering creeks make this a demanding test. The challenging layout hosted the 1991 U.S. Amateur Public Links, which was played on the North and West nines. Robert Trent Jones’ son, Rees Jones, designed an additional nine holes—the East course—in 1995, rounding out this now 27-hole facility.
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    Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex: Ackerman-Allen
    Charles Jischke
    Public
    Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex: Ackerman-Allen
    West Lafayette, IN
    3.8
    10 Panelists
    The Ackerman-Allen course at Purdue’s 36-hole Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex was originally designed by Bill Diddel and opened in 1934. The Purdue South Course, as it was known back then, hosted the 1955 U.S. Junior Amateur and the 1961 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship, the latter of which was won by Purdue, with Jack Nicklaus claiming the individual title. Pete Dye, who designed the sibling Kampen course, redesigned the Ackerman-Allen layout in 2015-’16.
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    Kansas

    Leavenworth Golf Club
    Public
    Leavenworth Golf Club
    Lansing, KS
    Leavenworth, about 30 minutes northwest of Kansas City, was originally organized as a private club in 1920. Today, it’s open to the public and offers a ball-striking test, with narrow corridors between trees and tiny greens. At just 5,900 yards from the tips, distance is not a requisite to scoring, but accuracy certainly is. The century-old course hosted the 1964 U.S. Girls’ Junior, won by Peggy Conley.
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    Sand Creek Station
    Public
    Sand Creek Station
    Newton, KS
    3.7
    7 Panelists
    In 2014, Sand Creek Station hosted the final U.S. Amateur Public Links, a championship first played in 1922. Byron Meth captured the title in 2014, defeating Doug Ghim in extra holes. The course, located about 30 minutes north of Wichita, is bisected by a railway and features several template holes, including the Road Hole and Redan.
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    Kentucky

    Kearney Hill Golf Links
    Public
    Kearney Hill Golf Links
    Lexington, KY
    3.5
    8 Panelists
    The father-son duo of Pete and PB Dye designed Kearney Hill Golf Links, which plays true to its name as a Scottish links-style course. South African (and future Players champion) Tim Clark won the 1997 U.S. Amateur Public Links at Kearney Hill. Ten years later in 2007, future U.S. Solheim Cup team member Mina Harigae took home the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links title at this Lexington muny. With weekday rates under $30, it’s an affordable way to play a Dye-designed championship course.
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    Seneca Golf Course
    Public
    Seneca Golf Course
    Louisville, KY
    3
    2 Panelists
    This challenging Louisville muny plays along hilly terrain in Seneca Park. World Golf Hall of Famer Gary Player won his first PGA Tour event at Seneca Golf Course in 1958 at the Kentucky Derby Open. Eight years before Player’s triumph, Seneca hosted the 1950 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Shawnee Golf Course
    Public
    Shawnee Golf Course
    Louisville, KY
    2.3
    1 Panelists
    Situated alongside the Ohio River, Shawnee is a player-friendly municipal in Louisville. The generally flat course dates back to the 1920s and hosted the 1932 U.S. Amateur Public Links. In addition to the 18-hole layout, there is a three-hole junior course.
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    Louisiana

    Lakewood Golf Club
    Public
    Lakewood Golf Club
    New Orleans, LA
    3.5
    1 Panelists
    The PGA Tour played the New Orleans Open at Lakewood from 1963 to 1988, with names like Player, Nicklaus, Trevino, Watson, Casper, Ballesteros and Crenshaw all winning at this public track. In addition to this PGA Tour history, the course also hosted the 1966 U.S. Senior Women's Amateur. A recent redesign has modernized the course, which now includes several unique bunkers, including the flame-shaped traps at the 18th, designed to pay tribute to New Orleans firefighters.
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    Maine

    Bangor Municipal Golf Course
    COLBY KOHN
    Public
    Bangor Municipal Golf Course
    Bangor, ME
    2
    1 Panelists
    Bangor Municipal is a player-friendly course with forgiving fairways and large greens. Interestingly, since many greens are dome-shaped, putting from the middle of the green often leaves you a downhill putt to many pins. The Geoffrey Cornish design hosted the 1978 U.S. Amateur Public Links and was the longtime host of the Greater Bangor Open, a favorite among mini-tour players. World Golf Hall of Famer Lanny Wadkins captured the GBO in 1971. A nine-hole course—the Kelly Nine—rounds out this 27-hole facility.
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    Maryland

    Mount Pleasant Golf Course
    Public
    Mount Pleasant Golf Course
    Baltimore, MD
    3.3
    2 Panelists
    Mount Pleasant was the site of Arnold Palmer’s third PGA Tour win at the 1956 Eastern Open. The event was played at Mount Pleasant from 1950-1958, with other winners including Sam Snead, Cary Middlecoff and Bob Toski. The public parkland track just north of downtown Baltimore also hosted the 1939 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Massachusetts

    Taconic Golf Club
    Public
    Taconic Golf Club
    Williamstown, MA
    Taconic dates back to 1896 and is the home course of the Williams College men’s and women’s golf teams. Routinely ranked inside the top 15 on our Best in State rankings, Taconic, located in a quiet village in the northwest corner of Massachusetts, closer to Albany than Boston, is a challenging parkland layout with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. It was designed and built in the 1920s by the architecture team of Wayne Stiles and John Van Kleek with undisturbed holes that fan out across a wooded property. The western Massachusetts gem has hosted three different USGA championships: the 1956 U.S. Junior Amateur, 1963 U.S. Women’s Amateur and 1996 U.S. Senior Amateur. Gil Hanse has been making restorative modifications here since 2008.
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    Red Tail Golf Club
    Courtesy of the club
    Public
    Red Tail Golf Club
    Devens, MA
    4.1
    2 Panelists

    From Golf Digest Architecture Editor emeritus Ron Whitten: Fort Devens in Massachusetts was an army facility dating back to 1917, once a city unto itself, housing 10,000 soldiers, with its own water and sewer systems, its own schools, its own airport. Just 35 miles west of Boston, it was both a training ground and stopping-off point for troops fighting in both World Wars. Before heading to Europe in 1942, General George Patton taught tank maneuvers there. In the late 1980s, much of the soil beneath the fort's thousands of acres was found to be contaminated with the residue of war: arsenic, chromium, nickel, lead, asbestos, battery acid, waste oil and incinerator ash. It became the focus of an enormous (and enormously expensive) clean-up, first by the military and, after the fort was decommissioned in 1995, as a federal EPA Superfund project. The community is now called Devens, Mass., offering a commerce center, business park, private residences, wildlife refuge and a public golf course.
     

    (The above is an excerpt of our architecture editor's full analysis of Red Tail. Click here for Ron Whitten's full review.)

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    Stow Acres Country Club: North
    Public
    Stow Acres Country Club: North
    Stow, MA
    The North course, host of the 1995 U.S. Amateur Public Links, was designed by Geoffrey Cornish and offers a nice variety of holes. The facility has a South course as well, but one of our panelists reports that the conditions are a little spotty compared to the North and the layout is inferior.
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    Michigan

    Rackham Golf Course
    Public
    Rackham Golf Course
    Huntington Woods, MI
    Rackham Golf Course is a Donald Ross design that sits adjacent to the Detroit Zoo. While the course is generally flat, the greens have some undulations, as you’d expect from a Ross design. Rackham hosted two U.S. Amateur Public Links, first in 1940 and again in 1961.
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    The Orchards Golf Club
    Public
    The Orchards Golf Club
    Washington, MI
    4.5
    1 Panelists
    Situated in a residential golf community in eastern Michigan, The Orchards Golf Club is a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design that was built on an old apple orchard. The course can play over 7,000 yards from the tips and has hosted several Michigan Opens. Ryan Moore won the 2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links here, part of his storied amateur career.
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    University of Michigan Golf Course
    Daryl Marshke
    Public
    University of Michigan Golf Course
    Ann Arbor, MI
    3.8
    7 Panelists
    Alister MacKenzie’s University of Michigan Golf Course was one of just a handful of college courses when it opened in the early 1930s, and it has remained one of the country’s best at any university. A restoration by Michigan native Arthur Hills in the 1990s restored some bunker and green complexes to MacKenzie’s original intent. The scene at the Blue, as it’s often referred to, is also one of the best of any collegiate venue as it sits atop hilly terrain in the shadows of the Big House, the Wolverines’ famous football stadium.
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    Minnesota

    Braemar Golf Course: Championship
    Peter Wong
    Public
    Braemar Golf Course: Championship
    Edina, MN
    3.8
    6 Panelists
    Braemar is a player-friendly public track just south of Minneapolis that offers wide, forgiving fairways. One of our panelists notes that the two nines play quite different, with the most compelling holes on the back side. In 1979, Braemar hosted the third edition of the since-discontinued U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.
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    Bunker Hills Golf Club: North/East/West/Executive
    Bunker Hills is a 36-hole facility with three nine-hole layouts and an additional par-31 executive course. The North, West and East nines are all similar designs, with rolling, tree-lined fairways opening to large greens. The course has hosted numerous Minnesota Opens as well as the 1976 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Edinburgh USA
    Public
    Edinburgh USA
    Brooklyn Park, MN
    2.5
    1 Panelists
    Just north of downtown Minneapolis, Edinburgh USA is a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design that hosted an LPGA Tour event from 1990-1996. An aerial game is required at this muny, as numerous lakes and bunkers guarding the front of greens often take away the option of running the ball up. The course, which hosted the 1992 U.S. Amateur Public Links, features a massive double green shared by the ninth and 18th holes.
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    Francis A. Gross Golf Club
    Public
    Francis A. Gross Golf Club
    Minneapolis, MN
    This Minneapolis muny opened in the mid-1920s and hosted the 1964 U.S. Amateur Public Links. Conveniently located just outside the city center, the par-71 parkland course—an Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary—is a relatively flat and enjoyable walk.
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    Keller Golf Course
    Public
    Keller Golf Course
    Maplewood, MN
    3.6
    4 Panelists
    A muny packed with history, Keller hosted the 1932 and 1954 PGA Championships, a Western Open, and for nearly 40 years, from 1930 to 1968, hosted the PGA Tour's annual St. Paul Open. On top of all that, it also hosted the 1931 U.S. Amateur Public Links. As one of our Minnesota course-ranking panelists described: "Holes 11 through 16 are as good of a stretch of holes as anywhere in the state."
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    Meadowbrook Golf Club
    Public
    Meadowbrook Golf Club
    Hopkins, MN
    3.5
    1 Panelists
    Meadowbrook is a Minneapolis municipal located just west of the city. Originally built in the 1920s and renovated in the mid-1990s, the course plays over rolling hills with tree-lined fairways and a winding Minnehaha Creek that comes into play on a couple of holes. The course, which is an Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary, hosted the 1947 U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Rush Creek Golf Club
    Public
    Rush Creek Golf Club
    Maple Grove, MN
    3.9
    2 Panelists
    A quality public track just west of the Twin Cities, Rush Creek has plenty of design variety, with elevation changes, deep bunkers and well-placed hazards creating a challenging yet enjoyable round. The scenic layout hosted an LPGA Tour event in the late 1990s and was the site of Ryan Moore’s second U.S. Amateur Public Links title in 2004.
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    University of Minnesota Les Bolstad Golf Course
    3.5
    1 Panelists
    University of Minnesota’s Les Bolstad Golf Course plays tougher than you might expect from a course that’s just 6,300 yards from the tips, as its narrow fairways and small greens require accuracy. The course, host of the 1958 U.S. Junior Amateur, offers weekday rates under $40.
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    Mississippi

    Old Waverly Golf Club
    Private
    Old Waverly Golf Club
    West Point, MS
    4.1
    12 Panelists

    From Golf Digest Architecture Editor emeritus Ron Whitten: I've always admired Jerry Pate's work in golf architecture. He was one of the few PGA Tour pros who really got down and dirty in golf design, and I especially liked the few courses he did with architect Bob Cupp. Their second collaboration was Old Waverly in tiny West Point, Miss., a dream project of West Point native George Bryan, who at the time was chairman of the meat division of the Sara Lee Corporation based in the tri-city area (West Point, Starkville and Columbus) known as Mississippi's Golden Triangle. Cupp was just two years removed from his employment as Jack Nicklaus’ chief designer, and Pate was still active on the PGA Tour when they started the project in August 1986. Both spent a lot of time on the site. I remember Pate was as proud of the massive drainage system he successfully persuaded Old Waverly to adopt as he was of the many strategies he helped impart in its holes. The course opened in August 1988 to immediate acclaim, finishing No. 3 among Golf Digest's Best New Private Courses in 1989.

    (The above is an excerpt of our architecture editor's full analysis of Old Waverly. Click here for Ron Whitten's full review.)

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    Missouri

    Forest Park Golf Course: Redbud/Dogwood/Hawthorn
    Steve Jett
    3.3
    2 Panelists
    Forest Park is a 27-hole public facility located just minutes from downtown St. Louis. The three nine-hole layouts can be played in a variety of combinations. Despite its metropolitan setting, the parkland course has a serene feel and is an enjoyable walk. Back in 1929, Forest Park hosted the U.S. Amateur Public Links.
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    Swope Memorial Golf Course
    Public
    Swope Memorial Golf Course
    Kansas City, MO
    3.8
    2 Panelists
    The PGA Tour’s inaugural Kansas City Open was played at Swope Memorial in 1949. The Tillinghast design just outside the city center is a tight, tree-lined layout that offers views of the skyline in the distance. The course, adjacent to the Kansas City Zoo, hosted the 2005 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.
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    Nevada

    Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course
    Brian Walker
    Public
    Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course
    Stateline, NV
    Edgewood Tahoe is one of golf’s most televised courses as the annual host of the American Century Championship. It also holds the distinction of being the only course in Nevada to have held a USGA championship, hosting a U.S. Senior Open and a U.S. Amateur Public Links in the 1980s. Once a member of Golf Digest America’s 100 Greatest Courses, Edgewood Tahoe is as telegenic as they come with fairways framed by stately pines, greens flanked by sparkling ponds and several holes positioned on Lake Tahoe, including the final three. At over 6,000 feet elevation the ball flies roughly 10-percent farther than at sea level.
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    New Jersey

    Flanders Valley Golf Course: Red to Gold
    Public
    Flanders Valley Golf Course: Red to Gold
    Flanders, NJ
    3.8
    1 Panelists
    There are two 18-hole layouts at Flanders Valley in northern New Jersey. The Red to Gold course is a challenging layout that plays over hilly terrain and features what many consider the hardest hole on the property: the tight 475-yard par-4 16th. Flanders Valley has hosted two USGA championships: the 1973 U.S. Amateur Public Links and the 1985 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, the latter of which was contested on the Red and Blue nines.
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    Hominy Hill Golf Course
    Courtesy of the Monmouth County Park System
    Public
    Hominy Hill Golf Course
    Colts Neck, NJ
    3.5
    1 Panelists
    A municipal course owned by Monmouth County, Hominy Hill is a Robert Trent Jones Sr. design that is popular among locals for its affordable prices and quality course conditions. The New Jersey track has hosted two USGA championships: the 1983 U.S. Amateur Public Links and the 1995 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.
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    Neshanic Valley Golf Course: Ridge/Lake/Meadow
    Public
    Neshanic Valley Golf Course: Ridge/Lake/Meadow
    Neshanic Station, NJ
    3.8
    3 Panelists
    The three championship nines at Neshanic Valley opened in the mid-2000s and cover 350 acres. The course has an open feel with generous fairways that are framed nicely by tall fescue. Neshanic Valley—located less than 20 miles from the USGA’s headquarters in Liberty Corner—hosted the 2012 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links. In addition to the three championship nines, the facility has a par-32 Academy Course for beginners.
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    New Mexico

    Santa Ana Golf Club: Cheena/Star/Tamaya
    John R. Johnson - J2 Golf Marketing
    Public
    Santa Ana Golf Club: Cheena/Star/Tamaya
    Bernalillo, NM
    Situated about 20 miles north of Albuquerque and bordered by the Rio Grande, Santa Ana Golf Club is a 27-hole public facility with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains, including the 10,000-foot Sandia Peak. The picturesque layout hosted the 1999 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links.
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    New York

    Bethpage State Park: Black
    Dom Furore
    Public
    Bethpage State Park: Black
    Farmingdale, NY
    Sprawling Bethpage Black, designed in the mid-1930s to be “the public Pine Valley,” became the darling of the USGA in the early 2000s, when it played the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens. Then it became a darling of the PGA Tour as host of the 2011 and 2016 Barclays. Now the PGA of America has embraced The Black, which hosted the 2019 PGA Championship (winner: Brooks Koepka) and the upcoming 2025 Ryder Cup. Heady stuff for a layout that was once a scruffy state-park haunt where one needed to sleep in the parking lot in order to get a tee time. Now, you need fast fingers on the state park's website once tee times are available—as prime reservations at The Black are known for going in seconds.
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    Bethpage State Park: Blue
    Public
    Bethpage State Park: Blue
    Farmingdale, NY
    3.1
    2 Panelists
    A.W. Tillinghast’s Blue course at Bethpage State Park was the first to open in 1935, followed by the Red and the famed Black shortly thereafter. Just a year later in 1936, the Blue hosted the U.S. Amateur Public Links. Today, only several of Tillinghast’s original holes on the Blue remain, as the course has undergone significant changes over the years as more courses were built on the property. The front nine is the stronger of the two sides, with plenty of elevation changes, while the back is flatter and more straightforward.
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    Grover Cleveland Golf Course
    Public
    Grover Cleveland Golf Course
    Amherst, NY
    3
    1 Panelists
    Grover Cleveland Golf Course may be the cheapest U.S. Open course you can play. For just $18 on weekdays, you can play this muny that hosted the 1912 U.S. Open—won by John McDermott—when it was then the private Country Club of Buffalo. Grover Cleveland, originally founded as the Country Club of Buffalo, was designed by Walter Travis and redesigned by Donald Ross. In 1925, the country club sold the course to the City of Buffalo, and it was subsequently renamed Grover Cleveland Golf Course, after the former city mayor and U.S. President. A year later in 1926, the newly public layout hosted the U.S. Amateur Public Links. Today, the par-69 tips out at just over 5,600 yards, making it not only the most affordable, but the most playable former U.S. Open venue you can play.
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    Sheridan Park Golf Course
    Public
    Sheridan Park Golf Course
    Tonawanda, NY
    3
    1 Panelists
    Situated between Buffalo and Niagara Falls, Sheridan Park is a walkable municipal that hosted the 1962 U.S. Amateur Public Links. The course dates back to the 1930s and plays over rolling hills with many water hazards in play.
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    North Carolina

    Pinehurst No. 2
    Stephen Szurlej
    Public
    Pinehurst No. 2
    Pinehurst, NC
    In 2010, a team lead by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw killed and ripped out all the Bermudagrass rough on Pinehurst No. 2 that had been foolishly planted in the 1970s. Between fairways and tree lines, they established vast bands of native hardpan sand dotted with clumps of wiregrass and scattered pine needles. They reduced the irrigation to mere single rows in fairways to prevent grass from ever returning to the new sandy wastelands. Playing firm and fast, it was wildly successful as the site of the 2014 Men’s and Women’s U.S. Opens, played on consecutive weeks. Because of its water reduction, the course was named a Green Star environmental award-winner by Golf Digest that year. In 2019, Pinehurst No. 2 and No. 4 hosted another U.S. Amateur Championship, and the USGA announced Pinehurst No. 2—in addition to hosting the 2024 U.S. Open—will also have the 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047 U.S. Opens.
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    Pinehurst No. 4
    Public
    Pinehurst No. 4
    Pinehurst, NC