Best golf courses near Vail, CO

A Jack Nicklaus design in the beautiful mountains of Colorado, the Country Club of the Rockies offers beautiful mountain views without arduous elevation changes. Despite being 7,400 yards from the tips, the course is not that excessive in length, thanks to it sitting 7,200 feet above sea level. Originally built with very pronounced slopes, after a decade of use, the putting surfaces were softened for playability. The course includes many Nicklaus trademarks, including the split-fairway second, a 100-yard bunker on the par-5 seventh that guards the layup area and a carry over Eagle River at the 12th on the approach. Overall, Country Club of the Rockies is an incredibly beautiful course that meanders through the Rockies, while still boasting the difficulty that is a hallmark of Nicklaus' design career.

A short 30-minute drive from Vail’s airport is the Beaver Creek Resort and village. Perhaps best known for being a world-renowned ski resort, Beaver Creek Resort turns into a golf and outdoor enthusiasts paradise when summer rolls around. The European-themed resort and village includes 12 lodging options and over 20 dining choices with boutique shopping and a premier member-only golf course at Beaver Creek Golf Club as well as at Red Sky Ranch and Golf Club. The Robert Trent Jones Jr.-designed golf course at Beaver Creek Club opened in 1982 and is built over naturally undulating valleys bordered by dense trees and Beaver Creek itself. Select properties within the Beaver Creek resort are granted access to the exclusive Red Sky Golf Club, located above the resort village, and home to the Tom Fazio and Greg Norman courses. The Fazio course opened in 2002 and is known for its difficult par 3s and greensites protected by sprawling sage meadows, dense groves of Aspen trees and breathtaking views across the valley to Vail mountain’s backbowls. Debuting a year later, the Norman course is the more challenging of the two and features naturally sloping fairways that snake through wild flowers groves and ancient trees that distract the player from the over 400 feet of elevation change throughout the round.

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.