Carlos Amoedo
Dom Furore
Dom Furore
Courtesy of the club/Charley Raudenbush
Photo by Dom Furore
Dom Furore
Golf Digest/Photo by Dom Furore
Photo by Dom Furore
Pine Valley Golf Club
Pine Valley, NJ • Private
Pine Valley Golf Club
1 E Atlantic Ave
Pine Valley, NJ 08021-1800
United States
Overview
A genuine original, its unique character is forged from the sandy pine barrens of southwest Jersey. Founder George Crump had help from now-legendary architects H.S. Colt, A.W. Tillinghast, George C. Thomas Jr. and Walter Travis. Hugh Wilson (of Merion fame) and his brother Alan finished the job, while William Flynn and Perry Maxwell made revisions. Throughout the course, Pine Valley blends all three schools of golf design—penal, heroic and strategic—often times on a single hole. Recent tree removal at selected spots has revealed some gorgeous views of the sandy landscape upon which the course is routed, and Tom Fazio has put his own touch on the design with bunker remodels that have given the barrens a more intricate and ornate look.
About
Awards
Ranking history:
100 Greatest: Ranked since 1966. Ranked among the Top 2 since the inaugural edition in 1985.
Highest Ranking: Ranked 1st from 1985-2000, 2003-2008, 2013-2014, & since 2017.
2025-'26 ranking: 1st (since 2017).
Best in State: Ranked in Top 5 in New Jersey since 1977.
2025-'26 ranking: 1st since 1985.
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Panelists
Ratings from our panel of 1,900 course-ranking panelists
100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES
Shot Options
Character
Challenge
Layout Variety
Fun
Aesthetics
Conditioning
Reviews
Review
“The best day of golf I've ever had. Like Splash Mountain for golfers, but for four hours. Lives up to everything it's supposed to be and more."
Read More2025
Review
“While I haven’t played all of the world’s great golf courses, I have played many that are universally recognized as among the handful of the very best. Pine Valley stands above them all - often comfortably- in several categories. Most importantly, Pine Valley is my new ideal in both shot options and layout variety. This is what truly separates this course: every single hole ranks high in shot options and no two are quite alike. Playing corridors are wide to provide great options, and the golfer who chooses and executes well on the aggressive line is almost always rewarded with a significant advantage over the more conservative player. The greens are some of the most interesting and varied I have ever seen, and their bold contouring place added importance on thoughtful strategy and precise distance control. The completely unique layout over this massive property, with many blind shots over dramatic land also helps bump up a high score in layout variety and character. As challenging as Pine Valley is, it is also extremely fair. I watched a woman in her 60s successfully handle the forced carry approaches on 2 and 18 with relative ease - no scratch player should have any issue with any of the carries on the entire golf course. While wayward drives often require chip-outs, it is extremely hard for a competent golfer to lose a ball and one should have an opportunity to get up and down for par after a bad drive on almost any hole. Where up and downs become a dicier proposition is after poorly played approach shots. Most are often at minimum a one-shot penalty. But given the size and scale of the greens relative to the land they occupy, this seems perfectly reasonable. My poor decision to take extra club for a half-wedge on 8 was rewarded with a hellacious/borderline unplayable lie. It was the kind of penalty a good player deserves to pay for missing a green long with a wedge. The blend of proper strategy and execution required to play well at Pine Valley makes for a fantastic challenge - and another new category ideal for me. While the rugged in-course aesthetics of Pine Valley are exceptional, they are a bit one-note. It’s a note played very well, but I think the best-looking courses have a little more visual variety. And I prefer courses that showcase scale and allow views of multiple holes. So for me, the aesthetics - while still quite good - don’t quite match up to Pine Valley’s lofty scores in other categories. If there was one category that Pine Valley surprisingly lacked in, it was conditioning. We are supposed to rate the course as it is the day we play, and I encountered a soft course with inconsistent greens that were frequently fooling our very good caddies and didn’t seem to roll true. It had rained a small amount the morning before the day we played, but I’ve played other top courses shortly after getting inches of rain and/or in extreme heat/humidity, and many have been noticeably better conditioned. Multiple mud balls and shots that stuck where they should have rolled were indicative of a less-than-ideal presentation despite very little precipitation in the preceding 24 hours. Our member host noted the course conditions weren’t typical and while I expect this to be an outlier score, it’s absolutely warranted given the course I played that day. Of the several dozen courses I’ve evaluated over the past 6 years, Pine Valley was quite comfortably in the bottom quartile."
Read More2025
Review
“Every Shot Counts: it could be a book title or just a description of a round at Pine Valley, where every time the ball is struck, the result can change the course of a round. The course exceeds all expectations. Each hole is a new adventure, no two alike, but still consistent in the experience; at Pine Valley, the joy is in the challenge."
Read More2025
Review
“While I knew going in that the course was often considered the best in the US or even the world, it actually exceeded my expectations. I had the good fortune to play it twice with perfect weather and the course was firm and fast. I thought it provided generally wide enough landing areas off the tee. But, if you missed the fairway, you often had tree issues or sand issues that required you to punch out and play a shot that could not reach the green. With the firm fairways, length was not valued over accuracy. I thought the small greens on the short par fours were magnificent. It was just a world class experience."
Read More2024
Review
“Make sure you have the game to play this course. Much harder than you can imaging,"
Read More2024
Review
“I once shot 76 here, in my 4o's and have had other good rounds, but now at 77 it is too tough for me. The forced carries are just too long. But that does not take away from the magnificence of the course and the setting. There are any number of great holes on this course. The first seems straight forward - drive down the left and try to have a straight shot to the green. But if you do either shot straight, your woes begin. The second, with the wall of bunkers in front of the green and the deeply slanted green are more trouble than most players can handle. But the holes are not unfair, just very difficult. And that's the way it goes around the course all the way to the 18th with the water hazard fronting the green. This is a must play for any golfer of near scratch ability, but for the guy with only a 200-yard drive, prepare for some great sightseeing and a very high score. This course deserves its #1 rating, but it is not for the average golfer."
Read More2024
Review
“There is not much to say that hasn't already been said. The courses holes, variety, and character all were unique and consistent with one of the top courses in the world. Hole lengths, shapes, green contours, and sizes, as well as land movement across holes was truly exceptional. The course is fair, and gives players room to operate and place shot strategically, but punishes misses severly with sharp bunkers and thick vegetation."
Read More2024
Review
“Like walking in a dream! Challenging from the very start until the last putt drops on 18, absolutely no let up or weak hole throughout the round. Sandy soil turf conditioning and corridors lined by majestic pines. Bunkering is numerous, penal, and yet aesthetically beautiful."
Read More2024
Review
“The waste areas turn errant shots into potential disasters. The severity of some of the greenside slopes and waste areas is unmatched anywhere in the States. I see something new there everytime I play the course. The design of the greens and the hole locations alter the desired line of play on so many holes. The visual intimidation on many shots is a part of the allure as disaster lurks everywhere."
Read More2022
Review
“The defining American course, tough as nails, demanding, "unfair" at times, exhausting mentally and physically. Not to be missed!"
Read More2022
