Patrick Koenig
David Normoyle/Courtesy The Garden City Golf Club
David Normoyle/Courtesy The Garden City Golf Club
David Normoyle/Courtesy The Garden City Golf Club
David Normoyle/Courtesy The Garden City Golf Club
Garden City Golf Club
Garden City, NY • Private
Garden City Golf Club
315 Stewart Ave
Garden City, NY 11530-2797
United States
Overview
Minimalist in its design (you can still see the faint traces of old roadbeds over which the course was routed) and natural in its upkeep, Garden City Golf Club is one of the great early tournament venues in the United States. Before the 1908 U.S. Amateur, Walter Travis remodeled the course into what it is today, its strategies dictated by many deep pot bunkers. Travis installed them to promote “thinking golf,” but one player soon dubbed Garden City the home of the “God-fearing approach shot.” It’s also a rare 100 Greatest course with a closing par-3.
About
Awards
Ranking History:
100 Greatest: Ranked in 1966 & since 1981.
Highest Ranking: 25th, 1997-1998.
Previous Ranking: 64th.
2025-'26 Ranking: 58th.
Best in State: Ranked Top 10 in New York, 1983-2022. Ranked 12th, 2023-'26.
2025-'26 ranking (and previous): 12th.
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
“Maidstone without the ocean."
Read More2025
Review
“One of the Absolute best vibes in the golf world. Been there twice now, and still get butterflies on the first tee! Great Deverau Emmet gem!"
Read More2025
Review
“subtle and very, very good"
Read More2024
Review
“So subtle. Almost a flat piece of land but brilliant routing and lots of Travis's original bunkers. There are birdies and double bogies throughout. The course twists and turns making clear that the more you play this course the more you understand and fear it."
Read More2024
Review
“Garden City occupies a open, flat piece of land without much movement at all, but the course is a great example of "less is more." Several side sloping and front-to-back running greens amplify shot options on approaches and on/around those greens. Bunkering of all shapes and sizes (nasty pits, long, flat bunkers, and even sand mounds) add to the charm and variety of features. Conditioning is stellar as it gives you consistently tight lies and an alive ground game.... this places especially strong demands on your iron and wedge game. Garden City features a handful of excellent half-par holes with reachable par 4's (#1, #8), a reachable par-5 (#17), and some monster par-4's (#6, 8 and 15)."
Read More2023
Review
“A true stroke of genius. Maidstone without the ocean. I love how the turf is just omnipresent and the greens feed into hazards. Quirky, fun, challenging. It is like GBI has come to New York City."
Read More2023
Review
“I don't think you can classify Garden City as a particular style of course, which speaks to its uniqueness. It's built on that sandy loam soil, but it's not by the water, so it isn't really a links. It looks kind of like a heathland course but it isn't, and I wouldn't call it a parkland course either. I can almost compare this course to Kingston Heath down in Australia in that the land acreage is tight but there is a fair amount of small ground movement that keeps the entire course interesting for everyday play."
Read More2019
Review
“Feels like a course in England rather than New York. This Walter Travis classic is steeped in history, as evidenced by the pictures, books and memorabilia that is throughout the clubhouse. The requirement of wearing loafers and a blazer inside anywhere out of the locker room adds to the mystique of the place. The finishing holes are not particular stout, but it finishes with a long par 3 to the green that backs into the clubhouse, and shares the putting green like Oakmont. This gives the onlookers a great opportunity to watch and bet on those coming in, adding to the ambiance of the place."
Read More2019
Review
“One of the most fun courses you will ever play. Doak's bunker renovations are awesome. Club is like a fraternity house and makes for a memorable experience."
Read More2018
Review
“Club oozes history and has an old-school charm that is a little different from even the other classic top 100 courses. The course is a model of how to make a fairly flat site interesting."
Read More2018
