Courtesy of the club
Courtesy of the club
The Club at Carlton Woods Nicklaus Course
The Club at Carlton Woods Nicklaus Course
1 Carlton Woods Dr
The Woodlands, TX 77382-2563
United States
Overview
The Club at Carlton Woods Nicklaus Course is our 13th-ranked course in Texas.
About
Awards
ranking history:
Best in State: Top 5 in state 2003-2005; Top 10, 2007-'18; Top 15, 2019-'26.
Previous ranking: 11th.
2025-'26 ranking: 13th.
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
“Do not miss if invited. Great balance of long and short games. Challenging without being overbearing. Excellent condition."
Read More2025
Review
“Carlton Woods – Nicklaus presents a refined and thoughtfully balanced layout that rewards strategic decision-making. The course flows seamlessly through tree-lined corridors, demanding precision and smart target selection both off the tee and into the greens. Ball control is essential, especially around the green complexes, where angles and placement are critical to scoring well and staying engaged throughout the round. Following its recent restoration, the course exudes a polished sophistication. Water features are used throughout, adding a layer of challenge for players who stray from their intended lines—most notably on holes 4, 5, 9, and 10, where the water is both visually striking and tactically influential. The course feels seasoned and complete, with firm, fast fairways and firm greens that are receptive yet demanding. It’s a test that stands up to top-tier talent while remaining inviting to those who appreciate strategic golf."
Read More2025
Review
“Carlton Woods – Nicklaus presents a refined and thoughtfully balanced layout that rewards strategic decision-making. The course flows seamlessly through tree-lined corridors, demanding precision and smart target selection both off the tee and into the greens. Ball control is essential, especially around the green complexes, where angles and placement are critical to scoring well and staying engaged throughout the round. Following its recent restoration, the course exudes a polished sophistication. Water features are used throughout, adding a layer of challenge for players who stray from their intended lines—most notably on holes 4, 5, 9, and 10, where the water is both visually striking and tactically influential. The course feels seasoned and complete, with firm, fast fairways and firm greens that are receptive yet demanding. It’s a test that stands up to top-tier talent while remaining inviting to those who appreciate strategic golf."
Read More2025
Review
“Carlton Woods (Nicklaus) is a refined, well-balanced course that rewards thoughtful play. The design feels cohesive from start to finish, with a strong routing that moves through tree-lined corridors and challenges players to pick smart targets both off the tee and into the greens. It’s a demanding layout if you’re not in control of your ball flight. The bunkering and green complexes place a premium on distance control and angles, which keeps better players engaged. That said, it never felt overly penal or gimmicky — just steady, classic Nicklaus design. The course has a polished, scenic feel throughout, and the use of water adds to that without ever dominating the strategy. There is a decent amount of holes that play alongside or over water in really striking ways, especially on the par 3s and loved hole 9. Overall, the course feels polished and mature, with excellent conditioning and a quiet sense of challenge that holds up well over repeat rounds."
Read More2025
Review
“Carlton Woods Nicklaus occupies flatter land than its sister Fazio course, but the scale of the land, corridors of the holes, and visuals are impressive nonetheless. The course presents strategic options from tee to green with water dictating risk/reward options on many tee shots and approaches, and a wide variety of angles on each of the green complexes dictating strategy in the short game. The course presents a fair but difficult test very suitable for tournament play. I was particularly impressed with the brawny par-4 2nd and 11th holes; the strategic par-5 4th and 18th holes where water and trees very much dictate strategy on the drive and 2nd shot; and the beautiful par-3 12th hole with its devilish front left to back right angled green."
Read More2025
Review
“A well kept and interesting course lacking in remarkable or particuarly memorable features."
Read More2024
Review
“A long brute of a course that challenges your game well, but starts to feel a bit repetitive in layout and flow. Especially challenging to walk. While the par 3s and 5s offer a bit of variety, the pa4 4's all seem to be a steady diet of driver and long iron to very large greens for nearly all level of player."
Read More2024
Review
“This club is incredible. the level of service and amenities are some of the best I have ever seen at any club in the country. The course is amazing, one of the best Nicklaus designed courses I have played. Course conditioning is spectacular. This is a bucket list experience."
Read More2024
Review
“A challenging test of golf. Quite a bit of water guards the course, and is certainly in play, including the peninsula green of the par 3 third, and creating an exciting finishing hole on 18, where birdies can be had, but so can big numbers. Extremely well conditioned."
Read More2024
Review
“Home of the LPGA Chevron Championship. Played this 2001 Jack Nicklaus creation right after the women's major and conditions were top-notch. Bring an accurate driver to this course with water coming into play on many shots. The staff is super friendly and always willing to assist. Don't pass up a chance to play here if offered the opportunity."
Read More2024
