Best in Every Country
The best golf courses in South Korea
If you think it’s frustrating to be a golfer in the United States, talk to someone in South Korea. It might be harder than ever to get a tee time and more expensive for basic public courses in the states, but consider some of these numbers:
There are about 17,000 golf courses in the United States. In South Korea? That number’s just shy of 600. We think of the best courses in the U.S. being private, and that’s often true, but the ratio of public courses to private in the U.S. is about 3:1 in favor of public courses. A survey by the R&A estimated that the percentage was reversed in South Korea, nearly 75 percent of courses are private. Sure, there are less golfers in Korea, but one in 10 people play golf as opposed to about one in 14 people in the U.S.
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The boom in golf in South Korea has been going strong for over two decades—but it amped up even more during covid. Where many Koreans were only “driving range” or “screen golf” players before, they shifted outside post-covid. It’ll be interesting to see if the development of new courses continues in Korea to accommodate all these new golfers, but Korean golfers already have some strong options to seek out—especially if you have a private-club membership.
We urge you to click through to each individual course page for bonus photography, drone footage and expanded reviews. Plus, you can now leave your own ratings on the courses you’ve played … to make your case why your favorite should be ranked higher.
(The below rankings are part of our partnership with our affiliate partner, Golf Digest Korea. Our most recent ranking of the World's 100 Greatest Courses place South Cape Owners Club #72 in the world and Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea at #75)
Editor's Note: Our Best Courses in South Korea ranking is part of Golf Digest's rollout of the Best Courses in Every Country. Check back over the next few weeks for more of our rankings of the best golf around the world.
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Seowon Valley Country Club was designed by Jae-Chong Lee and opened in 2000. The club is located an hour north of Seoul in Paju and is home to two member-only nine hole courses with an additional 27 holes open to the public. The two private nines are appropriately named Seowon and Valley and feature dramatic elevation changes, narrow tree-lined fairways and stunning views of the foothills surrounding Mt. Geum Yeong. The Seowon course is known for the par-5 second, a daunting risk-reward hole with a forced carry over water, while the Valley nine features the dramatic par-3 eighth played over a steep drop to a small green below.
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LRTimelapse 5.7.1 - licensed to Donghee Jeon, - Private License, no commercial use allowed!
Namchon Golf Club, tucked into the tranquil mountains south of Seoul, was founded in 2003. The club was designed by Kim Myong-gil and Song Ho with five holes remodeled by Kyle Phillips in 2016. The exclusive club occupies a picturesque property and is surrounded by indigenous forests and stunning flowers, certainly living up to its given description of a “Korean garden in the mountains.” The course is characterized by narrow tree-lined fairways, snaking bunkers and immaculate greens. The club is known for the difficult and intimidating par-5 17th with a fairway guarded by a hazard and native area and played to an island green, seemingly shrunk by the greenside bunker. Those lucky enough to accompany a member to NamChon must also experience the private art gallery in the basement of the clubhouse.
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Whistling Rock Country Club boasts 27 holes carved out of densely forested hills outside of Chuncheon designed by Ted Robinson in 2009. Robinson’s goal was minimalism, letting the dramatic topography speak for itself. In 2016, Eric Iverson of Tom Doak’s Renaissance Design Group renovated the course, which included expanding putting surfaces to accommodate more pinnable areas. The nines are named after each of the club’s innovative customary tea houses, Cloud, Temple and Cocoon. The courses are situated on a 425-acre property that meanders past high rocky cliffs, mountain-fed streams, stunning groves of pine trees and 13 lakes. The Cocoon course is known for its towering rock outcroppings and features the intimidating dogleg par-4 fourth with water jutting into the fairway and guarding the green. The Cloud and Temple nines are routed across higher terrain and feature sharp elevation changes as well as narrow and intimidating tree-lined fairways.
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Pinx Golf Club has a strong lineage, making Golf Digest’s 100 Greatest Courses outside the U.S. in 2005 (ranked 72nd) and 2008 (99th), as well as being a top two course in South Korea (2001). Pinx Golf Club, built in 1999 by American Ted Robinson, is home to 27 holes along the shores of Jeju Island with Mt. Halla to the north and the East China Sea to the south. The club’s East and West courses are for members-only and the South is open to the public. The nines meander through ancient groves of trees dotted with unique man-made water hazards and features subtly undulating fairways with wide driving areas framed by the mountains in the backdrop. The signature hole at Pinx Golf Club is the par-4 ninth on the West course, with a forced carry over water to the fairway and a putting surface isolated by a snaking hazard that empties into a pond to the short right of the green.
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The Blackstone Jeju course in Jeju, Jeju is one of the best golf courses in South Korea. Discover our experts' reviews here.
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Joann Dost
Now open for over a decade, this Kyle Phillips design has gained attention as visitors from around the world compare its stunning design to everything from Kingsbarns (another Phillips design, which also features ocean views from every tee), to Teeth of the Dog (South Cape has even more holes along the coast) to Cabot Cliffs (there will be a debate as to which has the more dramatic ocean-carry 16th hole, with Point Hardy at Cabot Saint Lucia also jumping into the ring) to the granddaddy of ocean courses, Pebble Beach. If anything, South Cape’s tiny downhill par-3 14th to a thumb in the ocean is more treacherous than the short 7th at Pebble Beach. The course fell out of the rankings in 2022 but is now back inside the top 75.
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The 27-hole Pine Beach Golf Links complex was designed on dramatic seaside cliffs in Haenam by Gary Roger Baird and David Dale. The architects built a number of greens and tee boxes along the beach and atop cliffs along with dramatic sloping fairways and intimidating bunkers. The Pine course begins in dense hillside forest with tight fairways lined by thickets of pine and oak trees before revealing a three-hole closing stretch along the ocean, highlighted by the beachside green on the 207-yard par-3 eighth. The Beach nine is routed directly along the water and features a spectacular four-hole closing stretch with panoramic views of the water, dotted with islands and framed by mountains in the backdrop.
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It took over a decade to build Jade Palace Golf Club, a Greg Norman and Harley Kruse-designed layout cut into the steep rocky hillsides above Chuncheon City. Korea’s largest engineering and construction company Hanwha led the work, which resulted in undulating Zoysia fairways and towering rock outcroppings lined by native grass with views of the Bukhan River framing the picturesque landscape. The signature hole at Jade Palace is the par-4 18th played to a wide green protected by a pond short of the green and a cliff of jagged rocks behind, with the stunning clubhouse just a few paces away. The clubhouse at Jade Palace is an architectural marvel and exudes luxury and tranquility in the quiet hills above a bustling city.
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Don't confuse this course with The Club at Nine Bridges, designed by Ronald Fream and then-partner David Dale. Both have the same owner, but this one Dale designed alone. Nine Bridges is on Jeju Island; Haesley is close to Seoul. Nine Bridges has revetted bunkers; Haesley has big, bold flashed-sand ones. Nine Bridges has an island green on 18; Haesley has a par 4 with an island fairway and an island green, and a mountainside waterfall on another hole that would make Donald Trump jealous. Haesley Nine Bridges opened in 2009 and has held the CJ Invitational on the Korean Golf Tour in 2011 through 2013, won twice by tournament host K.J. Choi. In 2017, the CJ became a U.S. PGA Tour event and was played at—you guessed it—the other Nine Bridges.
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Korea's oldest-ranked course was cut from thick tree cover in 1968 by Japanese golf architect Chohei Miyazawa, but it didn't become great until Robert Trent Jones Jr. remodeled the layout in 1996, reshaping greens, rebunkering holes and adding some strategic ponds, particularly on two par 3s, the fourth and 17th. The club's name was changed to Anyang Benest Country Club in 1996; it reverted to its original name in 2013. Anyang Country Club made Golf Digest's ranking of the best courses anywhere in the world in 2018.
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Tucked into the dense forests and rolling hills outside of Incheon is the Trinity Club, opened in 2012 and designed by Tom Fazio II. Constructed for Myung-hee Lee, daughter of the man who founded Samsung, the club is considered one of the most private and luxurious facilities in the country. The course is routed through dense groves of over 10,000 relocated indigenous trees. The perfectly manicured fairways and greens are designed to USGA standards with state-of-the-art drainage systems. Intended to be harmonious with nature, the course follows natural slopes and undulations of the property. The featured hole is the downhill par-4 12th with 30 meters of elevation change, played to a tight meandering fairway littered with bunkers.
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Courtesy of the club
Lying in the shadow of skyscrapers in the Songdo International Business District, this is an impressive Nicklaus design, one that transformed a flat, dull site into a surprisingly rolling, pine-dotted layout with water on 11 holes, equitably distributed with six hazards to the left and five to the right. Despite the site being inland, artificial rocks edging most of the lakes leave the impression of a jagged coastline. Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea hosted the 2015 Presidents Cup, won by the U.S. team captained by Jay Haas over the International side headed by Nick Price. It was the first Presidents Cup contested in Asia.
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Woo Jeong Hills Country Club, located in South Chungcheong approximately 90 minutes from Seoul, opened in 1993 and was designed by Perry Dye. It's a challenging tournament venue, having hosted the Korea Open on a number of occassions. The course features steep undulating fairways, challenging green complexes and 12 water hazards, all framed by forested mountains. The outward nine at Woo Jeong features the par-5 fifth with a hazard, trees and flower beds flanking the right side of the fairway, as well as a view of the surrounding mountains framing the distant green. The inward nine is home to the signature 221-yard par-3 13th played to a tiny island green, as well as the daunting par-5 18th with a green surrounded by a grassed amphitheater. Often described as western-style, many holes are reminiscent of the Dye family’s famous work in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
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Lucas Park
Wellington Country Club is located south of Seoul in Incheon and is one of the most exclusive golf facilities in the world. The club is home to 27 holes designed by the Hyosung group, with each course named after different mythological creatures. The Griffin and Phoenix courses debuted in 2013, followed by the Wyvern course in 2017. The Griffin is set among hilly terrain with intimidating slopes and valleys, along with green complexes that lie naturally in thick groves of trees. The standout hole on the Griffin is the par-3 fifth with a deep valley protecting the front of the green and a thick bundle of trees appearing to overhang and shield the surface. The Wyvern course follows a naturally flowing stream through undulating terrain and features the difficult par-4 fourth with a creek splitting the heavily-sloped fairway and thick vegetation seemingly shrinking the hole.
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Gary Lisbon
Our Korean affiliates call The Club at Nine Bridges the Taj Mahal of Golf. After all, architects Ronald Fream and David Dale spent an estimated $40 million in the early 2000s creating it. (The entire project, including land, clubhouse, condos and spa, cost $100 million.) The site was volcanic rock, capped with 150,000 cubic yards of sand as a base for bentgrass fairways and greens. The site had natural streams edged with massive Japanese maples and 20-foot-tall Korean azaleas, but they also transplanted 300 mature evergreens like Kryptomeria and cedars for additional color. With lakes connected by cascading weirs and a par-5 18th finishing on an island green, the course hosted the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges for three years (2017-2019), the first official American PGA Tour event held in Korea.
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(Ranking courtesy of Golf Digest Korea. Golf Digest ranks South Cape Owners Club #72 in the world and Jack Nicklaus G.C. Korea #75)
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