The Approach Shot

Courses

Course library

Browse the course side of the trip: anchors, strong plays, famous names, value fillers, and the rounds that quietly decide whether the itinerary works

278 courses

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bally's Golf Links at Ferry Point

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Strong play

Style

Links-inspired urban waterfront golf

Designer

Jack Nicklaus

Opened

2015

Par

72

Yardage

About 7,400 yards

Ferry Point is a very New York golf product: dramatic, expensive, slightly overhyped, and still worth playing once if the skyline matters to the group. Do it for the setting. Do not do it because you think it is Bethpage with better views.

2026 posted 18-hole range: roughly $193-$283 by residency/day, with twilight and sunset rates below that.

Bandon Dunes / Oregon

Bandon Trails

Oregon / Northwest

Tier

Must play

Style

Inland sand, forest, meadow

Designer

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw

Opened

2005

Par

71

Yardage

TBD

Google 4.9 / 54 reviews

Bandon, OR 97411, USA

Bandon Trails is the change-of-pace round that many serious architecture people end up loving most. It leaves the ocean behind and asks for more shot-making, patience, and control.

Orlando / Florida

Bay Hill

Florida / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Classic tournament resort golf

Designer

Dick Wilson

Opened

1961

Par

72

Yardage

TBD

The closest thing Orlando has to a true anchor.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Bayonet / Black Horse

California / West Coast

Tier

Strong supporting

Style

Monterey Peninsula add-on

Google 4.5 / 1.2k reviews

1 McClure Way, Seaside, CA 93955, USA

Bayonet and Black Horse are not luxury-resort rounds. That is the point. They are tougher, more affordable, and more golf-forward than glamorous. If your group has strong players who want a real test and does not need every round to feel like a postcard, this is where you can improve the itinerary without lighting more money on fire.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bethpage Black

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Must play

Style

Major-championship public parkland

Designer

A.W. Tillinghast / Joseph H. Burbeck

Opened

1936

Par

71 public / 70 championship

Yardage

About 7,468 yards

Bethpage Black is the headline and the filter. If your group cannot handle the walk, the rough, the pace, and the possibility of shooting 92 with dignity, do not force it. If your group can handle it, this is one of the great public-golf days in America.

2026 posted public range: roughly $70-$160 by residency/day, before applicable reservation or cart-related fees.

Course image placeholder

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bethpage Blue

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Strong play

Style

Public parkland with a hillier front nine

Designer

A.W. Tillinghast / Alfred Tull influence

Opened

1935

Par

72

Yardage

About 6,676 yards

Blue is the practical third Bethpage course. It has enough bite to matter, especially early, but this is where you stop building the dream itinerary and start managing the tee sheet.

2026 posted public range: roughly $38-$43 for 18 holes, plus applicable fees.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bethpage Green

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Depth plays

Style

Classic public parkland

Designer

Devereux Emmet / A.W. Tillinghast modification

Opened

1923

Par

71

Yardage

About 6,378 yards

Green is useful, not essential. It is a good arrival-day round if you want the Bethpage campus without immediately making everyone question their life choices.

2026 posted public range: roughly $38-$43 for 18 holes, plus applicable fees.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bethpage Red

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Must play

Style

Classic public parkland

Designer

A.W. Tillinghast

Opened

1935

Par

70

Yardage

About 6,921 yards

Red is not the consolation prize. It is the course that makes the trip work when Black consumes all the oxygen. Play it before Black if the group needs a warm-up; play it after Black if the group wants a proper comparison.

2026 posted public range: roughly $43-$100 by residency/day, with twilight and reservation fees varying by status.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Bethpage Yellow

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Depth plays

Style

Public parkland

Designer

Alfred Tull

Opened

1958

Par

71

Yardage

About 6,310 yards

Yellow is the safety valve. There is no shame in using it for a casual day, but there is shame in flying a serious group to New York and pretending Yellow is part of the core rotation.

2026 posted public range: roughly $38-$43 for 18 holes, plus applicable fees.

Colorado Springs / Colorado

Broadmoor Mountain

Colorado / Mountain

A classic mountain-resort golf trip: polished, scenic, altitude-affected, and best when the group values the hotel as much as the scorecard.

Myrtle Beach / South Carolina

Caledonia

South Carolina / Southeast

America's maximum-volume golf machine: huge choice, real value, some terrific courses, and enough mediocre filler to punish lazy planning.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Capitol Hill Judge

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Capitol Hill Legislator

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

Kiawah Island / South Carolina

Charleston Muni

South Carolina / Southeast

Oceanfront championship golf with resort-level luxury - anchored by one of the hardest courses in America.

British Columbia CN

Chateau Whistler

British Columbia CN / Western Canada

A Canadian mountain-and-valley route: Greywolf for drama, Predator Ridge for structure, and Tobiano/Whistler for the ambitious version.

Lake Oconee / Georgia

Creek Club

Georgia / Southeast

A lake-house golf trip with real depth: convenient for the Southeast, polished enough for couples, and better on the course list than casual golfers realize.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Del Monte

California / West Coast

Tier

Optional / filler

Style

Historic resort filler

Del Monte is useful if you want a lower-pressure round in the Pebble ecosystem, but it is not a reason to plan the trip. It belongs in the itinerary only if you need an easier day, a value-ish resort add-on, or a historically interesting round without the premium pressure of Pebble and Spyglass.

Southern Pines & Sandhills / North Carolina

Dormie Club

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Strong play (situational)

Style

Private Sandhills club

Designer

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw

Opened

2010

Par

71

Yardage

6,883

The private/stay-and-play flex. Excellent if access is real, irrelevant if access is fantasy.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Grand National Lake

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Grand National Links

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

Lake Oconee / Georgia

Great Waters

Georgia / Southeast

A lake-house golf trip with real depth: convenient for the Southeast, polished enough for couples, and better on the course list than casual golfers realize.

The Greenbrier & Virginia Highlands / West Virginia & Virginia

Greenbrier Meadows

West Virginia & Virginia / Mid-Atlantic

Classic resort golf with mountain air: historic, scenic, occasionally awkward logistically, and best for groups that like heritage more than nightlife.

Chicago / Illinois

Harborside Port

Illinois / Midwest

A city golf trip with real course depth: not resort-simple, but strong for groups that want golf by day and Chicago by night.

Hilton Head / South Carolina

Harbour Town

South Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Strategic Lowcountry target golf

Designer

Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus

Opened

1969

Par

71

Yardage

TBD

Iconic, strategic, not long but extremely precise.

Cape Breton / Nova Scotia CN

Highlands Links

Nova Scotia CN / Eastern Canada

Tier

Strong play

Style

Classic Canadian coastal / mountain

Designer

Stanley Thompson

Opened

1941

Par

72

Yardage

6,592

Highlands Links is the classic Cape Breton add-on. It is not on Cabot property, which is the point: it gives the trip architecture history, different scenery, and a reason to see more than one driveway.

Big Island / Hawaii

Hualalai (Four Seasons)

Hawaii / Hawaii

The strongest Hawaii golf cluster: Mauna Kea's iconic ocean carry, Hapuna, Mauna Lani, Hualalai, and resort variety that actually supports a golf trip.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Hudson Hills Golf Course

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Depth plays

Style

Modern county municipal

Designer

Mark Mungeam

Opened

2004

Par

71

Yardage

About 6,935 yards

Hudson Hills is the grown-up depth play. It is not trying to be Bethpage or Pound Ridge. It is a good public round when Westchester is part of the map and the budget needs one sane line item.

Westchester County Hudson Hills rates vary by season and park-pass status; posted non-pass spring rates reach roughly $71-$92 before cart/reservation extras.

Cabot Citrus Farms / Florida

Karoo

Florida / Southeast

Cabot's Florida play: sandy, modern, golf-first, and a smarter winter alternative than another Orlando resort treadmill.

Big Island / Hawaii

Mauna Lani — North

Hawaii / Hawaii

The strongest Hawaii golf cluster: Mauna Kea's iconic ocean carry, Hapuna, Mauna Lani, Hualalai, and resort variety that actually supports a golf trip.

Course image placeholder

NYC Metro Area / New York

Montauk Downs State Park

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Strong play (situational)

Style

Windy state-park championship golf

Designer

Robert Trent Jones Sr. / Rees Jones

Opened

Original 1927; RTJ Sr. redesign 1968

Par

72

Yardage

About 6,976 yards

Montauk Downs is excellent in the right trip and annoying in the wrong one. If you are staying out east, it belongs. If you are sleeping near Bethpage and thinking about squeezing it in, go lie down until the thought passes.

2026 posted range: roughly $48-$106 by residency/day, plus applicable fees.

Orlando / Florida

Orange County National

Florida / Southeast

Tier

Strong play

Style

High-volume public golf

Designer

Phil Ritson, Dave Harman, and Isao Aoki

Opened

1990s

Par

TBD

Yardage

TBD

A strong, functional golf facility that works well for groups.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Oxmoor Ridge

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

RTJ Trail / Alabama

Oxmoor Valley

Alabama / Southeast

The value-and-volume play: big courses, huge property scale, strong replay math, and very little patience for groups obsessed with boutique resort glamour.

Bandon Dunes / Oregon

Pacific Dunes

Oregon / Northwest

Tier

Must play

Style

Coastal links

Designer

Tom Doak

Opened

2001

Par

71

Yardage

Approx. 6,600

Google 4.9 / 219 reviews

Bandon, OR 97411, USA

Pacific Dunes is the best course at Bandon for most players. It has the strongest combination of strategy, scenery, routing, and replay value. If you only had time for one round on property, this is the pick.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Pasatiempo

California / West Coast

Tier

Must play

Style

Monterey Peninsula add-on

Pasatiempo is the course that separates a tourist Pebble itinerary from a golfer’s Pebble itinerary. It is an Alister MacKenzie design, semi-private with public tee times, and expensive enough that no one should call it a bargain. But if your group cares about architecture, this is one of the most important rounds in the broader Monterey/Pebble ecosystem. Do not dismiss it because it is in Santa Cruz. If your group is serious, make the drive.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Pebble Beach Golf Links

California / West Coast

Tier

Must play once

Style

Iconic coastal golf

Pebble Beach is the reason you came. The opening stretch is good. The coastline holes are unforgettable. The walk around Stillwater Cove is one of the great public-golf experiences in the world. The 18th is a rare case where the cliché actually earns itself. But Pebble is not the strongest pure golf course in the area. Away from the ocean, parts of it are merely good. That does not ruin the experience. It just means you should understand what you are buying. You are buying the memory.

South Florida

PGA National - Champion

Florida / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Tournament resort / water and wind

Designer

Tom and George Fazio; Jack Nicklaus redesign/renovations

Opened

1981

Par

72

Yardage

About 7,081 yards

The Bear Trap gets the marketing, but the whole course can punish loose golf.

PGA National resort/package pricing; Champion surcharges can apply.

Palm Springs / California

PGA West

California / West Coast

Tier

Must play (Stadium for experience)

Style

Desert resort golf

Designer

Various

Opened

Various

Par

TBD

Yardage

TBD

The Stadium Course is the experience slot; the broader PGA West roster gives the trip structure.

Southern Pines & Sandhills / North Carolina

Pine Needles

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Championship Ross Sandhills

Designer

Donald Ross / Kyle Franz restoration

Opened

1928 / restored 2018

Par

71

Yardage

7,015

The championship Ross anchor of the Sandhills side.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 1

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Depth plays

Style

Original resort course

Designer

Leroy Culver / Donald Ross

Opened

1898 / Ross work 1913

Par

70

Yardage

6,089

No. 1 is the historical warm-up, not a protected round. It works on arrival day, departure day, or for groups that want to see where the resort story began.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 10

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Modern Sandhills, rugged and expansive

Designer

Tom Doak / Angela Moser

Opened

2024

Par

70

Yardage

7,020

No. 10 is the reason Pinehurst suddenly feels current. Built on the old Sandmines property south of the village, it adds scale, elevation, and modern Doak/Moser texture to a resort people used to visit mostly for the past.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 2

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Classic American, turtleback greens

Designer

Donald Ross / Coore & Crenshaw restoration

Opened

1907 / restored 2010

Par

70

Yardage

7,588 championship / ~7,000 resort

This is the altar. No. 2 is not always the most fun round at Pinehurst, but it is the one that explains the place: sandy waste, crowned greens, caddie math, and recovery shots that make grown men rethink their relationship with wedges.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 5

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Skip if tight

Style

Resort depth

Designer

Ellis Maples

Opened

1961

Par

72

Yardage

6,848

Google 4.4 / 63 reviews

Pinehurst, NC 28374, USA

No. 5 has its loyalists and the Cathedral Hole, but in the modern Pinehurst hierarchy it is mostly a schedule release valve.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 8

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Strong play

Style

Resort championship

Designer

Tom Fazio

Opened

1996

Par

72

Yardage

7,099

No. 8 is the best polished depth course: its own clubhouse, a big Fazio canvas, wetlands, and enough separation from the village to feel like a full resort round rather than filler.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

Pinehurst No. 9

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Strong play

Style

Nicklaus resort championship

Designer

Jack Nicklaus

Opened

1988 / joined Pinehurst Resort in 2014

Par

72

Yardage

7,122

No. 9 is the odd one in the family: a former private club with more Nicklaus real-estate flavor than Sandhills soul. That does not make it bad. It just makes it different.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Poppy Hills

California / West Coast

Tier

Strong supporting

Style

Monterey Peninsula add-on

Poppy Hills is the practical course in the rotation. It is convenient, well-conditioned, less expensive than the prestige rounds, and good enough to belong without pretending to be Pebble or Spyglass. For groups trying to balance cost and quality, Poppy matters.

NYC Metro Area / New York

Pound Ridge Golf Club

New York / Mid-Atlantic

Tier

Strong play

Style

Modern Pete Dye daily-fee

Designer

Pete Dye

Opened

2008

Par

72

Yardage

7,165 yards

Pound Ridge is the right Westchester splurge if the group cares about architecture. It is not close to Bethpage in any useful way, so make it a deliberate day, not a casual add-on.

Premium daily-fee dynamic pricing; verify direct before booking.

Cabot Citrus Farms / Florida

Roost

Florida / Southeast

Cabot's Florida play: sandy, modern, golf-first, and a smarter winter alternative than another Orlando resort treadmill.

Gamble Sands / Washington

Scarecrow

Washington / Northwest

Tier

Must play

Style

Modern inland golf

Designer

David McLay Kidd

Opened

New

Par

TBD

Yardage

TBD

The new course gives Gamble Sands enough depth to become a more serious destination.

Atlantic City / New Jersey

Seaview Bay

New Jersey / Northeast

A scrappy Northeast buddies trip: good public golf, casino energy, beach-town convenience, and enough rough edges to keep it honest.

Bandon Dunes / Oregon

Sheep Ranch

Oregon / Northwest

Tier

Strong play / Must play for views

Style

Coastal links

Designer

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw

Opened

2020

Par

71

Yardage

TBD

Google 4.8 / 162 reviews

Bandon, OR 97411, USA

Sheep Ranch is the most visually spectacular course at Bandon. It has ocean exposure everywhere and fewer trees than your group has excuses. Strategically, it is not as strong as Pacific or Trails, but as an experience it is hard to beat.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

Spyglass Hill

California / West Coast

Tier

Must play

Style

Serious resort golf

Spyglass is the serious golfer’s round at Pebble Beach Resorts. It does not have Pebble’s fame or the same postcard coastline, but it is the better test and often the better course. It asks more of you, especially off the tee and into the greens. It also does not feel like it is trading only on scenery. If you are building a real Pebble trip and skip Spyglass, you built the wrong trip.

Pinehurst / North Carolina

The Cradle

North Carolina / Southeast

Tier

Must play

Style

Short course

Designer

Gil Hanse

Opened

2017

Par

27

Yardage

~900

The Cradle is the social engine of the resort: nine short holes, music-adjacent energy, drinks, side bets, and enough contour to make a 70-yard wedge feel like a constitutional crisis.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

The Hay

California / West Coast

Tier

Strong play

Style

Short-course add-on

The Hay is not filler. It is the correct way to add golf without turning every day into a marathon. It works for arrival day, drinks, families, junior golfers, and groups that want something relaxed around the Pebble experience. Treat it like a social layer, not a main course.

Lake Oconee / Georgia

The Landing

Georgia / Southeast

A lake-house golf trip with real depth: convenient for the Southeast, polished enough for couples, and better on the course list than casual golfers realize.

St. George / Utah & Nevada

The Ledges

Utah & Nevada / Mountain

The red-rock desert golf trip with real teeth: Black Desert is the new headline, but Sand Hollow and Wolf Creek make the itinerary.

Pebble Beach & Monterey / California

The Links at Spanish Bay

California / West Coast

Tier

Strong play (situational)

Style

Resort links-inspired

Spanish Bay has historically been the third resort course in the standard Pebble rotation. Right now, it needs an asterisk. Pebble Beach has announced that Spanish Bay’s final day of play is March 17, 2026, after which it will close for a comprehensive Gil Hanse transformation scheduled to conclude in about 13 months. That means this is not a simple “include it” recommendation for current planning. Before the renovation, Spanish Bay was scenic and enjoyable, but rarely essential. After the renovation, it may become a much more important part of the trip. For now, verify availability and do not build the entire itinerary around it.

Cape Breton / Nova Scotia CN

The Nest

Nova Scotia CN / Eastern Canada

Tier

Strong play

Style

Par-3 / short course

Designer

Whitman, Axland and Cutten

Opened

2021

Par

Short course

Yardage

10 holes

The Nest gives Cabot a looser, social round after the big coastal walks. It is not the reason to cross the border, but it is exactly the kind of extra golf a remote resort needs.

Bandon Dunes / Oregon

The Punchbowl

Oregon / Northwest

The purest golf trip in America — remote, walking-first, weather-exposed, and absolutely worth the trouble.

Sand Valley / Wisconsin

The Sandbox

Wisconsin / Midwest

The Midwest's modern golf laboratory: sandy, walkable, architecture-heavy, and quietly becoming one of America's essential golf trips.

Cabot Citrus Farms / Florida

The Squeeze

Florida / Southeast

Cabot's Florida play: sandy, modern, golf-first, and a smarter winter alternative than another Orlando resort treadmill.

Dallas / Texas

The Tribute

Texas / Southwest

A practical city-golf cluster: Cowboys branding, links replicas, tour-host names, and low-friction flights.

Cabot Citrus Farms / Florida

Wedge

Florida / Southeast

Cabot's Florida play: sandy, modern, golf-first, and a smarter winter alternative than another Orlando resort treadmill.

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