Wednesday, April 1, 2026

GOLF: NORTH CAROLINA

ASHEVILLE
Ashville Municipal Golf Course, 226 Fairway Dr. Asheville, NC 28805

  • 13 miles from the Asheville Regional Airport
  • 1927 Donald Ross design
  • Severely damaged by Hurricane Helene in 2024

BLACK MOUNTAIN
Black Mountain Golf Club, 15 Ross Drive, Black Mountain, C 28711

  • 23 miles from the Asheville Regional Airport
  • Front 9 is a 1929 Donald Ross design
  • Severely damaged by Hurricane Helene in 2024

CLEMMONS 
Tanglewood Park Golf, 4061 Clemmons Rd, Clemmons, NC 27012

  • Just outside Winston-Salem, N.C., Tanglewood is a Robert Trent Jones II design that underwent a major renovation in 2018. The previous iteration of the course hosted the 1974 PGA Championship. Tanglewood has a similar feel to Southern Pines Golf Club across the state—the greens are fast and you can’t get any better, given the price. Golfers in the Charlotte area should be willing to make the drive to play here. 
  • Like Eisenhower Park, this municipal facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Piedmont region also has two 18-hole layouts designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr.—the Championship and Reynolds courses. The Championship course indeed is just that, having hosted the PGA Championship in 1974, when Lee Trevino held off Jack Nicklaus by a stroke to claim the Wannamaker Trophy and his fifth major title. Perhaps as notably, Sam Snead finished third that year—at the age of 62. Additionally, there’s a Par-3 course at Tanglewood, with all 18 holes playing 100 yards or less.

DURHAM
  • Designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. in 1957 and renovated by Rees Jones in 1994
  • Maximum 2025 Green Fee: $135

GREENSBORO
The Cardinal by Pete Dye, 5700 Cardinal Way, Greensboro, NC 27410
  • Semi-Private Club but call for tee time
  • 70 miles from the Raleigh-Durham International Airport

HIGH POINT
Oak Hollow Golf Course, 3400 N Centennial Street, High Point, North Carolina 27265

PINEHURST
Pinehurst Resort, 80 Carolina Vista Dr, Pinehurst, NC 28374
Tufts Archives and Given Memorial Library, 150 Cherokee Rd, Pinehurst, NC 28374
The Best Lesser-Known Courses at Pinehurst by Erik Matuszewski, LINKS Magazine
13 Years Later: Bill Coore Reflects on the Restoration of Pinehurst No. 2 by Tony Dear, LINKS Magazine
Best Public Golf Around Pinehurst by Al Lunsford, LINKS Magazine
Course Profile: Pinehurst No. 10  by Garrett Morrison, The Fried Egg, 6/12/24
Design Notebook: Architect Roundtable on Pinehurst No. 2 by Garrett Morrison, The Fried Egg, 6/11/24
📺 One Thing About Every Hole at Pinehurst No. 2 by Cameron Hurdus, The Fried Egg, 6/9/24
📺 2024 U.S. Open: Flyovers of Pinehurst No. 2
📺 The Architecture of Pinehurst No. 2

The golf courses of Pinehurst Resort, ranked from best to 'worst' by Tim Gavrich, Golf Pass, June 5, 2024

Pinehurst No. 1:

  • Leroy Culver (1897) & John Dunn Tucker (1898)
  • Green Tees: 5466 yards
  • For some, there’s a sense of order in starting a Pinehurst visit at the beginning. The No. 1 course is the original, with two 9-hole designs that Donald Ross combined into a unified routing in 1901. The sandy waste areas that existed back then have given way to more of a turf-to-trees look, meaning somewhat of a friendlier introduction and, hopefully, less trouble to get into. There are still challenges, such as one of the toughest par threes in all of Pinehurst—the 12th hole, which can play 222 yards to a raised green that tilts right to left. The course also takes visitors past the Pinehurst Stables and Harness Track, offering a peek at some of the area’s other offerings beyond great golf. (https://linksmagazine.com/the-best-lesser-known-courses-at-pinehurst/)
Pinehurst No. 2:
  • Donald Ross (1907)
  • Green Tees: 5771 yards
Pinehurst No. 3:
  • Donald Ross (1910)
  • Green Tees: 4823 yards
  • The old saying, “good things in small packages,” certainly applies to Pinehurst No. 3. Just across the street and train tracks from the main clubhouse, this classic Ross design that dates back to 1910 is the shortest regulation course at Pinehurst—a par 68 that tips out at just over 5,150 yards. Faithfully renovated and restored in 2017 by Kyle Franz, the turtleback greens here are tiny, averaging about 4,500 square feet. So, while length might not be a prerequisite, precision is. For anyone who pooh-poohs play at sub-6,000-yard courses, you’re missing out. And you just might find the accuracy needed around the greens at No. 3 is pretty darn good prep for the demands of your round at No. 2. (https://linksmagazine.com/the-best-lesser-known-courses-at-pinehurst/)
Pinehurst No. 4::
  • Donald Ross (1919), Gil Hanse Redesign (2018)
  • Green Tees: 5864 yards
Pinehurst No. 5:
  • Ellis Maples (1961)
  • Green Tees: 5,685 yards
  • Has more water hazards than any other course at the Pinehurst Resort
Pinehurst No. 6:
  • George Fazio (1979), Tom Fazio Redesign (2005)
  • Green Tees: 5,683
  • The hardest course in Pinehurst
  • Tyson stressed it was the worst course at Pinehurst
Pinehurst No. 7:
  • Rees Jones (1986)
  • Green Tees: 5,709 yards
  • Has a special mountain flavor to it that makes a nice contrast to the other Pinehurst Resort courses.
  • Quick trivia question: Do you know where Tiger Woods won his only tournament at Pinehurst? It’s the No. 7 course, where at the age of 16 he cruised to a nine-shot win at the 1992 “Big I” Junior Classic. Architect Rees Jones built this championship layout in 1986 on some of the most rugged land in the resort’s portfolio. There are some fairly dramatic elevation changes at this course, which climbs hilly terrain and dives down to wetlands in the lower-lying areas. Located about three miles down the road from the main Pinehurst clubhouse, the property long ago had been home to a 9-hole employee golf course designed by Donald Ross. (https://linksmagazine.com/the-best-lesser-known-courses-at-pinehurst/)
Pinehurst No. 8:
  • Tom Fazio (1996)
  • Green Tees: 5,805 yards
  • Centennial course
  • A course for the purist, for the golfer, of whatever skill level, who wants to experience the game as it was intended to be played
  • While some of the other Pinehurst courses got recent restorations, No. 8 took a bit of a different approach—an agronomic remastering. This Tom Fazio design is one of the newer Pinehurst layouts, opening in 1996 to celebrate the resort’s centennial and located about a five-minute drive from the main clubhouse and courses No. 1 through 5. It reopened in fall of 2022 with regrassed greens, fresh bunkers, improved drainage, and fewer invasive trees that had limited views and sunlight. The changes brought back the course’s “edge.” As Pinehurst Resort’s Director of Agronomy Bob Farren says, No. 8 now appears “crisper to the eye and plays firmer and faster the way Tom Fazio originally intended it.” (https://linksmagazine.com/the-best-lesser-known-courses-at-pinehurst/)
Pinehurst No. 9:
  • Jack Nicklaus (1988)
  • Green Tees: 5,538
  • The course showcases rolling hills, surrounded by magnificant tall pine trees and an abundance of lakes.
Pinehurst No. 10::
  • Tom Doak (2023)
  • Green Tees: 5,785
Pinehurst No. 11:
  • Coore & Crenshaw (2027)
  • Opens March 29, 2027

The Cradle

  • Gil Hanse
  • 789 Yards
Thistle Dhu Putting Course

Club Fried Egg Hangout recommends:

  • #2, 4, 10
  • #1, 3 with hickories

Spoke with Joseph on May 30, 2024

Recommended this stay and Play:

Four Nights, Four Rounds at Carolina Hotel ($300 deposit)

  • #1: First course
  • #8: 100th anniversary course, designed by Tom Fazio
  • #3: Short but challenging
  • #7 or #9
Favourite Courses in my group:
  • #8 - Scott
  • #4 - Me
  • #4 - Allen
  • #3 - Harry

January average temperatures: 49
No snow
Caddies are $80 a round + $60 tip

Tyson's Tips:

  • #9, #8
  • Maybe #5
  • #3 is short but tough

The Home of Golf

Pinehurst is fine from April-November. They paint the greens in the winter.

October is the recommended time to visit.

RALEIGH
Lonnie Poole Golf Course, North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC 27695

  • One of the best on-campus courses in America
  • Designed by Arnold Palmer
SANFORD
Tobacco Road Golf Club, 442 Tobacco Rd, Sanford, NC 27332
The Golf Club at Quail Ridge, 5634 Quail Ridge Drive, Sanford, NC 27332
  • Recommended by Tyson
  • Scouted in 2025
  • Best between May and October
  • Ellis Maples design opened in 1967

SOUTHERN PINES
6 miles from Pinehurst
75 minutes from Raleigh-Durham Airport
2 1/2 hours from Charlotte Airport

3 Days - 2 Nights package:
  • $478 at Mid-Pines Inn
  • Includes breakfast
  • Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club, 1010 Midland Rd, Southern Pines, NC 28387
    • Donald Ross (1921), Kyle Franz Redesign (2013)
    • Recommended for hickory players
    • This is a classic must-play for the traditionalist golfer.
    • In 2013, Mid Pines saw its Ross green contours, vistas, and rough areas restored to their 1921 looks by Kyle Franz. That’s when Mid Pines bubbled back up into elite status. Back was the hardpan sand speckled with wiregrass framing the fairways, as well as the renewed emphasis on strategy—a Ross specialty. While holes 3, 12, 16, and 17 might be stronger par fours, and 18 the most scenic with the backdrop of the handsome Mid Pines Inn, the 330-yard 4th could be the best of all. The ideal layup drive to a left-to-right tilting fairway will hug the sandy hazard on the left, which affords a great angle and look into the green. A precise approach is a must, as the shallow, plateau target slopes away back-right, so any indifferent wedge will spin off the green. It’s drivable but miss in the wrong place and you’ll face five or worse on the scorecard.
    • Fried Egg Golf Course Review: 2 Eggs
  • Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, 1005 Midland Rd, Southern Pines, NC 28387
    • Donald Ross (1927), Kyle Franz Redesign (2017)
    • Pine Needles sits just three miles away from Pinehurst No. 2, yet has a different flavor. It isn’t as relentless a test as No. 2, making it a real treat for 15 handicappers, but its crowned greens have not only beguiled the game’s best women at the 1996, 2001, 2007 and 2022 U.S. Women’s Opens; they’ve also produced superior champions—Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Cristie Kerr, and Minjee Lee respectively. The 481-yard par-four 2nd calls for a drive to a plateau, followed by a well-gauged downhill approach to a green that slopes beguilingly away from the player. At the petite downhill 3rd, one of Donald Ross’s prettiest holes asks for a precise short-iron over a lake to a back-to-front sloping, boldly bunkered green that’s backdropped by towering pines and bursts of colorful dogwoods and flowers.
  • Southern Pines Golf Club, 290 Country Club Cir, Southern Pines, NC 28387
    • Donald Ross (1906)
    • There are a variety of ways to play each hole, making strategy a key element to doing well.
    • One of Donald Ross’s earliest designs, dating to 1906, Southern Pines now operates under the auspices of the Pine Needles/Mid Pines owners, who retained Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw associate Kyle Franz to restore and renovate this classic track in 2021. Franz re-established sandscapes, eliminated greenside rough in favor of closely mown surrounds that emphasize ground game options, and yanked out 700 trees, restoring width, strategy, and views. Franz upped the par from 70 to 71 and the back-tee yardage from 6,309 to 6,695. The best example of vintage Ross risk/reward arrives at the 325-yard 11th—big bashers can drive the green, but the left-to-right sloping fairway and a lake on the right might dictate a more prudent play.
    • Club TFE Member Video – Southern Pines
In July 2025, Rolling Pines LLC, announced that it had purchased the Country Club of Whispering Pines and Foxfire Country Club, a pair of 36-hole facilities.

  • Offer golf schools and "The Loop"
Design Notebook: Mid Pines or Southern Pines? by Garrett Morrison, Club TFE, 6/3/24

WILMINGTON
Wilmington Municipal Golf Course, 311 Donald Ross Dr, Wilmington, NC 28409
  • This 18-hole public championship golf course was designed in 1926 by Donald Ross.
  • 2024 Non-Resident Green Fee: $44

Flagstick Academy, Pine Needles Golf Academy, 1005 Midland Road, Southern Pines, NC 28387
  • David Orr

Top North Carolina Mountain Courses You Can Play by Erik Matuszewski, LINKS Magazine, August 2023
http://www.northcarolinagolf.com/


Next Time -- North Carolina
  1. Pinehurst #2
  2. Pinehurst #10
  3. Pinehurst #3
  4. Pine Needles 
  5. Southern Pines
  6. Tobacco Road
  7. Quail Ridge

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