Region: Pinehurst, North Carolina, USA | Best Time: March–May & September–November | Nearest Airport: Raleigh-Durham (RDU) — 1h 30m drive
Editor’s Note: The golf capital of the world — a title backed by the evidence. Fifteen courses in a single resort. Nine Donald Ross designs. Four US Opens. The village’s Carolina Hotel has served golfers since 1901. No golf journey is complete without the pilgrimage to No. 2; the Pinehurst experience combines American golf history with the most accessible great golf on the East Coast.
The 5 Courses to Play
1. Pinehurst No. 2 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Donald Ross (1907), restored Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw (2011)
- Par / Yardage: 70 / 7,588 yards | Rating: 77.0 / 150
- Why Play It: The greatest course in America east of the Rockies. The crowned, turtle-back greens that reject everything but the most precisely struck approaches; the domed fairways; the wire grass rough. Host of the 2024 US Open. Coore and Crenshaw’s 2011 restoration removed all the peripheral plantings and returned the course to Ross’s natural Sandhills vision — a revelation.
- Book: pinehurst.com | Green fees from $350
2. Pinehurst No. 4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Donald Ross, restored Tom Fazio (1999), redesigned Gil Hanse (2018)
- Par / Yardage: 72 / 7,153 yards
- Why Play It: Gil Hanse’s 2018 transformation matches No. 2 for drama and difficulty — wire grass, natural sandy waste areas and crowned greens. Many Pinehurst regulars now consider No. 4 the superior challenge. Host of the 2024 US Women’s Open.
- Book: pinehurst.com
3. Tobacco Road Golf Club ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Mike Strantz (1998)
- Par / Yardage: 71 / 6,554 yards
- Why Play It: The most divisive course in America — carved through 40-foot-deep tobacco soil craters on sandhills land. Blind shots, roller-coaster fairways and sheer visual drama unlike anything else in golf. Strantz’s masterpiece is an acquired taste; those who embrace the madness are rewarded with an experience that cannot be replicated anywhere.
- Book: tobaccoroadgolf.com
4. Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Donald Ross (1921)
- Par / Yardage: 72 / 6,515 yards
- Why Play It: The most charming of the Sandhills Donald Ross designs — an intimate inn-based golf experience that predates the modern resort era. The combination of classic parkland conditioning, affordable accommodation and pure golf atmosphere makes Mid Pines the Pinehurst visit that most golfers love most.
- Book: pineneedleslodgegolf.com
5. Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Designer: Donald Ross (1927)
- Par / Yardage: 71 / 6,740 yards
- Why Play It: Three-time US Women’s Open host; Donald Ross’s most playable design in the Sandhills. The lodging-and-golf package at Pine Needles is the best value in American resort golf — stay, play and eat at a genuinely historic property for under $300/night including greens fee.
- Book: pineneedleslodgegolf.com
Where to Stay
- The Carolina Hotel, Pinehurst Resort (5★): Golf history since 1901. The rocking chairs on the porch, the Pinehurst Club Room bar and breakfast in the Dining Room are irreplaceable Americana. Check availability →
- Pine Needles Lodge: The best-value lodging-included-golf package in America.
- Getting There: Fly to Raleigh-Durham (RDU) — 1h 30m drive. Direct flights from most major UK airports via New York or Charlotte.