Best golf courses in Georgia.

St. Simons Island, GA

The Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club on St. Simons Island, Georgia, traces back to 1929, when Harry Colt and Charles Alison built a nine on the marsh edge of a former plantation. A second nine, Marshside, was added later, and Tom Fazio combined and redesigned the two into the single 18-hole Seaside course in 1999. The course plays along tidal marsh and the Atlantic, with sandy waste areas, low dunes and almost no trees on the outer holes. Wind off the water is the main defense, and the greens are exposed enough that holding them from distance is difficult. The closing stretch runs beside the beach. Seaside hosts the RSM Classic on the PGA Tour each November, sharing the tournament with the club's inland Plantation course. Access is through the Sea Island resort and club, and caddies are available.

St. Simons Island, GA

The Plantation Course at Sea Island on St. Simons Island, Georgia, traces back to a 1920s Walter Travis layout on the old Retreat Plantation property. Rees Jones rebuilt the course in the late 1990s, and Love Golf Design carried out a further renovation in 2019. The golf is coastal lowcountry: marsh, tidal creek and live oak, with the wind off St. Simons Sound shaping how holes play through the day. Fairways are broad, the greens are Bermuda and quick, and marsh carries replace conventional hazards on several holes. It is the quieter of the two courses at the Sea Island Golf Club property and is open to resort guests and members.

Eatonton, GA

Jack Nicklaus designed Great Waters, which opened in 1992 on the shore of Lake Oconee near Eatonton, Georgia, as the second course built at what is now Reynolds Lake Oconee. Nine of the eighteen holes touch the lake. The front nine moves through rolling parkland and hardwood before the routing turns to the water on the back nine, with greens set close to the shoreline through the closing stretch. The par-3 eighth and the run of holes from the ninth through the thirteenth carry most of the water exposure. Nicklaus Design rebuilt the course from the ground up starting in 2018, replacing turf, greens, bunkers, tees and irrigation while keeping Nicklaus's original routing and strategy. It reopened in the fall of 2019. The course hosted stages of the Andersen Consulting World Championship of Golf from 1995 to 1997. Access runs through Reynolds Lake Oconee membership or a stay at the resort rather than open public tee sheets.

St. Simons Island, GA · Location not mapped

The Hampton Club is the golf course of The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort on St. Simons Island, set on the north end of the island among tidal marshes and ancient oaks. The course underwent a full redesign by Love Golf Design, the firm led by Davis Love III, reopening in 2024 with rebuilt greens, reimagined holes and a routing that leans into the marshland setting. It is open to the public and to resort guests.

Greensboro, GA

The National is an 18-hole course at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Georgia, designed by Tom Fazio and opened in 1997. Today it is made up of the Ridge and Cove nines; the original Bluff nine was combined with nine new holes in 2024 to form a separate course, Richland. The National plays 7,034 yards at par 72, with big elevation changes between tee, fairway and green, including approaches that drop as much as 60 feet. It is part of the Reynolds Lake Oconee community and is played by members and resort guests.

Adairsville, GA

Barnsley Resort's Championship course in Adairsville was designed by Jim Fazio and plays to 7,350 yards at par 72 across the hills of North Georgia. Elevation changes are pronounced as the routing climbs onto a ridgeline overlooking the surrounding countryside, with fast greens and demanding par 3s shaping the test. The course is the golf centerpiece of Barnsley Resort, built around the ruins of a 19th-century manor house roughly an hour north of Atlanta. It operates as a resort course open to guests and outside public play.

Hartwell, GA

Cateechee Golf Club is an 18-hole semi-private course in the foothills of northeast Georgia near Lake Hartwell, designed by Mike Young and opened in 1997. It is an Audubon International Signature Sanctuary course, built with no homes bordering the fairways. The club also runs an event center and overnight lodging.

Last verified 2026-10-13

Mineral Bluff, GA

Jeff Brauer mountain design on a historic North Georgia farm

Greensboro, GA

The Oconee Course at Reynolds Lake Oconee is a Rees Jones design in Greensboro, Georgia, that opened in 2002. The par-72 layout measures 7,158 yards from the back tees and follows a routing along the Lake Oconee shoreline. It is a risk-reward design that offers options to play over inlets or carry the corners of tree-lined doglegs, with lake views from several holes. The course is part of the Reynolds Lake Oconee resort and residential community and is available to members and resort guests.

Suwanee, GA

Bear's Best Atlanta is located in Suwanee, Georgia, north of Atlanta, and is part of the nationwide Bear's Best concept created by Jack Nicklaus and operated by Invited (formerly ClubCorp). Rather than a single original routing, the course assembles 18 holes replicated from Nicklaus designs around the world, drawing from courses such as Castle Pines, Muirfield Village, Sherwood Country Club and Shoal Creek. It opened in 2002, giving golfers a sampling of Nicklaus's varied design styles in one round. The club operates as a public daily-fee facility with membership options through the Invited network, offering dining and tournament hosting in addition to golf.

Atlanta, GA

Bobby Jones Golf Course is Atlanta's most historic public golf facility. Rees Jones reimagined it in 2018 as a reversible nine-hole course in Buckhead's Memorial Park. Named for Atlanta's legendary amateur champion, the course has nine double-greens, allowing play in two directions. This creates 18 distinct hole experiences when played as a full round. The layout can stretch over 7,400 yards from the back tees. It includes practice facilities, weekly camps, and a restaurant with Atlanta skyline views.

Athens, GA

The University of Georgia Golf Course opened in 1968. Robert Trent Jones Sr. drew the plan as a favor to university president O.C. Aderhold, and students paid for construction through their activity fees. It is a big, rolling course among tall pines, stretching past 7,200 yards from the back tees. Many greens sit up above the fairway, so approaches have to carry rather than run on. Love Golf Design rebuilt the greens and green complexes in 2006 and added tees, with six sets now in use. It is home to the Bulldogs golf teams and has hosted SEC and NCAA championships, including the 2013 NCAA women's title. The public can book tee times.

Young Harris, GA

The golf course at Brasstown Valley Resort & Spa sits in Young Harris, Georgia, in the Blue Ridge Mountains near the state's highest peak, Brasstown Bald. Designed by architect Denis Griffiths, the Scottish links-style course opened along with the resort in 1995 on land that had previously been an ancient Cherokee village site. Griffiths routed the course to take advantage of the existing terrain, with rolling hills, bentgrass greens, and water coming into play on ten of the eighteen holes as the layout winds through wildlife preserves, ponds, and streams. The design uses only a small fraction of the resort's wooded acreage, and the course has been noted as one of the more environmentally sensitive properties of its kind in the country. Brasstown Valley operates as a resort course open to hotel guests and the public through the resort's golf packages, with tee times bookable directly through the resort alongside overnight stays.

Augusta, GA

The Loop at The Patch is a 9-hole, par-27 short course at Augusta Municipal Golf Course, known locally as The Patch, designed by Tiger Woods and TGR Design. It honors the caddies who have played The Patch since it opened in 1928. The Loop sits next to The Patch's redesigned 18-hole course, led by Tom Fazio and Beau Welling, and both reopened for public play on April 15, 2026 after a 16-month renovation. The project was carried out by Masters Tournament Charities, Augusta Technical College and The First Tee of Augusta.

Gainesville, GA

Chicopee Woods Golf Course is a public 27-hole facility in Gainesville near I-985, with three nines that can be played in different combinations. It has hosted Georgia PGA and state amateur events, and no homes line the holes.

Last verified 2026-10-13

Calhoun, GA

Fields Ferry Golf Club is a daily-fee public 18-hole course a few miles east of I-75 in Calhoun. Designed by Arthur L. Davis and opened in 1992, it plays to par 72 and 6,586 yards from the back tees. It is also home course for local school golf teams.

Last verified 2026-10-13

Jekyll Island, GA

The Great Dunes Course on Jekyll Island traces its origins to Walter Travis, his final design before his death in 1927, with the course opening the following year for members of the Jekyll Island Club. Set along the Atlantic coastline, it stands as one of the earliest examples of oceanfront golf built on the Georgia coast. After decades of alteration, restoration work has revived elements of the original Golden Age routing. The public course is operated through the Jekyll Island Authority, giving golfers a rare surviving link to the island's Gilded Age club era.

Greensboro, GA

The Preserve was the first golf course built at what is now Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, designed by Bob Cupp with input from player consultants Fuzzy Zoeller and Hubert Green. Opened in 1988, it plays to roughly 6,674 yards at par 72 over gently rolling terrain. The design leans on subtle deception in its contours rather than length or forced carries, aiming to stay playable across skill levels. It is played by Reynolds members and by guests staying at the resort.

Greensboro, GA

Creek Club is a private course within the Reynolds Lake Oconee community in Greensboro, designed by Jim Engh and opened in 2007. Richland Creek comes into play on fourteen of the eighteen holes, and Engh's characteristic mounding and bunkering give the layout a sculpted look across the property's rolling terrain. The par-72 course plays to a maximum of 7,079 yards and is reserved for members and their guests. It is one of several courses that make up the Reynolds golf portfolio around Lake Oconee.

Greensboro, GA

Richland, at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, opened in October 2024 as Tom Fazio's second design for the community, blending nine holes carried over from his earlier National course with nine entirely new ones. The par-72 layout plays to 7,090 yards and represents the culmination of design work at the site dating back to 1997. It gives Reynolds two Fazio-designed courses alongside layouts from Jack Nicklaus, Bob Cupp and Jim Engh. Richland is played by Reynolds Lake Oconee members and by guests of the resort.

Elberton, GA

Arrowhead Pointe Golf Course sits on a peninsula within Richard B. Russell State Park near Elberton, with ten of its eighteen holes running along Lake Richard B. Russell. Designed by Bob Walker and opened in 2001, the par-72 layout stretches to roughly 6,800 yards over rolling terrain in the Northeast Georgia foothills. Bermuda fairways and TifEagle greens hold up well through the season, and the state-park setting keeps the course free of surrounding homes or development. It is a public facility operated through Georgia's state parks system, pairing lake scenery with a modest green fee.

McDonough, GA

Georgia National Golf Club is a Denis Griffiths design in McDonough's Lake Dow community, open since the mid-1990s. It is semi-private, with public tee times alongside member play, and is run by Green Valley Golf Group.

Last verified 2026-10-13

Evans, GA

Bartram Trail Golf Club is a public 18-hole course in Evans, Columbia County, and one of the closest public courses to Augusta National. It is named for naturalist William Bartram and has an on-site restaurant, Tavern on the Trail.

Last verified 2026-10-13

Royston, GA

Highland Walk Golf Course is an 18-hole public course inside Victoria Bryant State Park near Royston, run by Georgia State Parks. The par-72 course climbs steep, rolling hills with wide Bermuda fairways and sloping greens, playing to 6,421 yards.

Last verified 2026-10-13