As the calendar changes to 2026, the time comes once more for my favorite year-end tradition: it's golf course roundup time! We've got representatives from five different states, some of which may actually be decent golf courses. Sorry, just managing expectations here; this was not a standout year in terms of playing blockbuster courses. But all courses deserve a moment in the limelight, even if it's only to learn about what doesn't work. And believe me, some golf courses out there really should do better. Speaking of which ...
16. Locust Hill Golf Course
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| The fifth hole at Locust Hill. |
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| The eighth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
Here's all you need to know about Locust Hill: Attempting to review it made me question my devotion to the whole "review every new golf course I play" project. It's not even that bad — I can think of several golf courses that are worse than Locust Hill, and there are even a few holes here that I kind of liked. But there's just something about this place that really repelled me. It's just completely charmless, lacking any sort of charisma, passion, or soul. This is a housing development golf course in every way, built to the numbers to graze golfers through in spades.
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| The twelfth hole. |
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| The fourteenth hole. |
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| The sixteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
15. River Downs Golf Club
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| The first hole at River Downs. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
River Downs' mediocrity in terms of design is exceeded only by the thoroughly awful playing conditions. The ninth hole in particular stands out as a quality entry in the annals of terribly thought-out and even more poorly executed golf holes. Honestly, it's a worse golf course than Locust Hill, but at least there's a sense of humor here. I can point and laugh at River Downs. It's definitely not in "so bad it's good" territory, but a round here also isn't a soul-sucking 4-hour slog. There was some ambition shown in the design of some of the holes, even if it was mostly wildly unsuccessful. And I'll take that over Locust Hill's banal cynicism any day of the week.
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| The eleventh hole. |
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| The thirteenth green. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
14. Van Metre 9 at Stonebridge
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The first hole at Stonebridge.
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| The third hole. |
I'm of two minds when it comes to Stonebridge. On the one hand, it's always a good thing when a golf course comes back from the dead, even if it is only half. It's another place to play, and I sincerely believe the area is better off with Stonebridge in the mix. On the other hand, and I have to be honest here, they brought back the wrong nine. The second hole here is a completely disaster, and while the first hole is okay, the rest of the course is at best dull. This is just not a good golf course, and while the conditions compared to other nine-hole courses in the area were pretty clearly superior, the quality of the golf course makes the higher price tag just not worth it.
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The eighth hole. |
Find my review here.
13. Mayapple Golf Club
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| The first hole at Mayapple. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The seventh hole. |
The Carlisle-Harrisburg corridor disappoints once again. At the very least, I can't say that Mayapple does anything particularly offensive, but that's because it never does much of anything. This is a golf course that you'll forget the instant you leave. Honestly, you may even fall asleep during the round. If it were super cheap, I might let it slide, but it cost $50 to walk, and that is pure highway robbery. Rich Valley is just a few miles up I-81 and costs $20 less, so if you're looking for a ridiculously boring and easy golf course, I'd pick that over this any day.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
12. Black Rock Golf Course
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| The first hole at Black Rock. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
I'm not sure there's a golf course that could better exemplify the word "average" better than Black Rock. It is thoroughly pleasant and nonthreatening in every possible way. Easy to walk, easy to play, easy to digest. There's very little, if anything, really wrong with it, but neither does it stand out in any meaningful way. It is just a golf course.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The thirteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
11. Bryce Resort
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| The first hole at Bryce Resort. |
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| The fifth hole. |
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| The sixth green. |
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| The eighth hole. |
Arguably, Bryce Resort is not quite as good a golf course as Black Rock. In general, Black Rock does play over slightly more interesting land and has fewer flat holes. However, I'm giving Bryce the nod in this toss-up of ordinary for two reasons: No. 1, the sixteenth hole here is actually kind of fun and memorable. Black Rock struggles to come up with anything like that. No. 2, Bryce is in a more scenic setting. If I'm going to play an average golf course, it's nice to have something cool to look at.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The thirteenth hole. |
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| The fourteenth hole. |
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| The sixteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
10. Forest Park Golf Course
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| The fourth hole at Forest Park. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
I don't imagine too many people would place Forest Park above the previous two golf courses (we are talking marginal differences, but still), but despite the clear benign neglect that Forest Park is clearly suffering from, I do think the bones are pretty solid. The back nine especially has quite a few decent holes. The opening is super bland, I will admit, but overall I did generally enjoy the course. Plus, it was nice being the first one out on the course; that's not something that's happened in many years.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The eleventh hole. |
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| The fourteenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
9. Penn National Golf Club - Founders
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| The first hole at Penn National - Founders |
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| The fifth hole. |
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| The seventh hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
Penn National - Founders and I have never gotten along. I've played here numerous times, and never once have I managed to do better than 85. And I think that's probably down to the ethos of the course — Founders is the epitome of the classic golf adage "tough but fair." Water's not much of a factor, there aren't any native areas to lose golf balls in, the greens are pretty large, and the playing corridors are plenty wide, but it's still tough to run up a decent score here. If you can't do what Founders asks, you will suffer the consequences. And if that's what you like, more power to you. It's just not the course for me, and I can't rate it any higher than this. Also, the fourteenth hole is incredibly bad, and I will not let that slide on an otherwise well-executed design.
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| The tenth green. |
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| The fourteenth hole. |
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| The sixteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
8. Rocky Gap Golf Course
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| The second hole at Rocky Gap. |
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| The third hole. |
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| The fifth hole. |
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| The eighth green. |
There is something about the mountainous, adventure-style golf that Rocky Gap presents that I do like, even if it's absolutely antithetical to my personal playing style. It's just nice being out in the "wild." And for the most part, Rocky Gap does feel hewn out of the forest, even though there is a massive casino and an interstate nearby. The golf is ... fine. Not bad, and there are some decent holes, but by and large I feel like Rocky Gap played it a little too safe. Also, while the rugged terrain does guarantee a certain baseline of strategic interest, it also puts a pretty hard ceiling on the cohesiveness of the course. You can tell the designer struggled to get 18 holes down. Also, and while this doesn't figure into the placement on my list, Rocky Gap's normal playing rate is way too expensive for its location, condition, and overall design quality.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The thirteenth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth green. |
Find my review here and here.
7. The Architects Golf Club
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| The first hole at The Architects. |
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| The fifth hole. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth green. |
Speaking of playing it safe, I'm now two for two with replica golf courses being too dumbed down to be anything more than a curiosity. Each hole at Architects is supposed to pay tribute to a different (mostly) Golden Age golf course designer, but most of them bear only a passing resemblance to their inspiration. Donald Ross does okay, and Architect's Eden hole (specifically an homage to CB Macdonald) is also decent, but Mackenzie, Raynor, and Tillinghast (admittedly, he's a really tough one) are absolutely bungled. Also, I'm sorry, but you cannot have a Walter Travis homage without a wild green. That's literally the one thing his designs are really known for. The greens here in general are a big weakness; they're just nowhere close to what their architects would have built. I can't say that I had no fun at Architects, but it's just underwhelming compared to what could be.
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| The twelfth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth green. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
6. Penn National Golf Club - Iron Forge
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| The first green at Penn National - Iron Forge. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
Until I played Atlantic City Country Club in 2017, Penn National - Iron Forge was my favorite golf course. It played to my strengths as a golfer and while I didn't know any better, having no experience with great golf design, Iron Forge is genuinely a pretty solid course. But now that I've developed a more critical eye, the flaws are apparent. It's got a muddled identity and is ultimately no different from any other mildly competent modern golf course. It is better than its sibling, that much I'll swear to. Plus, there's always going to be a fond nostalgia factor for me, and that's something no other golf course can have. It's not especially impressive, but I'll always have time for Iron Forge.
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| The eleventh hole. |
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| The thirteenth hole. |
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| The sixteenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth green. |
Find my review here and here.
5. Armitage Golf Club
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| The second hole at Armitage. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The seventh hole. |
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| The eighth hole. |
The world needs more golf courses like Armitage. The sub-6,000 yard golf courses rarely disappoint, and this is no exception. The property is tiny and almost all the holes run parallel to each other, but Armitage uses the terrain wonderfully. It's rarely ever boring, and the course never feels short. The start is a little slow, and the final hole is disappointing, but the tenth and eleventh are stand-out, quality holes. Plus, with some wild sloping fairways, it's also got some fun quirk. The greens in general aren't the most exciting, which does hold Armitage back from being in the same realm as Paxon Hollow and Cape Arundel, but it has nothing to be ashamed of. Also, seeing as the other two actually good golf courses in the greater Harrisburg area are currently embroiled in data center hell, Armitage could one day be the best course in south-central Pennsylvania.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The eleventh hole. |
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| The fourteenth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The sixteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
4. Neshanic Valley Golf Course (Meadow/Lake)
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| The first hole at Neshanic Valley - Meadow. |
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| The fourth green. |
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| The seventh hole. |
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| The ninth green. |
Broadly, the two nines my brothers and I played at Neshanic Valley share a lot with Penn National - Iron Forge. It's that same sort of modern design set out over open land, being vaguely "links-like," but without the playing conditions or subtlety of an actual links course. Obviously, since it's ahead of Iron Forge, I do feel like Neshanic Valley has some advantages. It feels more coherent and committed to what it's doing (or rather, it doesn't claim to be a links-style course), and the greens are generally more interesting here. Also, they haven't completely enclosed Neshanic Valley in ugly housing, which I'm greatly appreciative of. There is a third nine at Neshanic Valley that I didn't see and know nothing about, but I somehow doubt it would change this course's position one way or another.
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| The first hole at Neshanic Valley - Lake. |
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| The fourth hole. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
3. Hendricks Field Golf Course
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| The second hole at Hendricks Field. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The eighth hole. |
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| The ninth green. |
Can a golf course be too easy? It's an interesting question, considering just how hard golf is for ... well, pretty much all of us. Our own balky swings do plenty of work making this crazy sport way tougher than it needs to be.
Hendricks Field was recently restored to emphasize its connection to Seth Raynor and CB Macdonald. But as a municipal golf course, many of the MacRaynor signature features have been dulled down to better expedite pace of play. Sort of the opposite of what Charleston Municipal did. The result is a golf course that's undeniably user friendly but somewhat lacking in bite. It's pretty obvious throughout that the restoration was handicapped by the need to make the golf course playable to golfers of all skill levels. It's still a good golf course, laid out over solid land and possessing reasonable strategic merit, but it's not as good as it could have been.
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The eleventh hole.
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| The twelfth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
2. Old Bridge Golf Club
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| The second hole at Old Bridge. |
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The third hole.
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
Truly new golf courses in areas of the US that people actually live are precious these days. New public golf courses doubly so. On the one hand, that makes Old Bridge a bit disappointing. It's a good golf course with fun greens, but it's hardly anything special in the grand scheme of things. It opened with little fanfare and just seems to be a regular golf course plugging along, doing its own thing. On the other hand, though, not every new golf course needs to have ambitions of grandeur. There's nothing wrong with being a good golf course, full stop. Old Bridge is playable, affordable, and interesting. It's also completely walkable; there are no housing developments here. It does what it set out to do quite well, and if nothing else I'm glad that the people of central New Jersey have it available. I wish we had more courses like this.
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| The tenth hole. |
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| The twelfth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth green. |
Find my review here and here.
1. Gauntlet Golf Club
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| The second hole at Gauntlet. |
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| The fifth hole. |
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| The sixth hole. |
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| The ninth hole. |
I've been doing these golf course roundups since 2017, and this is the first time that the best golf course I reviewed during the year doesn't go in my personal top ten. Gauntlet is no Atlantic City Country Club, Country Club of Troy, or Lancaster Country Club. It's not a George Wright or Leatherstocking either. It's not even a Shennecossett, Copake, or Caledonia. This was ultimately a pretty easy win for Gauntlet, but the competition in 2025 wasn't exactly stiff.
Still, I don't want to take too much away from Gauntlet, because ultimately this is a very good, very fun golf course. Dye family golf courses are usually many things, but one thing you can never accuse them of being is boring. That said, and something that works to its benefit, Gauntlet doesn't bear many of the stereotypical hallmarks of Pete Dye. There are no railroad ties and the eighteenth hole has no egregious pond. There aren't even any man-made water hazards ... well, the lake isn't natural, but that wasn't built with the golf course in mind. What we do have is a golf course that traverses surprisingly rolling terrain in a bold, strategic manner, offering plenty of width throughout as well as a sense of humor. The seventeenth hole is one I'll remember for a very long time. And that's really all there is to it; Gauntlet may have a silly name, but the golf is no joke, and I have no regrets placing it at the top of my 2025 list.
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| The eleventh hole. |
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| The thirteenth hole. |
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| The fifteenth hole. |
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| The seventeenth hole. |
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| The eighteenth hole. |
Find my review here and here.
