Brookside Golf & Country Club

Many have mistakenly accredited Brookside Golf & Country Club in Columbus to Donald Ross, for a number of reasons. One, Ross was responsible for the club of a similar name in Canton, Ohio, and two, there is a distinct semblance of Ross in the fairways and greens at the Columbus location. This is likely because it was designed by Charlie Lorms, who was the first golf professional at Columbus Country Club. No doubt he took some inspiration from his home course when laying out his first route a bit farther north.

The greens are perhaps the most celebrated portion of the design, and players will need to work to reach them, as Lorms uses defensive bunkering—and at least one pond—to guard the putting surfaces.

The club has been in the hands of Brian Silva for a few years now as he continues an ambitious renovation. The new plan involves restoring the original No. 11 par three, which was abandoned and replaced with an uphill par three at the No. 16 hole. The current plans involve maintaining the latter as an “extra” while restoring Lorms’s original short hole to the 18-hole route.