Country Club of Rochester - New York - USA

The Country Club of Rochester dates back to 1895 but it’s not known who designed the club’s original golfing layout. We do know that Donald Ross was engaged to set out a new 18-hole course in 1913 and he returned eighteen years later to remodel what is essentially the course that’s now in play.

In the book The American Private Golf Club Guide, author Daniel Wexler describes Rochester as “a short but character-filled course with plenty of Ross stylings and the waters of Allen’s Creek meaningfully affect play on four holes.”

Robert Trent Jones Sr. added three new holes (5, 6 and 7) in 1960 and Gil Hanse carried out some restoration work early in the new millennium but Rochester still remains very much a Golden Age Donald Ross design. It hosted the US Women’s Opens in 1953 and 1973.

Measuring 6,584 yards from the back markers, the course plays to a par of 70, featuring five par threes and three par fives – with two of the three-shot holes (the 517-yard 2nd and 570-yard 10th) rated stroke index 1 and 2 on the scorecard.