Although the emphasis is clearly on “Stone” based on the course's title, the player’s attention should truly be on hills at this Mark McCumber design.
Although the emphasis is clearly on “Stone” based on the course's title, the player’s attention should truly be on hills at this Mark McCumber design.
Mark McCumber made most of his name — as both a player and an architect — on courses in his native Florida (including his only PGA win, at The Players Championship). He occasionally heads elsewhere in the Southeast United States, including the acclaimed public-access venue GreyStone on the West side of Nashville, Tennessee.
Although the emphasis is clearly on “Stone” (based on the capitalization in the course’s title), the player’s attention should truly be on hills. Finding the correct side of the fairway may be the difference between safety and tumbling down an embankment. Of course, it may also mean finding the ideal line for your birdie approach, or a less attractive one.
The club is owned by Bob Wolcott, another former pro and the patriarch of one of Nashville’s premier golf families.
The latest ranking of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the World serves as the ultimate global golf bucket list. Most members of our World Top 100 Panel are seasoned golfers, each playing 20-30 of these courses annually while travelling extensively over decades to form their opinions on others. We recognise that opinions vary—even among our panel members. Rankings are subjective, and there are undoubtedly 50 or more courses in the UK and USA alone that could easily fit onto this list. Links Golf Pilgrimages The rankings
California, United States
New Jersey, United States
Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
New York, United States
New York, United States
For much of golf’s history, the idea of a hole measuring 700 yards or more would have seemed excessive. Today, such distances are no longer quite so extraordinary. The world’s longest holes are an eclectic group, spread across very different landscapes and created for very different reasons. Some belong to expansive resort courses, others to championship layouts, while a handful have become famous largely because of the sheer scale of the challenge they present. From a former world-record holder in North Carolina to an extraordinary par 7 measuring over 1km in South Korea, these are the 10 longest golf holes in the world. 10. Black Mountain Golf Club (North Carolina, USA) Hole 17 | 747 yards (683m) | Par 6 The 17th at Black Mountain is one of the survivors from an era when exceptionally long golf holes were still something of a novelty. At 747 yards, the par six was once recognised as the longest golf hole in the world - a distinction that helped put this small North Carolina club on the golfing map. The hole is part of Black Mountain's older nine-hole layout, which dates back to the 1960s, and its extraordinary length was a deliberate feature rather than an accident of modern championship-course design. From the back tees, the fairway climbs and falls through the foothills, with the green sitting far enough away that it disappears from view for much of the hole. For a course that otherwise has a relatively modest footprint, the 17th is an impressive piece of real estate. Its 747 yards are now exceeded by several holes built in the decades since, but the hole retains its place in golf's long-hole folklore. It is also a reminder of how quickly perceptions of distance have changed. What was once a world record is now the shortest hole in this particular top ten. 9. TPC Colorado (Colorado, USA) Hole 13 | 773 yards (707m) | Par 5 TPC Colorado opened in 2018 at Heron Lakes near Berthoud, with Arthur Schaupeter’s design set against open Colorado terrain and views towards the Front Range. The 7,991-yard course was built with tournament golf in mind and has since become a regular Korn Ferry Tour venue. The 13th, named “Longer Still”, is its defining hole. At 773 yards from the TOUR tees, it is the longest hole on a PGA TOUR course and the longest par five in PGA TOUR golf. Its principal feature is the enormous 108-yard Hell Bunker, which runs along the left side of the fairway and creates the key decision after the drive: challenge it to gain ground or lay back and accept a longer approach. At altitude, the hole does not play quite as severely as the yardage suggests, but its scale remains remarkable. More importantly, the length is integrated into the design rather than simply added as a spectacle, giving No. 13 a strategic identity that has made it one of the most recognisable holes in modern American golf. 8. The Reserve at Moonlight Basin (Montana, USA) Hole 17 | 777 yards (710m) | Par 5 Set at 7,500 feet above Big Sky in the Rocky Mountains, The Reserve at Moonlight Basin is one of Jack Nicklaus’ most dramatic mountain courses. Built across the former Moonlight Basin ski area, the 8,000-yard layout moves through forest and open mountain terrain, with more than 1,000 feet of elevation change across the property. The 17th is the signature expression of that setting. At 777 yards, it is already extraordinary on the card, but the hole plunges downhill towards the green, with the change in elevation and thin mountain air making the distance considerably less daunting than it first appears. A large fairway bunker sits around 370 yards from the back tee, beyond which the fairway reveals the full scale of the descent towards the green. It is a fittingly theatrical hole for a course where elevation is central to the experience. The 17th was also one of the holes that came to wider attention when Moonlight Basin hosted The Match in 2021 – when Bryson DeChambeau and Aaron Rodgers defeated Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady – putting its spectacular setting and remarkable yardage on national television. 7. Penati Golf Resort - Legend course (Trnava Region, Slovakia) Hole 15 | 783 yards (716m) | Par 6 Opened in 2012, the Legend Course at Penati occupies a sandy, pine-covered site near Senica, with Nicklaus Design using the natural character of the property to create wide, undulating fairways and extensive waste areas. The course forms part of Slovakia’s largest golf resort and was the first Nicklaus Design course in the country. The 15th is the course’s defining feature. It has 11 teeing positions, allowing it to be played at very different lengths, but from the back tees, it stretches to 783 yards and becomes a par 6. The fairway is split by a large waste bunker, with further bunkering framing the second landing area before the hole finally turns towards the green. The hole gained international attention when the European Challenge Tour used the full 783-yard version during the Slovakia Challenge in 2015, 2016 and 2019. In regular play, however, it is generally shortened and played as a par 5 - a useful reminder that the extraordinary version seen on the professional circuit is only one interpretation of Central Europe’s longest hole. 6. Theodora Golf Club (Transylvania, Romania) Hole 18 | 804 yards (735m) | Par 6 Theodora Golf Club sits outside Alba Iulia on the banks of the Mureș, occupying a remarkably flat 56-hectare site. Opened in 2018, the resort was created around an 18-hole championship course, with a large lake excavated in front of the clubhouse providing material to shape the otherwise level ground. That lake is central to the character of the closing hole. The 18th stretches over 800 yards from the back tees, with the approach eventually leading to an island green shared with the 9th. The arrangement gives what might otherwise be a straightforwardly expansive hole a much more distinctive finish. Theodora itself describes the 18th as the longest par 6 in Europe, and it has become the defining feature of a relatively young Romanian resort that has steadily established itself on the European golf map. 5. The Links at Kahite Golf Club (Tennessee, USA) Hole 9 | 808 yards (739m) | Par 6 The Links at Kahite opened in 2002 as the third course in Tellico Village, occupying a natural setting between Tellico Lake and the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. The links-style layout has six sets of tees, stretches to 7,170 yards and is notable for its 93 bunkers and tall fescue framing some of the fairways. The 9th is the course's defining hole: an 739-metre par 6 that runs in a notably direct line across the landscape. From the back tees it measures 808 yards, while the blue tees bring it down to 721, making the hole a very different proposition depending on where it is played from. The course's own guide describes it simply as a unique hole, with the fairway rewarding players who can keep successive shots in play. Its position at the turn also gives Kahite an unusual rhythm. After eight holes that establish the character of the course, the 9th opens out into one of the most distinctive holes in Tennessee golf before the back nine heads back towards the mountains. 4. Meadows Farms Golf Course (Virginia, USA) Hole 12 | 841 yards (769m) | Par 6 Meadows Farms is very much the product of its founder, Bill “Farmer” Meadows, who built the course on former farmland after taking up golf later in life. It opened in 1993 with an intentionally unconventional character: the 27-hole layout includes a baseball-themed hole, a waterfall green and an island green, alongside the hole that became its calling card. The 12th stretches to 841 yards from the championship tees, running downhill before turning right, crossing two lakes and climbing towards a large elevated green. A three-leaf-clover-shaped bunker guards the approach. The sequence gives the hole considerably more shape and interest than its raw length might suggest. For decades it was promoted as the longest golf hole in the United States, a distinction that helped make this eccentric Virginia course a destination in its own right. The current course still describes No. 12 as its signature hole and the longest in the country, as recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records. 3. The Links Golf Club (Idaho, USA) Hole 9 | 842 yards (770m) | Par 6 The Links Golf Club in Post Falls opened in 1999 on the broad, open Rathdrum Prairie, with owner and designer Emmett Burley shaping the course in the tradition of Scottish links golf. There are few trees or water hazards to interrupt the prairie landscape, leaving wind, wide fairways, deep bunkers and rough to define its character. The 9th has been the course's signature hole from the beginning. It was originally measured at 738 yards from the black tees, but subsequent changes have transformed it into an 842-yard par 6, now the longest hole on the course and one of the longest in America. That extra distance has only amplified the hole's original links character. With no trees or water to dictate the route, the scale of the prairie is laid bare, while the wind can have a considerable influence on successive shots. The green itself has two distinct levels, adding another layer to a hole that has evolved from an unusual feature into the defining landmark of The Links. 2. Satsuki Golf Club - Sano course (Kanto Region, Japan) Hole 7 | 964 yards (881m) | Par 7 Satsuki Golf Club’s Sano Course opened in 1979 in the hills of Tochigi Prefecture, with broad fairways laid through a landscape of trees and gentle elevation changes. The 18-hole course measures more than 7,200 yards from the back tees, but it is the seventh hole on the outward nine that has made the club internationally known. At 964 yards, the seventh was recognised by Guinness World Records as the world’s longest golf hole and remains the defining feature of the course. It is not simply a long, open stretch: the hole has trees crowding the tee shot, OB on both sides and a relatively narrow fairway, creating pressure from the outset. There are two greens, with the left measuring the full 964 yards and the right 924. The club’s own playing strategy reflects the scale of the hole: rather than simply attacking distance on every shot, the objective is to keep successive balls in play and leave the final approach within comfortable range. For many years, Satsuki’s seventh was the benchmark by which the world’s longest holes were measured. Gunsan Country Club has since surpassed it in sheer yardage, but the Japanese par-7 remains the more established name in the record books. 1. Gunsan Country Club - Jeongeup course (Jeonbuk State, South Korea) Hole 3 | 1,098 yards (1,004m) | Par 7 Gunsan Country Club is an extraordinary property in its own right. Built on a former salt field on Korea’s west coast, the sprawling complex now has 81 holes across more than 1,000 acres, with lakes accounting for roughly 380 acres of the site and 26 bridges linking the courses. The third on the Jeongeup Course is the hole that gives Gunsan its international reputation. At 1,004 metres from the black tees, it is a par 7 and the longest hole in this ranking. The hole is also the No. 1 handicap on its nine, with water running along the left and bunkers placed to complicate the long sequence of shots required to reach the green. Its scale is matched by an unusual sense of place. The hole emerged from the transformation of the old salt works into one of Asia’s largest golf complexes, and its local nickname, the “1004 Hole”, is a play on the 1,004-metre length. Gunsan has built much of its identity around these extreme holes, with a 661-metre par 6 elsewhere on the property, but the Jeongeup third remains the defining feature. At 1,098 yards, it is comfortably longer than Satsuki’s 964-yard seventh and takes the top spot here by distance. Guinness World Records, however, has historically recognised Satsuki’s hole, so the distinction between the longest hole by yardage and the Guinness record is worth keeping in mind.
Golf Course Rankings are a product of great debate. Even with defined criteria and multiple visits, you're sure not to satisfy everyone. If the rankings don't create a stir we've probably played it too safe or caught lightning in a bottle... South Dakota Top 100 Golf Courses Update All quiet in South Dakota - status quo for 2024... Tennessee Top 100 Golf Courses Update The Top 3 in-state hold their position with Troubadour making an entry at number 4. The other new entry is Fairfield Glade - Heatherhurst Brae at 25. Cattanooga moves up two spots to 6 with the rest of the ranking moving down due to the new entries and Chattanooga moving up. Utah Top 100 Golf Courses Update Black Desert makes a splash with a new entry at 2nd in state. Entrada at Snow Canyon moves up two spots to 6th. 16 of 20 move down with two courses in the top six pushing the rest of the ranking down. West Virginia Top 100 Golf Courses Update The Top 15 gets an overhaul with a new Number One with Pikewood National unseating Pete Dye which moves to runner-up. Williams Country Club moves up 6 spots followed by Glade Springs Stonehaven at Raven at Snowshoe Mountain. Glade Springs Cobb, Guyan, and Glade Springs Woodhaven all drop three spots to make room for the three mentioned previously. Vermont Top 100 Golf Courses Update The Top 15 remained static in the state. Country Club of Barre, Manchester Country Club, Honey Pond Farm, Stowe Country Club and Rutland Golf Club have all found support for inclusion moving forward... Let's see what the future holds. Ohio Top 100 Golf Courses Update The Top 10 sees the most amount of change. Camargo reigns supreme but The Golf Club, Scioto, and Inverness Club all move up which pushes Muirfield Village down. The other riser in the Top 10 is Brookside Country Club up four spots to 7th, entering the Top 10. That shift pushes The Country Club and Kirtland down one spot each respectively. Kentucky Top 100 Golf Courses Update Not much change in state from existing clubs but the addition of three courses shuffles the deck. Park Mammoth debuts at 7th with Audubon Country Club and Nevel Meade entering the state ranking for the first time at 18th and 19th. Massachusetts Top 100 Golf Courses Update One of the more controversial releases, Myopia Hunt rises to 1st place unseating The Country Club. Eastward Ho! also moves past Clyde & Squirrel in a battle of the Titans. Old Sandwich and Essex Country Club also slide to make way for Myopia Hunt and Eastward Ho!. Kittansett also sees a moderate rise amongst very stiff competition, up from 7 to 6. Mid-rank, Worcester Country Club and Dedham move up eight and four spots pushing down their contemporaries with TPC Boston and Whittinsville taking the brunt of the fall. Hawaii Top 100 Golf Courses Update Manele and Kuki'o move up, which means the well-known Kapalua Plantation gets shunted from 2nd to 4th. Makena and Princeville Makai both move up 8 spots in the ranking to 5th and 10th, respectively. Kohanaiki is a moderate riser in the top 10 from 8th to 6th. Georgia Top 100 Golf Courses Update Not much change as you would expect in Georgia with Augusta National, Peachtree and Ohoopee Match Club fixed in the Top 3. The largest risers are Frederica (up 15 to 9th) and McLemore Club (up 23 to 34th). Ocean Forest rises 3 spots from 10th to 7th. Cuscowilla is the biggest faller from 5th to 12th. South Carolina Top 100 Golf Courses Update South Carolina is home to some of the best new golf of the 21st century. Debuting in the Top 10 in 2024 were: Old Barnwell, The Tree Farm, and Quixote. Broomsedge will be added and updated in 2025 when we get more panellists to see it. Aiken also saw a massive 25-spot rise. Lower down the list, Monticello GC and Prestwick CC debuted at 74 and 79 respectively. The biggest fallers were Dunes Golf & Bech Club, which fell from 7 to 22. California Top 100 Golf Courses California is one of the deepest states in the USA regarding golf. The Top 5 are in the Top 100 in the World. The next 8 are in the Top 100 in the USA. In 2024, we updated the in-state rankings. At 94th, Desert Dunes dropped in the ranking but was also out of contention with its closure... That means Indian Wells Celebrity pops back in at 100. Ladera debuted at 12th which puts it in the USA Top 100 - the question will be where? Lake Merced, Hillcrest, Rolling Hills and Wilshire all moved up significantly with recent renovations. Perhaps the biggest news was in the Top 10. Olympic Club Lake dropped 3 spots with Monterrey Peninsula moving up 3. As well, LACC moved up 1 spot to 2 with Pebble Beach slipping 1 spot to 3. New York Top 100 Golf Courses Update New York also received an update in 2024 but things were more or less static. Garden City moved down 3 with Oak Hill East and Sleepy Hollow Upper moving up 6 spots each respectively. The Top 10 had a decent shuffle too. Oak Hill East got to 6th and Sleepy Hollow up 6 to 10th. The Big 5 in state contenders stayed the same with 11 of the top 16 being shuffled around. Pennsylvania Top 100 Golf Courses Update Pennsylvania was quiet in between rankings with 4 courses moving down a single spot to make way for Longue Vue to move up 5 spots to break the top 20. Florida Top 100 Golf Courses Update Florida has had a massive overhaul. 14 golf courses have fallen from the Top 100 Ranking. They are as follows: Crandon Hideout - Florida Orange County National - Crooked Cat Kelly Plantation Regatta Bay Orchid Island World Golf Village - King & Bear Pensacola Mission Inn - Las Colinas BallenIsles - East Amelia Island - Long Point Southern Hills Plantation La Groce CC The 14 New Entries include: McArthur Back Yard The Dye Course at White Oak The Park West Palm Belleair CC - West Course & East Course Panther National Apogee West Course Cabot Citrus Farms - Karoo Coral Ridge CC Club Adena - Ocala Grove XXIII Bradenton CC Lost Tree Quail Ridge South Hammock Dunes Club - Creek Grey Oaks - The Pine Course Movers and shakers include RedStick, Southern Dunes, Loxahatchee, and Broken Sound Old all moving up. With the 14 new entries and 14 golf courses dropped, there were massive adjustments. Some courses moved down more than others and they included Isleworth and Turnberry Isle - Soffer. Where the dust settles you'll have to wait and see! New Jersey Top 100 Golf Courses Update The Top 2 golf courses in New Jersey don't see any movement - fitting as they are Pine Valley and Somerset Hills. However, Baltusrol Lower moves up 2 pushing Plainfield and Ridgewood down. Hollywood swaps spots with Baltusrol Upper moving up 1 to 6th. Union League National, the Fry Straka addition from 2022, debuts at 16. Old York falls out after being closed. Wisconsin Top 100 Golf Courses Update Wisconsin isn't a traditional golf market but with the recent new builds, it has become a premier golf destination. New Entries include Tom Doak's Lido and Sedge Valley, both at Sand Valley. The significant riser is Lac Le Belle, with Grand Geneva Brute the biggest faller. As we publish only 40 courses on our list, Eagle Springs Golf Resort and House on the Rocks Springs drop off the ranking but stay on the website. Illinois Top 100 Golf Courses Update Illinois' big three remained as they were but the recent work at Medinah No. 3 moved it up 5 spots. Conway Farms and Olympia Fields North also moved up in the Top 10. Michigan Top 100 Golf Courses Update The biggest riser is Bloomfield Hills up 10. The biggest faller was Point O'Woods, which was down 6. Barton Hills moves up 5 to enter the top 15. Franklin Hills moves up 2 to enter the top 5. New entries include American Dunes at 39 and Harbor Shores at 43. Most of the other movers are incidental the new entries and the big four movers and shakers.
Review of the Month June 2018 – Sweetens Cove I recently helped the Top 100 staff with their rankings of courses in my home state of Tennessee. I was amazed that they ranked this 9 hole course third in the state and commented that while the course may be pretty good I can't imaging it is better than several of the other top rated courses. The staff kept to their guns and kept the course ranked at #3 in the state and I was encouraged by editor in chief Keith Baxter to take the trip 120 miles down the road from Knoxville to play Sweeten's Cove and see what all the fuss was about. Several of my friends had played here and raved about the course as well so I was looking forward to the adventure. Bringing along Ruth, my brave wife and new golf enthusiast, we arrived an hour and a half before our tee time because of a miscalculation of the time change. There really is nothing there except a 250 square foot shack and a portable toilet, but a quick glimpse of the property gave a hint of the excitement to follow. The course sits in a flat bottom next to the Sequatchie River and is nestled within a set of beautiful mountains that dominate the scenery. The plain is nearly treeless and almost has the appearance of an inland links. Architect Rob Collins solved two problems with the site with one blow by digging out some drainage ponds to improve the water drainage of the flat area and then using the dirt to create subtle contouring of the fairways and not too subtle contouring of the greens. What he created is an absolute masterpiece of a golf course. The course starts with a strong 563 par 5. A dangerous bunker guards the left side of the fairway and requires a 260 yard carry, but there is ample room right. The serpentine-like green rolls around a large frightening appearing bunker that protects almost every conceivable hole location. The back right part of the green, which was our pin position of the day, is almost dell like and demanded a sure, precise approach. The second is a 375 yard par four influenced by two bunkers about 275 yards off the tee. The heavily sloped green has no bunkers and does not need any. A steep slope to the front and right places a premium and a precise approach. Three is another long par 5, running over 580 yards. The tee shot appears much tighter than it looks since the right bunker visible off the tee is actually almost 300 yards away and out of range for most players. This hole is dominated by a long tree that bisects the probably 50-yard wide green. Once again there are no bunkers but severe contouring both front and back require almost perfect placement of the approach. Four is a redan-style par 3 playing 169 yards but the green is massive and must be 60 yards from front to back with an almost endless amount of slope and contour. There is also bunkering left, back and long with a slope off the right front once again so that an almost perfect shot has to be played to gain access to the pin. Five is a beautiful short driveable par 4. The green has a huge slope to the left and the front right of the green is guarded by another rugged bunker. An approach from the left can be flown up to the plateau but the green is crowned so going over is a real possibility. You can't discount the chance to play a bump and run shot here as well. This is just a fantastic short hole. Six is the most demanding hole on the course, 456 yards with a hazard down the left side which runs all the way up to the green. Fairway bunkers to the right prevent a bailout. The bold play with a firm draw off the tee can open up the hole and allow a shorter approach to the subtle yet contoured green. Seven is another shorter par 4 of 328 yards with a long bunker running about 70 yards down the fairway to the green on the left side. There is some room right here, but once again the steep contours on the front of the green require an absolutely perfect shot to get near the hole. Eight is a fun hole totally dominated by the heavily mounded biarritz green. The pin was located almost in the middle in a dell protected by mounds left and right. Once again there are no greenside bunkers but none are needed. Nine is a beautiful short par 3 back over a waste area up to the first hole with a wide flowing green offering an infinite variety of pin placements. This course absolutely floored me. I have enjoyed the wonderful green complex designs of Tom Doak and Coore/Crenshaw but this course matches or exceeds many of the designs I have played by those famous architects. Each hole presents a unique challenge from the tee to the green that requires thought, conviction and precision. I honestly believe if they could find room for nine more holes and build them to the quality of this nine you would have a Top 100 USA course on your hands. As it is this is a fantastic test of golf that is ridiculously inexpensive to play. The course is easy to walk and is very easy to get to, being about 2.5 miles off Interstate 24 about 30 miles from Chattanooga. It is a shame more courses like this can't be built. Fun, challenging, exciting and enjoyable don't even start to scratch the surface to describe this place. Come see for yourself what all the excitement is about. By Richard Smith, Knoxville, Tennessee (including photos) Review of the Month June 2018 selected by Editor-in-Chief, Keith Baxter – click to read more about Sweetens Cove.
