Rockport

Bill Coore is now world-renowned for his role in the Coore & Crenshaw course design legacy, but during 1983 he was a relatively young gun who had spent time with Pete Dye and was setting out on his own. His first “solo” project would be Rockport Country Club, a course up the coast from Corpus Christi. “Solo” is placed in quotations because he was assisted by player consultant Jimmy Demaret, a three-time Masters winner and Texas golfing legend, but now golf historians focus on Rockport for its connections to Coore.

Coore’s past and future are both on display, depending on the hole. His past is evident in risk/reward drives playing over water hazards, or large waste-style bunkers, and his future can be seen in some of the more rumpled fairways around the course, including Nos. 3 and 15.

The property sits on the “Live Oak Peninsula,” and the course is highlighted by plentiful numbers of the title tree. If birdies prove elusive, look to the sky; the course cites more than 500 species of birds and other wildlife on the property.