Something extraordinary is happening across the 268,596 square miles of Texas. In boardrooms from Dallas to Houston, on dusty ranch land from the Panhandle to the Hill Country, and in the pine forests of East Texas, a quiet revolution is unfolding. The Lone Star State—long known more for oil derricks than golf courses—is making an audacious play to become a player in America's big money destination golf scene.
No fewer than 13 Texas golf courses are in the pipeline, either in planning stages, under construction, or ready to open. This renaissance has everyone from Tom Doak to Tiger Woods picking up shovels in the Texas dirt, creating golf experiences that rival anything found in established golf destinations.
The appeal is undeniable: vast landscapes, diverse topography from prairie to forest to hill country, and developers with vision and resources to create something special. While other states compete for space, Texas offers golf course architects blank canvases measured in thousands of acres, allowing for the kind of ambitious designs that create legendary golf experiences.
Childress Hall represents destination Texas golf at its most ambitious. Modelled after the country's other great fly-in destination clubs, this remote development 250 miles northwest of Dallas features two championship courses that showcase the dramatic landscape of the Texas Panhandle.
Tom Doak's Upper Course opened in December 2024, beginning in gentler natural terrain before powering into larger upper sandhills. The course embodies links-style golf with fast, firm fairways and greens full of shoulders, dips and swales that challenge golfers to think strategically about every shot.
Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner's Lower Course features three six-hole loops returning to a high focal point, with Irish-style choppy, intimate dunes. Expected to open in fall 2025, it promises a completely different character while maintaining the destination's commitment to world-class golf.
Red Feather Golf & Social Club in Lubbock showcases what happens when innovative design meets Texas ingenuity. Architects Rob Collins and Tad King transformed a dried playa lake into an awe-inspiring golf landscape featuring an 80-foot-deep canyon and strategic barrancas that collect rainwater to sustain the course.
This King-Collins design creates the ultimate Texas golf superlative: both the shortest par-3 (99 yards) and the longest par-5 (721 yards) in the state. The course opened in 2023 to immediate recognition as one of Texas's most innovative golf experiences.
Loraloma sits like a jewel on the palisades 30 to 40 feet above the Pedernales River bend west of Austin. David McLay Kidd, architect of the original Bandon Dunes course, has created several holes that run along the river similar to his acclaimed oceanside cliffs design.
Set to open in 2025 as part of a luxury master-planned community by Areté Collective, Loraloma represents the sophisticated side of Texas golf development. Nearly half the holes edge along interior ravines, creating dramatic golf that celebrates the natural beauty of the Texas Hill Country.
Travis Club spans 1,500 acres with 10,000 feet of Lake Travis frontage, featuring 389 feet of elevation change from high point to lake level. Beau Welling calls this project "the one I've been preparing for my whole life."
The par-72 course, scheduled to debut in late 2025, will feature green-ribboned fairways winding past native oaks with panoramic lake and Hill Country vistas. Groundbreaking occurred in April 2024, with the course positioned to become Austin's premier golf destination.
Wild Spring Dunes represents Texas's boldest public golf statement. Set on 2,400 sandy, secluded acres near Nacogdoches, this Dream Golf resort features 120 feet of elevation change through four distinct ecosystems: towering pines, hardwood forests, open meadows, and steep ravines carved by spring-fed creeks.
Tom Doak's first course, targeting a 2026 opening, winds through terrain unlike anything in his previous portfolio. The course will be accessible to all golfers, continuing Dream Golf's mission of creating world-class public golf experiences.
Wild Spring Dunes will eventually feature a second championship course designed by the legendary team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. The routing is complete for this course, which will showcase different aspects of the remarkable East Texas property.
Located just two hours from both Dallas and Houston, Wild Spring Dunes positions itself to become Texas's premier public golf destination, offering the kind of pilgrimage-worthy golf that attracts players from around the world.
The Covey at Big Easy Ranch has quickly established itself as one of Texas's premier golf experiences. Built on a 2,000-acre hunting preserve 75 miles west of Houston, the course features 50-60 feet of elevation changes, weaving through groves of pine, brush, and specimen oaks.
Chet Williams designed dynamic and challenging green complexes, with thirteen greens featuring false fronts and strong internal contours that create strategic interest without requiring excessive green speeds. The course completed its second year of operation in 2024 and has gained recognition as the state's top golf destination.
Darmor Club, located just five miles from The Covey, represents 1983 PGA Championship winner Hal Sutton's tribute to Golden Age golf architecture. Opening in June 2024, the course features template holes inspired by C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor, including Sahara, Alps, Road hole, Dell, and Biarritz designs.
Built on former sand and gravel mining land, Darmor Club showcases geometric design principles with rectangular tee boxes and greens, wide welcoming fairways, and strategic challenges that reward thoughtful play over pure distance.
Luling Golf Course showcases the cutting edge of golf design thinking. Set on 1,100+ acres between Austin and San Antonio, Kyle Franz's design features extensive barrancas ranging from three to 30 feet in depth, with some rugged and exposed, others grassed for strategic variety.
Franz uses these natural features to create alternate fairways and optional routes of play on nearly every hole. The walking-only course emphasises firm, fast conditions and Golden Age-influenced architecture, targeting a 2025 opening with a second course by Ogilvy Cocking Mead also planned.
Bluejack Ranch represents Tiger Woods' return to Texas golf design. Set on over 900 acres along Bear Creek in the Fort Worth area, this TGR Design project includes a working dude ranch, lighted short course, and television production studio.
Expected to open in spring 2026, the course will likely feature Woods' signature style of generous fairways with demanding approaches to creative green complexes. The project continues Woods' evolution as a golf course architect while adding to Fort Worth's growing golf reputation.
The site that is now Bluejack Ranch is the most recent iteration of what was the Avanzanda Golf and Ranch Club.
While Texas golf courses are gaining recognition, the state still trails established golf destinations in course quantity and championship pedigree. Florida boasts over 1,000 courses, California claims more than 900, and New York's metropolitan corridors house some of golf's most hallowed championship venues.
However, the foundation being laid today suggests Texas is serious about joining the top tier of American golf destinations. The architects involved—Tom Doak, Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw, Gil Hanse, David McLay Kidd—represent golf design's elite level, while the sites being developed showcase Texas's remarkable geographic diversity.
Several recently opened projects demonstrate the quality potential of Texas golf development. With destinations like Wild Spring Dunes promising world-class public access, remote experiences like Childress Hall offering Sand Hills-calibre golf, and championship courses like The Covey earning national recognition, Texas is building something special.
The challenge isn't just creating great golf—it's developing the depth and variety that defines premier golf regions. Texas may still be chasing other states' established reputations, but with courses targeting golfers from around the world, the Lone Star State is positioning itself as America's next great golf destination.
The story of Texas golf is still being written, one spectacular hole at a time. From Panhandle prairie links to Hill Country blufftop experiences, from East Texas forest golf to innovative barranca designs, the state is creating golf experiences that celebrate its diverse landscapes while challenging its best players.
Texas has always done things its way, and golf is no exception. While other regions focus on existing population centres, Texas is creating golf destinations in remote locations that will draw golfers seeking authentic experiences. The combination of world-class architecture, diverse terrain, and Texas-sized ambition suggests the Lone Star State's golf renaissance is just beginning.
Visit Top100GolfCourses.com to discover more about these exciting Texas golf destinations and plan your Lone Star golf adventure.
