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Located in the mountains of western North Carolina, Asheville is one of the best places to seek crisp, cooler summer air east of the Mississippi. Best-known nowadays as a hub for great restaurants, craft breweries, all manner of outdoor activities and history buffs taking in the impressive Biltmore Estate, the city and its surrounding area have also been a golf destination dating back a century, to when Donald Ross laid out four golf courses around town.
Several latter-day architects have left their mark in the area, too, draping exciting layouts across the mountains and valley for an hour or more in each direction. In many cases, elevation changes abound and cart paths resemble the winding local roads.
Asheville and the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains crack most lists of the top cool-weather golf destinations. With record heat waves brutalizing most of the country this summer, golfers have become accustomed to being drenched in sweat by the time they reach the first green. That’s seldom an issue in the mountains. With average highs around 80 degrees and lows in the high 50s (it can be even cooler at higher elevations), Asheville is a perfectly pleasant place to play sweat-free golf in mid-August. It doesn’t get much better than a sunny morning tee time with a slight chill in the air.
10 Asheville golf courses you can (and should) play
Private-club access juice can open doors across the North Carolina mountains, but public and resort golfers can enjoy established resort courses and some hidden gems, too. With a central location for east-coasters, it’s easy to see why golf in the Asheville area has been on the rise. GolfNow rounds are up almost 20% in 2023 around the city and surrounding towns. While private clubs do dominate, there are more than enough public golf courses to fill out a mountain golf itinerary.
Two of the four golf courses Donald Ross laid out in Asheville are private clubs: the Country Club of Asheville and Biltmore Forest Country Club. But the others are open to the public and represent both ends of the accessible golf spectrum in the region.
Omni Grove Park Inn - Asheville
The Omni Grove Park Inn ($200), Asheville’s century-old stately retreat with spectacular views of downtown, is home to a quaint, sporty 6,400-yard course laid out beneath the impressive hotel. Narrow corridors, smallish greens and elevation changes make accuracy the main focus.
Beautiful course on a beautiful property. Staff was extremely friendly and accommodating. Head to the Omni hotel bar and restaurants after for gorgeous views, shopping, and cocktails. It’s worth the price.
Asheville Municipal Golf Course
The other Donald Ross layout open to the public in Asheville is Asheville Municipal Golf Course ($60), which after decades of neglect is being turned around thanks to new management, who have secured a commitment of more than $3 million from the city to return the course to its former glory.
The subject of a fantastic 45-minute Callaway Golf documentary called “The Muni,” the 1926 Donald Ross design is a bastion of Black golf history, as it was the first North Carolina golf course to integrate, and has hosted the Skyview Open, an event originally meant as a refuge for Black professional golfers who were barred from PGA Tour access, since 1960.
Asheville Municipal’s two nines are intriguingly different. The front nine weaves back and forth across calm terrain, and is visible to people driving by along Swannanoa River Road. Then, the back nine heads uphill to the Beverly Hills neighborhood of town, with narrower corridors and a great deal of elevation change. This is where the course bares its teeth – even though it’s only 6,300 yards from the tips, both the back-nine par 3s – 15 and 18 – measure longer than 200 yards.
Assisting the city with its “Munaissance” is Kris Spence, an architect whose expertise in the work of Donald Ross has established him as an authority on the great Scot’s golf courses. Perennial PGA Tour host Sedgefield Country Club is one of dozens of clubs Spence has advised on their Ross courses, and Asheville Muni is already benefiting greatly from his guidance.
Balsam Mountain Preserve - Sylva
Located 45 minutes west of town, this is an otherwise private club at the center of a stunning residential development that clings to its namesake at a height of nearly 4,000 feet above sea level. The Arnold Palmer-designed course ($250) makes four foursomes available per day to non-members, who can also stay in certain cottages, cabins and homes on property when space is available. On a clear day, practically every tee shot is a postcard.
Waynesville Inn & Golf Club
About 30 minutes west of Asheville, Waynesville Inn & Golf Club ($150), where architect Bobby Weed took a cramped 27-holer with nine Donald Ross holes and refined it into a brand-new 18, whose front nine honors the original routing by Ross. The influence of Pete Dye on Weed’s career and style shines through in the form of dozens of pot bunkers and meandering greens. Overall, though, this is a moderate, walkable test, tipping out at just over 6,500 yards and with wide corridors to play through on most holes. The course opened to members in July of 2023 and is also accessible by overnight guests enjoying the boutique main Inn’s 32 rooms or on-site cottages.
Rumbling Bald on Lake Lure (Bald Mountain; Apple Valley)
This fun, mid-price family-oriented resort envelops the southern end of Lake Lure, a 720-acre lake an hour south and east of Asheville. Its two golf courses are pleasant and relatively affordable mountain layouts. The W.B. Lewis-designed Bald Mountain’s ($78) claim to fame: a scene from Dirty Dancing was filmed by its 16th green. Dan Maples laid out Apple Valley ($88) to wander some of the area’s quieter terrain, but there are still several holes with significant elevation changes. Two split-fairway par 4s and a set of greens with significant tilts and tiers make for a solid challenge.
Maggie Valley Club & Resort
About 40 minutes west of Asheville, Maggie Valley ($89) has welcomed golfers since 1961. The 6,500-yard golf course meanders through mild terrain on the front before climbing up on the back nine and offering some splendid views of the surrounding mountains. The resort accommodations on property consist of several two- or three-bedroom condos.
Experience Maggie Valley Package
Springdale Golf Club
Around 40 minutes west of Asheville, Springdale ($85) has made serious upgrades since new ownership took over in 2018, including a new clubhouse that opened in 2022. The course eases players into the round with a relatively flat and mundane first five holes before the elevation changes begin and really pick up on the back nine. The signature 13th hole, the "Springdale Spasm" does live up to a silly, yet likable name. It requires a long-iron second shot through a bowling alley of trees to an elevated green.
Bear Lake Reserve – Tuckaseegee
This Nicklaus Design course at some of the highest elevations east of the Mississippi River is a short course with 7 par-3s and 2 par-4s featuring some incredible views. Though Bear Lake Reserve is primarily a residential community, its course is open to the public on Mondays and to guests staying on the property at all times.
Sequoyah National Golf Club - Whittier
This Robert Trent Jones, Jr.-designed course ($175), opened in 2009, has cracked GolfPass' Golfers' Choice list of North Carolina's best courses twice, and consistently earns high marks from reviewers because of its spectacular scenery and its pristine conditioning, especially its zoysia fairways.
Everything about this course is excellent. If you haven’t played golf on perfect zoysia fairways this course will be something special for you
Country Club of Asheville - This club's Donald Ross-designed course opened in 1928 and was restored by Ross expert architect Richard Mandell in 2016. It's part of the McConnell Golf portfolio, which includes 15 properties in the Carolinas, Virginia and Tennessee.
Biltmore Forest Country Club - As its name suggests, this club has historic ties to the famed Biltmore Estate and the Vanderbilt family. It is now a well-established club that is listed among the Platinum Clubs of America, with a Donald Ross-designed course that celebrated its centenary year in 2022.
Champion Hills - Tom Fazio's long career building golf courses includes this scenic, fun members' course at the heart of a mature residential community in Hendersonville, about 45 minutes south of Asheville.
The Cliffs at Walnut Cove - One of The Cliffs seven communities, the Jack Nicklaus design here opened in 2005.
Hendersonville Country Club - Hendersonville's 1933 Donald Ross design is the centerpiece of the town's thriving, family-oriented club.
Lodging, dining and other activity notes for Asheville-bound golfers
The non-golf activities in Asheville are plentiful. Most of our favorites are located outside of the city, although the well-known brewery scene downtown is a great time too. Given a “mountain mile” can take twice as long as one on I-75 in rural Georgia, some of them may require some extra time in the car. But it's time well spent.
Hiking. It's no surprise that the hiking is good in these mountains, but there are a few specific ones that stand out. Black Balsam Knob has incredible views and is a particular favorite of GolfPass contributor Drake Dunaway. Graveyard Fields Loop Trail is high on his list as well. Those who prefer to "hike" on four wheels can enjoy miles of winding, scenic Blue Ridge Parkway driving.
History. The Biltmore Estate is a must-see site for anyone who enjoys learning about American history. The former home of George and Edith Vanderbilt, regarded as the largest single-family home in America, is open for tours, as are the expansive gardens that surround it. Works of art by great painters like Claude Monet, Auguste Renoir and thousands of other objects are on display as well. Also worth seeing is the Asheville Art Museum, whose collection specializes in 20th and 21st century works, with a concentration on the Southeast.
Lodging. The historic Omni Grove Park Inn dates back to 1913, high on a hill overlooking downtown Asheville. The hotel itself is distinctive looking, with a facade of stacked granite stones. The impressive interior spaces and well-appointed rooms make it an excellent vacation spot for couples or families. For those who want to stay on the grounds,The Biltmore Estate is also home to The Inn, a Forbes Four-Star-rated lodge. Farther outside of town, several of the courses mentioned above are part of resorts; Rumbling Bald on Lake Lure, Waynesville Inn, Maggie Valley all have their own charms.
Dining and drinking. Asheville is one of the best cities in the east for both foodies and beer lovers. With famous barbecue joints like 12 Bones Smokehouse and several other eateries that incorporate the foodways of the region, in addition to restaurants that celebrate cuisines from around the world, there is good reason why Asheville locals call it "Foodtopia." Breweries like Highland Brewing Company, Wicked Weed and more provide seemingly endless varieties to try. Wineries, craft cocktail bars and the excellent Urban Orchard Cider Company complete the beverage scene.
How to get to Asheville
Although tucked into the mountains, Asheville is less than half a day's drive from dozens of millions of people. Charlotte is two hours away; Atlanta, three and a half; Nashville, four and a half; Washington, D.C., seven. Asheville Regional Airport (AVL), just nine miles south of downtown, is a hub for Allegiant Air and serves more than two dozen destinations overall, including New York (LGA), Denver (DIA) and even Las Vegas (LAS).
Have you visited Asheville, North Carolina to play golf in the area? Please share your own recommendations with your fellow golfers in the comments below.
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Comments (1)
Nice rundown with captivating pics of an area that seems great for golf. I've stayed at the Omni Grove Park Inn, which truly lives up to its billing, but regrettably I did not play the course.
Will play golf in these mountains someday. Thanks for the insider's look.