Pinehurst Resort (No. 4)

Course Details

• Architect: Donald Ross (1919), Robert Trent Jones (1973), Rees Jones (1982), Tom Fazio (1999), & Gil Hanse (2018)
• Course Type: Resort
• Par: 72
• Yardage: 7,226
• Rating: 74.9
• Slope: 138

Course Accolades

• Golf Digest: #2 Best New Public Course (2019)
• Golf Magazine: Best New Course You Can Play (2018) & #8 in North Carolina
• Golf Week: #85 Modern USA, #33 in Public USA & #2 in North Carolina
• Top100Courses: #24 in North Carolina

Course Score

• Course Conditions: 10
• Green Complexes: 8
• Amenities: 9
• Practice Facilities: 10
• Service: 8
• Course Design: 9
• Value: 6

Total Score: 8.53

Course Review

The Good: Gil Hanse’s redesign of Tom Fazio’s previous rendition of a Donald Ross routing is truly stunning. As beautiful and compelling of any land at the Pinehurst Resort, No. 4 stays true to Fazio/Ross’ vision but is a significant upgrade in terms of green complexes. Excellent variety in Par 4’s with several doglegs both left/right and a couple drivable “go for broke” holes on the back nine. The 13th/14th one-two punch around the pond is one of the best at the entire resort. As impeccably conditioned of any course I’ve played from tee-to-green. First-class clubhouse, practice facilities (including Hanse’s newly created short course The Cradle nearby), and on-course amenities throughout make for an unforgettable experience. The staff is extremely friendly and accommodating throughout the resort. The $175 “Evergreen” rates from November to February are excellent!

The Bad: Pace of play for a Thursday afternoon round was fair at best, taking us nearly 5 hours. The greens, while extremely interesting, didn’t hold very well and were inconsistent at times. No GPS on the carts and limited yardage markers on the course. Comes with a heft price tag for an “inland” course.

The Verdict: Pinehurst (No.4) is an outstanding overall experience and one of the better courses in North Carolina. A Top 10 course that I’ve played.

Best Hole(s): The aforementioned 13th is a long Par 5 that borders a pond and requires approaches to cross the hazard at many angles. The Par 3 14th is a tough little Par 3 with water left and tough bunker right. Great back-to-back holes!