Pinehurst No.1 - Recalling his Scottish heritage, Ross made liberal use of bunkers, both across the fairway and around the green. Don't let the short 6,089-yard par 70 fool you; wild drives or a sloppy short game can make for a long day. No. 1 was a great start for Pinehurst, and it's a great start for your visit.
Pinehurst No. 2 - Opened in 1907, No. 2 was designed by Donald Ross, who called it "the fairest test of championship golf I have ever designed." Ross was associated with the course for nearly a half-century, improving the course continually until his death in 1948. No. 2 is best known for its crowned, undulating greens, which are some of the most complex and widely hailed in the world. Ross believed in providing golfers with strategic choices, and Pinehurst No. 2 was intended to epitomize that philosophy.
Pinehurst No. 3 - This classic Donald Ross design (circa 1910) is the shortest course at Pinehurst at just 5,722 yards. But don't let its modest distance fool you. Tiny elevated greens - averaging just 4,500 square feet each - demand precision, the kind of delicate approaches that will surely come in handy as you gear up for No. 2.
Pinehurst No. 4 - Combines the classical routing of Donald Ross with the contemporary vision of Tom Fazio, who re-imagined the course in 2000. Fazio tipped his hat to Ross with crowned greens on many holes, and the addition of more than 140 pot bunkers.
Pinehurst No.5 - Designed in 1961 by Ellis Maples, a protégé of Donald Ross, and part of North Carolina's first family of golf course design and construction. Like Ross, Maples believed that it was the designer's job to find the golf course that resided in the land's structure, and his fealty to the land is evident in No. 5's variety-holes meandering up and down, left and right, and over water. The combination of water carries, elevated greens and overall greater yardage favours longer hitters.
Pinehurst No. 6 - Tom and his uncle George, a famed designer in his own right, began work on No. 6 in 1975. The result was a more rugged, undulating track that demands bigger drives and more aggressive approaches. Tom returned in 2005 to carve new bunkers, soften angles and seed faster greens. The addition of native wiregrass throughout the course gives it a distinctive Pinehurst feel.
Pinehurst No. 7 - The layout unfolds over dramatic, hilly terrain that's dotted with wetlands in lower-lying areas. No. 7 has many colourful flourishes. Old bunkers from the employee course adorn the tee of the par-4 4th hole; one wetlands area, the "Devil's Gut," must be cleared on your approach to the short par-4 7th hole, and Jones' trademark "Fingers" bunker demands accuracy on 16.
Pinehurst No. 8 - Building a new course grand enough to celebrate Pinehurst's first 100 years might intimidate some architects, but Tom Fazio took on the assignment with gusto. No. 8 - which opened in 1996 - combines classic Donald Ross concepts with the whimsical snarls that have become Fazio's calling card.
Pinehurst No. 9 - Jack Nicklaus constructed a masterpiece set amidst the long leaf pines. This 18-hole championship layout features classic Nicklaus architecture: wide fairways, lush course conditions and undulating putting surfaces that test your mind and your true golfing ability. This is a magnificent 7,122-yard course and is as meticulously designed as it is compelling. An intriguingly well-balanced course which, according to Golf Digest, "has come to enhance even the lofty Sandhills image for world-class golf amenities."