Tag: Fox Chapel

Golfweek’s Best 2022: Top public and private courses in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is full of highly ranked private clubs, while Pete Dye left his imprint at the top of the state’s public-access golf scene.

Want to play the best public-access golf courses in Pennsylvania? The legacy of legendary architect Pete Dye has you covered. Want to play the best private courses in the Keystone State? You have some of the top classic layouts in the country from which to choose, but for most of us, good luck getting a tee time at those ageless beauties.

Dye designed Mystic Rock at Nemacolin, a sprawling resort 90 minutes southeast of the Pittsburgh airport. Mystic Rock opened in 1995 and underwent an expansive renovation in 2021 by longtime Dye associate Tim Liddy. Built on beautifully rolling terrain, Mystic Rock is No. 1 in the state on Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play list for public-access layouts. It also ties for No. 10 among all courses owned or operated in conjunction with casinos in the U.S.

Nemacolin is also home to Shepherd’s Rock designed by Dye and the No. 5 public-access course in the state.

On the private side, Oakmont Country Club and Merion Golf Club steal much of the limelight, each having hosted multiple national championships. But they are hardly alone as outstanding private clubs in Pennsylvania. Each of the top 20 private courses in the state ranks among the top 150 on either Golfweek’s Best Modern or Classic course lists, with 1960 being the year that splits those two prestigious lists.

Golfweek’s Best offers many lists of course rankings, with that of top public-access courses in each state among the most popular. All the courses on this list allow public access in some fashion, be it standard daily green fees, through a resort or by staying at an affiliated hotel. If there’s a will, there’s a tee time.

Also popular are the Golfweek’s Best rankings of top private courses in each state, and that list for Pennsylvania’s prestigious private offerings is likewise included below.

MORE: Best Modern | Best Classic | Top 200 Resort | Top 200 Residential | Top 100 Best You Can Play

(m): Modern course, built in or after 1960
(c): Classic course, built before 1960

Note: If there is a number in the parenthesis with the m or c, that indicates where that course ranks among Golfweek’s Best top 200 modern or classic courses. 

* New to or returning to list

USGA announces three classic courses for future U.S. Senior Women’s Open sites

Host sites for 2024, 2025 and 2027 were announced.

The USGA has announced three future sites for the U.S. Senior Women’s Open, won last year by Annika Sorenstam. In 2024, the event heads to Fox Chapel Golf Club Aug. 1-4, where the legendary amateur Carol Semple Thompson is an honorary member. San Diego Country Club (Aug. 21-24, 2025) and Tacoma Country and Golf Club (Aug. 19-22, 2027) will also play host to the best senior women’s players in the world.

Thompson drained a 27-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole at Fox Chapel in her native Pennsylvania to secure victory for Team USA at the 2002 Curtis Cup. This will mark the fourth USGA event for the Seth Raynor design, which underwent an extensive restoration by Fazio Design in 2019-2020.

“As we celebrate the fourth iteration of this championship this week at NCR Country Club, the USGA could not be more pleased to secure a strong future for this event over the next few years,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer at the USGA, in a release.

“Having an exceptional lineup of championship sites only furthers our commitment to providing ideal stages to showcase and celebrate these legends of the game who are still top competitors. We look forward to continuing to make history at these venues in the years ahead.”

This will also mark the fourth USGA championship for San Diego Country Club, where Mickey Wright won her fourth U.S. Women’s Open title in an 18-hole playoff over Ruth Jessen on the course where she learned the game. Two U.S. Women’s Amateurs have been held there, with LPGA rookie Sophia Schubert winning the most recent in 2017.

Laura Davies of England poses with the U.S. Senior Women’s Open trophy after winning in the final round at Chicago Golf Club on July 15, 2018 in Wheaton, Illinois. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Tacoma Country & Golf Club, one of the founding clubs of the Pacific Northwest Golf Association, is the fifth-oldest golf association in North America. When the Senior Women’s Open heads there in 2027, it will mark the club’s fifth USGA championship. Sarah LeBrun Ingram won her third U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur title at the club in 1994. She went on to captain two winning USA Curtis Cup Teams in 2021 and 2022.

Sorenstam will try to defend her title this week at NCR Country Club in Kettering, Ohio. Next year’s championship will take Aug. 24-27 at Waverley Country Club in Portland, Oregon.

Spyglass Hill Golf Course in Pebble Beach, California, will host the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in 2030, along with that year’s U.S. Senior Open.

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