An Embarrassment of
Golf Riches, Public and Private
By Lincoln Duff
Golfers are great at three things: recounting every painstaking detail of their round (at the request of absolutely no one), debating their favorite golf courses, and…well, if you want to know the third, just ask Sir Nick. Every year or so, various publications publish their rankings of golf courses, across many different categories. The various courses and their locations inevitably lead to the discussion of what is America’s greatest golf city. Typically it comes down to some argument of New York vs. San Francisco, if you include Long Island and Monterey. Or places like Philly and Chicago, if you keep the parameters a bit more confined. But just like “America’s Top 100” list, most people know what the top cities are going to be.
What I like best about the various lists are the chances to find those “hidden gems.” Unlike CBS, which defined Congaree as a hidden gem, most people use the term to describe a course that doesn’t quite get the acclaim that it should. Maybe it’s public and doesn’t stay in pristine “country club” condition; places like World Woods and Lulu Country Club come to mind as two that fit that bill. Another reason might be the course is overshadowed by a neighbor that tends to get more acclaim: Quaker Ridge or Southampton, both world-class courses in their own right, tend to get overshadowed by Winged Foot and the combination of National and Shinny.
Sweetens Cove Golf Club (South Pittsburg, Tenn.).
But when it comes to golf cities, America’s best hidden gem has to be Chattanooga.
For years, Chattanooga has received accolades, like Outdoor Magazine’s 2015 designation of “Best Town Ever.” Or more recently being named “The best place to work from home” by Forbes. But what hasn’t been fully articulated is just how great of a golf city Chattanooga really is. Sure, you might have heard of the Honors Course or Sweetens Cove, but most people don’t realize the depth of great golf that Chattanooga has to offer.
Starting on the public side of things, you have The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay. Built by Jack Nicklaus as part of a larger “Bear Trace Trail,” the course at Harrison Bay sits on the banks of Lake Chickamauga. In addition to the recently renovated Champions Bermuda greens that stay in great shape — and $37 walker’s fee — the course also provides a wonderful stroll through nature. Playing through magnificent pines and around the lake (visible from nine of the holes) you’re almost assured to see a dozen or more deer, foxes, raccoons, and — if you know where to look — even a couple of bald eagles.
Another great public option is a municipal course called Brainerd. Opened in 1926 and designed by Donald Ross, Brainerd is teeming with potential. It has the potential to be one of the best city-owned golf courses in an urban setting. Currently Brainerd still has nine of the original Ross holes, and although the greens have shrunk a bit over time, they still have the interesting subtleties and movements Ross was famous for. Brainerd might be a bit scruffy around the edges, but for $35 it’s surely worth the price of admission and provides an enjoyable round of golf.
Brainerd Golf Course (Chattanooga, Tenn.).
Sticking with the public theme, there are four more courses within the greater Chattanooga area that are definitely worth a visit. I’m not going into detail about Sweetens Cove, because if you’re reading this blog post, you most likely already know. (But just in case you don’t, or just want some additional history, read this, this and this.) I first visited Sweetens Cove a few months after it opened and quickly fell in love. Tad King and Rob Collins have been given ample praise for their design and vision, but Patrick Boyd — the original general manager — doesn’t get enough credit for all of the time he spent on the Shed’s porch in the early years. Patrick made players feel welcome, told stories, and most likely joined you for a few holes if they were slow (they were always slow). Patrick moved on from Sweetens a few years ago, but stays active in the golf industry with a few different ventures. He currently runs National Custom Works custom club manufacturing, and Boyd Blade and Ferrule, a colorful and fun golf accessory few knew they even needed until they see his handiwork.
A few minutes up the road from Sweetens is another all-world, nine-hole course called Sewanee Golf Club. Sitting on top of Monteagle Mountain and within the campus of The University of the South, Sewanee opened in 1915. Although the course had some nice views and a fun layout, it wasn’t until a 2013 renovation from Gil Hanse that Sewanee really shined. Hanse removed trees, added bunkers, revamped green complexes and ultimately created an outstanding nine-hole facility that firmly stands on its own. The course stretches to almost 6,700 yards when played twice, and for $31 you get to walk a fantastic golf course while enjoying some of the best views of the Cumberland Plateau you’ll ever find. The course boasts a fantastic drivable par-4, a principal's nose bunker template on the eighth, and hundred-mile views on both the par-3s.
Brainerd.
If you thought the views at Sewanee were good, just wait until you get to McLemore. Recently awarded “the best 18th hole built since 2000” by Golf Digest, McLemore boasts incredible mountain views, with some of the best conditioned bent grass greens you’ll find south of the Mason-Dixon line. Originally opened as “Canyon Ridge,” Rees Jones and Bill Bergin took on a total renovation at the McLemore Club in 2017. All of the holes were at least partially renovated, with some taking on a total transformation. But their masterpiece is the par-4 18th, which is entirely new and, honestly, breathtaking. The hole is built entirely on the edge of a cliff dropping off hundreds of feet and overlooking McLemore Cove and the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains. Although I struggle a bit with the hole architecturally (you have to aim your drive well into the right rough to ensure it doesn't kick off the cliff), it truly is an amazing experience and one you need to see at least once if you’re anywhere near Chattanooga.
The sixth and final public course you should see if you’re coming to Chattanooga is Old Toccoa Farm. Completed in 2017 and built by a couple of Coore and Crenshaw shapers, Old Toccoa Farm is one of the most extreme, yet playable mountain courses I’ve ever seen. The course meanders up, down, and through the sides of mountains, over ridges, and along riverbeds, offering numerous risk-reward opportunities with multiple drivable par-4’s and numerous punchbowl greens. The course is a bit outside of the city of Chattanooga, but if you’re coming from Atlanta, Knoxville, or anywhere else east of the city, it’s worth the short, scenic drive to get there.
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Moving on from the numerous public offerings, Chattanooga has six additional private courses worth a visit, if you can get a tee time. The first four — Council Fire Golf Club, Black Creek Club, Chattanooga Golf and Country Club, and Lookout Mountain Golf Club — might even arrange a weekday tee time for you with a polite call or e-mail to their head pro or general manager. The other two — The Farm and The Honors Course — are tougher invitations, but well worth your visit if you do get that coveted summons.
Sewanee Golf Club (Sewanee, Tenn.).
Council Fire Golf Club was built in the early 1990’s by Bob Cupp, with the goal to host the PGA Tour’s newly minted Chattanooga Classic. The tournament only stayed around a few years, but what has remained is still pretty good. Recently enhanced by Bill Bergin, Council Fire has a reputation of having the best maintained greens in the city. It’s why multiple PGA Tour players that call Chattanooga home practice and play out at Council Fire. And although the design isn’t exactly a Golden Age masterpiece, Council Fire does offer plenty of interesting risk-reward holes and has a fun back nine consisting of the unique design of three par-3s, three par-4s, and three par-5s.
If you are looking for Golden Age masterpieces, Black Creek Club might at least scratch that itch. Although it was built in the era of metal drivers and the Pro V1, Black Creek Club is a tribute to Seth Raynor and C.B. Macdonald. You’ll find all sorts of template holes, including a short, punchbowl, redan, reverse redan, cape, and an enormous Biarritz among others. The course gives you various “playing corridors” and requires a player to think their way around each hole.
Sewanee.
If a Raynor tribute doesn't quite cut it for you, then you can get the real thing at Lookout Mountain Golf Club. Designed by Raynor and built in the 1920s, Lookout is home to stunning mountain views and even better template holes. What the course lacks in length, this 6,602-yard par-70 makes up for in their strategic hazards and diabolical greens. Sitting on the edge of Lookout Mountain, the greens at Lookout are home to some of the most deceiving putts you’ll ever hit. Like the other mountain courses, McLemore and Sewanee, Lookout also offers a bit of a reprieve from the summer heat as well with temperatures at least five degrees cooler than the city below.
The closest course to downtown is Chattanooga Golf and Country Club. Originally designed by Donald Ross, CGCC is the oldest course in Tennessee that sits at its original site. A Bill Bergin restoration in the early 2000s brought back the original Ross greens, removed hundreds of trees (opening up views of the river and downtown), and also installed native grasses to better frame holes. A staple on the USGA qualifier schedule, Chattanooga does feel a bit forced with some tight holes on the back nine, but more than makes up for it with the holes along the river. It also shares the quirk of ending on a par-3 with courses like Pasatiempo, Garden City Club, and the Old White at Greenbrier.
Leaving the state of Tennessee again (McLemore, Old Toccoa, and Lookout Mountain are also in Georgia) and driving a bit south to the city of Dalton, you’ll find the Farm. Built by a carpet magnate and remaining very private to this day, The Farm was the first Tom Fazio course built in Georgia. The Farm does follow similar designs by Fazio with large, clean white bunkers that frame most of the fairways and greens. There is plenty of land movement and elevation at the Farm, but not enough that I would classify it as a “mountain course.” What it lacks in length (7,180 yards from the tips), it makes up for with hazards and tall grass on the majority of the holes. The 75.1 rating and slope of 151 make it one of the tougher tests in Georgia and give it plenty of teeth for the annual collegiate event held there: the Carpet Capital Collegiate Classic.
Sweetens Cove.
Saving the most prestigious (“best” is subjective) for last, the Honors Course is about 15 miles northeast of downtown, in the small, sleepy town of Ooltewah. Constructed by Pete Dye under the vision of Coca-Cola Bottling heir Jack Lupton, the Honors Course was built to honor and promote amateur golf at the highest level. The course has played host to numerous USGA and collegiate events, including the 1991 U.S. Am, 1994 Curtis Cup, and the 1996 and 2010 NCAA Championships (won in ‘96 by Tiger Woods and in 2010, the team event, by an Augusta State team led by Patrick Reed and Henrik Norlander). The Honors Course was hit pretty hard by a tornado on Easter Sunday 2020, which jump-started a planned Gil Hanse renovation — removing hundreds of trees, opening up vistas across the course, and creating a links-like feel for much of the back nine. Hanse completed some bunker work that winter and is scheduled to start the second half of his major overhaul in the fall of 2021. The Honors Course is all about golf, and is a wonderful experience for those lucky enough to find themselves inside its gates. Mostly walking, and always with a caddy, the Honors sits in a valley at the base of White Oak Mountain, with holes meandering in and out of the woods before coming up to a large pond that separates the seventh and 15th hole. Many Pete Dye courses feel manufactured and sometimes penal for the sake of being penal, but the Honors Course looks and feels very natural. The greatest attribute of the course itself is the variety of the par-4s, which is arguably the best collection Pete Dye ever built. I’m excited to see the results of the Hanse renovation and the continued dedication to amateur golf for years to come.
Sweetens Cove.
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Surely, Chattanooga isn’t the first place to come to mind when you are planning a golf trip or thinking about the best golf cities in the country. But when you consider the weather, costs, golf options, and proximity to major cities (only about two hours from Nashville, Atlanta, Birmingham, Knoxville, and Asheville), Chattanooga certainly punches above its weight. With numerous options for lodging, restaurants, and post-round drinks, Chattanooga should be on your short list for your next golf excursion.
Lincoln Duff lives in Chattanooga, Tenn., and spends the majority of his time with his wife chasing their two little kids. His love of golf blossomed as a kid, caddying at the Honors Course through high school and college. Most of his rounds now consist of chasing the sunset, pushing a stroller and carrying his bag.
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