Long regarded as the Home of American Golf, the Pinehurst and Sandhills region has once again reinforced its standing as the state’s premier golf destination.
For the first time ever, a record number of 20 golf courses in the Sandhills region are ranked among the Top 100 in the state by the North Carolina Golf Panel. Pinehurst No. 2 has once again secured the top spot as the best golf course in the state, while Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club and the Dogwood Course at The Country Club of North Carolina flip-flopped the third and fifth positions. Pinehurst No. 4 retained its position to round out the Top 10. A total of 14 courses from the Sandhills area are listed among the Top 50.
Woodlake Country Club in Vass cracked Top 100 rankings for the first time at No. 91. After a renovation project of the old Ellis Maples course by Kris Spence in 2022, the course has quickly risen as one of the finest hidden gems in the Sandhills.
“The Pinehurst area is known as the home of American golf for a reason and having one-fifth of the best golf courses in the state here makes a huge statement to the quality of golf we enjoy,” said Phil Werz, president and CEO for Visit Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen. “Next year, we will see the debut of Pinehurst No. 11, plus renovations are underway at Legacy Golf Club and 72 holes from old favorites at Foxfire and Whispering Pines. For us, golf is a way of life and the foundation of the state’s tenth best tourism economy.”
The North Carolina Golf Panel was founded in 1995 and is recognized as the most authoritative statewide source of golf course rankings in a state that boasts some of the nation’s best courses. The 185-member panel is composed of golf media, club professionals and general managers from many outstanding courses, accomplished amateur players and college golf coaches, and others who play an active role in promoting golf in North Carolina. The results of the panel poll can be found in the April issue of Business N.C. magazine.
The 20 Top 100 Courses in the Sandhills area include: Pinehurst No. 2 (#1); Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club (#3); The Country Club of North Carolina (Dogwood, #5), Pinehurst No. 4 (#10); The Country Club of North Carolina (Cardinal, #13); Pinehurst No. 10 (#14); Pinehurst No. 8 (#18); Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club (#24); Dormie Club (#30); Pinehurst No. 9 (#36); Mid South Club (#37); Forest Creek Golf Club (South, #38); Forest Creek Golf Club (North, #42); Pinehurst No. 7 (#49); and Southern Pines Golf Club (#64) and Talamore Golf Club (#72); Pinewild Country Club (Magnolia, #78); Woodlake Country Club (#91) Tot Hill Farm (#97) and Longleaf Golf & Family Club (#98).
The panel also ranked the Top 60 Courses You Can Play and the Pinehurst area once again dominated the list with 17 locations, or nearly 30 percent of the clubs. The top eight include Pinehurst No. 2, Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club, Pinehurst No. 4, Pinehurst No. 10, Pinehurst No. 8, Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club, Pinehurst No. 9 and Mid South Club. Pinehurst No. 7 is 15th. Other golf clubs among the Top 60 You Can Play include Southern Pines Golf Club (#21); Talamore Golf Club (#23); Woodlake Country Club (#30); Tot Hill Farm (#33); Longleaf Golf & Family Club (#34); Pinehurst No. 6 (#45); Legacy Golf Links (#46) and Tobacco Road Golf Club (#49).
“A trip to Pinehurst is a must for any golfer who has a love and appreciation of the game, regardless of skill level,” said Kevin Brafford, executive director of the N.C. Golf Panel. “That’s how golf enthusiasts around the world feel, so in that vein, how lucky are we in this state to have the quality and quantity of courses available to us? The Sandhills is one of one.”
Pinehurst No. 2 will host additional U.S. Open championships in 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047. In 2029, Pinehurst No. 2 will once again host back-to-back men’s and women’s U.S. Open championships, a repeat of the only course in America to host that tandem of historic events in 2014. Pinehurst No. 2 will also host the 2027 U.S. Women’s Amateur.
For more information about all golf courses in the Pinehurst, Southern Pines, Aberdeen area, visit HomeofGolf.com. For the complete list of the Top 100 Courses for 2026, Top 60 Courses You Can Play and other rankings, visit NCGolfPanel.com. Or, for additional coverage, pick up the April issue of Business N.C. magazine.
Top 100 Courses for 2026 (second number is previous year’s ranking)
1. 1. Pinehurst No. 2, Pinehurst
2. 2. Grandfather Golf and Country Club, Linville
3. 5. Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, Southern Pines
4. 4. Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte
5. 3. The Country Club of North Carolina (Dogwood), Pinehurst
6. 7. Old Town Club, Winston-Salem
7. 8. Sedgefield Country Club, Greensboro
8. 6. Elk River Club, Banner Elk
9. 9. Old Chatham Golf Club, Durham
10. 10. Pinehurst No. 4, Pinehurst
11. 11. Old North State Club, New London
12. 15. Cape Fear Country Club, Wilmington
13. 12. The Country Club of North Carolina (Cardinal), Pinehurst
14. 14. Pinehurst No. 10, Aberdeen
15. 18. Raleigh Country Club, Raleigh
16. 19. Forsyth Country Club, Winston-Salem
17. 17. Charlotte Country Club, Charlotte
18. 16. Pinehurst No. 8, Pinehurst
19. 21. River Landing (River), Wallace
20. 22. MacGregor Downs Country Club, Cary
21. 20. Eagle Point Golf Club, Wilmington
22. 23. Rock Barn Country Club (Jones), Conover
23. 24. Governors Club, Chapel Hill
24. 25 Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club, Southern Pines
25. 29. Treyburn Country Club, Durham
26. 30. Biltmore Forest Country Club, Asheville
27. 26. Country Club of Landfall (Dye), Wilmington
28. 32. River Landing (Landing), Wallace
29. 28. Country Club of Landfall, (Nicklaus), Wilmington
30. 27. Dormie Club, West End
31. 44. High Point Country Club (Willow Creek), High Point
32. 42. Occono Golf & Boat Club, Merry Hill
33. 31. Starmount Forest Country Club, Greensboro
34. 34. Champion Hills Club, Hendersonville
35. 33. Prestonwood Country Club (Highlands), Cary
36. 35. Pinehurst No. 9, Pinehurst
37. 38. Mid South Club, Southern Pines
38. 36. Forest Creek Golf Club (South), Pinehurst
39. 40. Myers Park Country Club, Charlotte
40. 45. Greensboro Country Club (North), Greensboro
41. 41. Bryan Park (Champions), Browns Summit
42. 39. Forest Creek Golf Club (North), Pinehurst
43. 37. The Club at Longview, Waxhaw
44. 43. Linville Golf Club, Linville
45. 46. Grandover (East), Greensboro
46. 47. Finley Golf Club, Chapel Hill
47. 50. Forest Oaks Country Club, Greensboro
48. 52. Lonnie Poole Golf Course, Raleigh
49. 49. Pinehurst No. 7, Pinehurst
50. 53. Waynesville Inn & Golf Club, Waynesville
51. 51. Hound Ears Club, Boone
52. 54. Country Club of Asheville, Asheville
53. 56. Duke University Golf Club, Durham
54. 57. The Cardinal by Pete Dye, Greensboro
55. 55. Ballantyne Country Club, Charlotte
56. 59. Mimosa Hills Golf Club, Morganton
57. 60. Porters Neck Country Club, Wilmington
58. 48. Trump National Golf Club, Mooresville
59. 61. Bald Head Island Club, Bald Head Island
60. 62. The Club at 12 Oaks, Holly Springs
61. 58. The Hasentree Club, Wake Forest
62. 63. The Currituck Club, Corolla
63. 72. Grandover (West), Greensboro
64. 70. Southern Pines Golf Club, Southern Pines
65. 64. Pinewood Country Club, Asheboro
66. 65. Carolina Country Club, Raleigh
67. 74. Springdale Resort, Canton
68. 71. High Meadows Country Club, High Meadows
69. 73. Blowing Rock Country Club, Blowing Rock
70. 67. Cedarwood Country Club, Charlotte
71. 68. Hope Valley Country Club, Durham
72. 78. Talamore Golf Resort, Southern Pines
73. 66. Gaston Country Club, Gastonia
74. 76. Crow Creek Golf Club, Calabash
75. 94. The Country Club at Wakefield Plantation, Raleigh
76. 80. Kenmure Country Club, Flat Rock
77. 77. Croasdaile Country Club, Durham
78. 75. Pinewild Country Club (Magnolia), Pinehurst
79. 81. Carmel Country Club (South), Charlotte
80. 79. Alamance Country Club, Burlington
81. 92. Crystal Coast Country Club, Pine Knoll Shores
82. 82. Kilmarlic Golf Club, Powells Point
83. 99. Morehead City Country Club, Morehead City
84. N/R Wilson Country Club, Wilson
85. 83. Providence Country Club, Charlotte
86. 69. Prestonwood Country Club (Meadows), Cary
87. N/R Beaufort Club, Beaufort
88. 84. Mill Creek Golf Club, Mebane
89. 97. Deep Springs Country Club, Stoneville
90. 85. Bright’s Creek Club, Mill Spring
91. N/R Woodlake Country Club, Vass
92. 86. Jefferson Landing, Jefferson
93. 88. Mooresville Golf Club, Mooresville
94. 90. Thistle Golf Club, Sunset Beach
95. 93. Linville Ridge, Linville
96. N/R Bentwinds Country Club, Fuquay-Varina
97. 95. Tot Hill Farm, Asheboro
98. 98. Longleaf Golf & Family Club, Southern Pines
99. N/R Rocky River Golf Club, Concord
100. 96. Brook Valley Country Club, Greenville
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Contributed article. Photo courtesy Country Club of North Carolina.
