Golfweek's Best 2024: Top public and private golf courses in North Carolina

jason lusk

Wed, Jan 15, 2025, 12:44 p.m.·5 min read

Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina (Courtesy of Pinehurst Resort)

This is a special year for North Carolina. In June the U.S. Open returns to Pinehurst Resort’s famed No. 2 Course, originally designed by Donald Ross and restored to its sandy and bouncy glory in 2011 by the team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw.

Pinehurst No. 2 has always been special as the host site of major championships, tour events, top amateur competitions and a bucket-list destination for golfers around the world. Its turtle-back greens are legendary, challenging players of every level.

But to focus entirely on No. 2 is to miss so much of what North Carolina offers. From the mountains to the coast, the state is packed with great golf. The Golfweek’s Best rating program backs this up, with numerous layouts around the state appearing on various course-rankings lists.

Let’s take a look at two of the most popular lists: Golfweek’s Best top public-access courses in North Carolina and the top private courses in the state. If you’re planning a short trip, a full season among the pines or a retirement packed with great golf, this is the place to start.

The rankings below include the course name, its location and whether it is classic ( c ) or modern (m). If the classic or modern indicator includes a number, that is where the course stacks up in Golfweek’s Best ranking of top 200 classic or modern courses in the U.S., with 1960 as the dividing line between the two eras.

Also worth noting for golfers who have never had the experience: The courses at Pinehurst Resort are named numerically. That is represented in the lists below. No. 2 is the course on which the U.S. Open will be held, and No. 4 is the course renovated several years ago by Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner. Five of the resort’s courses are included below in this year’s rankings – the resort’s recently opened No. 10 course did not kick off in time to appear in this year’s rankings but surely will in years to come.

Golfweek\'s Best public-access courses in North Carolina 2024

Mid Pines in North Carolina (Courtesy of Mid Pines)

1. Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)Pinehurst (18c)

2. Pinehurst Resort (No. 4)Pinehurst (95m)

3. Mid PinesSouthern Pines (T131c)

Book your trip to Mid Pines

4. Pine NeedlesSouthern Pines (T156c)

Book your trip to Pine Needles

5. Tobacco RoadSanford (m)

Book your trip to Tobacco Road

6. Pinehurst Resort (No. 8)Pinehurst (m)

7. Southern Pines GCSouthern Pines (c)

8. Bald Head Island ClubBald Head Island (m)

9. Thistle Golf ClubSunset Beach (m)

10. Duke University GCDurham (c)

11. Waynesville Inn & Golf Club*Waynesville (m)

12. Talamore (Mid South)Southern Pines (m)

Book your trip to Talamore

13. Pinehurst Resort (No. 7)Pinehurst (m)

T14. Pinehurst Resort (No. 9)Pinehurst (m)

T14. UNC Finley GCChapel Hill (m)

T16. Omni Grove Park InnAsheville (c)

T16. Lonnie Poole GCRaleigh (m)

T18. Tot Hill Farm*Asheboro (m)

T18. Currituck Club*Corolla (m)

20. Pinehurst Resort (No. 6)Pinehurst (m)

*New to or returning to the list

Golfweek\'s Best private courses in North Carolina 2024

Wade Hampton Club in North Carolina (Courtesy of Wade Hampton Club)

1. Wade Hampton ClubCashiers (6m)

2. Old Town ClubWinston-Salem (23c)

3. Diamond CreekBanner Elk (T53m)

4. Quail HollowCharlotte (T60m)

5. Roaring Gap ClubRoaring Gap (T82c)

6. MountaintopCashiers (T71m)

7. Grandfather (Championship)Linville (T75m)

8. Eagle PointWilmington (T86m)

9. Charlotte CCCharlotte (T100c)

10. Biltmore ForestAsheville (T116c)

11. Champion HillsHendersonville (T147m)

12. Cape FearWilmington (134c)

13. Dormie ClubWest End (T181m)

14. CC of North Carolina (Dogwood)Pinehurst (T200m)

15. Linville RidgeLinville (m)

How we do our rankings:

Golfweek’s Best offers plenty of rankings, everything from top public-access courses in each state to the very best layouts around the world. For pretty much any type of golf you want to play, we have a course ranking.

How do we come up with all these lists? After starting nearly three decades ago, Golfweek’s Best has expanded to rank courses with the input of more than 800 raters around the world. These golfers play the courses and rate each layout based on 10 provided criteria, with each offering its own 10-point scale. Raters then offer one overall rating of 1 to 10, which is not cumulative based on the 10 criteria. An average of those overall ratings is calculated to create an annual score for each layout, allowing Golfweek’s Best to rank courses.

The 10 criteria were created to help raters analyze what they just saw and played. The criteria are hyper-focused on the course itself.

Worth noting: There are no perfect 10s. Only eight courses around the world with enough qualifying votes to appear on our top lists in 2024 are rated above a 9. An average rating above 8 indicates an incredible golf course. Anything above a 7 is worth traveling great distances to experience. Courses with an average rating of 6 to 7 are probably the best course in most cities and in several examples are the top layout in an entire state.

Here's a look at more on the process.

The entire national list: Those you can play

Pebble Beach Resort's Pebble Beach Golf Links in California (Courtesy of Pebble Beach Resorts)

No matter where you live or where you might be traveling, the Golfweek’s Best course rankings have you covered with the top public-access layouts in every U.S. state.

Here's the list.

The entire national list: Private

Lake Merced Golf Club in California (Jason Lusk/Golfweek)

Looking for the best private golf courses in each state? Then welcome to Golfweek’s Best 2024 list of top private layouts as judged by our international panel of raters.