Alert the press, find the giant scissors and cue the ribbon cutting ceremony. With spring in full swing, it can only mean one thing: it’s course opening season.
In 2024, we saw a banner year for course openings. Resorts, private clubs and local tracks across the country (and world) made headlines with redesigns, remodels or just flat out brand new loops. Pinehurst No. 10. Bandon Dunes’s Shorty’s. Broomsedge. Tree Farm. Sedge Valley. Citrus Farms (Karoo). The list goes on and on.
This year may not have names like Pinehurst or Bandon, but that doesn’t mean course openings are taking a step back. Here are six we currently have in our sights:
Gamble Sands Resort (Scarecrow) – Opening August 2025
Originally slated for a 2024 opening, Gamble Sands pushed back the opening of Scarecrow. Doing so arguably made it the most anticipated course of 2025.
David McLay Kidd’s newest creation comes to life, and it does not disappoint. With breathtaking views of the Columbia River in Brewster, Washington, the course has been described by World Golfer as “loaded with hidden trap doors and secret strategies… playing it is like lining up the colors of a Rubik’s Cube. There are so many combinations that can solve the puzzle.” Steeper than its sister course, Scarecrow offers golfers 300 acres of new golfer terrain to its resort, making it a must play destination in 2025.
Poppy Ridge Golf Club – Opening May 2025
Next on our list is Poppy Ridge Golf Club in Livermore, California. Calling Poppy Ridge a new course or a redesign, however, is open to interpretation.
Originally the site to 27 holes, Jay Blasi set out to make the course more “walkable”—and he delivered. Offering a creative layout, Poppy Ridge boasts a “championship 18-hole course,” six different teeing options and picturesque views of California wine country. While the three nines appropriately named Chardonnay, Merlot and Zinfadel may be gone, the surrounding vineyards and the prospect of fresh wine after your round can help you lose that sour taste in your mouth from a string of bogeys.
The Keep at McLemore – Opening September 2025
Those familiar with The Highlands course at McLemore will know all about the breathtaking view from the 18th. However, what if I told you they were set to unveil their second mountaintop course?
Designed by Bill Bergin and Rees Jones, The Keep hopes to bring the same level of splendor and awe while still providing golfers with a challenge. Described as “one of the world’s great sites for golf” by Rees Jones, McLemore has given golfers another reason to book a stay.
We recently visited The Keep for preview play and came away impressed.
Bella Ridge – Opening Late Summer 2025
Against the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains, Colorado’s newest golf course sits on an old dairy farm. The unique layout is the first to grace the state in over three years (the last being Raindance, which has a GREAT course logo).
But Bella Ridge isn’t just meant to be a course. The Podtburg family, which owns the land and course, hope Bella Ridge “becomes a community hub, offering food and beverage options and serving as an event venue, (with) plans for a future upscale residential community). These aspirations are what make golf more than just a game. Kudos to the Podtburg family.
Cabot Highlands (Old Petty) – Preview September 2025
Cabot is getting ready to add to their already impressive golf portfolio.
Old Petty, designed by Tom Doak, encircles a 400-year old castle nestled in the Scottish Highlands, which gave the course its name. Taking inspiration from the region’s iconic “coo” (highland cow), the course logo is sure to become a statement piece in any golfer’s wardrobe. Old Petty is sure to not only provide golfers with an authentic history of Scotland, but also build upon the legacy of other Cabot properties.
The Shoe (Golden Horseshoe) – Opening Summer 2025
Just down the road from MyGolfSpy’s headquarters in Virginia, Rees Jones has been busy. Golden Horsehoe in Colonial Williamsburg has hosted a variety of events—from the Jones Cup to the NCAA Championships, the Golden Horseshoe has just about done it all. Now in 2025, Golden Horseshoe is reclaiming what was almost lost with the opening of The Shoe.
The newest addition to the property is a nine-hole short course on the site of the old Spotswood Course. After closing in 2022, it was rezoned for housing—but following community concerns, the plan was scrapped in June 2023 to make way for a new The Shoe. With holes ranging from 46 to 137 yards, The Shoe is ready to be the next attraction in Colonial Williamsburg.
One thing is clear, there is no shortage of new courses popping up.
Tell us what you think!
mg
1 year ago
More courses for the wealthy. Golf architects have no compassion for the low income lover of the game. All they care about is if the course gets in the top 100 of Golf Digest. and cashing the check.
Pathetic.
Hi!
1 year ago
Have you priced building a golf course lately?
mg
1 year ago
why? My dad designed golf holes as challenging as anyone, for a lot less money, using a ford tractor and a drag.
I miss, I miss, I make
1 year ago
Could not agree more. How about featuring courses that have reasonable green fees and are adapted to the level of play of the majority of golfers? Are any new ones even being built? I am a used to be near scratch player and sometime shoot my age of 76. I actually have reasonable financial resources, but just prefer my local muni. It is a part of the community, They have multiple programs to introduce youths and adults of all ages to the game. There was a time over 50 years ago that this course was in Golf Digest’s top 75 public courses. This course has not regressed. Public golf has progressed for the better for most part. But at a cost.
I guess reviewing “package” sets of clubs for a few hundred dollars and a course you can walk on for 30 bucks just doesn’t get clicks or advertising. Yeah, a course you can WALK on. Almost a rarity.
I have my fitted Titleist clubs. Play Pro V1s. But I appreciate that privilege. I just wonder how many in those beginner programs will be able to continue when the costs start adding up.
Coty G
1 year ago
You are right sir. I find the cost to play one of the biggest things that holds me back from playing more(plus my golf bag with ALL OF MY CLUBS was stolen from me at my local muni course while I was inside with my son who is 10, we were getting something to drink and eat after 9 holes). The prices of the local golf courses has gone up 2 dollars 2 years ago now another dollar this year. Now that I don’t have clubs and it took me a lot of savings and time to get the clubs I wanted which are now gone sadly in looking at replacing them from anywhere from 700 to 1200 used which is another thing that is holding me back from enjoying this game I live with my son, who I hope falls in love with the game like I did when I was his age even with the bad experience we had I hope it doesn’t hurt or hold him back from enjoying this beautiful game.