The Best Golf Course Under $75 In Each State

Everything in golf has become wildly expensive—especially rounds of golf.

The most famous resort courses routinely charge several hundred dollars per round (don’t look up how much it costs to play Pebble Beach). “Dynamic pricing” can turn an already steep green fee into something resembling a hefty monthly car payment. Even new courses that welcome outside play are increasingly designed as destination experiences rather than places the average golfer can visit repeatedly.

But that isn’t the whole story.

According to the U.S. National Golf Foundation, the average green fee at a non-resort American golf course was $41 in 2025. Thirty-two states had average rates below $50 including several where the typical round cost less than $35.

Affordable golf still exists. The problem is identifying where the low price is accompanied by a course legitimately worth seeking out.

That is the purpose of this list. Adding to our best municipal golf course in each state list, we’re looking for the best golf courses in each state that don’t break the bank.

These are not necessarily the cheapest courses available nor are they consolation prizes selected merely because the state’s most celebrated layouts cost too much. The goal was to find genuinely compelling architecture, scenery, conditioning or character at a price that keeps the course within reach of ordinary golfers.

To qualify, a regulation-length course must offer an 18-hole rate of $75 or less during the heart of its normal golf season. Regular weekday rates qualify; shoulder-season, offseason, twilight, promotional, resident, loyalty and stay-and-play rates do not.

Mandatory cart charges count toward the $75 ceiling but courses where walking rates were below $75 did count.

Is $75 cheap? I’m not saying it is. That is nearly twice the national average green fee and plenty of golfers would still consider it a significant purchase or not “budget golf.”

But it also sits below the $80 threshold the NGF uses to define premium-priced golf. It’s a reasonable price to pay for good golf.

For each course, I have listed the cheapest standard green fee (no resident, twilight, etc.) and their Google rating. Courses had to be at or above a 4.5 Google rating to be considered. In some cases, I decided to change the course that was featured in the best municipal list (there was some overlap) to highlight another facility that deserves some love.

I did substantial research on this—including reaching out to golfers from as many of the states as possible—but if you notice any errors, please email me at [email protected] and I will correct the list. This is meant to be a living resource for golfers so if you feel like your state is wrong, let me know and I can fix it.

Without further delay, here is the best golf course under $75 in every state.

Alabama

Gunter’s Landing Golf Club (Guntersville)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $65
• Google Rating: 4.7 (203 reviews)

Gunter’s Landing occupies rolling ground above Lake Guntersville, producing dramatic elevation changes and expansive views uncommon among Alabama’s affordable courses. The parkland layout combines wooded corridors, uneven lies and significant water hazards, giving it enough substance to stand alongside the state’s better-known resort courses.

Alaska

Settlers Bay Golf Course (Wasilla)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $52
• Google Rating: 4.6 (196 reviews)

Settlers Bay overlooks Alaska’s Matanuska-Susitna Valley. Mountain views provide the scenery but the layout has enough length, water and wooded corridors to offer a substantial test. Its rating is supported by nearly 200 Google reviews, unusually strong evidence in a state with relatively few golf courses.

Arizona

Aguila Golf Course (Laveen)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $39
• Google Rating: 4.5 (751 reviews)

Aguila combines strategic bunkering, broad playing corridors and long views toward South Mountain. Arizona has better-known destination courses but few offer such a convincing desert-golf experience without resort pricing or a resident-rate loophole.

Arkansas

Mountain Ranch Golf Club (Fairfield Bay)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $55
• Google Rating: 4.6 (134 reviews)

Mountain Ranch moves through the wooded and sharply rolling terrain near Greers Ferry Lake, producing dramatic elevation changes and several elevated tee shots. The demanding layout feels more like mountain golf than a typical Arkansas resort course, yet its weekday rate remains inside the limit.

California

Soule Park Golf Course (Ojai)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $44
• Google Rating: 4.6 (461 reviews)

Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner revived Soule Park using wide fairways, strategic angles and exacting greens beneath the Topa Topa Mountains. In one of America’s most expensive golf states, it remains an exceptional value.

Colorado

Mariana Butte Golf Course (Loveland)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $54
• Google Rating: 4.5 (536 reviews)

Set against the Rocky Mountain foothills, Mariana Butte combines dramatic elevation changes, sandstone formations and several memorable holes along the Big Thompson River. The municipal course delivers the scenery golfers expect from Colorado without charging a destination-golf price.

Connecticut

Blackledge Country Club—Anderson’s Glen Course (Hebron)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $53
• Google Rating: 4.5 (417 reviews)

Blackledge operates two public 18-hole courses but Anderson’s Glen is the stronger candidate for this list. The layout moves through rolling, wooded terrain and offers more architectural variety than its price suggests.

Delaware

Deerfield Golf Club (Newark)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $39
• Google Rating: 4.6 (1,034 reviews)

Formerly a private DuPont facility, Deerfield now operates as one of Delaware’s premier public courses. The layout winds across wooded, rolling property with water affecting numerous holes. It feels more like a traditional private club than a typical municipal facility, giving Delaware a credible alternative to the considerably more expensive Baywood Greens.

Florida

Dubsdread Golf Course (Orlando)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $35
• Google Rating: 4.6 (1,451 reviews)

Located minutes from downtown Orlando, Dubsdread is the oldest public golf course in Central Florida. Its compact routing, mature trees and small, well-defended greens provide a traditional alternative to Florida’s sprawling resort courses.

Georgia

Arrowhead Pointe Golf Course (Elberton)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $53
• Google Rating: 4.7 (221 reviews)

Arrowhead Pointe occupies a dramatic site beside Lake Richard B. Russell with water visible throughout the round and little residential intrusion. Its state-park ownership keeps the price grounded despite scenery worthy of a resort.

Hawaii

Waiehu Municipal Golf Course (Wailuku)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $66
• Google Rating: 4.5 (502 reviews)

Waiehu delivers something almost unheard of in Hawaii: oceanfront golf at an ordinary municipal price. The 18-hole course shares the coastline with Waiehu Beach Park with its sixth, seventh and eighth holes beside the Pacific. Although the conditioning and presentation are considerably simpler than at Maui’s luxury resorts, the scenery, accessibility and sub-$75 non-resident rate make Waiehu one of the country’s most remarkable municipal values. 

Idaho

Jug Mountain Ranch Golf Course (McCall)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $65
• Google Rating: 4.6 (177 reviews)

Jug Mountain Ranch combines mountain scenery with a par-72 layout measuring more than 7,200 yards from the back tees. The course uses meadows, wetlands, streams and elevation changes without becoming excessively penal.

Illinois

Highlands of Elgin (Elgin)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $50
• Google Rating: 4.5 (424 reviews)

Keith Foster used a former stone quarry to create some of Chicago-area public golf’s most distinctive holes at Highlands of Elgin. Exposed rock, elevation changes and a quarry lake provide visual drama.

Indiana

Noble Hawk Golf Links (Kendallville)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $58
• Google Rating: 4.5 (232 reviews)

Noble Hawk combines links-inspired openness with tree-lined corridors, native grasses and significant undulation. The contrast between exposed, wind-affected holes and more traditional woodland golf gives the course unusual variety while its ordinary rates remain comfortably below the cutoff.

Iowa

Honey Creek Golf Club (Boone)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $30
• Google Rating: 4.5 (209 reviews)

Honey Creek moves through rolling, wooded terrain near Ledges State Park, producing considerably more elevation change than golfers might expect from an Iowa course. Its scenery, variety and extremely modest rates make it one of the state’s strongest combinations of quality and value.

Kansas

Buffalo Dunes Golf Course (Garden City)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $37
• Google Rating: 4.7 (55 reviews)

Buffalo Dunes uses naturally sandy, windswept terrain to create firm conditions and strategic golf that feels native to western Kansas. The municipal course has earned national value recognition for decades.

Kentucky

Dale Hollow Lake State Resort Park Golf Course (Burkesville)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $60
• Google Rating: 4.7 (159 reviews)

Dale Hollow stretches beyond 7,000 yards across an isolated state-park property filled with wooded elevation changes and dramatic long-range views. Brian Ault’s routing offers impressive scale without surrounding development while Kentucky’s state-park pricing keeps one of the state’s most scenic public courses comfortably below the limit.

Louisiana

Beaver Creek Golf Course (Zachary)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $37
• Google Rating: 4.5 (132 reviews)

Beaver Creek is an affordable municipal course with more scale and polish than its price indicates. Craig Schreiner used wetlands, streams and strategically positioned bunkers to create a playable layout wide enough for recreational golfers while still asking better players to think carefully about angles.

Maine

Fox Ridge Golf Club (Auburn)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $60
• Google Rating: 4.6 (160 reviews)

Fox Ridge uses considerable elevation change to create a varied modern course with gorgeous views and several memorable downhill shots. Golfers say they can rely on solid conditions and affordable pricing.

Maryland

Chesapeake Bay Golf Club (Rising Sun)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $75
• Google Rating: 4.5 (126 reviews)

Chesapeake Bay Golf Club presents a par-71 layout featuring open landing areas, natural wetlands and challenging greens. The course has hosted USGA local qualifying and provides a challenging test without exceeding the cutoff.

Massachusetts

George Wright Golf Course (Hyde Park)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $46
• Google Rating: 4.5 (359 reviews)

George Wright is a restored Donald Ross course operated by the City of Boston. Its routing, terrain and sophisticated greens compare favorably with private clubs throughout New England, making its non-resident price remarkable.

Michigan

Diamond Springs Golf Course (Hamilton)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $35
• Google Rating: 4.5 (368 reviews)

Diamond Springs may be the strongest pure architecture-for-the-dollar selection in this entire project. Mike DeVries routed the course over sandy, rolling land and created bold greens, natural bunkering and several excellent risk-reward holes.

Minnesota

Keller Golf Course (Maplewood)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $57
• Google Rating: 4.6 (449 reviews)

Keller has hosted PGA Tour and LPGA Tour events over nearly a century. A major renovation preserved its classic parkland identity while restoring strategic features.

Mississippi

Kirkwood National Golf Club (Holly Springs)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $45
• Google Rating: 4.5 (151 reviews)

Kirkwood National is a rugged, demanding course with a routing that moves through wooded, hilly terrain punctuated by water hazards and elevation changes. Located between Memphis and Oxford, it delivers a genuine test without requiring a resort package.

Missouri

Adams Pointe Golf Club (Blue Springs)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $42
• Google Rating: 4.5 (363 reviews)

Owned by the City of Blue Springs, Adams Pointe is an 18-hole course that moves through rolling, wooded terrain east of Kansas City. Elevation changes, water hazards and large greens give it more visual and strategic variety than the typical suburban municipal layout.

Montana

Buffalo Hill Golf Club (Kalispell)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $75
• Google Rating: 4.5 (261 reviews)

Buffalo Hill combines an older nine with an Arnold Palmer-designed addition across rolling ground in Kalispell. It becomes the leading candidate now that Old Works has become more expensive.

Nebraska

Wild Horse Golf Club (Gothenburg)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $68
• Google Rating: 4.8 (303 reviews)

Dave Axland and Dan Proctor built Wild Horse on sandy ground requiring little artificial shaping. Its width, native contours and superb greens have earned national rankings while the price remains refreshingly ordinary.

Nevada

Boulder Creek Golf Club (Boulder City)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $50
• Google Rating: 4.5 (553 reviews)

Boulder Creek provides 27 holes of expansive desert golf away from the Las Vegas Strip’s more inflated pricing. Golfers say they love the desert mountain views and well-maintained greens.

New Hampshire

Indian Mound Golf Club (Center Ossipee)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $55
• Google Rating: 4.5 (192 reviews)

Indian Mound occupies a scenic setting near the White Mountains, combining wooded corridors with water hazards and meaningful elevation changes.

New Jersey

Neshanic Valley Golf Course (Neshanic Station)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $67
• Google Rating: 4.5 (489 reviews)

Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry designed three interchangeable nines across open, rolling land. Neshanic Valley offers excellent maintenance and unusual variety within New Jersey’s public golf system.

New Mexico

Piñon Hills Golf Course (Farmington)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $65
• Google Rating: 4.5 (161 reviews)

Ken Dye’s Piñon Hills municipal course uses arroyos, elevation changes and high-desert views to create one of America’s defining public-golf success stories. It has earned national recognition without abandoning affordability.

New York

Conklin Players Club (Conklin)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $62
• Google Rating: 4.7 (432 reviews)

Conklin Players Club combines dramatic elevation changes, expansive views and immaculately maintained bentgrass surfaces with one of the strongest value propositions in New York. The par-72 course stretches to 6,772 yards and presents 18 visually distinctive holes rather than relying on a repetitive residential routing.

North Carolina

Bryan Park (Browns Summit)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $60
• Google Rating: 4.6 (678 reviews)

Rees Jones routed the Champions Course at Bryan Park around Lake Townsend, producing a stern test that hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur Public Links. It provides top-shelf golf without a Pinehurst-sized bill.

North Dakota

Prairie West Golf Course (Mandan)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $37
• Google Rating: 4.5 (153 reviews)

Prairie West uses rolling prairie, native grasses and frequent elevation changes to create a more substantial test than its modest municipal price suggests. The course offers broad views across the surrounding landscape while its exposed setting makes North Dakota’s persistent wind an integral part of the challenge.

Ohio

Denison Golf Club (Granville)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $71
• Google Rating: 4.7 (281 reviews)

Donald Ross designed Denison across rolling land just north of Columbus and subsequent restoration work reinforced its strategic bunkering and greens. Few qualifying Ohio courses can match its architectural pedigree.

Oklahoma

Lincoln Park Golf Course West (Oklahoma City)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $33
• Google Rating: 4.5 (604 reviews)

Lincoln Park’s West Course uses rolling terrain, mature trees and elevated greens to create one of Oklahoma City’s most substantial municipal tests. Its pristine conditions and large body of positive reviews make it a more convincing selection than its modest price would suggest.

Oregon

Stone Creek Golf Club (Oregon City)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $67
• Google Rating: 4.6 (452 reviews)

Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy designed Stone Creek across open farmland southeast of Portland, framing broad strategic holes with wetlands and mountain views. Gearhart would be the romantic selection for this list but its in-season price exceeds the cutoff.

Pennsylvania

Iron Valley Golf Club (Lebanon)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $49
• Google Rating: 4.5 (485 reviews)

A lot to choose from in Pennsylvania but I wanted to highlight this hidden gem. P.B. Dye routed Iron Valley across a dramatic former mining property, using severe elevation changes, expansive views and bold hazards to produce one of Pennsylvania’s most visually distinctive public courses.

Rhode Island

Richmond Country Club (Richmond)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $48
• Google Rating: 4.5 (314 reviews)

Richmond Country Club is routed through the rocky, forested terrain of southern Rhode Island. Narrow corridors, wetlands and meaningful elevation changes create a demanding traditional layout while the absence of surrounding development gives much of the course a secluded character.

South Carolina

The Aiken Golf Club (Aiken)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $30
• Google Rating: 4.6 (256 reviews)

The Aiken Golf Club offers sandy, rumpled golf on a historic property near the center of one of America’s most important golf towns. Its short yardage, quirky routing, elevated greens and abundant strategic interest provide an experience far removed from South Carolina’s residential resort courses.

South Dakota

Prairie Green Golf Course (Sioux Falls)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $42
• Google Rating: 4.6 (180 reviews)

Prairie Green presents broad fairways, tall grasses and exposed conditions appropriate to its Sioux Falls setting. The municipal layout regularly ranks among South Dakota’s best public courses.

Tennessee

Bear Trace at Harrison Bay (Harrison)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $50
• Google Rating: 4.6 (435 reviews)

Jack Nicklaus routed Harrison Bay through mature woodland beside Chickamauga Lake just north of Chattanooga, creating a secluded course with no surrounding residential development. Its combination of scale, natural scenery and state-park pricing makes it one of Tennessee’s most complete public-golf values.

Texas

Max A. Mandel Municipal Golf Course (Laredo)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $45
• Google Rating: 4.6 (216 reviews)

Robert Trent Jones II designed Max A. Mandel across rugged South Texas terrain overlooking the Rio Grande. Arroyos, mature mesquite trees and substantial elevation changes distinguish it from the state’s flatter municipal courses while its remote location helps preserve its exceptional value.

Utah

Hobble Creek Golf Course (Springville)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $39
• Google Rating: 4.5 (618 reviews)

Hobble Creek follows a narrow canyon into the Wasatch Mountains, surrounding golfers with forested slopes and dramatic elevation changes. Its scenery, mature layout and remarkably low municipal rate give it one of the strongest value propositions in Utah golf.

Vermont

Neshobe Golf Club (Brandon)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $70
• Google Rating: 4.8 (187 reviews)

Neshobe moves through a quintessential Vermont landscape of forest, streams and rolling hills. Many describe it as a hidden gem that is in consistently great shape.

Virginia

Pete Dye River Course of Virginia Tech (Radford)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $64
• Google Rating: 4.6 (287 reviews)

The River Course occupies a dramatic site beside the New River with Dye’s bunkering and angled greens adding strategic bite. Dye called the scenery “unbelievable” given how the river is in sight throughout your round.

Washington

Gold Mountain Golf Club (Bremerton)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $42
• Google Rating: 4.7 (862 reviews)

The Olympic Course at Gold Mountain has hosted national championships and remains one of the Pacific Northwest’s most respected municipal layouts. The course is framed by towering trees and has terrific land movement.

West Virginia

Canaan Valley Resort Golf Course (Davis)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $62
• Google Rating: 4.6 (91 reviews)

Geoffrey Cornish’s course sits in a broad mountain valley surrounded by Allegheny peaks. Golfers say Canaan Valley is wide open and typically in outstanding condition.

Wisconsin

Washington County Golf Course (Hartford)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $53
• Google Rating: 4.6 (296 reviews)

Arthur Hills designed Washington County Golf Course, the layout spread across the rolling Kettle Moraine landscape. Golfers describe the course as a links-style design that is playable but challenging.

Wyoming

Rochelle Ranch Golf Course (Rawlins)

• Cheapest Standard Green Fee: $55
• Google Rating: 4.5 (87 reviews)

Rochelle Ranch is a city-owned links-style course stretching to nearly 8,000 yards across open Wyoming terrain. Its scale and statewide reputation would be notable at twice the price.