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Grandfather Golf and Country Club in Linville Ranked State’s Second Best Course; Elk River Club Eighth

By Bill Hensley

Photo courtesy of the Grandfather Golf & Country Club website

April 9, 2012. Golf courses in the North Carolina High Country were highly rated in the annual survey conducted by the NC Golf Rating Panel.

The Grandfather Golf and Country Club in Linvillle was ranked as the state’s second best course while the Elk River Club in Banner Elk came in eighth, giving the beautiful mountain region two courses in the prestigious top ten.

The Linville Golf Club, the state’s oldest course dating to 1895, just missed the top ten, coming in 13th.

Other ratings placed Linville Ridge 52nd, Jefferson Landing 78th, Hound Ears 96th and the Blowing Rock Country Club 98th.

Though not ranked in the state’s top one hundred, both the Boone Golf Club and Mountain Glen in Newland were listed as “hidden gems” and were cited for being excellent and challenging. Both courses are open to the public.

The famed Pinehurst No. 2, a Donald Ross Classic, was named North Carolina’s top course, a position it has maintained since the NC Golf Panel was organized in 1995. Each year the panel selects the top 100 courses in the state.

The top ten:

1. Pinehurst No.2, Pinehurst

2. Grandfather Golf and Country Club, Linville

3. Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte

4. Old North State Club, New London

5. Pine Needles resort, Southern Pines

6. Country Club of North Carolina (Dogwood course), Pinehurst

7. Charlotte Country Club, Charlotte

8. Elk River Club, Banner Elk

9. Forest Creek Country Club (South course), Pinehurst

10. Pinehurst No. 8, Pinehurst

Other mountain courses include:

11—Biltmore Forest CC, Asheville

18—Rock Barn, Conover

19—Wade Hampton, Cashiers

32—Balsam Mountain Preserve, Sylva

53—Cliffs at Walnut Cove, Arden

59—Lake Toxaway, Lake Toxaway

81—Country Club of Asheville, Asheville

83—Grove Park Inn, Asheville

84—Mt. Mitchell, Burnsville

92—Mimosa Hills, Morganton

To view the full list, visit www.ncgolfpanel.com/courserankings.cfm.