By Bill Hensley
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.
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