Augusta National, Pine Valley, National Golf Links of America, Cypress Point: each mythical golf destinations, but all gated, private and famously inaccessible – the antithesis of public golf courses. Don’t be downhearted, though, not all of golf’s greatest treasures are locked away, in fact many of the finest in the world, are open to you, so long as your willing to make the journey and, in many cases, pay handsomely for the privilege.
Today, we’re compiling a list of the world’s best public golf courses – when we say ‘public golf courses’ we mean accessible to the public, open for play to you, venues where there might be gates, but ones which swing open to welcome you. These are all destinations where you can, for a few hours at least, walk the same fairways as champions, feel the weight of history in every step, and – often – experience golf as it was meant to be played.
Some are municipally owned, others privately run but open to green-fee players. A few, like Royal County Down or Pebble Beach, blur those boundaries by being unashamedly exclusive, but delightfully inclusive when it comes to welcoming visitors in to their clubs.
Each of those named on our list of the best public golf courses in the world offer something different. Some take you to the raw edges of coastlines where the wind toys with every shot, and where the game feels wild and ancient. Others offer something else altogether but all
invite you to travel — not just in miles, but in spirit — to where golf’s magic burns brightest.
This list celebrates those courses you can play. The ones that have earned their place among the world’s elite not because they are hard to get onto, but because they are simply wonderful. They are proof that, while some of the game’s greatest stages may remain hidden behind closed gates, others stand proudly in the open, waiting to welcome you in. From the municipal grandeur of Bethpage Black to the windswept romance of Royal Dornoch. Some, like Pebble Beach, will cost you a small fortune. Others, like St Andrews, ask only for your patience and a little luck with the ballot. But all of them share something powerful: they don’t want to keep you out, they want to welcome you in.
Welcome to our list of the best public golf courses in the world.
Why it matters
Set beneath the brooding Mourne Mountains, Royal County Down’s Championship Links has long been a pilgrimage for golfers in search of the game at its most elemental. Routinely ranked among the world’s top three courses, it is revered not just for its beauty, but for the purity of the test it offers.
Course character
From the 1st tee, you are immersed in a landscape that feels eternal — rumpled fairways cut through towering dunes with the sea to one side and the mountains looming providing the backdrop. Old Tom Morris laid the foundations here in 1889, but it has been refined by great architects over the decades without ever losing its wild soul. The blind drives, natural dunes, and subtly contoured greens demand imagination and precision in equal measure.
Notable moment or quirk
The par-4 9th hole is among the most photographed in golf: the fairway plunges down some 90ft with the Mournes behind and the Irish Sea away to your left. It is beauty and danger rolled into one. The closing stretch, into the prevailing wind, will test every club in your bag.
Visitor info
Royal County Down is not a “public” course in the municipal sense, but it welcomes visitors all day on Mondays, Tuesday and Friday and on Thursday mornings and Sunday afternoons, between April and October. Tee times should be booked as far in advance as you dare, as they are often booked out a year in advance. Green fees are currently approaching £500 per round, with fore caddies, which are mandatory, starting at £110 per group. The best months are May and June, when the gorse is ablaze and the weather kinder.
2. The Old Course, St Andrews – Scotland
Why it matters
The Old Course is more than the home of golf, its the beating heart. This is, of course, the place where the game has been played for more than six centuries, where the language, traditions, and spirit of golf were shaped. To walk these fairways is to follow in the footsteps of Old Tom Morris, Bobby Jones, Seve Ballesteros, and Tiger Woods.
Course character
At first glance, the Old Course is a wide, flat expanse of turf — but look a little closer and you’ll find a links of subtle genius that has been copied the world over. The double greens, the cunning bunkers sunk deep into the linksland, and the constant whisper of the North Sea wind ensure there is always something to catch you out. The out-and-back routing carries you along the Eden Estuary before turning for home towards the spires of St Andrews itself. And then there is The Road, and The Swilcan Bridge, an unassuming stone crossing that has become one of golf’s most hallowed symbols.
Notable moment or quirk
The Road Hole — the par-4 17th — is one of the most feared and celebrated in golf, its tee shot played over the corner of the Old Course Hotel, its green guarded by the infamous Road Hole bunker and the road which gives this iconic hole its name. And steps away, the 18th and the Old Course’s closing hole, with its vast fairway and a green set below the R&A clubhouse – it’s another moment to savour.
Visitor info
The Old Course is famously public, owned by the town and run by the St Andrews Links Trust. Tee times are allocated by ballot, through advance booking, or for single golfers who sign up the day before they would like to play at either at The Old Pavilion next to the 1st tee or at the St Andrews Links Clubhouse near the Himalayas putting green. Fees for St Andrews are around £350 in high season.
3. Royal Portrush Golf Club – Northern Ireland
Why it matters
Royal Portrush, on Northern Ireland’s stunning Causeway Coast, is the only course on the island of Ireland to have hosted The Open Championship. It did so in 2019 and again in 2025 and to incredible acclaim from players and fans alike. It is a links of rare beauty and bite, a place where every hole feels like it belongs in a painting.
Course character
The Dunluce Links, redesigned by Harry Colt in the 1930s, is a masterpiece of routing and natural drama. Fairways tumble and twist between towering dunes, greens perch on plateaus or nestle in hollows, and the wind from the Atlantic is a constant companion. From the par-3 6th tee, the sweep of white sand at White Rocks Beach is almost distracting — almost. The stretch from the 4th to the 10th is as good as links golf gets.
Notable moment or quirk
The par-3 16th, aptly named “Calamity Corner,” demands a full carry over a yawning chasm to a green set high above the rough. Miss it, and your scorecard will know about it.
Visitor info
Royal Portrush is actually a private club, but it welcomes visitors on every day of the week, except for Wednesday. Green fees for visitors in 2026 are £420. And given the popularity of Portrush and its moments in the spotlight in both 2019 and 2025, you now need book at least a year in advance.
4. Pinehurst No. 2 – United States
Why it matters
Few courses in the United States carry the weight of history that Pinehurst No. 2 does. Designed by Donald Ross Pinehurst No. 2 has hosted more single golf championships than any other course in America – including the US Open, Ryder Cup, PGA Championship, and countless amateur championships. It is the crown jewel of American golf — a course as strategic as it is storied.
Course character
At first glance, there is nothing flashy about No. 2 — no towering dunes, no dramatic water carries. Instead, Ross built its reputation on subtlety and precision. The wide fairways give you room, but the real challenge begins at the green. The famed turtleback putting surfaces repel shots that are not perfectly judged, demanding a short game of imagination and touch. In 2014, Coore & Crenshaw restored the course to its sandy, natural state, replacing rough with hardpan and wiregrass, making it as beautiful as it is challenging.
Notable moment or quirk
Payne Stewart’s dramatic 18-foot putt to win the 1999 U.S. Open is etched into golfing folklore, his fist pump immortalised in bronze behind the 18th green. In 2014, No. 2 hosted the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens in consecutive weeks — a testament to its versatility and enduring quality. And in 2024, Bryson DeChambeau sealed victory with an outrageous bunker shot from short of the 72nd green to win the US Open from Rory McIlroy, a moment instantly added to the course’s legend.
Visitor info
Pinehurst No. 2 is open to all resort guests, with packages available year-round. Green fees hover are around $500, but are often bundled with accommodation. The best months to visit are March through May and September through November, when the Carolina weather is ideal for walking and the course is in peak condition.
5. Royal Dornoch Golf Club – Scotland
Why it matters
Royal Dornoch is golf distilled to its purest form — remote, elemental, and utterly captivating. Perched on the edge of the Scottish Highlands, it’s a course that blends breathtaking scenery with a design so natural it feels as if it has always been there. Tom Watson once said he had never played a finer links, and countless pilgrims have agreed.
Course character
The Championship Course is a sweeping journey along the Dornoch Firth, where fairways run over rumpled ground and gorse blooms gold in summer. The raised, domed greens — a Donald Ross hallmark, inspired by his home club here — demand the most precise of approaches. Holes cling to the coastline, turn inland, and then spill back towards the sea in a routing that feels inevitable and perfect. The turf is springy, the air salt-tinged, and the light can change a dozen times in a round.
Notable moment or quirk
Royal Dornoch has never and will never host The Open — its remoteness makes that logistically impossible — but its influence is global thanks to Ross’s greens and strategic principles. The par-3 14th, named Foxy, may well be one of the world’s great par-4s. It is the only hole on the golf course without a bunker, it has a plateau green that sits across the line of play.
Visitor info
Visitors are welcome at Royal Dornoch 7 days a week subject to availability. Advanced booking is essential from May through September. Those who make the long trek north are rewarded not just with world-class golf, but with the peace and charm of a Highland town that moves to its own gentle rhythm and a welcome that makes the journey worthwhile even before you step out on to the links.
6. Pebble Beach Golf Links – United States
Why it matters
Pebble Beach is perhaps the most famous public golf course in the world — a place where the Pacific Ocean is as much a part of the golf course as the tees, greens and fairways. Since opening in 1919, it has hosted US Opens, PGA Championships, and created countless memories from the annual AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Every golfer knows the images, but nothing prepares you for the reality of standing on those cliffs. The stretch from the 4th through to the 10th is unforgettable.
Course character
After a gentle inland opening, the 4th hole brings you to the ocean’s edge, where a run of coastal holes delivers pure theatre. The par-3 7th, a tiny green set on a rocky promontory, is one of golf’s most photographed holes; the par-5 18th, curling along the Pacific, is among its most celebrated finishes. Inland holes offer no respite — the small, sloping greens and ever-present breeze demand precision.
Notable moment or quirk
Jack Nicklaus’s 1-iron to the 17th in the 1972 US Open remains one of golf’s great shots, and Tom Watson’s chip-in from the rough at the same hole in 1982 sealed another iconic victory. Tiger Woods’ 15-shot win in 2000 was domination on a scale rarely seen. You will be walking in the foosteps of these legends but you’ll still find yourself lingering at tee boxes just to soak in the views.
Visitor info
Pebble Beach is open to the public year-round, with tee times available to resort guests and limited slots for non-guests. Green fees for resort guests (who are staying in one of the hotels here) start at $675.
7. Turnberry (Ailsa Course) – Scotland
Why it matters
Turnberry’s Ailsa Course is one of the most spectacular settings in golf — a links draped along the Firth of Clyde with views across to Ailsa Craig, the granite island that dominates the horizon. Since hosting the famous “Duel in the Sun” between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus in the 1977 Open Championship, it has been etched into golfing folklore.
Course character
Turnberry is all about drama: vast sea views, rugged dunes, and a routing that dances along the shoreline. The recent Mackenzie & Ebert redesign has elevated it further, moving several holes closer to the coast and enhancing sightlines. The run from the par-3 4th, through to the par-3 11th is unforgettable. The inland holes offer variety and strategic nuance, but it’s the coastal stretch that sears itself into your memory.
Notable moment or quirk
The “Duel in the Sun” of 1977 remains the defining moment — two giants trading birdies in perfect weather until Watson edged Nicklaus by a shot. In 2009, at the age of 59, Watson came within a whisker of winning again, only to fall in a playoff to Stewart Cink. The lighthouse, built in 1873, now houses a halfway house and is one of the most photographed backdrops in golf.
Visitor info
Turnberry is part of a luxury resort but welcomes visiting golfers. Green fees are around £350 in peak season, with packages available for those staying on site. The best months to play are May through September, when the days are long and the Ayrshire coast is at its most benign — relatively speaking.
8. Pacific Dunes – Bandon, United States
Why it matters
Part of the legendary Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Pacific Dunes is Tom Doak’s masterpiece — a course that feels like it was discovered rather than built. Since opening in 2001, it has been hailed as one of the greatest modern courses in the world, blending the spirit of Scottish links with the raw beauty of the Oregon coastline.
Course character
Pacific Dunes is a course of rhythm and surprise. Fairways twist between dunes, holes emerge suddenly onto clifftops high above the Pacific, and the routing defies convention, with par-3s coming back-to-back and stretches where the wind becomes the main defence. The greens are full of movement, and the native fescue rough sways like an ocean of its own. The inland holes carry their own drama, framed by gorse and sand, before the course explodes back onto the cliffs for a rousing finish.
Notable moment or quirk
There’s no single “signature hole” here because so many compete for the title. The short par-4 6th tempts the bold to drive the green, while the 11th — a par-3 perched above the ocean — offers one of the most exhilarating tee shots in golf. Pacific Dunes also plays entirely without artificial irrigation in the rough, allowing the natural landscape to dictate its colours and contours.
Visitor info
Pacific Dunes is open to all Bandon Dunes resort guests, with green fees ranging from $150 in the off-season to over $300 in peak summer. Walking is the only way to play here, and the best months are May through October. Book early — demand for Bandon is enormous, and tee times are allocated months in advance.
9. North Berwick Golf Club (West Links) – Scotland
Why it matters
The West Links at North Berwick is a joyous celebration of everything that makes links golf so addictive — quirky, characterful, and endlessly charming. Established in 1832, it is the 13th-oldest course in the world and it has influenced golf course architecture for generations.
Course character
North Berwick is as natural as golf gets: the holes flow along the Firth of Forth, with the tide, the wind, and the light constantly shifting the mood of the round. The routing is a blend of strategic puzzles, blind shots, and unique greens. The 13th hole, “Pit,” features a stone wall running directly across the front of the green; the 15th, “Redan,” is one of the most copied par-3 designs in the world.
Notable moment or quirk
The “Redan” has inspired countless replicas, from Shinnecock Hills to Royal Melbourne, yet the original still surprises first-time visitors with its angle, slope, and deceptive depth. Quirks abound here — fairways crossing, stone walls in play, and greens so contoured they feel alive.
Visitor info
North Berwick is open to visitors year-round, with summer green fees around £300. Advance booking is advised in peak season. The best months are May through September, when the town’s bustling streets and long summer evenings add to the experience.
10. Royal Melbourne Golf Club (West Course) – Australia
Why it matters
Royal Melbourne is the crown jewel of Australian golf and a course that sits comfortably among the world’s very best. Designed by Alister MacKenzie in 1926, its West Course is a study in strategy, artistry, and timeless design. For many, it represents the purest expression of sandbelt golf.
Course character:
The West Course is defined by its fast, firm fairways, bold bunkering, and brilliantly contoured greens. MacKenzie used the natural sandbelt terrain to perfection, routing holes that reward imagination and precision. Tee shots often invite aggression, but the real challenge lies in the approaches — anything less than perfectly judged will run away into deep bunkers or tightly mown run-offs. The par-3s are exceptional, particularly the 5th, played over a vast expanse of sand to a green that seems to float on its own island of turf.
Notable moment or quirk
Royal Melbourne has hosted everything from the Presidents Cup to the World Cup of Golf, its reputation burnished with each event. The 2019 Presidents Cup showcased the brilliance of its greens and bunkering to a global audience. Quirks abound in its routing — holes that run diagonally across fairways, bunkers cut directly into putting surfaces, and green complexes that demand creativity above power.
Visitor info
While Royal Melbourne is a private club, it has a proud tradition of welcoming international and inter-state visitors, who are members of a golf club, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesday afternoons (subject to availability and excluding public holidays). If you email golfbookings@royal.melbourne you will receive a response from the club. Green fees are around AUD $850, at the time of writing and caddies, which cost an additional AUD $200, are mandatory. It’s not a cheap day out, but it will be a memorable one. The best time to play is during the Australian summer (November–March), when the turf plays firm and fast, just as MacKenzie intended.
FINAL THOUGHTS: PUBLIC GOLF COURSES
While many of the world’s most famous layouts remain behind gates, the courses on this list prove that access doesn’t have to mean compromise. From the windswept links of Scotland and Ireland to the sunlit shores of California and the wild edges of the Australian sandbelt these venues offer golf at its most thrilling — and they’re open to you.
Yes, some come with a hefty green fee, but perhaps that is the price of stepping onto fairways where history has been made, where nature and design collide in perfect harmony, and where, for a few hours, you can be part of something timeless. The best public golf courses don’t just let you play; they let you belong — if only for 18 holes.
Public Golf Courses: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is considered a public golf course?
For the purposes of this article, we have classed public golf courses are ones that allow access to those willing to pay a green fee, without requiring private membership. This includes municipal courses owned by local authorities, resort courses open to guests, and private clubs that allow visitor play on designated days.
Are the best public golf courses always expensive?
Not always. While famous venues like Pebble Beach or Royal County Down understandably charge premium rates, there are outstanding public courses — especially municipal layouts — that offer exceptional value. However, globally recognised championship venues often have higher fees due to demand, maintenance, and prestige.
Which is the number one public golf course in the world?
Rankings vary, but Royal County Down (Northern Ireland) frequently tops the lists of the best public golf courses in the world.
Can I play the Old Course at St Andrews?
Yes. The Old Course is public and managed by the St Andrews Links Trust. Visitors can secure tee times via a ballot system, advanced booking, or by daily ballots for next-day slots. Green fees are around £350 in peak season.
What are the cheapest world-class public golf courses?
Courses like Pacific Dunes (Oregon, USA) and North Berwick (Scotland) offer world top-100 golf for significantly less than Pebble Beach or Royal Melbourne, especially if played in shoulder seasons. Prices can vary from $150–$300 USD depending on the time of year.
Do I need a handicap to play the best public golf courses?
Some do require a recognised handicap certificate, especially prestigious links courses in the UK and Ireland (such as Royal Portrush or Royal Dornoch). Others, like Pebble Beach or Bandon Dunes, have no handicap requirement but expect players to maintain pace of play.
What’s the best time of year to play public courses in the UK and Ireland?
May to September offers the longest days and best chance of dry weather, with June often being the sweet spot. Shoulder months like April and October can offer lower green fees but more unpredictable weather.
How far in advance should I book tee times?
For world-famous public courses, book as far ahead as possible — often 6–12 months for peak season. Some courses release times in specific booking windows, while others run lotteries or ballots.
Are public courses walkable or do they allow carts?
It varies. In the UK and Ireland, walking is the norm and carts (buggies) are often restricted due to terrain. In the USA and Australia, carts are widely available, though many top public courses encourage walking with caddies.
Can I get a caddie at public golf courses?
Yes, at many. Courses like Pebble Beach, St Andrews, and Royal County Down offer experienced caddies who add value with local knowledge, green reading, and club selection advice. Booking a caddie in advance is recommended.
