Looking for a golf course to play? Try this genius search-and-booking tool

If you’re a golfer, you likely have a handle on the courses in your town, county and maybe even your state — the best designs, the best values, the shortest commutes from your home. But how well do you know the golfing landscape beyond your backyard? With approximately 16,000 courses in the U.S. even the most avid golfers need where-to-play guidance, and now GOLF.com, in partnership with Open Links, provides just such a resource.

It’s called Course Finder, and it delivers exactly what the names promises: a comprehensive and user-friendly database of virtually every golf course in America, plus many more designs internationally, all searchable not only by name, city and zip code but also by access type (public, private, muni, etc.); style (regulation, par-3, executive, etc.); and fee range (from $ to $$$$). Partial to the work of, say, Gil Hanse, Tom Doak or Perry Maxwell? There’s even a filter by which you can search courses by their designers.

But wait, there’s more! 

Course Finder’s filtering options also include GOLF’s Top 100 Course rankings (five rankings in all), plus five other “best of” lists, ranging from Top Munis to Top Par-3 Courses. You also can drill down to our course raters’ nominations for the best courses in every state. For added convenience, search results are plotted on a map so you can easily see courses’ locations relative to your search area. 

Want to learn more about a specific design? Every course has a profile page that includes a course description, par and yardage, grass types, and even whether the course is walkable and has practice facilities. For many public courses, you also have the ability to book tee times directly from the profile pages. 

Here’s a practical example of how Course Finder works: 

Let’s say you’re heading to San Francisco for a work trip and have some free time to sneak in a round. First things first, you want to find the best-of-the-best public courses in the area. Under the “Top 100” menu, simply click “Top Public North America,” and you’ll see a map of the U.S. populate with 100 courses. Zoom in on San Francisco and you’ll see the three best public courses in the area, according to our raters: Pebble Beach, Spyglass Hill and Pasatiempo. To widen your search for top designs, toggle off the Top 100 filter and search “California” under the “Best in State” menu, and you’ll find a bounty of more recommendations from our raters.  

On a budget? Under the “Max Fee” menu, select the “$$” option. That search will return all of the courses in the area that won’t strain your wallet, including such excellent offerings at TPC Harding Park and the par-3 course at Golden Gate Park. Maybe, as you browse the courses dotted on the map, you’ll feel inspired to shoot two hours down the coast to play the charming seaside muni, Pacific Grove. 

Every golfers’ preferences and requirements are different, which is the beauty of Course Finder: It will guide you to the best courses for you. 

Happy hunting!

Start your search here.

Alan Bastable

Golf.com Editor

As GOLF.com’s executive editor, Bastable is responsible for the editorial direction and voice of one of the game’s most respected and highly trafficked news and service sites. He wears many hats — editing, writing, ideating, developing, daydreaming of one day breaking 80 — and feels privileged to work with such an insanely talented and hardworking group of writers, editors and producers. Before grabbing the reins at GOLF.com, he was the features editor at GOLF Magazine. A graduate of the University of Richmond and the Columbia School of Journalism, he lives in New Jersey with his wife and foursome of kids.