Virginia’s best golf courses

As part of GOLF’s rigorous rating process for our new rankings of the Top 100 Courses in America and the Top 100 Courses You Can Play, our more than 100 expert panelists determined the best golf courses in each state.

You can view the links below to browse all of our course rankings, or scroll down to see the best courses in Virginia. If you’re looking to create your own trip in the future, you’d be wise to let GOLF’s new course finder tool help you. Here you can toggle through all of our lists – Top 100 Public Courses, Best Municipal Courses, Best Short Courses, Best Par 3 Courses and more – or filter by price to create the perfect itinerary for your next trip .

GOLF Other Course Rankings: Top 100 Courses in the World | Top 100 Courses in the U.S. | 100 Best Courses You Can Play | 100 Best Value Courses in the U.S. | Best Municipal Courses in the U.S. | 100 Best Short Courses in the World

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Best Golf Courses in Virginia (2024/2025)

Symbol Guide
# = Top 100 courses in the United States
Y = Top 100 games you can play in the US
V = Top 100 Value Courses in the United States
P = Public/Resort

Ed. Note: Some courses were removed from our rankings because they did not receive enough votes.

1. Omni Homestead – Cascades (Hot Springs) [Y, P]

The Cascade Mountains are William Flynn’s masterpiece in the heart of Virginia’s Allegheny Mountains, with rolling terrain and strategic cover. Legend has it that AW Tillinghast and Seth Raynor both walked the challenging venue before the little-known Flynn accepted the design job. He had to blast through limestone to find some fairways, but within 12 months he had carved out one of the best mountain trails in the country. A young Sam Snead, who honed his skills here, once said that if he could only play one course, Cascade would be it. It’s difficult to get to due to its remote location, but for fans of Slammin’ Sammy and Golden Age architecture, this is a must-see.

2. Robert Trent Jones GC (Gainesville)

3. Kinloch (pygmy bird wooden shoes)

4. Farmington CC (Charlottesville)

5. Alder Farm (Bristol)

6. Virginia CC – James River (Richmond)

7. Foundry (Powhatan)

8. Primland (Dan’s Meadow) [Y,P]

When oil billionaire Didier Primat purchased 12,000 acres in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, he never expected to build a golf course there. British architect Donald Steele and colleague Martin Ebert used ingenuity and dynamism to design 18 outstanding holes, shaping the hilly terrain to their creative vision. The most memorable hole is the par-5 opener, with the Pinnacles of Dan as the backdrop. Deep ravines line the edges of the property, and rocky outcrops lend interest to the design. Open greens welcome more than just aerial competition.

9. Ballyhack (Roanoke)

10. Keswick Hall – Full Cry (Keswick) [Y,P]

11. Golden Horseshoe – Gold Medal (Williamsburg) [P]

12. Creighton Farm Club (Aldi)

13. Birdwood (Charlottesville) [P]

14. Virginia Tech Pete Dye River Stadium (Redford) [P]

15. Hermitage – Sabot (Manakin Sabot)

How we rank our courses

For our new “America’s 100” and “Top 100 You Can Play” lists (a process that helps us create the 50 best in-state rankings), each panelist was given a list of 609 courses of votes. Next to the course list are 11 “buckets” or groupings. If our panelists think a course ranks among the top three in the country, they put a check in the first column. If they think a pitch belongs 4-10, they’ll check that column, then 11-25, 26-50, and so on up to 250+, and even check the “remove” column. Panelists were also free to write on courses they felt should be included on the ballot.

Each bucket is assigned a score; to find the average score for each course, we divide its total score by the number of votes. Based on these scores, courses will be ranked accordingly. It’s an intentionally simple and straightforward process. Why? Because it has produced widely acclaimed results throughout history. Like the game itself, there’s no need to complicate things unnecessarily or try to fix something that already works well.

Key to the process is the experience and expertise of our group. Our 127 hand-picked panelists hail from 15 countries and all golfing meccas around the world, each with a keen insight into regional and global architecture. Many of our team members have attended more than 1,000 courses in more than 20 countries, some with more than 2,000. Their handicaps range from +5 to 15.

Due to the highly subjective nature of course ratings, no one opinion can prevail. Therefore, the only way to build meaningful consensus is to incorporate the diversity of panel members and experiences into a ranking.

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