French Lick Resort: Pete Dye Course
French Lick, IN • Public
Brian Walers Photography
Brian Walers Photography
Courtesy of Jon Cavalier
Overview
Pete Dye’s mountaintop design, Golf Digest’s 2009 Best New Public winner, established that at age 80 the designer still had fresh ideas, including rumpled chipping swales, country-lane cart paths and volcano bunkers. Measuring just over 8,100 yards from the tips, Pete Dye at French Lick is not the first course over 8,000 yards to land on our rankings. That would be Runaway Brook in Massachusetts, now called the Pines Course at The International Golf Club. It was 8,040 yards when ranked in 1967. Today it’s 8,325 yards. The world’s longest is Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in China at 8,415 yards. The yardage may be a talking point, but what golfers will remember about Dye's French Lick course are the multi-mile views in all direction, the roominess of the fairways and greens that hang out over the edges of the sweeping land formations.
About
Awards
Ranking history:
Second 100 Greatest: Ranked since 2017.
2023-'24 ranking: 118th.
Previous ranking: 117th.
100 Greatest: Ranked 2013-'16.
Highest ranking: 93rd, 2013-'14.
100 Greatest Public: Ranked since 2011.
2023-'24 ranking (and previous): 19th.
Highest ranking: 17th, 2013-'16, 2019-'20.
Best in State: Ranked third, 2011 to current.
Panelists
Ratings from our panel of 1,900 course-ranking panelists
100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES
Shot Options
Character
Challenge
Layout Variety
Fun
Aesthetics
Conditioning
Reviews
Review
“A really challenging course that was in excellent condition when played in Aug 2019. Wonderful views during the round."
Read More2020
Review
“The Pete Dye Course at French Lick is one of the best courses in the United States. It is a brilliant Dye course built in the hills of southern Indiana. The course is built on a hill and traverses around that hill with incredible views of the surrounding country side. The top of the hill is a beautiful mansion built many years ago that offers a restaurant and outdoor sitting area that is a stunning place to see the course. The course itself offers great conditions with wonderful bent grass fairways and greens that are in excellent shape. The greens are fast and firm with subtle breaks. The greens are surrounded by runoff areas that test the best short game. The ravines that you must play over on the course make it quite exciting. The bunkers are very unique and look like sand sitting on top of a volcano in many places. There are some very difficult holes. The par threes on the backside are incredible. One is a redan style hole and the other is a long demanding one shot hole with water all down the right side of the approach. This course is an amazing collection of Dye holes that remind you of The Golf Club, Crooked Stick, and TPC Sawgrass. Go visit French Lick and play this course...."
Read More2018
Review
“Tough course that is in excellent condition. The layout is probably too hard for your average golfer. Beautiful piece of property."
Read More2018
Review
“Big golf course with a great practice facility. It's in very nice condition but I find it too pricey particularly with the requirement that you take a forecaddie. Donald Ross course is a much better value."
Read More2018
Readers
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