After six days of hiking, two days of golf, and one day of driving, my November 2024 hiking trip was coming to a close. It had been eventful; trudging through puddles, trying to cross rivers swollen by half a foot of rain, struggling up the incredibly steep Ouachita Mountains in Arkansas (don’t try to attempt any daily distance hiking records there). In addition to all that, Donald Trump won the presidential election while I was holed up in the historic Arlington Hotel in Hot Springs, Arkansas, where Bill Clinton grew up and whose hot mineral baths were a popular destination for celebrities and other powerful people 100 years ago. That Bill Clinton was the beloved native son in these parts and won states like Arkansas and Louisiana 30 years ago made me reflect on how much things have changed in the political landscape just in my lifetime. Trump won them both by over 20 points.
While I planned my last day of activity to be hiking in Nashville (a surprisingly good place for it) followed by a long drive back to Washington DC, I ended up having one more day to kill. My first thought was to try to play William Flynn’s famous Cascades Course at the Homestead Inn in western Virginia. But I found out that they closed for the season at the beginning of November.
My next thought was the Highland Course at Primland, which had always looked to me from pictures to be one of America’s best-looking mountain courses. It had intrigued me enough that I would have been willing to do a long day trip to play it. But this place is really far from DC—probably a six hour drive—and incredibly remote and difficult to get to, even from places nearby. That’s because the course, which is part of a five-star resort (more on that later), is on the top of a mountain surrounded by a a gorge. There’s only one way in and unless you’re coming in from the south, this involves a long drive around the gorge. I started the day only 30 or 40 miles away, yet the drive still took 2 hours.
I’m not sure why, but I had imagined the course as broad and not too challenging, with minimal bunkering, well suited for resort golf. Well, it may not have too many bunkers, but broad-and-not-too-challenging it is not. This is without a doubt one of the most difficult courses that I’ve played. There’s ample opportunity to lose a ball on almost every shot, including several greens where you can land a ball on the green and still lose it down a cliff (happened to me twice). If you’re spraying the ball off the tee and using expensive golf balls, you could lose a significant percentage of the not-inexpensive green fee in golf balls.
So I had mixed feelings about the Highland Course. On one hand, you have to give Donald Steel and his associates a ton of credit for being able to build a functional golf course here at all. The course literally plays through the mountain highlands, not through the valleys next to them as most mountain courses do. Apparently they spent a lot of time onsite developing this routing and I’d imagine that it took a lot of this just to find any routing that would work, let alone a very good one. There’s a lot to admire about what they produced; there are only a few times where there’s more than 100 yards between a green and the next tee. I wouldn’t recommend walking this course because of how hilly it is, but at least it’s feasible in theory. At the same time, there are several holes where they could have made things a bit wider or added some shaping or a hazard to prevent your ball from falling off the world. If there were ever a course that could have used a few ‘saving’ hazards, it’s this one.
But the drive on the short par 5 first was more in line with what I had been expecting—gently uphill to a generous fairway. It’s only about a 220 yard carry over the edge of the bunker on the right and it’s probably best to hug the right side unless you’re a shorter hitter because it’s only about 265 to run through the fairway on the left. And this being the top of a mountain, the fairways drain well and are likely to be quite firm.
While I planned my last day of activity to be hiking in Nashville (a surprisingly good place for it) followed by a long drive back to Washington DC, I ended up having one more day to kill. My first thought was to try to play William Flynn’s famous Cascades Course at the Homestead Inn in western Virginia. But I found out that they closed for the season at the beginning of November.
My next thought was the Highland Course at Primland, which had always looked to me from pictures to be one of America’s best-looking mountain courses. It had intrigued me enough that I would have been willing to do a long day trip to play it. But this place is really far from DC—probably a six hour drive—and incredibly remote and difficult to get to, even from places nearby. That’s because the course, which is part of a five-star resort (more on that later), is on the top of a mountain surrounded by a a gorge. There’s only one way in and unless you’re coming in from the south, this involves a long drive around the gorge. I started the day only 30 or 40 miles away, yet the drive still took 2 hours.
I’m not sure why, but I had imagined the course as broad and not too challenging, with minimal bunkering, well suited for resort golf. Well, it may not have too many bunkers, but broad-and-not-too-challenging it is not. This is without a doubt one of the most difficult courses that I’ve played. There’s ample opportunity to lose a ball on almost every shot, including several greens where you can land a ball on the green and still lose it down a cliff (happened to me twice). If you’re spraying the ball off the tee and using expensive golf balls, you could lose a significant percentage of the not-inexpensive green fee in golf balls.
So I had mixed feelings about the Highland Course. On one hand, you have to give Donald Steel and his associates a ton of credit for being able to build a functional golf course here at all. The course literally plays through the mountain highlands, not through the valleys next to them as most mountain courses do. Apparently they spent a lot of time onsite developing this routing and I’d imagine that it took a lot of this just to find any routing that would work, let alone a very good one. There’s a lot to admire about what they produced; there are only a few times where there’s more than 100 yards between a green and the next tee. I wouldn’t recommend walking this course because of how hilly it is, but at least it’s feasible in theory. At the same time, there are several holes where they could have made things a bit wider or added some shaping or a hazard to prevent your ball from falling off the world. If there were ever a course that could have used a few ‘saving’ hazards, it’s this one.
But the drive on the short par 5 first was more in line with what I had been expecting—gently uphill to a generous fairway. It’s only about a 220 yard carry over the edge of the bunker on the right and it’s probably best to hug the right side unless you’re a shorter hitter because it’s only about 265 to run through the fairway on the left. And this being the top of a mountain, the fairways drain well and are likely to be quite firm.
On the second shot, I could see that things weren’t going to be quite so simple. First thing to note, the view is spectacular. But then I quickly noticed how dangerous this shot is. The right side of the fairway slopes off into the woods and so does the left once you get close to the green. Accuracy is essential here. I only had about 220 playing quite a bit downhill, so I felt that I couldn’t really lay up, although doing so would have eliminated much of the danger. Fortunately I hit one straight and it rolled down the hill up next to the green.
The par 3 second looks a bit more receptive but there’s real danger here too—anything hitting the right side of the green with some momentum can roll off the back into the junk. This would be a good spot for a saving bunker. But as it is, I’d recommend aiming at the left side of the green, where there’s a backstop if you go a bit long.
As I stood on the third tee, I could see that my prior thoughts about this course were completely wrong. Unless you’re a very straight hitter, this is an uncomfortable golf course. This drive is narrow and the fairway looks like it might run off into the woods on the right.
But it’s also a very short par 5 (<500 yards) and the drive is significantly downhill. All you need to do is hit something straight. If you do, there’s a good chance that your ball will kick forward and that you’ll have a mid or short-iron into the green. The green site is much more spacious and forgiving.
But it’s also a very short par 5 (<500 yards) and the drive is significantly downhill. All you need to do is hit something straight. If you do, there’s a good chance that your ball will kick forward and that you’ll have a mid or short-iron into the green. The green site is much more spacious and forgiving.
It’s a bit of a hike uphill to reach the next tee but when we get there, we’re greeted with a lovely short par 3. I really like the look and feel of this hole. The green rests simply on the land, abutted by a grove of mountain laurels on its right side and at the back. The green contours are also outstanding.
The short par 4 fifth plays off the top of the mountain, back down into a valley, and then back uphill to a green built into the side of a hill. We’ll see this template again. The drive is made more intimidating by the fact that they left a lot of trees just off the tee. Given how difficult this course is, the added visual intimidation is not a positive.
Don’t hit driver here because it’s only about 250 to the bunker on the left and 260 to a clump of trees on the right. And do take probably two extra clubs on the approach.
Don’t hit driver here because it’s only about 250 to the bunker on the left and 260 to a clump of trees on the right. And do take probably two extra clubs on the approach.
Six is another short par 5 with another very uncomfortable tee shot. Given that the land slopes left into the woods and that I couldn’t see the fairway, I assumed it was best to aim up the right. But that’s not enough; if you’re going to hit driver, you also need to hit a fade because it’s easy for anything in the 260-280 range to run through the fairway. On reflection, if I were to play here again, I’d probably only hit one driver off the tee in the first six holes (at the first)
Like the third, the approach is much more forgiving. Although you can’t see the landing area or the green, the land is much flatter and there’s less worry about losing your ball off an edge. In what’s becoming a positive theme, then green has excellent interior contour.
While the visibility from the tee on the long par 4 seventh is better, there still isn’t a lot of room to play. Because it was only about 250 to the right fairway bunkers from the 6,700+ yard tees that I was playing, I moved back to the tips, from where this hole plays 494 (about the same length as the par 5 third). At 270, I still hit it in the bunkers. Again, given the difficulty of the course and especially how long this hole already is, these bunkers, which are only 35 yards from the edge of a cliff on the other side of the fairway, could go.
Once you’re in the fairway, it’s a beautiful downhill approach to another large, well-contoured green.
The ~190 yard eighth is a lovely par 3 playing down into a valley. You can see the fine green contours from the tee as well as the danger to the green’s right.
I didn’t get a picture from the tee on the short par 4 ninth but the drive plays significantly uphill and the fairway narrows at around 210 yards, a distance which is surprisingly hard to pass (I hit a good one and I’m pretty sure I didn’t). Both the drive and the approach play about 30 feet uphill and again, you’ll probably need two extra clubs here.
After a drive uphill to the back of the spectacular hotel, we come to simpler-looking long par 4. But the clearing between the junk on the left and the right is only about 50 yards and I think again, the right fairway bunker might be one element too many.
Eleven is another longer par 4 with a less visually intimidating drive. In fact, this might be the first fairway so far that I’d describe as ‘generous.’ The hole turns left and while you can shorten it by going up the left side, you also need to be fairly long if you do this because you can get blocked by trees on the approach. The green site is well-chosen and gives ample opportunity to run one on. Just don’t go long.
Twelve is the fourth par 3 and while shorter on the card than eight, plays about the same length in practice (mid/long iron). But this one is probably more difficult because the green is narrow, especially in the front, and left is all short grass, which can leave some tricky chips.
I think that the very long par 5 thirteenth is one of the highlights of the Highlands, along with the first and the fourth. The drive isn’t particularly interesting but the rest of the hole is. After turning right in the drive landing zone, the hole turns left and narrows about 100 yards short of the green. The smart thing to do is to get a yardage to the post and try to keep it 10-20 yards short of that because an aggressive shot that misses in either direction can easily be lost.
The approach is uphill to the most heavily contoured green on the course. On its own, this green is superb, although I felt that it might have been a bit of overkill given how long and challenging the rest of the hole is.
I was reading somewhere, I think in the lodge, about how finding the par 3 fourteenth hole was the key to making the routing work. I can see why—this is the most challenging part of the property so far and it looks like there was barely enough room out there to build a green. In fact, when we get up there and see the actual green, it doesn’t look much bigger.
It’s critical here not to go for right pins because like the second, your ball can easily hit the green and run down into the woods. But the hill left of the green will kick your ball onto it. Also, long and short are both no good. So there’s probably no reason to try to do anything other than hit the left side of the green.
It’s critical here not to go for right pins because like the second, your ball can easily hit the green and run down into the woods. But the hill left of the green will kick your ball onto it. Also, long and short are both no good. So there’s probably no reason to try to do anything other than hit the left side of the green.
Fifteen brings us back to some of the nervous, narrow drives from the front nine. Again, I think there’s probably only about 40 yards between the trees on the left and running down into the woods on the right. The green is bunkerless and deep but again, stay away from the right side. I pushed my approach a little and never found my ball.
Although I didn’t get a picture, I remember that the sixteenth hole drive felt a bit more forgiving, with bunkers up the right saving you from falling down into a pit. The approach looks similar to fifteen, although there’s much more flat ground around this green.
The par 5 seventeenth features another tough drive, this time with the cliff’s edge visibly cutting into the fairway up the right side. The approach is significantly uphill, seemingly with more room left than right. The lay up landing area is fairly generous but if you’re in range of the green, make sure that you don’t go too far left.
The area around the tee on the long apr 4 eighteenth features some of the most spectacular views on the property. But don’t let this distract you from the drive, which, again, is very difficult. You probably need about 230 to clear the junk up the right and if you’re comfortable with that, it’ll leave you the shortest approach. But a slight push and your ball is lost. Left is safer, but it’s possible to run through the fairway if you don’t hit a fade.
The approach is downhill to another generous, well-contoured green. Although the drive is a bit butt-puckering, it’s a fine finishing hole.
I noted in my review of Ozarks National that Coore and Crenshaw had a very difficult piece of land and did an excellent job with the routing. Well, this property was probably an order of magnitude more difficult. And I think that Steel and Co. did an excellent job with the routing.
But I also think that there are many holes that could have removed one element of difficulty or added something to make it harder to lose a ball. There are several holes (3, 5, 11, 15) where some tree removal would make for a little more room or at least a less visually intimidating shot. They could have probably lost the fairway bunkers on seven and ten. I loved the thirteenth green, but it’s already a very long and difficult hole from tee-to-green. And there are a few greens that could use a bunker or a bit more shaping to keep balls from rolling off the green into the woods.
Overall, I thought that the Highland Course was very good, but it likely wouldn’t make my list of America’s top 100 public courses (and certainly not the top 30 like on Golf Digest’s list). A few of the tweaks mentioned above might get it there but as it is, it’s just a bit too severe to make the cut.
Having said that, provided that you have the budget for the $315 green fee (or come off season, when it’s only $215) and don’t mind driving out of your way (because this course isn’t on the way to anything), I’d highly recommend playing the Highland Course at Primland, more than other courses that I’d rank similarly. One, it must be one of the most beautiful courses in the country, a mountain course in the truest sense and one unlike anything that I’ve seen.
But two, this place in general is absolutely spectacular. I’m not sure that I’ve ever been to a five-star resort (it's certainly a level up from Pinehurst), but this place makes you understand the meaning of the phrase. It looks like a place where a James Bond villain would go on vacation, a luxurious hidden fortress in a vast wilderness. The lodge is just gorgeous, with an interior of mostly wood and rock, which fits in well with the surrounding landscape. And the furnishings are impeccable. The main room features two fireplaces and an assortment of interesting pieces of furniture and coffee table books. It was one of the most pleasant, comfortable places to have a post-round drink that I’ve experienced. And I’m sure I’d love the lodging and dining here too, if I could afford to spend the ~$1000+ a night to do so.
But I also think that there are many holes that could have removed one element of difficulty or added something to make it harder to lose a ball. There are several holes (3, 5, 11, 15) where some tree removal would make for a little more room or at least a less visually intimidating shot. They could have probably lost the fairway bunkers on seven and ten. I loved the thirteenth green, but it’s already a very long and difficult hole from tee-to-green. And there are a few greens that could use a bunker or a bit more shaping to keep balls from rolling off the green into the woods.
Overall, I thought that the Highland Course was very good, but it likely wouldn’t make my list of America’s top 100 public courses (and certainly not the top 30 like on Golf Digest’s list). A few of the tweaks mentioned above might get it there but as it is, it’s just a bit too severe to make the cut.
Having said that, provided that you have the budget for the $315 green fee (or come off season, when it’s only $215) and don’t mind driving out of your way (because this course isn’t on the way to anything), I’d highly recommend playing the Highland Course at Primland, more than other courses that I’d rank similarly. One, it must be one of the most beautiful courses in the country, a mountain course in the truest sense and one unlike anything that I’ve seen.
But two, this place in general is absolutely spectacular. I’m not sure that I’ve ever been to a five-star resort (it's certainly a level up from Pinehurst), but this place makes you understand the meaning of the phrase. It looks like a place where a James Bond villain would go on vacation, a luxurious hidden fortress in a vast wilderness. The lodge is just gorgeous, with an interior of mostly wood and rock, which fits in well with the surrounding landscape. And the furnishings are impeccable. The main room features two fireplaces and an assortment of interesting pieces of furniture and coffee table books. It was one of the most pleasant, comfortable places to have a post-round drink that I’ve experienced. And I’m sure I’d love the lodging and dining here too, if I could afford to spend the ~$1000+ a night to do so.