My Top Picks for Most Scenic Golf Courses

This course is simply iconic. You're playing right along the rugged California coastline with stunning views of the Pacific Ocean and Carmel Bay on nearly every hole, especially from holes 4 through 10 and the finishing 17th and 18th.

Nestled at the foot of the majestic Mourne Mountains and overlooking Dundrum Bay in Northern Ireland, this links course is a true gem. The natural beauty of rolling dunes, heather-covered hills, and stunning coastline makes it an unforgettable experience.

Talk about exclusive beauty! This legendary private club on the Monterey Peninsula in California boasts a rocky headland, coastal dunes, and a marine forest, creating a truly varied and thrilling landscape. The finishing holes, particularly the par-3 16th, are absolutely breathtaking.

While not oceanfront, Augusta National is a masterpiece of landscape design. The rolling hills, vibrant azaleas, towering pines, and perfectly manicured fairways create a visual feast, especially during The Masters.

This whole resort in Oregon is special, but Pacific Dunes truly stands out. It's built on dramatic, wind-swept sand dunes high above the Pacific, offering expansive ocean views on almost every hole.

Perched on a dramatic peninsula in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand, this course offers awe-inspiring cliff-top golf with incredible views of the Pacific Ocean. The sheer sandstone cliffs and gannet colony add to its unique charm.

Located on a stunning peninsula in County Cork, Ireland, Old Head is literally surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. The clifftop setting and dramatic drops make for some of the most spectacular (and challenging!) holes you'll ever play.

Pete Dye sculpted this course along two miles of Lake Michigan shoreline in Wisconsin, and it feels like a piece of Ireland transported to the Midwest. The open, rugged, and windswept terrain with its massive dunes and pot bunkers is just incredible.

For mountain scenery, it's hard to beat Banff Springs in Alberta, Canada. Nestled in Banff National Park, you're surrounded by the majestic Canadian Rockies on every hole.

While incredibly private, the sheer natural beauty and peaceful tranquility of Pine Valley in New Jersey are legendary. It's a stunning wooded course where the colors of trees, sand, and grasses blend into a magnificent painting.

This course in Nova Scotia, Canada, is relatively new but has quickly gained fame for its dramatic oceanfront holes and stunning cliffside views. It's truly a modern marvel of golf course architecture blended with incredible natural beauty.

Located in La Romana, Dominican Republic, this Pete Dye masterpiece lives up to its name with seven holes right alongside the Caribbean Sea. The vibrant blue water contrasting with the lush green fairways is simply unforgettable.

While the Old Course is historic, the Castle Course at St. Andrews offers a different kind of beauty, set on a cliff along the North Sea. Its rugged landscapes combined with a sense of history are hard to beat.

This Australian Sandbelt gem in Cheltenham, Victoria, might not have ocean views, but its strategic bunkering and native vegetation create a unique and stunning aesthetic. The way the fairways blend into the scrubby sand is truly captivating.