Must Play Golf Courses in Lexington, Ky

Lexington, KY is probably more closely associated with fast horses and great bourbon than great golf. First time visitors are often surprised to find an abundance of top shelf golf with rates low enough to keep you coming back.

Kearney Hill Golf Links

I fell in love with this Pete Dye layout, just north of downtown Lexington, the first time I played it. With a relative dearth of trees and the flattish to rolling topography, it does have a visual similarity with links courses more commonly found in and around the British Isles but the lush bent grass fairways and greens tend to play more like most inland courses on this side of the pond. The fairways are generous and the greens are on the big side but they both have there share of nuances to keep you on your toes tee to green. The local municipality that runs the course keeps the rates reasonable at under thirty dollars for a midweek round that includes cart rental. The par 72 stretches out to just over 7000 yards from the back tees and carries a course rating of 73.5 and a slope of 128. Check www.lexingtonky.gov and www.golfnow.com for current rates and specials.

Old Silo

Aussie Pro Graham Marsh chose a ruggedly beatiful stretch of property, some thirty miles east of Lexington in Mount Sterling, for his first Stateside design and he came up with a ruggedly beautiful course. With 84 bunkers framing the fairways and greens you’ll want to be on good terms with your sand game and the sometimes mountainous elevation changes will test your driver as well. If your game goes south, you can take solace in the inspirational vistas all over the course. The par 72 has a stout course rating and slope and can be a brute at over 7000 yards from the tips. Midweek rates are under fifty dollars. www.oldsilo.com and www.golfnow.com

Houston Oaks

This Jack Ridge design has some holes that wonder through a parkland setting of huge oaks while the rest are wide open. The bent grass fairways are generous but there’s just enough water to keep you honest. The former horse farm is easy on the eyes and always seems to be in better than average condition. The practice area is better than most as well. The par 72 tops out at 6842 yards and has a course rating of 73.8 and a slope of 137. Check www.houstonoaksgc.com and www.golfnow.com