Golden Horseshoe Golf Club: Gold Course

Golden Horseshoe's Gold Course opened in 1963 at Colonial Williamsburg, and Robert Trent Jones Sr. didn't hide how he felt about it, he called it his finest design and 'the equal of Augusta National.' The setting is one of the few American courses that earns 'Masters-like' comparisons from Golf Magazine: mature hardwoods, dogwoods and azaleas, and par-3s routed over water to greens that look hand-placed. The four par-3s at Golden Horseshoe Gold are regarded as one of the best collections anywhere. The 16th is the one everyone remembers, a 169-yard shot to an island green surrounded by azaleas, with no fairway between tee and putting surface, which Jones called his finest par-3. The course plays 6,817 yards to a par of 71; seven holes bring water into play, and the par-5 15th stretches 634 yards from the championship tees. Golden Horseshoe has kept its place on national 'Top 100 You Can Play' lists from Golf Digest, Golfweek, and Golf Magazine, Golf Digest has it at #60 in America's 100 Greatest Public in 2025. It anchors Williamsburg golf trips, usually paired with Kingsmill's River course for a two-course Virginia itinerary.