Chardonnay Golf Club

Chardonnay Golf Club is one of Napa Valley's most-played public-access courses, sitting in Jameson Canyon at the southeastern gateway to the wine country, the stretch of highway that connects the Napa Valley to Vallejo, American Canyon, and the Bay Area beyond. Architect Algie M. Pulley Jr. opened the 6,948-yard par-72 layout in 1991, weaving the routing through more than 150 acres of working Chardonnay, Merlot, and Pinot Noir vineyards. Numerous lakes and creek crossings add strategic depth to every round. The par-3 8th is the most memorable hole on the course, both for the vineyard-framed scenery and for its difficulty, with a tee shot that has to carry real trouble to a small green. The 73.9 rating and 135 slope put Chardonnay squarely in the serious-public-golf conversation despite its wine-country vacation setting. For the Napa Valley trip visitor who wants a round built around the actual wine-country scenery (rather than a generic parkland course that happens to be in the region), Chardonnay is the distinctive pick.