Hello All. Going to be taking a family vacation to Gatlinburg, TN and looking to get in a round or four. Any input on courses in that area would be greatly appreciated.

There are numerous courses nearby. One is Gatlinburg Golf Course. You can get tee times on Golfnow.com for around $60/player. I have never played there but heard it was pretty nice. A course nearby is Eagle's Landing. Very nice course and they just opened up another section to the course. I haven't played the new section but it is a nice course that is close by.

Another good course is River Islands. We played 36 holes there on Sunday for $60. Paid $40 through Golfnow.com and the replay was $20. The course has a great layout that snakes through the river.

I recently played Gatlinburg GC. It's a decent course. The greens were pretty good, but there are some pretty goofy holes. I played it in a scramble and didn't have to pay, but I wouldn't pay $60 to play there. Don't think there's a range either.

Another recommendation for River Islands in Kodak TN. It's only about 30-45 min (depending on traffic) and it's a great track. Zoyja (sp?) fairways, great views, and relatively quick greens. The clubhouse isn't much but the course itself is awesome.

Thanks for the input... we don't mind driving... prob. the longest distance of an hour. Just looking for several choice courses to roll the rock.

How about the Knoxville area, any ideas?

River Islands is your best course. I would not play the Gatlinburg course, too many blind shots and not worth $60. Eagles Landing is nice, just a little torn up from making it 36 holes not all 36 are open yet just 18. Also no range at eagles landing they tore it up.

In Knoxville there is Willow Creek, Avalon, and just a little further in Oak Ridge there is Centenial. All good courses.

Willow Creek is good, but being on west side of town it's probably too far to drive from Gatlinburg.

I agree. For my money, I'm going to either River Islands as many have already said or Egwani Farms. Egwani is by the Knoxville Airport and not a bad drive from Gatlinburg. Zoysia fairways, bent greens.

Gatlinburg GC is an ok course, it's been there for years and is conveniently located in Pigeon Forge. I haven't played it in years so I can't comment on the condition but it's fun and has some scenic holes. As already mentioned, River Islands in Kodak is IMHO the best course in the area. It's a nice Arthur Hills design with Zoysia fairways which give you a nice lie as long as you keep it in the short stuff. These days with the sprawl down there I'd say it's pretty conveniently located, it's about 4 or 5 miles from the Sevierville exit off I40.

I would also look 20-30 minutes east. There is Patriot Hills which is usually on golfnow for 25.00 and Dandridge which has 27 holes and can be played for under 25.00. Greens are always nice.

I would disagree, Patriot Hills isn't on the same level as the other courses mentioned...pretty much a muni course IMO.

IMO patriot hills sucks. Conditions are never great and the pace is snail-like. And I believe it's a little further than River Islands which is off the 402 exit where sevierville/gatlinburg/pigeon forge is the 407. Seems like patriot is the 417.

I guess that's why they play all of the local qualifiers at Patriot Hills for big tournaments. Although River Island is nice, be it currently bankrupt and in the process of being sold, it is overpriced and is a tourist trap. You must buy their membership card (links club) to play there, which is never mentioned until you arrive. Their scorecard shows 7001 from the tips, but I have never seen the markers at the back of any boxes, they are overall, not very friendly at all, if you play before 10:00, they will have no cart girl and number 9 doesn't return to the clubhouse. They do have a food shack out there, but again, don't play early if you prefer to get a drink after 9 holes. Non resident rate on fri sat and sun is 59.00 plus the extra for the required membership card (can't rememember if it is 5 or 10). River island has two par three's that play over the river, but most of the other holes are just straight forward like anywhere else you would play. If you hit it relatively long, it is a driver wedge course. If you want real east tennessee golf, just go to Bent Creek and pay about 10.00 less. It gets real goofy, but puts a premium on straight drives and good layups. As you can tell, river island isn't my favorite. Too many bad experiences with staff.

Patriot Hills is a dump. It's also very short. I'm not sure what qualifiers they have there, but I've played several qualifiers in Knoxville (Us Open, US AM, US Mid-AM, Southern AM, Nationwide) and none of those have been at Patriot Hills. Maybe you are thinking about Holston Hills?? Now that's a great golf course!

If you want to drive an hour or more then here is another list of courses I recommend:

- Three Ridges, North Knoxville (my home course which is 2 miles from the house, it's a public course but has challenging holes. Nationwide Tour used to play at that course in the late 90's. Bunkers are the weakest part of the course.)

- Willow Creek, West Knoxville (Former Nationwide Tour course. Nice layout)

- Patriot Hills, Dandridge (Nice layout. Has some interesting holes but was in pretty decent shape when I played it in the spring.)

- Rarity Pointe, Lenior City, TN (Probably longer than an hour from Gatlingburg but you can get there going down Hwy 321. Probably my favorite golf course. Fairly new course and has some LONG par 4's. Has a lot of terrain to the course and it is NOT recommended to walk. We are playing there tomorrow for $33 which we got tee times from Golfnow.com. This would be my top 5 courses to play if you were in the Knoxville area.)

- Rarity Bay, Vonore, TN (This is way down south of Knoxville but is a very nice course. Similar to Rarity Pointe and owned by the same group. Can't go wrong with the Rarity community courses.)

- Centennial, Oak Ridge, TN (Tight golf course but very manageable. I would recommend this course.)

- Avalon, Lenior City, TN (Nice layout and is a drive from Gatlinburg.)

- Graysburg Hills, Chuckey, TN (Have only played this course once in a 2-man golf tournament but I liked the layout and would probably play it again. Clubhouse is not very nice but the course was fun.)

- Millstone, Morristown, TN (Not the longest course in the world. Everyone jokes that it's the "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" course. There is a train that runs adjacent to the course. It's probably not the nicest course compared to the others on this list but it's a good track.)

Courses like Holston Hills and Oak Ridge Country Clubs are private courses. Might be hard to get on those but both are very nice.

When are you coming to Gatlinburg?

River Islands is your best option - it is not even close for the $$$. Exit 402 off of 40.

july 15 to 21

The three I would play in your shoes would be Eagles landing, River islands, and Patriot Hills. Patriot Hills is a fun layout (6700 from the tips) and the whole course is in pretty good shape. The staff at Patriot Hills are some of the nicest you will come across in the area outside of Egwani Farms. Steer clear of Willow Creek in west Knoxville unless you like being treated like a second class citizen that needs to worship them for allowing you to play the course. Have fun with your family in Gatlinburg. Be sure to go to the aquarium.

First off the links club is gone, done with. Actually they just put in a FREE frequent player system buy 6 rounds 7th is free.
Second, what qualifier of any magnitude has been at Patriot Hills?? I've played in a few and they've always been out west or River I/Holston/Three Ridges if out east. I'm not saying it hasn't happened just not that I remember.
To the OP, go enjoy River Islands if you wanna stay within an hours drive. But, if you can get away from the family for a while, sneak off to Rarity Bay in Vonore. Not gonna lie it's a bit of a drive, probably hour and a half at worst but it is awesome. And if you like vodka tonics they make a great double!

Has anyone heard or played a course called Ruggles Ferry in Strawberry Plains? I am staying in Sevierville with family and my brother and I are going to play again this afternoon. Ruggles Ferry was recommended.

We played Patriot Hills on Sunday and it was just ok at best. Seemed like there were out of bounds markers on every hole as the course snakes through a housing development.

We were lucky enough to get on Holston Hills on Tuesday (had to play with a member.) Old school Donald Ross at its best and in great condition. I have played some very nice courses around the country and Holston Hills is a real hidden gem. This is a must play for Donald Ross fans.

Ruggles Ferry is an OK course. They are proud of that course and will set you back about $45. I don't know why it costs that much to play there. However, the same family owns Ruggles Ferry, Patriot Hills and Dandridge Golf Courses.