Playing the top two public-access golf courses in Indiana is easy, as the Hoosier State is among a handful where the best layouts are part of the same operation.
In Indiana, it’s French Lick Resort and its Pete Dye Course and Donald Ross Course, which rank No. 1 and 2, respectively, on the 2022 Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play list for public-access layouts in the U.S.
The two layouts offer different styles even if each presents plenty of challenges incorporating elevation change. The Dye Course sits atop a mountain and had to be engineered, with plenty of earth moved to fit the holes along the slopes. The Ross Course sits more naturally on its terrain just a few miles away. Both also rank inside the top 200 in either the Golfweek’s Best lists for modern or classic courses.
Golfweek’s Best offers many lists of course rankings, with the list of top public-access courses in each state among the most popular. All the courses on this list allow public access in some fashion, be it standard daily green fees, through a resort or by staying at an affiliated hotel. If there’s a will, there’s a tee time.
Also popular are the Golfweek’s Best rankings of top private courses in each state, and that list for Indiana is likewise included below.
MORE: Best Modern | Best Classic | Top 200 Resort|
Top 200 Residential | Top 100 Best You Can Play
(m): Modern course, built in or after 1960
(c): Classic course, built before 1960
Note: If there is a number in the parenthesis with the m or c, that indicates where that course ranks among Golfweek’s Best top 200 modern or classic courses.
* New to or returning to list