Top 10 U.S. Public Golf Courses with Outstanding City Views

Spectacular scenery on golf courses usually revolves around ocean vistas, mountain panoramas, sparkling lakes, and towering trees. From time to time, however, we are awed at the tee box by what man has wrought in constructing our cityscapes. Skyscrapers, bridges, and other engineering landmarks can captivate as compelling backdrops almost as robustly as what grandeurs nature has bestowed.

Here are the top 10 courses with outstanding city views that you can play.

Balboa Park—San Diego, Calif.

Serious San Diego history seekers must look past Torrey Pines—and land at Balboa Park. This large urban park is best known for its justifiably world-famous zoo, where Panda-monium reigns, but it also boasts a William P. Bell-designed par-72 layout of 6,339 hilly yards that dates to the early 1930s. Small greens that slope back to front place a premium on precise iron play and the rolling terrain complicates lies and stances, though it was no match for Sam Snead. While stationed in San Diego with the U.S. Navy in 1943, Snead scorched Balboa in 28–32, for a course record 60 that still stands. Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, and Amy Alcott won Junior World events here and growing up, Phil Mickelson was a regular here with his family. Supremely testing holes include the beefy 439-yard par-four 10th that doglegs slightly right, and the even meatier double-dogleg, 555-yard par-five 16th. The round concludes with a drop-shot par three, the 198-yard 17th, and the up-the-hill, 316-yard par-four 18th. If you have time, the par-32 executive nine is a dandy. And when you’re not looking down at the ball, look up—San Diego city views and landmark park buildings are all around you.

Bali Hai—Las Vegas, Nev.

A fistful of public-access tracks provides memorable long views of the Strip, but Bali Hai wows with in-your-face vistas of Vegas landmarks from many holes. On the south end of the Strip, practically in the backyard of Las Vegas’s McCarran International Airport, Bali Hai is a conveniently located, if occasionally jet-washed Schmidt-Curley layout that embraces a South Seas tropical theme. Towering palms, brilliant white sand, and exotic foliage grace every hole. Most memorable is a pair of stunning par threes, the 208-yard 9th and the 141-yard 16th, both that practically melt into the clubhouse. The north-facing holes yield striking backdrops that include the Mandalay Bay hotel and the pyramid-shaped Luxor.

Bally’s Golf Links at Ferry Point—Bronx, N.Y.

Designed by Jack Nicklaus (with architect John Sanford collaborating), the city-owned Bally’s (formerly a Trump-managed property) occupies a remarkable tract, a former landfill adjacent to the Whitestone Bridge, with backdrops that include the East River, Long Island Sound, the Throgs Neck Bridge, and the Manhattan skyline. Natural-looking dunes topped with wavy fescue grasses frame nearly every hole, yielding a links-like look. At 7,407 yards, it will test the best, but there are few forced carries to torment the duffer. Highlights include the 425-yard par-four 9th and the 576-yard par-five 18th that play practically onto the entrance ramp to the Whitestone Bridge, as well as the 441-yard par-four 13th that wows with the cityscape. Best is the 487-yard par-four 16th that dishes out a fairway ribboning through shaggy-fringed bunkers and wetlands with an East River background.

City Park—Denver, Colo.

Dating to a 1913 design by Tom Bendelow, considered the Johnny Appleseed of American golf course architects, City Park has always enjoyed a heart-of-the-city location in Denver. While renovating the course in 2020 as part of a stormwater management project, architect Todd Schoeder managed to retain the character of this grizzled urban muni while updating the infrastructure to 21st century standards. A fistful of holes take in views of the mountains and the Denver skyline, including the 430-yard par-four first, which sports a Biarritz-style green, and at the toughest hole on the course, the 467-yard par-four 11th, a slight dogleg-left that flirts with a wide stream (technically called a natural treatment channel) on the right, with a fairway that tilts toward the water.

Crandon Golf at Key Biscayne—Key Biscayne, Fla.

Situated on a barrier island 10 minutes from downtown Miami, and offering sensational views of the city skyline and Biscayne Bay, Crandon Golf at Key Biscayne is a sand- and water-drenched, upscale muni that hosted the PGA Tour Champions from 1987–2004, with winners that include bunker masters Lee Trevino and Gary Player. Following Hurricane Andrew in 1992, city fathers turned to original architect Robert Von Hagge to rebuild and reload, making it a sterner layout than before. More than 30 years later, it’s no different. Palms, mangroves, lakes, elevated greens, and coastal breezes drive up the slope at the 7,182-yard par-72 spread to 146, making it one of the Sunshine State’s toughest tests.

Gateway National—Madison, Ill. (St. Louis. Mo.)

This 1998 Keith Foster creation may be situated 15 miles northeast of downtown St. Louis, in southwestern Illinois, but from many of its holes the famous Gateway Arch, the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge, and the downtown skyline are clearly in view. The 7,178-yard par-71 course is also located next to the World Wide Technology Raceway, host to NASCAR, IndyCar, and drag racing events, so expect some intriguing sounds and scents as you navigate the layout. Draped atop land that parallels the Mississippi River, the terrain is understandably flattish, but Foster and his team popped in strategic bunkers and stone-fronted greens to create interest and variety.

Granite Links at Quarry Hills—Quincy, Mass.

Emerging out of Boston’s “Big Dig” civic project in 2004, Granite Links at Quarry Hills in suburban Quincy rolls out three John Sanford-designed championship nines atop an old quarry that also yield outstanding panoramas of downtown Boston. Bold bunkers and granite outcroppings further heighten the aesthetic appeal, and for good measure, the 19th hole facilities are the best in the region. The two oldest nines, “Granite” and “Milton,” form the preferred championship layout, but the “Quincy” nine has plenty of appeal of its own. Of the hilly, mostly treeless holes, the 387-yard par-four 5th on the Milton nine stands out for its tee shot that should be directed between the John Hancock and Prudential Towers.

Harborside International—Chicago, Ill.

Harborside International features two faux-links courses near the downtown loop. Both are 1995 Dick Nugent designs draped atop landfill sites that serve up breeze-fueled shotmaking challenges and outstanding views of the city skyline. The Port and Starboard courses offer near-equal experiences in challenge and scenery. The Port played host to the Champions Tour in 2002, when Ben Crenshaw compared it to Muirfield in Scotland, and its par-three 6th hole witnessed an ace by former president Bill Clinton in 2001.

Stevens Park—Dallas, Texas

Its pipsqueak price tag ($35–$67) makes it catnip for wallet watchers, yet this ancient muni looks and plays like a five-star resort course. Situated minutes from downtown, Stevens is a century-old spread that’s practically engulfed by a neighborhood. An inspired redesign by John Colligan and Trey Kemp in 2011 of the tight, hilly layout retained its classic traits and its skyline views of downtown Dallas, put a creek into play on six holes, and added a veritable arboretum of new shrubs and flowers.

West Seattle Golf Course—Seattle, Wash.

At 6,805 yards and par 72, West Seattle Golf Course is a 1939 H. Chandler Egan design that features ravines, steep sidehills, and outstanding vistas of the downtown skyline. The longer front nine skirts Longfellow Creek, highlighted by the 349-yard par-four 2nd, which sports a view of the city’s landmark Space Needle. Precision is paramount on the hilly, more open back nine.