The Best Golf Courses (You've Probably Never Heard About)

They don't have the name recognition of Pine Valley or Pebble Beach. And most golfers couldn't tell you who laid them out or where they are located. But to the cognoscenti, they are some of the finest courses in the land - artfully designed, wonderfully conditioned and pure joy to play. They are hidden

Chief Executive sought to identify the 10 best golf courses you probably never heard of in the U.S., and the results are detailed in the following list. The first five are private layouts with limited access (which means you likely need a member to agree to host you to have any chance of getting on), while the second includes those open to the public.

Myopia Hunt Club

South Hamilton, Mass.

Site of four U.S. Opens in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Myopia was founded by one of the sons of then Boston mayor Frederick Prince. It not only boasts perhaps the most unusual moniker in golf, born of the fact that several of the original members were nearsighted and wore glasses, but also one of its most delightful layouts, as challenging as it is scenic and as understated as the club itself. Myopia is not easy to get on for nonmembers. But golfers who are somehow able to wangle a round there will not soon forget its bucolic charm and architectural grace.

Mountain Lake Club

Lake Wales, Fla.

The great Seth Raynor laid out this central Florida masterpiece during World War I, regarded as one of his finest creations. Located about an hour's drive from Orlando, it features models of classic Old World golf holes the designer liked to incorporate in all his work, including a Redan and a Double Plateau. Throw in some of the best elevation changes in the Sunshine State as well as top conditioning, and you have a fabulous golfing treat, made even better by the fact that though Mountain Lake is private, it is generally happy to welcome outsiders.

Black Sheep Golf Club

Sugar Grove, III.

Founded in 2002, this men's only club seems to revel in its somewhat outlaw status as one of only a handful of American clubs that restrict membership and play based on gender, as its name surely indicates. While some people may not like the fact that women are not welcome at this Chicagoland retreat, there is no disagreement about the quality of golf there. Designer David Esler created an excellent inland links out of Illinois farm country, and the 27 holes he laid out are regarded as one of the best new courses in the U.S.

The Dunes

New Buffalo, Mich.

This nine-holer is often referred to as a mini-Pine Valley, and understandably so, as the wooded, sandy-soil terrain evokes an immediate sense of that hallowed spot. So does the course that architect Dick Nugent designed for greeting-card magnate Mike Keiser, who also happens to be the creator of highly acclaimed Bandon Dunes resort in southwestern Oregon. The Dunes was his first effort in golf course development, and Keiser built the track on 60 acres of land across the street from his summer home on Lake Michigan. Ultra-private with less than 100 members, it earned raves from all those who played it, among them writing icon Dan Jenkins, who once described The Dunes as the best nine-hole course in the country.

Astoria Golf and Country Club

Warrenton, Ore.

This course has been called "the St. Andrews of the Pacific," and that is largely due to its proximity to the ocean, as well as its often-windy conditions and location among coastal sand dunes. Opened in 1923, Astoria measures only 6,462 yards from the back tees but frequently plays much longer due to the weather. Its smallish greens and only moderately wide fairways put a premium on accurate shot making and its natural beauty make any visit there special.

Pacific Grove Municipal Golf Course Pacific Grove, Calif.

Often called a poor man's Pebble Beach, this Monterey Peninsula course is as easy on the wallet ($40 tops for a round) as it is on the eyes, especially the back nine, which feels like a round in the British Isles. Golfweek architecture editor Dr. Bradley S. Klein called Pacific Grove the purest links to be found anywhere in the Western U.S.

Leatherstocking Golf Course Cooperstown, N.Y.

Devereux Emmet designed this lovely, 18-hole course among the hills and along the waters where James Fenimore Cooper set several of his novels in upstate New York. Its name comes from the nickname Cooper gave one of his most popular characters, Natty Bumppo. Golfers can get a true sense of both the history and beauty of this placid village during their rounds, especially as they pass by the Farmers' Museum to the right of the second fairway and the Fenimore Art Museum standing behind the eighth green. And don't forget the National Baseball Hall of Fame just down the road.

Memorial Park Golf Course Houston, Tex.

Memorial Park just celebrated its 70th birthday; and the John Bredemus track remains a wonderful urban retreat in the Lone Star State's biggest city. Built during the Great Depression with crews from the Civilian Conservation Corps, it was once the site for the PGA Tour's Houston Open. The pros no longer play there, but the public does, and those who pay the extremely reasonable green fees ($22.50 for weekdays and $32 for weekends) are in for a golfing treat.

Lake of Isles (North Course) North Stonington, Conn.

The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation recently hired the noted architect Rees Jones to build two golf courses across the street from its fabulously successful Foxwoods Casino and Resort complex, and they are superb parklands tracks that wind in and around some 900 acres of gorgeous New England woods. The South Course is for members only, but the 7,300-yard North is open to all comers, and visitors claim it is the best public golf facility to open in the Northeast in ages. It not only provides an excellent test of golf but also an enjoyably bucolic reprieve from the gaming tables and slot machines of the biggest casino in the world.

Montauk Downs Golf Course Montauk, N.Y.

This track is regularly ranked among the top 50 public courses in America. Located in the 160-acre Montauk Downs State Park at the eastern end of Long Island, it measures 6,762 yards from the championship tees, and that length feels even longer when the wind blows. Players usually have to contend with wind, as the course, which Robert Trent Jones Jr. revamped in the late 1960s, is located just off the Atlantic Ocean. But they don't have to worry too much about denting their pocketbooks, as greens fees are only $39 for New York residents on the weekends, and $78 for those from out of town.