Golf in Rocky Mount

Cleaved into the rolling bluffs of the Carolina countryside, The Country Club of Johnston County's 18-hole, Ellis Maples–designed course encompasses 6,573 yards of well-groomed fairways and greens. Dense tree lines guide clubbers across the picturesque par 72, obstructing shots as players attempt to keep orbs on fairways that dog-leg and kitty-purr their way toward distant greens. Ponds dot the emerald landscape on four different holes, threatening ill-struck orbs and foreshadowing eventual retreats to the Club's outdoor pool. The stately complex keeps guests energized with a menu of savory grill fare, while outdoor tennis courts sate appetites for loose yellow fuzz. A dazzling banquet hall stands at the Club's epicenter, where reunited friends and wedding parties can enjoy a warmly lit ballroom, dance floor, and bar.

Course at a Glance:

• Designed by Ellis Maples
• 18-hole, par-72 course
• Length of 6,573 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 71.9 from the farthest tees
• Slope rating of 132 from the farthest tees
• Four tee options

After assessing your golf background and problem areas, Williams will tailor your lesson to your needs. Beginners are welcome, or more experienced golfers can use the lesson to improve their swing. Lessons at Perfect Fit include instruction and usage of the Explanar golf-swing training system, which improves swing technique by guiding movement through a large, adjustable hoop made of wishes. You’ll go home with written notes for practice as well as a DVD copy of a swing video with voice-over commentary.

Crooked Creek Golf Club blankets the rolling Carolina countryside with a 6,271-yard layout that challenges golfers with dramatic elevation changes and high-risk high-reward opportunities. The longer of the two halves, the front nine showcases numerous shot-making opportunities, including the drive on the par-four third hole, where golfers must choose to play it safe or try to cut the corner on a water hazard that hugs the left side.

Dramatic elevation changes await on the course’s second act, where the rolling terrain is intersected by multiple water hazards and sweeping views of the surrounding topography. After a day at the links, golfers can refuel with a cheeseburger or a platter of torn up scorecards at Club’s restaurant, The Turning Point Grill.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 71 course
• Length of 6,271 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 70.4 from the farthest tees
• Slope rating of 132 from the farthest tees
• Four tee options

From the very first tee shot over a lake to the pond protecting the left side of the 18th green, the course at River Ridge Golf Club pits players against the physical and psychological challenges brought by omnipresent water hazards, including the Neuse River that intersects the course on several holes.

Architect Chuck Smith’s 1997 design weaves course play through a 6,740-yard gauntlet furnished with a plush carpet of bermuda-grass fairways and rough that gives way to fast-moving G-6 bent-grass greens. The course's signature 5th hole rewards golfers who keep their tee shots on the fairway with a short-iron approach that must clear a large pond and any caddies sunbathing in the large greenside bunker.

As a semiprivate club, membership at River Ridge unlocks a slew of benefits not available to the general public. Though the practice area—composed of a driving range and putting and chipping greens—is open to everyone, only members may make use of the locker rooms, club storage, and handicap program provided at the clubhouse. Additionally, members are granted access to special events, tournaments, and PGA pro Tim Cockrell’s lessons, which help players calibrate putting strokes and find their swing after a long time away from the game to search for their favorite golf ball that got lost in the Neuse River.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par-72 course
• Total length of 6,740 yards from the back tees
• Course rating of 72.2 from the back tees
• Course slope of 138 from the back tees
• Four sets of tees per hole
• Scorecard

Sculpted through undulating, woodland terrain, Eagle Ridge Golf Club's par 71 course is a 6,904-yard testament to the inventive design of 1992 U.S. Open Champion Tom Kite, who made roughly two dozen trips to the site while crafting the layout. Multiple high-risk, high-reward shots manifest themselves throughout the round, creating a pin-hunting experience that—unlike trying to guess where the valet hid your car keys—challenges players without sacrificing fun. With many shots into elevated or downhill greens, the course places sound wedge and short-iron shots at a premium.

Before or after rounds, clubbers can warm up at the practice green or swing to their heart's content at the driving range, where practice balls paint racing stripes on themselves in anticipation of their trip into the clouds. To further promote score-shaving form, the club's pro shop peddles the latest in technologically enhanced golf gear, a PGA staffer offers lessons and clinics, and the dining facility fuels muscles for the next tape-measure drive.

Named among Golfweek magazine's Best New Courses and Best Campus Courses in 2010, Lonnie Poole Golf Course tests players of all skill levels with 18 challenging holes spread over 250 acres of Raleigh woodlands. Designed by the Arnold Palmer Design Group—including two North Carolina State grads as architects—the landscape features several shifts in elevation as the greens meander around large buffer areas. In its abundant turf grass and stormwater runoffs, the course also facilitates research from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences while taking extra care to preserve the streams and wild golf balls native to the Neuse River watershed.

As both the NC State men's and women's golf teams can attest, Lonnie Poole challengers golfers from the very first tee, which taunts drivers with bunkers on both sides and a sharp fall-off past the green. From there, the fifth hole ups the ante with a dogleg to the right and tall trees, whereas the 12th hole sends shots hurtling down a downhill fairway that narrows as the green nears and primes its anti-air missiles.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course

• Total length of 7,358 yards from the back tees

• Course rating of 74.8 from the back tees

• Course slope of 145 from the back tees

• Five sets of tees per hole

• Scorecard