Parkland Course
A parkland course is an inland golf course built on lush, grassy land with tree-lined fairways and meticulously maintained turf. The name comes from the park-like character of the layout, in contrast to the windswept, coastal terrain of a links course.
What is a parkland course?
A parkland course is built on lush, well-watered land with trees lining most fairways and an inland setting that gives the layout its park-like character. Fairways are conditioned and irrigated. Greens are typically soft and receptive to approach shots. The overall look is groomed and pastoral, the opposite of the raw, sandy coastlines where golf originated.
The term is sometimes shortened to “park course,” and both names trace back to the visual impression these courses create. What sets parkland apart from a course that simply has trees is the deliberate, manicured aesthetic. The fairways are irrigated, and the rough is kept up, and hazards like bunkers and ponds are placed by an architect rather than left to nature. A course can have plenty of trees and still not qualify as parkland if its turf is firm and unmanaged, the way it is on a heathland or links. According to the golf reference site Golf Compendium, parkland courses are the standard style of golf course in the United States, and most PGA Tour and LPGA Tour events are played on parkland layouts.
Where the term comes from
Golf began on the links of Scotland, the sandy, treeless strips of coastal land between the dunes and the farmland. Every early British course was built on the coast. As the sport spread inland in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, designers had to build courses on land that didn’t naturally suit golf, and these new layouts sat in pastoral, treed settings that resembled English country estates and public parks. The name stuck: park course, then parkland course.
The style took off when golf reached the United States. Designers including Alister MacKenzie, Donald Ross, and Robert Trent Jones Sr. shaped the modern parkland template, using irrigation, planting, and earthworks to add strategy to land that lacked the natural drama of a links. MacKenzie’s collaboration with Bobby Jones at Augusta National Golf Club, which opened in 1933, is often cited as the high point of parkland design.
Key features of a parkland course
Five elements consistently define the parkland style.
Tree-lined fairways
Mature trees border most holes, framing each fairway and narrowing the landing zone off the tee. The trees play both an aesthetic role and a strategic one, since wayward drives often end up blocked by trunks or branches.
Lush, manicured turf
Fairways and greens are heavily irrigated and maintained year-round. The grass is dense, the rough is well-kept, and the greens are usually soft enough to hold an aerial approach shot. According to Golf.com writer Joshua Berhow, this kind of conditioning is expensive to keep up, particularly in regions where the climate doesn’t naturally support it.
Inland setting, sheltered from coastal wind
Parkland courses sit inland, often in wooded country or rolling farmland. Tree cover blocks the wind, so conditions stay calmer and more predictable than they would be on an exposed coastal site.
Architect-designed hazards
Bunkers, ponds, doglegs, and water hazards are placed deliberately by the course designer rather than left as natural accidents of the terrain. They exist to force strategic decisions on each hole.
Generally flat to gently rolling terrain
Elevation changes exist on many parkland courses, sometimes dramatic ones, but the fairways themselves are usually smoother than the natural knobs and hollows of links land. Golf Compendium notes that even where the surrounding ground rises and falls, parkland fairways tend to roll gently rather than throw the ball into unpredictable bounces.
Parkland vs links vs heathland vs desert
Most confusion around the term parkland comes from how it differs from the other major course styles. The table below covers the headline differences.
| Feature | Parkland | Links | Heathland | Desert |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Inland | Coastal | Inland, sandy soil | Arid regions |
| Vegetation | Mature trees, lush grass | Sparse trees, coastal grasses | Heather, gorse, pine | Native scrub |
| Turf | Soft, irrigated, receptive | Firm, fast, weather-driven | Firm, sandy, free-draining | Firm with irrigated corridors |
| Hazards | Designed bunkers and water | Pot bunkers, dunes | Heather, gorse, sandy bunkers | Arroyos, rock, forced carries |
| Wind | Sheltered by trees | High and constant | Moderate | Variable |
| Play style | Aerial target golf | Ground game and creativity | Mixed | Forced carries, precision |
The short version: links courses run firm and fast on exposed coastal ground. Parkland is the opposite: inland, designed by an architect, with soft conditions and sheltered air. Heathland sits between the two, inland like parkland but firmer and more open. Desert is its own category, defined by the arid surroundings that frame each hole.
Famous parkland courses
Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia is the best-known example. Home of the Masters since 1934, it was designed by Alister MacKenzie and Bobby Jones and is regularly named the flagship of parkland design. Other famous American parkland venues include Winged Foot and Bethpage Black in New York, Oak Hill near Rochester, Oakmont and Merion in Pennsylvania, Baltusrol in New Jersey, and Muirfield Village in Ohio, home of the Memorial Tournament.
Internationally, the Wentworth Club in Surrey hosts the BMW PGA Championship and is one of the best-known parkland layouts in Europe. Adare Manor in County Limerick, Ireland, was redesigned by Tom Fazio in 2018 and is widely regarded as one of the finest modern parkland courses outside the United States.
Why most PGA Tour courses are parkland
Parkland dominates the American professional schedule for a few reasons. Geography is the main one. Most of the United States is inland rather than coastal, so the available golf land naturally tilts toward parkland. Soft, receptive turf also rewards modern tour golf, where players fly high-trajectory iron shots to the pin in an approach often called target golf. Tour events also need room. Country-club sites accommodate large crowds, hospitality tents, and television production in a way coastal links land can’t always match.
Related Golf Terms
- Pace of play — The speed at which a round of golf is played.
- Outside-in swing — A swing path traveling from outside the target line to inside at impact, often causing a slice.
- Par-3 course — A course consisting entirely of par-3 holes.
- Par — The predetermined number of strokes an expert golfer is expected to complete a hole.
- Overlap grip — A grip where the pinky of the trail hand overlaps the index finger of the lead hand.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Augusta National a parkland course?
Yes. Augusta National is widely considered the most famous parkland course in the world. Its tree-lined fairways and architect-designed water hazards make it the flagship example of the style.
What is the difference between a parkland course and a links course?
A parkland course is inland, lush, and tree-lined, with soft turf and designed hazards. A links course sits on coastal land, runs firm and fast, has few trees, and is shaped by wind and natural terrain.
Are parkland courses easier than links courses?
Not necessarily. Parkland courses are usually more sheltered from wind, but tight tree-lined fairways and well-placed water hazards can punish stray shots just as severely as links rough. Difficulty depends on the setup.
What other course types exist besides parkland and links?
The other commonly recognized course types are heathland (inland, sandy, open), desert (arid, irrigated corridors), and sometimes sandbelt and downland as regional sub-styles. Stadium, executive, and par 3 courses are separate categories based on layout rather than terrain.
Sources
- Golf Compendium. “What Is a Parkland Golf Course (or ‘Park Course’)?” Accessed May 2026.
- Berhow, Joshua. “Here are the 6 different types of golf courses, explained.” Golf.com. Accessed May 2026.
- PGA of America. “Tips for Playing a Parkland Golf Course.” Accessed May 2026.
- Lomas, Nick. “What is a Parkland Golf Course?” Golfspan. Accessed May 2026.
- Augusta National Golf Club. The Masters. Accessed May 2026.
- Keiser University College of Golf. “What Are the Different Types of Golf Courses.” Accessed May 2026.
