The mountains of Western North Carolina have always offered something that flatland courses can’t replicate: drama written into the landscape itself. When golf arrived in the Highlands over a century ago, it brought with it a fascinating challenge—how do you design a golf course when the land refuses to sit still? The architects who answered that question didn’t just build courses. They created mountain masterpieces that would influence golf design for generations.
Today, when you stand on an elevated tee box in the Highlands and watch your ball flight against the backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains, you’re experiencing the vision of designers who understood that great golf architecture doesn’t fight the land—it reveals it.
The Legacy of Design in Mountain Golf
Highlands, NC, sits at elevations between 3,000 and 5,000 feet, where the terrain shifts from rolling meadows to dramatic ridge lines within a single hole. This geography has attracted some of golf’s most celebrated architects, each bringing their philosophy to bear on slopes, streams, and mountain views that most courses never encounter.
The result is a collection of courses that feel distinctly different from their Piedmont or coastal cousins. Here, elevation isn’t just measured in feet it’s measured in the way a hole plays, the club selection on approach shots, and the visual drama that makes mountain golf unforgettable.
Much like Tom Jackson’s design at Burlingame Country Club in nearby Sapphire Valley, Highlands courses embrace the natural contours of the mountains rather than forcing flat corridors through forested slopes. This design philosophy—working with rather than against the terrain—connects Highlands golf to a broader mountain golf tradition that values authenticity over artifice.
Donald Ross: The Scottish Foundations of Highlands Golf
When Donald Ross arrived in America from Dornoch, Scotland in 1899, he brought with him design principles that would revolutionize American golf. His work in Highlands represents some of his most intriguing mountain adaptations.
Ross understood that great golf courses should look as if they’ve always been part of the landscape. In the mountains, this meant incorporating natural elevation changes into hole routing, using existing ridges and valleys to create strategic interest, and building greens that emphasized creativity over brute force.
The Ross Philosophy in Mountain Settings
Ross’s design signature included crowned greens with subtle slopes that rewarded precise approach shots, strategic bunkering that forced decisions rather than simply penalizing missed shots, and routing that revealed views gradually rather than all at once. His courses demanded thought more than power—a philosophy perfectly suited to mountain terrain where distance measurements deceive and angles matter more than length.
In Highlands, Ross worked with dramatic elevation changes that would have overwhelmed lesser designers. He used downhill holes to create exhilarating tee shots, uphill approaches to test course management skills, and sidehill lies to add complexity to every round. The greens he built nestled into hillsides as if erosion had placed them there, with natural drainage that made mountain golf playable even after heavy rains.
Ross’s influence extends beyond the courses he personally designed. His philosophy shaped how subsequent architects approached mountain golf—a legacy visible in courses throughout the Highlands plateau and in neighboring communities like Cashiers and Sapphire Valley.
Signature Ross Elements That Defined Mountain Golf
Ross’s greens remain his most recognizable contribution. Rather than building flat putting surfaces, he created crowned greens where the high point sat slightly back of center, with subtle slopes that funneled imprecise approach shots away from the flag. In the mountains, these greens became even more dramatic, with natural backdrops of rhododendron and hemlock framing each putting surface.
His bunker placement emphasized angles. Ross positioned hazards not to catch every errant shot but to guard the best approach angles, rewarding players who thought their way around the course. In mountain settings, he often used a single well-placed bunker to make a player reconsider an entire hole strategy—a bunker positioned to protect the preferred side of a fairway or guard the entrance to a green on sloped terrain.
The par-3 holes Ross designed in the mountains showcase his genius for using elevation. He understood that a downhill par-3 creates a different challenge than its yardage suggests, requiring players to judge not just distance but trajectory, wind effects amplified by altitude, and the visual distortion that makes greens look closer than they actually are.
Arnold Palmer’s Mountain Vision
While Donald Ross brought Scottish golf to the American mountains, Arnold Palmer brought a more aggressive, modern sensibility. His design work in Highlands coincided with the peak of his playing career and his growing interest in golf course architecture.
Cullasaja Club: Palmer’s Highlands Masterpiece
Palmer’s design at Cullasaja Club demonstrates how a champion player approaches course design. Unlike architects who never competed at the highest level, Palmer knew what made holes memorable from a player’s perspective. He built risk-reward opportunities into nearly every hole, creating multiple routes to the green that rewarded boldness but never punished conservative play unfairly.
At Cullasaja, Palmer used the natural bowl-shaped valley to create amphitheater-style holes where spectators (or in this case, other members of a foursome) could watch shots from multiple angles. His greens were larger and more receptive than Ross’s crowned designs, reflecting the aerial game that became dominant in the post-World War II era.
Palmer personally walked every foot of the Cullasaja property during the design phase. He identified natural green sites, determined where fairways should narrow to create tension, and specified where clearing trees would create strategic interest versus where maintaining the forest canopy was essential to the hole’s character.
The Palmer Design Approach
Palmer’s courses emphasize the heroic shot—the carry over water, the drive that must thread between bunkers, the approach that must clear a front hazard to reach a favorable pin position. In the mountains, these heroic shots gain additional drama from elevation changes that make both success and failure more visually spectacular.
His fairway bunkering at Cullasaja creates visual intimidation. Large, sweeping bunkers grab the eye from the tee, making fairways look narrower than they actually measure. This psychological element—making holes look harder than they are—reflects Palmer’s understanding that golf is as much mental as physical.
Palmer’s par-5s in Highlands showcase his philosophy of creating genuine three-shot holes for average players while giving better players the option to reach greens in two. The risk-reward balance on these holes changes throughout the year as weather affects how far the ball flies at elevation, adding seasonal variation that keeps the course interesting for members who play it repeatedly.
Much like the experience at Burlingame’s 18-hole championship course, Palmer’s Highlands design rewards course knowledge. Players who return repeatedly learn which lines are safe, where aggressive play pays dividends, and how to use the mountain terrain to their advantage.
Tom Fazio: Modern Mountain Architecture
Tom Fazio represents the next evolution in mountain golf design. Working primarily in the 1980s and 1990s, when construction equipment allowed more dramatic earth-moving, Fazio created courses that looked natural but involved substantial reshaping of the mountain landscape.
Mountaintop Golf & Lake Club: Fazio’s Elevated Canvas
Fazio’s work at Mountaintop Golf & Lake Club demonstrates what becomes possible when an architect has both the budget and the terrain to create a signature mountain experience. The course sits at some of the highest elevations in Highlands, with holes that play across ridges, through valleys, and along mountainsides with views extending for miles.
Fazio’s design philosophy emphasizes visual drama. He clears sight lines to create heroic tee shots, frames greens with natural vegetation to make targets more defined, and uses water features not just as hazards but as reflective elements that add beauty to each hole. His greens are large but heavily contoured, with multiple pin positions that can make the same hole play entirely differently from one day to the next.
The bunkering at Mountaintop showcases Fazio’s artistic approach. His hazards look sculpted by wind and weather rather than by bulldozers, with irregular edges and natural grasses that blend bunkers into the surrounding landscape. He positions these hazards as much for visual appeal as for strategic purpose—a philosophy that some purists criticize, but that creates memorable golf holes.
Fazio’s Construction Techniques in Mountain Settings
Fazio pioneered construction methods that allow dramatic golf holes in challenging terrain. He excavates large areas to create the desired grade for fairways and greens, then reinstalls native soils and vegetation to make the construction work invisible. At high elevations, this technique allows him to create playable lies on slopes where natural mountain terrain would make golf impossible.
His drainage systems represent another innovation. Mountain courses face intense rainfall that can make courses unplayable, but Fazio’s extensive underground drainage networks keep fairways and greens playable even hours after major storms. This technical excellence may be invisible to players, but it’s essential to the year-round golf that makes mountain courses financially viable.
Fazio’s green complexes in the mountains often feature multiple tiers and false fronts that reject shots lacking proper distance control. He builds greens that can accommodate pins in dramatically different positions—a back-left pin might play 30 yards longer than a front-right location due to elevation changes within the putting surface itself.
The strategic variety in Fazio’s mountain courses comes from routing. He sequences holes to create rhythm—following a downhill hole with an uphill par-3, positioning a tight driving hole before a more open par-5, and saving the most dramatic views for key moments in the round. This attention to pacing creates a complete golf experience rather than just 18 isolated holes.
Modern Renovations: Preserving History While Enhancing Play
Golf course architecture never remains static. Courses built decades ago face challenges from modern equipment that makes holes play shorter, maintenance practices that have evolved, and member expectations that change over time.
The 2020 Highlands Falls Redesign
The Highlands Falls Country Club renovation represents the challenge of updating a classic course for contemporary play while preserving the character that members love. The redesign addressed several common issues facing older mountain courses.
Modern golf balls fly farther and spin less than the equipment courses were designed for. Holes that once required long approaches now play as short irons, eliminating the strategic interest of the original design. The Highlands Falls renovation extended several holes, added new back tees to restore appropriate challenge, and rebuilt greens to create more interesting pin positions.
Drainage improvements were essential. The original course, built when construction equipment was primitive, had minimal subsurface drainage. The renovation installed modern drainage systems that make the course playable within hours of heavy rain—a crucial improvement for a membership that wants consistent playing conditions.
The renovation also addressed environmental considerations. Modern bunker liners prevent sand from contaminating groundwater, updated irrigation systems reduce water consumption, and native grass areas replace maintained rough in appropriate locations. These changes make the course more sustainable while reducing maintenance costs.
Balancing Tradition and Technology
Renovation architects face a delicate balance. Members have emotional attachments to specific holes, trees, and features, yet courses must evolve to remain relevant. The best renovations, like Highlands Falls, improve playability and strategy while maintaining the character that defines the course.
At Highlands Falls, the renovation preserved the routing—the sequence of holes—while rebuilding greens to restore original contours that had been lost to decades of topdressing and maintenance. They removed trees that had grown to block strategic sight lines, restored bunkers to their original sizes and shapes, and updated tees to create appropriate angles for modern equipment.
The clubhouse area received equal attention, with practice facilities expanded to provide members with better places to work on their games before rounds. These ancillary improvements—while not part of the course itself—enhance the overall member experience and make the club more attractive to prospective members.
Similar attention to member experience defines clubs throughout the region, from Burlingame’s comprehensive amenities to the various private clubs scattered across the Highlands plateau.
Signature Architectural Features Across Highlands Courses
Despite being designed by different architects across different eras, Highlands golf courses share certain characteristics that define mountain golf in Western North Carolina.
Elevated Tees and Dramatic Elevation Changes
The elevated tee shot is perhaps the most iconic feature of mountain golf. Standing on a tee box perched on a ridge, looking down at a fairway 100 feet below, creates a visual thrill that flatland courses can’t replicate. These holes play shorter than their measured yardage due to the downhill trajectory, but mountain wind and altitude effects complicate club selection.
Architects use elevated tees strategically. A dramatically elevated tee creates excitement early in the round, while a clifftop tee on a finishing hole provides a memorable conclusion. The best mountain designers vary the degree of elevation change throughout the course, preventing monotony while showcasing the terrain’s natural drama.
Downhill par-3s require particular skill. The green looks deceptively close, the ball flies farther than expected, and judging the proper trajectory becomes crucial. Miss long, and the ball may tumble far down the slope beyond the green. Miss short, and the ball may not reach the putting surface at all, leaving an awkward uphill chip from mountain rough.
Strategic Bunkering in Mountain Settings
Mountain course bunkering faces unique challenges. Heavy rains can wash out bunkers built on slopes, while maintenance equipment struggles to access hazards positioned on steep terrain. The best mountain architects position bunkers where they’re both strategically relevant and practically maintainable.
Ross used minimal bunkering, positioning one or two carefully placed hazards per hole. His bunkers guarded specific approach angles, forcing players to choose between safe approaches and aggressive lines that created better birdie opportunities. In the mountains, he often placed bunkers at the base of slopes, where balls naturally collect and where maintenance equipment can easily access them.
Palmer and Fazio used more extensive bunkering, creating visual intimidation from tees and protection around greens. Their bunkers often stretch across significant portions of fairways, creating the appearance of narrow landing areas while actually leaving plenty of room for well-struck shots. Around greens, their bunkers catch balls that lack proper distance control while leaving recovery shots that reward creativity.
Contemporary renovation architects have reduced bunker counts at many courses, recognizing that maintaining mountain bunkers is expensive and that modern golfers find other hazards—like native areas and water features—equally strategic and more visually appealing.
Undulating Greens and Approach Shot Challenges
Green design separates good mountain courses from great ones. The best mountain greens use natural contours to create multiple pin positions that change how holes play throughout the season.
Ross’s crowned greens remain challenging decades after construction. The high point in the green center means that approach shots must carry to the correct level—land short on a front pin, and the ball will roll back off the green; land past a back pin, and the ball will roll through. These greens reward precise distance control over power.
Palmer’s greens feature more dramatic undulations, with bowls and ridges that create distinct sections on the putting surface. A pin on one section makes other sections nearly impossible to access, so approach shots must finish in the correct area rather than simply on the green.
Fazio’s greens often feature false fronts—sections of the putting surface that look receptive but have slopes severe enough to reject shots lacking adequate carry distance. These features punish slightly miss-hit approaches while rewarding the pure strike that carries to the flat portion of the green.
The greens at premier mountain courses maintain consistency in speed and smoothness despite dramatic contours. This requires exceptional maintenance standards and green complexes designed with proper drainage and appropriate root zones—technical considerations that great architects incorporate into their designs.
Players who spend time at Burlingame’s practice facilities before their rounds find that preparing for mountain greens requires both physical and mental readiness—understanding how slopes affect putts while having the touch to execute delicate shots on severe terrain.
How Mountain Terrain Influences Course Design
The mountains don’t just provide a scenic backdrop for golf—they fundamentally change how courses are designed, built, and played.
Working With Elevation
Architects designing mountain courses must account for elevation changes that affect how golf balls fly. A shot that travels 150 yards on a flat course might fly 160 yards downhill at elevation, while the same club uphill might carry only 140 yards. These variations require architects to design holes where the “correct” club depends on the shot’s trajectory as much as its measured distance.
Elevation also affects putting. Uphill putts play slower, downhill putts faster, and sidehill putts break more dramatically—all factors that architects must consider when contouring greens. The best mountain greens provide flat areas where pins can be placed without creating unfair putts while still using slopes to add interest and challenge.
Wind behaves differently at elevation. Mountain courses experience valley winds that change direction throughout the day, crosswinds that swirl around ridgelines, and downdrafts that can knock down even well-struck shots. Architects orient holes to minimize unfair wind effects while maintaining strategic interest in varied conditions.
Incorporating Natural Water Features
Mountain streams and ponds provide both strategic challenges and environmental complications. The best architects route courses to showcase natural water without forcing artificial carries that make courses unplayable for average golfers.
Ross routed holes along streams without making water a dominant feature. His holes often play parallel to creeks, with the water visible but not in play unless a shot is severely mishit. This approach maintains the visual beauty of mountain water while keeping the pace of play reasonable.
Palmer brought water more aggressively into play, creating carries over creeks and ponds that force decisions about risk and reward. His water hazards typically offer a safe route around them for players unwilling to attempt the carry, but reward aggressive play with shorter approaches to greens.
Fazio uses water as a visual element as much as a strategic one. His ponds and streams often reflect mountain views, with the water serving as a mirror that doubles the visual impact of the surrounding terrain. He positions water to create dramatic tee shots and approach shots that look more challenging than they actually are.
Preserving Natural Vegetation
The forest canopy that defines mountain golf requires careful management. Architects must balance maintaining the mountain feel with providing enough sunlight for turfgrass growth and creating sight lines that make golf playable.
Ross’s courses featured relatively narrow corridors through dense forest, creating a sense of isolation on each hole. Modern maintenance standards and equipment have made these corridors wider, but the concept remains—golf holes carved through mountain forest rather than golf holes with trees added for decoration.
Palmer and Fazio created wider fairways with strategic tree positioning. Rather than uniform forest edges, they left specimen trees that frame tee shots or guard approach angles. These individual trees become landmarks that help players navigate the course and add character to each hole.
Native vegetation, including rhododendron, mountain laurel, and wildflowers add to the mountain golf aesthetic. The best courses maintain these plants in areas where golf balls rarely go, creating beauty without interfering with play. This approach also provides wildlife habitat and erosion control on steep slopes.
Contemporary course management emphasizes native plants over traditional rough, reducing maintenance costs while creating a more authentic mountain landscape. These areas provide recovery shots that reward creativity while severely wayward shots—a balance that enhances rather than frustrates the playing experience.
The Future of Golf Architecture in Highlands
Mountain golf architecture continues to evolve as new technologies, environmental awareness, and player preferences shape how courses are designed and maintained.
Sustainable Design Practices
Modern architects incorporate environmental sustainability into every aspect of course design. Native grass areas reduce irrigation and maintenance, wetlands are preserved or enhanced rather than filled, and wildlife corridors connect forest areas across golf corridors.
New courses use grasses that require less water and can tolerate mountain temperature swings. Bent grass greens, once standard, are being replaced with ultradwarf Bermuda varieties in appropriate locations, reducing water and chemical inputs while maintaining excellent playing conditions.
Architects now design courses to minimize environmental impact during construction. Rather than completely stripping and regrading sites, they selectively clear and shape terrain, leaving as much natural topsoil and vegetation as possible. This approach reduces erosion, speeds grow-in, and creates courses that look mature within a few years rather than decades.
Technology and Course Design
Modern design technology allows architects to visualize courses before a single shovel of dirt moves. Computer modeling shows how holes will play, where sunlight will reach fairways, and how drainage will function. This technology reduces mistakes and allows experimentation with routing options that would be impractical to build as test versions.
Drones and GPS equipment provide detailed topographic data, helping architects identify optimal green sites and fairway corridors. This information creates designs that work better with natural terrain, reducing construction costs while improving the finished product.
Player tracking technology reveals how courses actually play versus how architects intended them to function. Heat maps showing where approach shots land, data on fairway hit percentages, and scoring statistics by handicap level all inform renovation decisions and future designs.
Adapting to Modern Equipment
Golf equipment continues to improve, creating challenges for courses built for older technology. Architects respond by adding length, introducing more precise hazard placement, and creating greens with more challenging pin positions.
Some courses add new championship tees that extend length while preserving shorter tees for recreational play. This multi-tee approach allows one course to challenge single-digit handicaps while remaining enjoyable for 20-handicap players—a balance essential for member satisfaction.
Green speeds have increased dramatically, with tournament greens now running at speeds that would have been unimaginable decades ago. This requires rebuilding greens with gentler contours or accepting that some pin positions are no longer usable at modern speeds. Architects and superintendents collaborate to identify appropriate green speeds that balance challenge with playability.
Architectural Heritage and Innovation
The best new mountain courses honor the design principles established by Ross, Palmer, and Fazio while incorporating contemporary ideas about sustainability, playability, and member experience. This balance between tradition and innovation defines successful 21st-century course architecture.
Architects study historic courses to understand what made them successful, then apply those lessons to new designs. Strategic principles like positioning hazards to guard preferred angles, creating risk-reward opportunities, and varying hole characteristics remain relevant regardless of equipment changes or maintenance practices.
The integration of golf into comprehensive resort communities, like Burlingame’s approach to combining championship golf with diverse amenities, represents another evolution in mountain golf. Today’s players want more than just 18 holes—they seek complete experiences, including practice facilities, instruction, dining, and wellness amenities that make golf clubs destinations rather than just places to play.
Lessons from Highlands Golf Architecture
The courses of Highlands, NC, offer insights that apply to mountain golf throughout Western North Carolina and beyond.
Design Principles for Mountain Golf
Great mountain courses embrace rather than fight the terrain. They use elevation changes to create drama, route holes to reveal views progressively, and build greens that nestle into hillsides. Fighting the mountain to create flat holes wastes money and destroys the character that makes mountain golf special.
Strategic variety matters more than length. In the mountains, holes that challenge course management skills remain interesting regardless of how far players hit the ball. Par-3s that require precise club selection, par-4s where position matters more than distance, and par-5s with genuine risk-reward decisions create courses that reward thinking over power.
Maintenance realities shape design decisions. Architects must design courses that can be maintained year-round in mountain weather, with terrain that allows mowing equipment to operate safely and drainage that prevents washouts during heavy rains. Beautiful designs that can’t be properly maintained inevitably disappoint.
What Makes Mountain Golf Special
Mountain golf offers experiences impossible to replicate elsewhere. The visual drama of mountain views, the strategic complexity of elevation changes, and the natural beauty of forest corridors combine to create golf that engages both mind and spirit.
The best mountain courses make every round an adventure. No two days play exactly alike due to changing weather, seasonal conditions, and the infinite strategic variations that elevation creates. Players return repeatedly because the course reveals new challenges and opportunities with each round.
Community defines mountain golf clubs. Like Burlingame’s 600-member community, Highlands clubs create bonds among members who share a passion for mountain living and outdoor adventure. Golf becomes the common language, but the relationships extend beyond the course to dining rooms, wellness facilities, and social events that define club life.
Architectural Excellence in the Mountains
The designers who shaped golf in Highlands NC, created more than just courses—they established a tradition of excellence that continues today. From Donald Ross’s strategic genius to Arnold Palmer’s heroic design to Tom Fazio’s visual artistry, each architect brought unique perspectives to the challenge of mountain golf.
Their work demonstrates that great architecture responds to its site rather than imposing a predetermined template. In the mountains, this means using elevation to create drama, incorporating natural features to add beauty, and designing holes that remain interesting regardless of how many times you play them.
The future of mountain golf architecture builds on this foundation. New designers study the classics, apply contemporary sustainability practices, and use technology to create courses that honor tradition while meeting modern expectations. The result is golf that continues to draw players to the mountains of Western North Carolina.
Whether you’re experiencing the strategic genius of a Ross design, the heroic challenge of a Palmer course, or the visual drama of a Fazio masterpiece, mountain golf in Highlands and the surrounding region offers something that flatland courses can never replicate—the sensation of playing golf where the earth reaches toward the sky.
For those seeking the mountain golf experience, courses throughout the Highlands-Cashiers-Sapphire Valley region continue this architectural tradition. Each course tells its own story through the design, but all share the common language of mountain golf—where every shot matters, every view inspires, and every round reminds us why we play this game.