Eight courses in five days through the sandy heart of American golf — a single loop on the travel days and 36 in between. Donald Ross's Mid Pines, Pine Needles, and Southern Pines; the new Tom Doak No. 10 and Fazio's No. 8; the resort showpieces No. 2 and No. 4; and Mike Strantz's untamed Tobacco Road to close it out on the way to the airport. Caddies, turtleback greens, and beers at the Deuce.
Day-by-Day
Day
1
1
Arrive + Mid Pines
Fly into Raleigh-Durham (RDU) and drive about 75 minutes southwest to the Sandhills
Check into the Village of Pinehurst or Southern Pines — both put you minutes from the week's golf
Afternoon: Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club — a near-untouched 1921 Donald Ross gem in Southern Pines, beautifully restored by Kyle Franz. A walkable, classic single loop to shake off the travel
Dinner and a beer in Southern Pines, or the Pinehurst Brewing Co. in the old steam plant
💡 Ease in with one Ross loop on arrival day — Mid Pines is the perfect opener and leaves your legs fresh for the 36-hole days to come. Take a caddie or push cart; these courses are made to be walked.
Day
2
2
Pine Needles + Southern Pines — 36
Morning: Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club — a four-time U.S. Women's Open host and one of the finest Ross routings in the Sandhills, Mid Pines' celebrated sister
Lunch in Southern Pines between loops — everything's a few minutes apart
Afternoon: Southern Pines Golf Club — another Ross layout, restored by Kyle Franz to wide fairways and bold, sandy greenside contours
Evening back in the Village or Southern Pines
💡 Pine Needles, Southern Pines, and Mid Pines form a tight cluster of restored Ross courses — base yourself between them and you'll spend more time playing and less time driving.
Day
3
3
Pinehurst No. 10 + No. 8 — 36
Short drive to the resort's outer courses, a few minutes from the village
Morning: Pinehurst No. 10 — Tom Doak's acclaimed 2024 course on a former sand mine, with bigger elevation change and wilder, more natural terrain than anything else at the resort
Quick lunch, then over to No. 8
Afternoon: Pinehurst No. 8 — the Tom Fazio 'Centennial' course, routed through rolling wetlands and sandhills. A worthy, less-crowded resort 36 partner
Dinner in the Village — the Carolina dining room or a steak in Southern Pines
💡 No. 10 is the resort's most dramatic course and the hottest tee time at Pinehurst right now — book it the moment your dates are set. Doak's wide corridors reward an aggressive morning before No. 8's tighter wetlands test.
Day
4
4
Pinehurst No. 2 + No. 4 — 36
Morning: Pinehurst No. 2 — Donald Ross's crowning achievement and three-time U.S. Open host. The famed crowned, turtleback greens repel anything but a perfect shot. Take a caddie
Lunch in the clubhouse the two courses share — the easiest 36 turn on the trip
Afternoon: Pinehurst No. 4 — Gil Hanse's bold 2018 reimagining, all exposed sand, wire grass, and rugged waste areas. A dramatic modern counterpoint right next door
Photo at the Putter Boy sundial and the Payne Stewart statue behind No. 2's 18th
Post-round on the porch of The Deuce, overlooking the 18th of No. 2
💡 Save No. 2 for the peak of the trip and play it fresh in the morning. On the turtlebacks, aim for the fat of the green and accept that good shots will roll off the sides — everyone gets humbled here.
Day
5
5
Tobacco Road + Fly Home
Check out and drive about 30 minutes toward Sanford — Tobacco Road sits on the way back to RDU
Morning: Tobacco Road Golf Club — Mike Strantz's wild, polarizing, blind-shot roller coaster carved through old sand quarries. A single, untamed loop to close the trip
Wrap-up lunch at the Tobacco Road grill
Drive 50 minutes to RDU and fly out
💡 Tobacco Road is unlike anything else in the Sandhills and sits right on the road back to the airport — the perfect wild send-off. Book the earliest tee time and an afternoon flight so you're not rushing the blind shots.
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