The Gold Course & Augusta National: The Major League of Championship Golf
Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the Gold Course at Colonial Williamsburg Resorts’ Golden Horseshoe Golf Club shortly after collaborating on the Augusta National renovation project. He called the Gold Course his “finest design”[1] and the “equal” of that iconic course down in eastern Georgia where The Masters tournament is held on an annual basis.
As Rees Jones, son of Robert Sr. and architect of the Green Course aptly put it, “It’s like the Founding Fathers left this land here, just waiting for a golf course to be built on it.” [2]
Since the Gold Course opened in 1963, golfers from all over the world have flocked to Williamsburg, VA with their tee times made, and over the years, many of them took notice of the “shared DNA” [3] between the Gold Course and Augusta National.
Experience the Gold Course for Yourself
Likening a golf course to Augusta National isn’t something a golfer would normally do, but the most fitting comparison for the Gold Course at Golden Horseshoe Golf Club is indeed the place that has hosted The Masters since 1934. [4]
Golf.com listed it as one of “four golf clubs that offer a Masters-like experience.” [5]
Professional golfers arriving at The Masters tournament are greeted by the trees along Magnolia Lane as they approach the clubhouse at Augusta National. When you play at Golden Horseshoe Golf Club, you’ll journey down Francis St. next to Duke of Gloucester Street, which Franklin D. Roosevelt called the “most historic avenue in all America.” Between the two roads, you’ll pass dozens of historic trade shops, bakeries, taverns, lodgings, and probably a horse and carriage or group of interpreters re-enacting an important moment in America’s independence. When you step off the 18th green, you’re invited to the 18th century, with admission tickets to the Historic Area of Colonial Williamsburg are included in your resort stay.
The Golden Bear at the Golden Horseshoe: Jack Nicklaus, who has six victories at The Masters (all-time record), played the Gold Course in 1967, setting the course record. Do you have what it takes to beat his score of 67?
Or, will you chase, 2020 Masters winner, Dustin Johnson’s feat of reaching the green on our 634-yard par-5 15th hole in only two strokes during the 2007 NCAA Men’s Championship?
Patrons and players at Augusta National have enjoyed the pimento cheese sandwich for more than 4 decades at the annual tournament. The Gold Course Clubhouse Grill, which overlooks the finishing hole, is serving up a variety of dishes that feature pimento cheese. Try our recipe as an appetizer with crackers or on your Pimento Cheese Grilled Sandwich and Ryder Cup Burger.
Golden Horseshoe Golf Club may not have a closet of green jackets to hand out to previous winners once they enter the clubhouse, but patrons to the Gold Course are greeted with a golf museum and lounge. Here, golfers can read about the legend of the Golden Horseshoe, a story involving Alexander Spotswood, Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in the colonial period, and John D. Rockefeller Jr. You can also check out golf clubs from hundreds of years ago as well as Ryder Cups and PGA Championship trophies, which are made by the silversmiths of Colonial Williamsburg.
