Doug Stein calls them “the Pilgrims.” They’re millennial golfers and golf course architecture buffs.
“I probably see 40 to 60 of them every year,” Stein said Tuesday. “When they come to this area, they want to see four courses, maybe four-and-a-half. The Honors Course, obviously. Sweetens Cove, Lookout Mountain because of (designer) Seth Raynor, Black Creek and Sewanee. They love to study and play those courses.”
Black Creek, the Scottish-inspired course set between Lookout Mountain and Raccoon Mountain in Lookout Valley celebrates its 20th anniversary Wednesday, its No. 6 hole – the one with the large black-and-white bull’s-eye to mark the blind green – having recently been named the best sixth hole in America by Golf Digest.
To underscore how blessed our community is when it comes to golf, the 18th hole at McLemore – the course 25 miles south of town atop Lookout Mountain that was formerly known as Canyon Ridge – also made the unique list.
Think about that. Two of the top 18 holes in the entire country are in our own backyard.