Golf
One of the most popular sports in the country, golf gets plenty of play in Gwinnett County on courses designed by some of the most renowned course architects in the world—Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Greg Norman, to name a few. Following are some of the Gwinnett area’s premier golf courses.
Bear’s Best Atlanta, ranked in the “Top 10 You Can Play” in America by Golf Digest, offers guests 18 spectacular holes selected by Jack Nicklaus from his 200 course designs worldwide. Bear’s Best is designed specifically for groups and corporate outings. 5342 Aldeburgh Drive, Suwanee, GA 30024, 678-714-2582, www.bearsbest.com
The exclusive Berkeley Hills Country Club offers the immaculate design of three challenging 9-hole courses created by Masters’ Champion and award-winning golf designer, Gary Player. Each nine has a personality and challenge of its own. 2300 Pond Road, Duluth, GA 30096, 770-448-8353, www.berkeleyhillscc.org
Château Élan Executive Walking Course is a public 9-hole par 3 layout behind the Inn at Château Élan, featuring beautifully landscaped holes, strategically placed bunkers and small bent grass greens that provide the perfect game for beginners, children, and golfers who do not have time for a full 18. 100 Rue Charlemagne, Braselton, GA 30517, 678-425-6050, www.chateauelanatlanta.com
Cháteau Élan’s Chateau Course, designed by Denis Griffiths, is a public course with contoured fairways, thick Bermuda roughs, and strategically placed lakes and ponds, playing to a par 71. 100 Rue Charlemagne, Braselton, GA 30517, 678-425-6050, www.chateauelanatlanta.com
Cháteau Élan’s Woodlands Course, a public course designed by Denis Griffiths, features a true nine holes out and nine holes in, moving effortlessly from pasture to forest to water. The tree-lined holes give players a feeling of solitude. 100 Rue Charlemagne, Braselton, GA 30517, 678-425-6050, www.chateauelanatlanta.com
The Legends at Château Élan is a private club that gracefully winds through the heart of Château Élan. The Legends is crafted from the experience of three great champions: Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, and Kathy Whitworth. Each champion selected six of their all-time favorite holes, and the result is a classic 18, bearing certain design elements from the legends’ selections. 100 Rue Charlemagne, Braselton, GA 30517, 770-932-8653, www.chateauelanatlanta.com
Collins Hill Golf Club is one of Georgia’s best kept golf secrets, featuring a beautiful, traditional, 18-hole layout with small, undulating greens and narrow, tree-lined fairways. Collins Hill Golf Course offers a wonderful challenge to every skill level and specializes in community golf tournaments. 585 Camp Perrin Road, Lawrenceville, GA 30043, 770-822-5400, www.collinshillgolf.com
Emerald Pointe Golf Club at Lake Lanier Islands, designed by Joe Lee, is an award-winning par-72, 18-hole course boasting 13 dramatic holes on the glistening waters of Lake Sidney Lanier. 7000 Holiday Road, Lake Lanier Islands, GA 30518, 770-945-8789, www.lakelanierislands.com/golf
The Georgia Club, a private Denis Griffiths-designed course near Athens, has an abundance of hardwoods, several lakes and a creek that all come into play on this parkland-styled course that keeps both the high-handicapper and the scratch golfer interested. 1050 Chancellors Drive, Statham, GA 30666, 770-725-8100, www.thegeorgiaclub.com
Hamilton Mill Golf Club, nestled in the rolling foothills of Gwinnett, is a private, picturesque course designed by Masters champion Fred Couples and award-winning course architect Gene Bates. With its panoramic views, Bermuda grass fairways, undulating bent grass greens and impeccable conditioning, it continues to be recognized as one of Atlanta’s Top 10 golf courses. 1995 Hamilton Mill Parkway, Dacula, GA 30019, 770-945-1345, www.hamiltonmillgolfclub.com
Golf Club at Lake Lanier Islands is very compact 18-hole, par 72 course, with eight holes calling for drives across sections of Lake Lanier. 9000 Holiday Road, Lake Lanier Islands, GA 30518, 678-318-7861, www.lakelanierislands.com
Northwood Country Club, the first private club in Gwinnett County, is an 18-hole course on 250 acres of gently rolling hills and quiet streams, providing golfers of all skill levels the opportunity to enjoy a round of golf with family, friends and business associates. 3157 Club Drive, Lawrenceville, GA 30044, 770-923-2909, www.northwoodcc.com
Stone Mountain Golf Club’s Stonemont course is a classic layout beautifully sequestered among Georgia pines on the gently rolling Stone Mountain landscape. The Lakemont course has a more resort feel with its granite rock outcroppings and scenic vistas of Stone Mountain Lake and the mountain’s famous carving, and is a little less demanding layout. 1145 Stonewall Jackson Drive, Stone Mountain, GA 30083, 770-465-3278, www.stonemountaingolf.com
Sugar Hill Golf Club has proven itself to be one of the most beautiful and artfully laid out public courses in the foothills of the North Georgia mountains, offering some of the most spectacular golfing vistas anywhere. 6094 Suwanee Dam Road, Sugar Hill, GA 30518, 770-271-0519, www.cityofsugarhill.com
Summit Chase Country Club is a private club which offers its members a well-respected 18-hole championship golf course encompassing 180 beautiful acres of rolling hills and tree-lined fairways that challenge golfers of all skill levels. 3197 Classic Drive, Snellville, GA 30078, 770-979-9000, www.summitchasecc.com
TPC at Sugarloaf, Greg Norman’s first signature course design in the U.S., is a private, park-like, 27-hole course which has played host to the PGA TOUR’s BellSouth Classic since 1997. 2595 Sugarloaf Club Drive, Duluth, GA 30097, 770-418-1113, www.tpcsugarloaf.com/private/sugarloaf
Tennis
Racquet sports also are well-represented in Gwinnett County. Gwinnett County’s Parks & Recreation offers tennis centers and courts at several of its parks, and there are numerous private courts in the various residential complexes.
