
Forest Park Course
Forest Park Golf Course

About this course
Forest Park Golf Course occupies a municipal site in northwest Baltimore, established in the early twentieth century as part of the city's public recreation system. The original layout was designed by Alex Nipper Campbell, a regional architect active in the Mid-Atlantic during that era, with later modifications by Bill Love. The course serves as one of Baltimore's accessible public facilities, providing golf within an urban park setting that includes wooded areas and rolling terrain characteristic of the Piedmont region. The routing works through mature tree cover and moderate elevation changes, typical of parkland courses built on former estate or natural woodland. Several holes play along corridors framed by hardwoods, while others open onto more exposed ground. The design reflects the practical constraints and community-oriented mission of municipal golf from its period, prioritizing playability and maintenance efficiency over dramatic features or severe hazards. Forest Park has long functioned as an entry point for Baltimore-area golfers, hosting junior programs, public tournaments, and everyday play across a broad demographic. The course remains part of the city's parks system, operated to provide affordable access rather than private club amenities. Its role in Baltimore's golf history is primarily civic—offering generations of residents a place to learn and play the game within city limits, maintaining green space in an increasingly developed urban landscape.
Quick facts
- Location
- Baltimore, MD, USA
- Access
- Public
- Year built
- 1934
- Holes
- 18
- Designer(s)
- Alex Nipper Campbell, Bill Love
- Par
- 71
- Length
- 6,117 yards
- Difficulty
- 68.8/117
- Course Vaults score
- 4.3
Getting there
Baltimore-Washington International Airport lies just fifteen miles south of Forest Park Golf Course, making this historic municipal layout one of the most accessible championship-caliber public tracks in the Mid-Atlantic. The drive north traces the urban spine of Baltimore, transitioning from interstate corridors into the tree-lined neighborhoods of Northwest Baltimore, where the course has anchored the community since 1927. Arrival is refreshingly unpretentious - a turn off Hillsdale Road reveals wide fairways and mature hardwoods framing a layout that has quietly hosted USGA championships and nurtured generations of the city's golfers, all within the pulse of a living, working city.

FAQ
Common questions about Forest Park
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
Forest Park has a Course Vaults score of 4.3 out of 10 based on 8 logged golfers.
Forest Park was designed by Alex Nipper Campbell and Bill Love.
Yes. Forest Park is listed as welcoming public or guest play on Course Vaults.
Par at Forest Park is 71.
Forest Park plays 6,117 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at Forest Park is 117.



