Hound Ears at Hound Ears Club

Hound Ears Club sits in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Boone, North Carolina, at an elevation that places it among the higher-altitude courses in the eastern United States. George Cobb designed the course in the mid-1960s as part of a mountain resort community. Cobb, a prolific architect who worked extensively throughout the Carolinas and the Southeast, routed the layout through rolling terrain characterized by mature hardwoods, mountain laurels, and rhododendrons. The property takes its name from a distinctive rock formation visible from the course.

The design reflects Cobb's approach to mountain golf, working with natural elevation changes rather than imposing dramatic earthwork. Fairways move through corridors of native vegetation, and greens are typically elevated or set into hillsides. The course measures relatively modest by contemporary standards, but the combination of altitude, slope, and often firm conditions creates strategic interest. Several holes play across or along natural drainage areas, and the mountain setting means temperatures remain cooler than the Carolina Piedmont throughout the season.

Hound Ears functions as a private club within a residential community that includes lodge accommodations. The club maintains a traditional mountain resort atmosphere, with members and guests drawn to the High Country setting as much as the golf itself. The course has remained largely true to Cobb's original design, preserving the character of mid-century mountain golf architecture in western North Carolina.