Lookout Mountain Course
Lookout Mountain, GA, USA
Carved into the brow of its namesake mountain, Lookout Mountain Golf Club presents a uniquely elevated golfing experience with views that stretch across multiple states. Its origins in the early 20th century reflect a time when golf course design prioritized natural contours and strategic challenge over sheer length. Designed by Seth Raynor, the course bears the hallmarks of the Golden Age: bold bunkering, subtly undulating greens, and routings that maximize the dramatic elevation changes inherent to the terrain. This is not a course for the faint of heart. While not excessively long by modern standards, Lookout Mountain demands careful club selection and strategic play, rewarding those who can navigate its slopes and read its deceptively complex greens. The course has a routing that favors no one as it meanders across the landscape with nary a flat lie to be found. The par-3 16th, named "Pulpit," is a particular highlight, playing dramatically downhill to a well-guarded green with what some say is the best view in golf. Beyond its challenging layout, Lookout Mountain fosters a close-knit community of golfers who relish the course's historical significance and its unparalleled setting. The club also prides itself on its unwavering commitment to the traditions of the game, which is reflected in the course and the member’s dedication to upholding the values of the sport. Lookout Mountain is also known for its traditional Sunday evening stag poker game played amongst members.
Ranked by CV ratings from golfers who've played this course. Positions are shown worldwide, by country, and by state; the Private column compares member-only and guest-restricted courses.
Best in World
Unranked
Best in USA
All courses
Best in GA
All courses
Golfers say Lookout is an exceptional mountainside Raynor design that deserves far more recognition than it currently receives. Most praise the massive, severely contoured green complexes that allow creative approach shots and strategic use of slopes to feed balls toward pins, though reviewers warn these are among the most challenging putting surfaces they've encountered. The recent renovation by Kyle Franz and Tyler Rae has enhanced what many consider an underrated gem, with stunning mountain views adding to the experience. Reviewers consistently note the course provides memorable, enjoyable golf even when they're not playing their best, and several express strong enthusiasm about membership or return visits.
8.6
63 players
Lookout is a scruffy mountainside Raynor that with a little more time post their renovation by Kyle Franz and Tyler Rae, is going to be on everyone’s bucket list that doesn’t already have it. You get massive green complexes and the ability to feed balls into pins off huge slopes. The views alone are stunning and you should jump at the chance to play here given the opportunity. I would join here tomorrow if I lived anywhere within 2 hours away.
One of my all-time favorites. This place is so underrated
Great course, toughest greens I’ve ever played on. Unfortunately I brought my absolute worst game, BUT nevertheless had a lot of fun.
Public courses closest to Lookout Mountain.
Most arrivals to Lookout Mountain Golf Club begin at Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport, a compact regional hub just twenty minutes northwest of the mountain's summit. The drive itself is a study in elevation and atmosphere - what starts as urban Tennessee quickly spirals upward along historic Ochs Highway, the road narrowing as it climbs through hardwood forest and past Civil War monuments toward the Georgia state line. At the crest, where the air sharpens and the valley spreads wide below, the club reveals itself with the quiet confidence of a place that has never needed to announce its presence, perched along the western brow of Lookout Mountain as if the terrain itself had been waiting for precisely this purpose.
FAQ
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
Lookout Mountain has a Course Vaults score of 8.6 out of 10 based on 46 explicit golfer ratings.
Lookout Mountain was designed by Seth Raynor.
Lookout Mountain is listed as private on Course Vaults; guest access is typically restricted.
Par at Lookout Mountain is 70.
Lookout Mountain plays 6,613 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at Lookout Mountain is 136.
