Stumpy Lake Golf Course

Stumpy Lake Golf Course occupies a distinctive natural setting in Virginia Beach, built around the freshwater reservoir that gives the course its name. Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the layout in the late 1970s, creating a municipal facility that brought his signature design principles to the Tidewater region of Virginia. The course reflects Jones's characteristic emphasis on strategic bunkering, elevated greens, and water hazards that require careful course management. The routing takes advantage of the lake and surrounding wetlands, with several holes playing along or across water. The relatively flat coastal terrain is punctuated by Jones's constructed mounding and shaping, which adds definition and visual interest to the playing corridors. The design incorporates the natural vegetation of the area, including stands of pine and hardwood that frame many holes while maintaining the open, parkland character typical of Tidewater golf courses. As a public facility operated by the City of Virginia Beach, Stumpy Lake serves both residents and visitors seeking accessible golf in the resort area. The course provides a contrast to the more links-influenced designs found closer to the Atlantic coastline, offering instead a traditional parkland experience shaped by one of the era's most prolific architects. The layout remains relatively true to Jones's original design intent, presenting golfers with the strategic choices and visual scale that defined his work throughout the mid-to-late twentieth century.