THE APAWAMIS CLUB
🇺🇸 Rye, NY, USA
Designed by Maturin Ballou, Willie Dunn Jr.


The Apawamis Club in Rye, New York, occupies a prominent place in American golf history as one of the country's oldest clubs, founded in 1890. The original course was laid out by Willie Dunn Jr., a Scottish professional who designed several early American layouts, with later significant revisions by Maturin Ballou. The club's name derives from a Native American term associated with the local area, reflecting the deep roots of this Westchester County institution.
The course sits on rolling terrain characteristic of the Long Island Sound coastal region, with the routing making use of natural elevation changes and mature tree-lined corridors. The property's topography provides variety in shot-making demands, with holes playing across slopes and through corridors that have been shaped by more than a century of growth and refinement. The layout reflects the strategic principles of early American course design, where positioning and angles matter as much as distance.
The Apawamis Club has hosted numerous regional and national championships over its long history, including USGA events that have brought competitive golf to the course at various points across the decades. The club maintains a traditional private membership culture typical of established Westchester clubs, with a focus on golf and family activities.
The course continues to serve its membership as both a competitive test and a daily pleasure, balancing its historical character with the demands of modern play while preserving the essential features that have defined it for well over a century.
Reviews
Not a long golf course, but the greens will challenge you with the best of them. If your pace is just a touch off, you can find yourself a long way from the hole. A ton of great tee shots with the elevation changes on the course. Would happily play here every single day.
In the rich golf state of New York, I’m confident Apawamis is the most underrated in the state. Golf Digest didn’t have it in the top 50 in the state last year which is criminal to say the least.
Beast of a walk, but shares a lot of the character that makes Sleepy such a gem. A course that deserves a lot more attention than it receives.
FAQ
Ratings, design, and course details pulled from Course Vaults.
The Apawamis at The Apawamis Club has a Course Vaults score of 8.7 out of 10 based on 13 explicit golfer ratings.
The Apawamis was designed by Maturin Ballou and Willie Dunn Jr..
The Apawamis at The Apawamis Club is listed as private on Course Vaults; guest access is typically restricted.
Par at The Apawamis is 72.
The Apawamis plays 6,741 yards from the back tees on Course Vaults.
The slope rating at The Apawamis is 138.