The hardest golf courses in Massachusetts
The hardest 18-hole golf courses in Massachusetts, ranked by USGA slope rating from each course's longest men's tees, with course rating as the tiebreaker. 182 courses have complete, verified tee data.
Pines
The International Golf Club
Bolton, MA, USASlope rating 155, 81.7 course rating, Tiger tees, 8,325 yds
PrivateGeoffrey Cornish
- 5.0Conditions
- 5.0Layout
- 4.0Scenery
- 5.0Facilities
Incredible experience throughout the day, from minute one until the very end! The redesign of the course is phenomenal, really strong layout, great green complexes, the strongest 4 par threes as a collective I’ve played anywhere.
Written by
@EllWilko157
- Challenging
- Driving range
- Must play
TPC Boston
Norton, MA, USASlope rating 154, 77.2 course rating, Championship tees, 7,261 yds
PrivateArnold Palmer
- 4.0Conditions
- 3.8Layout
- 3.4Scenery
- 4.7Facilities
It’s hard. Not overly memorable for most of the round until the final 3. It’s a solid take but gets a lot of play so don’t expect to be blown away but fairways and greens. Great practice area. Solid clubhouse. Fun finishing hole.
Written by
@AlbanianIdol
- Challenging
- Driving range
- Pristine
Bay/Bog
Willowbend Golf Club
Mashpee, MA, USASlope rating 145, 74.0 course rating, Gold tees, 6,621 yds
PrivateJack Largay & Dan Hostetter
- 4.5Conditions
- NRLayout
- NRScenery
- NRFacilities
- Driving range
- Restaurant
- Bar
Vineyard Golf Club
Edgartown, MA, USASlope rating 142, 75.1 course rating, Black tees, 7,146 yds
PrivateDonald Steel & Gil Hanse
- 4.0Conditions
- NRLayout
- NRScenery
- NRFacilities
- Driving range
- Restaurant
- Bar
The Cape Cod
The Golf Club of Cape Cod
East Falmouth, MA, USASlope rating 141, 74.8 course rating, Championship tees, 7,047 yds
PrivateRees Jones
- 3.5Conditions
- 5.0Layout
- 4.0Scenery
- 4.3Facilities
Rees Jones is an amazingly well laid out course, with fantastic bunkering. The Doctor had his way with this course and did not skip on anything. Miss left or right off most boxes and you will have a tough shot next. A difficult but very fun track to spin.
Written by
@bedson
- Driving range
- Pristine
- Fast greens
Crumpin Fox Club
Bernardston, MA, USA
Slope rating 141, 73.8 course rating, Black tees, 7,023 yds
(Granite/ Milton) Granite Links Golf Club
Quincy, MA, USA
Slope rating 141, 73.4 course rating, Black tees, 6,818 yds
Ipswich Country Club
Ipswich, MA, USA
Slope rating 140, 75.2 course rating, Gold tees, 7,023 yds
(Zaharias/Jones) Crosswinds Golf Club
Plymouth, MA, USA
Slope rating 140, 73.9 course rating, Black tees, 7,011 yds
The Kittansett Club
Marion, MA, USA
Slope rating 140, 73.8 course rating, Blue tees, 6,811 yds
Wollaston Golf Club
Milton, MA, USA
Slope rating 140, 73.7 course rating, Gold tees, 6,793 yds
Charter Oak Country Club
Hudson, MA, USA
Slope rating 140, 73.2 course rating, Black tees, 6,809 yds
The Ranch Golf Club
Southwick, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 75.0 course rating, Black tees, 7,174 yds
Boston Golf Club
Hingham, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.8 course rating, Championship tees, 7,062 yds
(Ouimet/Zaharias) Crosswinds Golf Club
Plymouth, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.8 course rating, Black tees, 7,102 yds
Blackstone National Golf Club
Sutton, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.6 course rating, Black tees, 6,909 yds
(Clyde & Squirrel) The Country Club
Brookline, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.3 course rating, Black tees, 7,033 yds
Pleasant Valley Country Club
Sutton, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.3 course rating, Gold tees, 6,877 yds
Old Sandwich Golf Club
Plymouth, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 74.1 course rating, Back tees, 6,868 yds
(Main) Brae Burn Country Club
West Newton, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 73.9 course rating, Gold tees, 6,668 yds
(Milton/Quincy) Granite Links Golf Club
Quincy, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 73.9 course rating, Black tees, 6,873 yds
Eastward Ho! Country Club
Chatham, MA, USA
Slope rating 139, 72.4 course rating, Black tees, 6,437 yds
(The at Turner Hill) The Golf Club at Turner Hill
Ipswich, MA, USA
Slope rating 138, 75.1 course rating, Championship tees, 7,036 yds
Black Rock Country Club
Hingham, MA, USA
Slope rating 138, 74.5 course rating, Tee 1, 6,960 yds
Nashawtuc Country Club
Concord, MA, USA
Slope rating 138, 73.6 course rating, Red tees, 6,850 yds
How we rank
This ranking uses published scorecard data from each course’s longest men’s tees, the same tee set for every course. Only 18-hole courses with a yardage for every hole, a total that matches the hole-by-hole sum, and a par between 54 and 80 are included, and the tees must carry a single slope rating (55–155) and course rating. Courses whose scorecard duplicates another course’s are left out until the data is fixed. Courses are ordered by slope rating, then course rating, then Course Vaults score. Only open courses with a published Course Vaults score (at least 5 explicit ratings) are eligible, and a page is published only when at least 5 courses qualify. State pages include courses across Massachusetts. Rankings refresh about hourly.
FAQ
Pines at The International Golf Club is #1 on Course Vaults in Massachusetts at Slope 155 (81.7 course rating · Tiger tees · 8,325 yds). 182 courses qualify for this list.
This ranking uses published scorecard data from each course’s longest men’s tees, the same tee set for every course. Only 18-hole courses with a yardage for every hole, a total that matches the hole-by-hole sum, and a par between 54 and 80 are included, and the tees must carry a single slope rating (55–155) and course rating. Courses whose scorecard duplicates another course’s are left out until the data is fixed. Courses are ordered by slope rating, then course rating, then Course Vaults score. Only open courses with a published Course Vaults score (at least 5 explicit ratings) are eligible, and a page is published only when at least 5 courses qualify. State pages include courses across Massachusetts. Rankings refresh about hourly.
Slope rating is the USGA measure of how much harder a course plays for a bogey golfer than for a scratch golfer, from 55 to 155 (113 is average). Course rating is the expected score for a scratch golfer from the same tees.
This page was last generated Nov 12, 2026, 3:47 AM EST. Scores and eligibility are recomputed about every hour.
