The hardest golf courses in Willoughby Hills, Ohio

The hardest 18-hole golf courses within about 25 miles of Willoughby Hills, Ohio, ranked by USGA slope rating from each course's longest men's tees, with course rating as the tiebreaker. 11 courses have complete, verified tee data.

Also covers Beachwood, Chardon, Fairview Park, Highland Heights, Painesville and 3 more nearby towns.

  1. Sand Ridge

    Sand Ridge Golf Club

    Chardon, OH, USA
    8.6

    Slope rating 140, 76.0 course rating, Double Diamond tees, 7,275 yds

    PrivateTom Fazio

    • 4.2Conditions
    • 4.7Layout
    • 4.4Scenery
    • 4.7Facilities
    • Challenging
    • Driving range
    • Must play
  2. Boulder Creek

    Boulder Creek Golf Club and Event Center

    Streetsboro, OH, USA
    8.0

    Slope rating 137, 75.5 course rating, Black tees, 7,425 yds

    PublicJoe Salemi

    • 4.0Conditions
    • 3.8Layout
    • 5.0Value
    • 4.3Scenery
    • 3.5Facilities

    Excellent value. Nice attention to detail for a public course (like trimming off the lower branches of trees so you can play around them). I can’t say it’s all pristine, but definitely fun round of golf and worth a the hop from Pittsburgh to give it a whirl.

    Written by

    @Cass7206

    • Challenging
    • Driving range
    • Must play
  3. Stone Water

    Stone Water Golf Club

    Highland Heights, OH, USA
    7.5

    Slope rating 137, 74.5 course rating, Black tees, 7,060 yds

    PublicDr. Michael Hurdzan & Dana Fry

    • 4.0Conditions
    • 4.0Layout
    • 4.5Value
    • 3.0Scenery
    • 3.9Facilities
    • Must play
    • Restaurant
    • Bar
  4. Canterbury

    Canterbury Golf Club

    Beachwood, OH, USA
    8.7

    Slope rating 135, 72.3 course rating, Blue tees, 6,942 yds

    PrivateHerbert Strong

    • 4.3Conditions
    • 4.8Layout
    • 3.4Scenery
    • 4.2Facilities

    Outstanding course and an amazing club as well. Clubhouse oozes great classic vibes. Staff is awesome. Greens are brutally severe.

    Written by

    @txmidam94

    • Walkable
    • Must play
    • Fast greens
  5. Sleepy Hollow

    Sleepy Hollow Golf Course

    Brecksville, OH, USA
    7.8

    Slope rating 133, 73.3 course rating, Black tees, 6,893 yds

    PublicStanley Thompson.

    • 4.0Conditions
    • 4.0Layout
    • 5.0Value
    • 3.0Scenery
    • 3.6Facilities

    One of the gems of affordable public golf in America. A Stanley Thompson design that the city is finally taking the time to ensure turf health and architectural characteristics are preserved.

    Written by

    @Mister J Nasty

    • Challenging
    • Driving range
    • Must play
  6. The Shaker Heights Country Club

    Shaker Heights, OH, USA

    Slope rating 133, 72.8 course rating, Black tees, 6,701 yds

    7.3
  7. Kirtland Country Club

    Willoughby, OH, USA

    Slope rating 133, 72.7 course rating, Back tees, 6,923 yds

    9.1
  8. Little Mountain Country Club

    Painesville, OH, USA

    Slope rating 129, 72.3 course rating, Blue tees, 6,623 yds

    7.4
  9. Manakiki Golf Course

    Willoughby Hills, OH, USA

    Slope rating 129, 71.8 course rating, Black tees, 6,643 yds

    7.1
  10. Grantwood Golf Course

    Solon, OH, USA

    Slope rating 122, 70.7 course rating, Black tees, 6,429 yds

    5.8
  11. Big Met Golf Course

    Fairview Park, OH, USA

    Slope rating 114, 69.8 course rating, Back tees, 6,481 yds

    7.0

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. City pages include courses within about 25 miles of Willoughby Hills, so nearby suburbs can appear. Rankings refresh about hourly.

FAQ

Sand Ridge Golf Club is #1 on Course Vaults in and around Willoughby Hills, Ohio at Slope 140 (76.0 course rating · Double Diamond tees · 7,275 yds). 11 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. City pages include courses within about 25 miles of Willoughby Hills, so nearby suburbs can appear. 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.

Yes. It includes qualifying courses within about 25 miles of Willoughby Hills, not only courses whose address is in the city.

This page was last generated Nov 12, 2026, 4:00 AM EST. Scores and eligibility are recomputed about every hour.

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