Top 10 Golf Courses in South Korea
South Korea's relationship with golf is extraordinary in scale and intensity. The country has produced a stream of world-class players — Se Ri Pak, K.J. Choi, Y.E. Yang, a generation of LPGA stars including Inbee Park and Ko Jin-young — from a golfing tradition barely a century old. With a mountainous terrain that covers nearly 70 percent of the peninsula, Korean architects have become adept at carving dramatic layouts from steep hillsides, producing courses with elevation changes and panoramic mountain views that are unlike anything in the flat-terrain traditions of American resort golf. The domestic market is deeply enthusiastic; rounds can command green fees comparable with the most expensive venues in Europe, and the culture of golf in Korea — the equipment, the fashion, the post-round meals — is a world unto itself.
1. Nine Bridges Golf Club, Jeju Island
Nine Bridges is widely recognised as the best course in South Korea and has featured consistently among the top 100 courses in the world. Ronald Fream designed it on Jeju Island, the volcanic island province off the southern coast, completing it in 2001. The course winds through forests of Japanese cedar and Hallasan-facing pastureland, with nine of its holes crossing wooden bridges over streams and wetland — the feature from which it takes its name. It is a private members club of very high exclusivity; guest play is possible only through member introduction. The Korean Open has been held here. Conditioning is flawless by any standard.
2. Sky 72 Golf & Resort, Incheon
Sky 72 is the most versatile golf destination in Korea, operating four 18-hole courses on Yeongjong Island adjacent to Incheon International Airport. The Ocean Course — built on land reclaimed from the Yellow Sea with sweeping views of the tidal flats and the mainland — is the most internationally acclaimed, a layout that captures something of the links spirit in an unlikely context. The Haeundae, Classic and Dream courses complete the offering. Sky 72 has hosted the PGA Tour's CJ Cup on multiple occasions and is accessible to visiting golfers without member introduction. The location makes it an ideal stopover for travellers connecting through Incheon.
3. Anyang Country Club, Gyeonggi Province
Anyang Country Club was one of the first high-end private clubs to be established in the greater Seoul metropolitan area, and it retains a reputation for quality conditioning and traditional club values. The course occupies a heavily wooded site in the hills south of Seoul, with a routing that uses natural terrain intelligently. The fairways are tight by American standards; precision driving is at a premium. Anyang has hosted Korean Open events and a number of Asian Tour qualifiers. Access is through member introduction; the club is formal in its operations, reflecting the deep seriousness with which Korea's private golf clubs approach the game.
4. South Cape Owners Club, South Gyeongsang Province
South Cape Owners Club opened in 2013 to immediate critical acclaim, with Kyle Phillips designing a course that plays along the dramatically steep coastline of the South Sea near Namhae. The routing climbs and descends through pine forest to reach cliff-edge holes with views of offshore islands, and the mix of mountain parkland and coastal exposure makes it one of the most scenically spectacular courses in Asia. It is a private residential club; access for non-members is limited, but the course has hosted the PGA Tour's CJ Cup circuit events. Par is 71 at around 6,700 yards.
5. Woo Jeong Hills Country Club, South Chungcheong Province
Woo Jeong Hills is one of Korea's most tournament-tested venues, having hosted the Presidents Cup in 2015 — the biennial team competition between the United States and an International side. Jack Nicklaus designed the course in a valley surrounded by mountains, producing a layout that rewards power off the tee but punishes imprecise approach play with well-guarded greens and heavy rough. The international stage provided by the Presidents Cup elevated the profile of both the club and Korean golf internationally. It is a private club; access is through member introduction.
6. Haesley Nine Bridges, Gyeonggi Province
Haesley Nine Bridges is the sister club to Nine Bridges on Jeju and was designed by Ronald Fream to an equally exacting standard, opening on the Gyeonggi plains south of Seoul in 2009. The two clubs share a design philosophy and a commitment to flawless conditioning, and Haesley has quickly built a reputation as one of the best courses on the mainland. It is strictly private; even more so than Nine Bridges. The course plays through carefully managed parkland with water features and indigenous plantings creating a garden-like setting. Its place in the Asian top 50 is settled.
7. Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea, Incheon
Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea, on Songdo Island near Incheon, was designed by Nicklaus to host the Presidents Cup in 2015 alongside Woo Jeong Hills. The course sits in the heart of the Songdo International Business District — a planned city built on reclaimed tidal land — and manages to produce interesting, varied golf from a site with minimal natural topography. The routing uses mounding, water and vegetation to create a course that plays differently in different wind conditions. It is a semi-private operation; visitor tee times are available.
8. Lotte Skyhill Jeju Country Club, Jeju Island
Lotte Skyhill occupies the slopes of Hallasan — Jeju's dormant volcano and South Korea's highest peak — at an elevation that provides both cooler conditions than the island's coastal areas and panoramic views when weather permits. The course is a parkland layout with the mountain as its backdrop; the volcanic soil, unique to Jeju, gives distinctive turf characteristics. The resort operates as a hotel and golf destination; visitor tee times are available through the Lotte Hotels network. Conditions from April to November are generally excellent.
9. Elysian Jeju Golf Club, Jeju Island
Elysian Jeju is another of the island's well-regarded resort courses, a layout that runs through the forested terrain of Jeju's northern slopes with generous fairways framed by cypress and cedar. The course plays to around 6,800 yards; the combination of altitude variation and sea breezes from the strait between Jeju and the mainland makes yardage a somewhat unreliable guide to actual difficulty. Resort guests have priority tee time access; advance booking is strongly advised during peak spring and autumn seasons when Jeju golf tourism reaches its highest pitch.
10. Pinx Golf Club, Jeju Island
Pinx Golf Club on Jeju's southwestern coast is a Ted Robinson design from 2001 that runs along cliffs above the sea, the volcanic rock formations and breaking waves below visible from multiple holes. The combination of dramatic ocean exposure and meticulously manicured parkland holes inland gives the course a varied character. It has hosted the CJ Nine Bridges Classic (now the CJ Cup). A private club; access through member invitation. The post-round facilities — Pinx operates an arts and cultural centre alongside the golf — are exceptional by any standard.
Planning Your South Korean Golf Trip
The best golf season runs from April through June and again from September through October. Korean winters are cold and dry; most courses close from late November to late March, particularly outside Jeju. July and August bring the monsoon and high humidity to the mainland. Green fees on the Korean mainland at private clubs can reach USD 200 to 400 on weekends; daily-fee and public courses are more accessible. Jeju Island is a concentrated golf destination — dozens of courses within a small area, resort accommodation widely available, and a mild climate that extends the season compared with the mainland. Open the map is the best way to navigate the remarkable density of Korean golf options.