The Big Easy - Golf in New Orleans

New Orleans – the Big Easy – will be a hotspot for postseason football over the next few months.  The Caesars Superdome – located downtown and only a few minutes from Bourbon Street – will be hosting the Louisiana High School Championship Games (Dec. 12-14), the New Orleans Bowl (Dec. 19), the Allstate Sugar Bowl (Jan. 1), a Saints home game (Dec. 29), and Super Bowl LIX (Feb. 9). Also, Tulane’s Yulman Stadium will be hosting the HBCU Legacy Bowl (Feb.22).

The city’s attraction for events and travel besides football – specifically New Year’s and Mardi Gras – is well known. Planning to bring your clubs? I was born and raised in the area so here’s where I would want to play.

Top places to play golf in New Orleans

Distances are measured from the Caesars Superdome; private and restricted access clubs are excluded.

TPC Louisiana – 13 miles in Avondale, LA. 

The Pete Dye design, in consultation with Kelly Gibson and Steve Elkington, has been the home of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans since 2005 (except for 2006). The yardage ranges between 7,425 and 5,121 yards and features wide fairways, lots of sand, and a lot of water. 

Bayou Oaks at City Park – 7 miles in the Lakeview area of New Orleans. 

Once home to 72 holes, golf has been played in City Park since 1902, including hosting the PGA Tour from 1958-1962.  Hurricane Katrina imparted significant damage to the course which resulted in significant changes to its courses. The South Course reopened in 2017 and is a Rees Jones design that is so regarded that there are many whispers of relocating the Zurich Classic.  The North Course is shorter and more forgiving. On a personal note, Bayou Oaks is where I learned to play, so it holds a special place to me.

English Turn – 11 miles near Algiers. 

The Jack Nicklaus design opened in 1988 and hosted the Zurich Classic from 1989-2004 and 2006.  The course and community were designed with the PGA Tour event in mind and, notably, its 18th hole was one of the toughest holes annually on the entire tour.  The course has water in play on all but one hole and has a signature island green on the par 5 fifteenth hole. Lots of wildlife surrounds the property.

Lakewood Golf Club – 7 miles in Algiers.  

Lakewood was the host of the New Orleans PGA Tour stop from 1963-1988 with a prominent list of winners including Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Tom Watson, and Lee Trevino.  The previously tree-lined course was heavily damaged during Hurricane Katrina. The course was heavily renovated and has a more open feel to it. The course is now owned by the Firemen’s Pension Fund.

Joe M. Bartholomew Sr. Municipal Golf Course – 7 miles in Gentilly. 

Formerly Pontchartrain Park, this course is the current home of the New Orleans First Tee and is named after Joe Bartholomew, the first African American to be inducted into the Greater New Orleans Hall of Fame. The course was renovated a few times, most recently in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and is shorter, more tree-lined, and generally more playable than others on this list. 

Oak Harbor Golf Club – 30 miles away in Slidell. 

This course would be a good place to play, if arriving by car from the north or east, on the day you arrive or the day you leave.  Opened in 1992, while not tremendously long, this Pete Dye design requires accuracy off the tee and around the green. The course has a nice balance of having a lot of water while being forgiving for slightly-off shots. This course was one of my favorites growing up.

And, what kind of person would I be if I did not give you a few other recommendations of places to go?

Three spots for food: R&O’s in Bucktown, Rivershack Tavern in Jefferson, and Jacques Imo’s Café in Uptown.  If you are in town during the Holidays with kids, I recommend Celebration in the Oaks and Storyland in City Park.

Safe travels!