An “Early Thoughts” Followup From Pinehurst Resort (No. 10)

Building golf in the shadows of the titans of the industry is no small feat, and in Tom Doak’s case, a semiregular occurrence. At 2006’s Sebonack, the sprawling minimalist collaboration with Jack Nicklaus, much of the golf course overlooks Peconic Bay and neighbours The National Golf Links of America in the golf-rich town of Southampton, New York. At NGLA, a near-consensus 1o in the Confidential Guide (only Darius Oliver gave it a 9) awaited Tom Doak’s prowess, though Sebonack’s own stylistic flavour and artistry gives the layout its own identity, removed from comparisons to C.B. Macdonald’s magnum opus.

Next and just a handful of years later, Renaissance Club opened on the other side of the fence from Muirfield overlooking the Firth of Forth. Much like NGLA is to Sebonack, Renaissance’s layout would have to compete and forever draw comparisons or discussion alongside the brilliant Harry Colt design (also a 10 in the Confidential Guide, according to Tom Doak). In both instances, Doak’s own architectural vision contrasts nicely against the older, more hallowed layouts that largely define their respective golf landscapes as a whole, setting a standard few, if any can and have lived up to. Without question, having a newer, modern product live up to the stature of their next door neighbours was a seemingly impossible task even for Doak’s own talents, who has made a good case for being the finest golf architect since the Golden Age with an impressive list of golf courses (including Pacific Dunes, Tari Iti, Barnbougle Dunes, Rock Creek Cattle Company, Ballyneal, Cape Kidnappers, and more).

Finally and most recently, we arrive in North Carolina, where Tom Doak’s challenge is next to another juggernaut of the design world in Pinehurst No. 2. The subdued Ross masterpiece—primarily defined by an abundance of short grass surroundings its domed greens and the native areas seamlessly blending into the fairways—that will regularly host the US Open moving forward is no small challenge. Unlike Muirfield or National Golf Links, where Doak’s own layouts border the perimeter fences of the iconic layouts next door, the venerable Pinehurst Resort’s 10th course is removed from the compound that is the Village of Pinehurst, located closer to Aberdeen some five miles south. Much like National Golf Links and Muirfield, though, Pinehurst No. 2 is a fellow Doak 10 according to the person the scale is named after, but this time, with enough distance from the keystone offering of the region, No. 10 has a bit more room to breathe than Sebonack or Renaissance did.

The strategic par 4, 4th

The inevitable comparison between No. 2 and No. 10 was most obvious upon No. 10’s opening during the 2024 US Open week, a historic playing of the game’s toughest test remembered by Bryson DeChambeau’s all-time bunker shot on the 72nd and final hole of the championship, and Rory McIlroy’s historic missed 3 footer-and-change putt on the same hole to lose. By roughly the fourth hole on No. 10—after falling, playing over a valley, back up, and to an immediate class of a drive-and-pitch hole—it becomes clear that No. 10 is its own thing—any true comparisons or parallels are simply for fun, likely over a post-round pint at the Pinehurst Brewery to simply get your group going or engage in a spirited debate.

Granted, there are some similarities to No. 2: the sandy terrain it occupies is similar, though the property itself is much hillier than Ross’ star contributions to the resort. As a result of the region’s soils, it, too, has the majestic Carolina pines and sandy shrubbery that most of the region benefits from, including most of Pinehurst Resort’s premiere layouts. In the comparison of No. 2 and No 10., though, how they challenge and engage golfers is different. Doak and his all-star team of contributors here, including Angela Moser, Blake Conant & Brian Schneider, and Brian Slawnik, have done an exceptional job defining the differences.

Take the opening hole as the exemplar, with its tee-shot working through the uprights of a couple Carolina pines up-and-over the ridge line before falling away on the other side of the hill. Its green complex, like so many at No. 10, sits on-grade and low to its surrounds: rather than a pronounced turtle back green with a dramatic back-to-front tilt that’s a constant occurrence at No. 2, No. 10 opens with an Oakmont-esque fall-away green rushing down the hillside. In this scenario, Oakmont’s generally straightforward pitch from just over the back seems simple; over the back, a common miss for those coming to the firm and fast conditions presented here, is a short grass haven, with the surrounds at the opener bleeding into the second’s tee box. Certainly an abrasive, yet entertaining opening hole, but one that perfectly sets the tone.

The 1st green at Pinehurst No. 10

From the first hole onward, any comparison is unjust. Much of No. 10’s features are shockingly low to the ground, perhaps a testament to Tom Doak and his team’s dedication to separating itself from the region’s offerings. At both No. 2 and No. 4, the green complexes are the star of the show, though they often feature dramatic fall-offs on one or multiple sides; at Southern Pines, demanding false fronts and greens perched above their surrounds as a result of its unusually hilly piece of ground see balls ricocheting and rejecting off the slopes; even Mid Pines and Pine Needles, to a certain extent, don’t sit this low to the ground. Much like Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw’s Dormie Club, these surfaces are effortlessly tied into the topography as if the land prior is the sole direction for what the final product will look like. Minimalism is, after all, doing the most with what you’re given, and at No. 10, the native terrain is the largest factor in what the character of the green complexes is defined by.

Certainly, there are shades of a more obvious human effort scattered around the property, and it wouldn’t be a Tom Doak golf course without the occasional eccentric or roly-poly green complex. The par 5, 12th and par 3, 14th are two examples where, rather than sitting either on-grade or below the surroundings, there are obvious architect’s input, but this is to the benefit of the layout’s pacing, balance, and flow. Largely, though, much of the features are defined as elegant and sophisticated. There is a lack of over-the-top loudness here, only tastefully sprinkled in when necessary.

Those focal points—where Doak decided to increase the intensity—prove to be the anchors of the routing. Without them, the constant gentleness of the features might create a sense of homogeneity, especially for those resort visitors who come once and never return. By striking a chord between the two extremes of the layout—restrained and fervent—the routing seemingly appeals to those looking to learn more on repeat visits or regular trips to Pinehurst, where a golf course as subdued as this reveals its trickery over time with repeat play; and those who might visit once on a bucket-list style trip, a once-in-a-life experience with only one round planned at No. 10. The green complexes are, without question, on the more gentle side compared to other Tom Doak layouts, but there is a healthy mix and are anything but dull. The gently-resting 1st is immediately contrasted with the decidedly interesting par 3, 2nd; that trend continues the ever-present seesaw between the two personalities across the routing.

Without question, credit is deserving for the balancing act the design team struct between the on-grade, ever-interesting gently-resting holes like that at the 1st, 3rd-5th, 9th-11th, 13th, 15th, 16th, and 18th, with the more photogenic, intense holes at the 6th-8th, 12th, 14th, and 17th. At the end of it all, No. 10 is deserving of its title of being a low-profile golf course and certainly in contrast to what others are building, with a seeming influx of maximalist efforts for cosplaying as minimalist to both attract the Instagram views and the marketability of “minimalism” these days. You could argue there is more golf to look at than play these days, but No. 10 is almost in complete contrast to that. Yes, it is unequivocally beautiful to look at (hard not to love the North Carolina sand hills, for their beauty is well-documented), but it is even better to play, with a true desire to re-tee and decode more of the layout with time.

Whether or not Doak, Moser, and company acted in direct retaliation to the industry’s current trends of so-called “minimalism” jacked up to look good from a drone or not is beside the point (though it certainly feels as if they intentionally chose a more subdued golf course than Doak might have produced ten or fifteen years ago): that point being, No. 10 is effortlessly natural, seamlessly into the surroundings and shockingly mature for such a new golf course. If one mistook the layout for being as old as Dormie Club or No. 4, it would not come as a surprise; perhaps credit to the agronomy team for their grow-in efforts, but for the design choices that feel as if they’re not defined by the era it’s in. There is a distinct age to the layout already, something very few can say this early into a golf course’s life.

The 9th’s effortless beauty. The lack of visual clues makes this a sneaky difficult approach shot!

Of course, there are exceptions to the gentleness of No. 10’s overall presentation, and those moments can largely be traced back to The Pit’s former occupation of part of this property, the old 1985 Dan Maples design that aligned more with Tobacco Road than any other golf course in the area. Tobacco Road opened after The Pit did and more-than-likely took the wind out of its sails. Officially, the Dan Maples design closed in 2010. Pinehurst Resort purchased the property in 2011, with the layout’s old remaining clues being left to rest until present day. Most of The Pit will likely be incorporated into Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw’s rumoured No. 11 next door, but for those fans of the old layout, the land that housed the 2nd-6th is used in the new golf course.

No hole that derives as much inspiration from the ghost of Dan Maples than the middle-length par 4, 8th, which plays across parts of the 4th and 5th holes at The Pit. The massive knoll, dubbed “The Matterhorn”, obstructs the fairway from the tee, rollicking in a way that feels as if one was surfing in La Jolla rather than playing golf in North Carolina. In the “Early Thoughts” edition for this golf course, the 8th hole was described as a mix between a Road tee shot and a Punchbowl/Alps green combo, but maybe it is better described as the most extreme Knoll template in, at least, the Americas. After the relatively tame introduction to the golf course until this point—which produces the best variety of golf on property—the 8th seemingly awakens Doak’s inner Mike Stranz, destined to make yearly Eclectic 18 lists for those who are drawn to intensity.

Is the 8th mildly out of character with the general broad, big brush strokes of the rest of the property? Perhaps. As a reaction to the obvious individualism of this middle-length par 4, elements like the par 3, 14th’s green (showcased earlier in this article) are toned up, located just over the other side of the ridge the second-half of the property opens up to, and the aforementioned 12th and 17th match the intensity to tie it all in.

Regardless, the short, choppy contours and abrupt features of the 8th (and as an extension, the 12th, 14th, and to a certain extent, the 17th’s green complex) are anything but the norm here. The closest comparison in the area would be that of Southern Pines, with its big, dramatic movement and the central lake that most of the routing works its way around. At Southern Pines, the water feature pops up on the 6th, 9th, 11th, and 14th, while No. 10, also hilly and dramatic with a central water hazard, sees the 9th, 15th, and 17th make use of its lake at the bottom of the property. On either side of the pond, a healthy amount of top-to-bottom elevation change awaits.

The par 3, 17th at Pinehurst Resort’s tenth course

There’s no question this is one of the more difficult walks in the area, though that should hardly scare anyone from the northeast, with its fair share of dramatic properties, or the west, where the mountainous landscapes produce more difficult walks than not, but the charm of No. 10’s routing is how it utilizes the topography, maximizing the vistas, the shots asked, the uneven/side hill equations to solve, and more. This is not the gentle landscape of No. 2, nor the gradual movement of Mid Pines (that opening stretch aside), but as a result, it produces its own individualistic highlights. If No. 4 was forever doomed with comparisons of its next-door neighbour, No. 10 has seemingly done everything possible to differentiate itself—and all for the better.

In an area with an abundance of golf courses one could play every day, No. 10 inserts itself firmly into that debate alongside other very pleasant golf courses like Mid Pines, Dormie Club, and Southern Pines. Certainly, No. 2’s shadow over the region will forever loom over anything new or restored within the region and state, but realistically, it competes with only itself, forever enshrined in the upper echelon of golf architecture. That said, No. 10 is a superb “B” side, of which it does perhaps the best job of the entire region differentiating itself from the elements that makes Donald Ross’ crown jewel of North Carolina. That’s deserving credit to Tom Doak and Angela Moser, for the sand hills of North Carolina are among the most competitive and difficult regions in the United States to stand out. No. 10 does just that, while being a brilliant place to play golf over-and-over-again.