Pinelands Golf Club

About Pinelands Golf Club

Pinelands is a flat, pine-lined layout on the edge of Wharton State Forest, par 72 and 6,503 yards from the back. Ralph Leopardi laid it out so the trees give each fairway its own corridor, and he said on opening day that it would keep balls out of the next fairway and keep play moving. The map survey backs that up: every hole is tree-lined, water touches five, there are 59 bunkers, and the high point is only 17 feet up. Course character from OpenStreetMap contributors' survey data.

Leopardi did everything here. He designed it, ran the construction and became the first superintendent, after 17 years as superintendent at Atlantic City Country Club, where Babe Didrikson Zaharias won her first U.S. Women's Open in 1948 and Arnold Palmer played while stationed nearby with the Coast Guard. The club says Leopardi picked up his design ideas talking with the pros there and in late-night talks with Palmer, and the scorecard credits Palmer as a collaborator. The ribbon was cut on all 18 in 1964, according to the club's history page.

Stephen Kay renovated the course in 2022, with Kevin Wagar shaping. The club's hole-in-one list goes back to 1993, and the 172-yard 2nd shows up more than any other hole on it. New City Equities owns it now and has put two simulators in the cart barn; the Twisted Tavern handles food and drinks.

It's one of 30 courses Yoink watches in the South Jersey & the Shore area, and the closest alternative is White Oaks Country Club, about 5 miles away — handy when your first choice is booked solid.

Booking a tee time at Pinelands Golf Club

Book online through the club's site or call 609-561-8900. Carts stay on the paths around tees and greens and on every par 3.

How to get a tee time at Pinelands Golf Club