North Dakota
Bismarck & Western North Dakota Golf Courses & Tee Times
Golf in Bismarck-Mandan runs mostly through two park districts. The Missouri River shapes the best of it: Riverwood sits on its flood plain, and Hawktree, north of town off Highway 1804, has Burnt Creek in play on eight holes. The season is short, so the Bismarck courses open for play in April and May as weather allows and stay open into October.
Can't get a tee time in Bismarck & Western North Dakota? Yoink watches 8 public courses, from Dickinson, Bismarck, South Heart, Mandan and New Salem. Pick your courses, set the day and time you want, and get a notification when a tee time opens, cancellations included.
The longest layout here is Hawktree Golf Club at 7,085 yards; there is one nine-hole course.
Who runs public golf in Bismarck & Western North Dakota
Bismarck Parks and Recreation District runs three public courses: Riverwood (18 holes, par 72), Tom O'Leary in central Bismarck, and the nine-hole Pebble Creek on the Hay Creek corridor, plus the Sheila Schafer Junior Links and an indoor dome at Fore Seasons Center that is open all year. The district sells season passes by course or for all three, and they drop to half price on July 15. Across the river, Mandan Park District owns and operates Prairie West and Mandan Municipal. Out west, Dickinson Parks and Recreation runs Heart River, an 18-hole par 72 along the Heart River.
Public courses worth knowing in Bismarck & Western North Dakota
- Riverwood Golf Course: Bismarck's 18-hole parks course on the Missouri River flood plain, dedicated June 21, 1969, and named to Golfweek's 2016 Best Courses You Can Play.
- Hawktree Golf Club: Jim Engh design with black coal slag in the bunkers; Golf Digest's Best Course in North Dakota in 2001 and #71 on Golfweek's 2001 100 Best Modern Courses.
- Prairie West Golf Course: Mandan Park District's 18-hole par 72, with water affecting 10 holes.
- Tom O'Leary Golf Course: The shorter parks course in central Bismarck, with mature trees.
- Heart River Golf Course: Dickinson Parks and Recreation's 18-hole par 72 along the Heart River, with views of Patterson Lake.
Booking tee times in Bismarck & Western North Dakota: the local rules
Bismarck's three parks courses book online up to three days ahead, and a credit card is required. Pass holders should book with the same email as their season pass and skip the GolfNow 'Hot Deals' button, which charges the card on file. Miss a tee time three times and you pay the full green fee plus a 7-day booking hold. In Mandan, Prairie West takes tee times seven days out, online or by phone.
Yoink
Know the rules. Let Yoink do the waiting.
Booking windows decide who gets first pick. After that, times come back one at a time as plans change. Yoink watches all 8 courses in Bismarck & Western North Dakota and tells you when a time that fits comes back, so you're not refreshing the page all week.
8 courses in Bismarck & Western North Dakota
Bismarck
New Salem
South Heart
Other
Hawktree Golf Club
Jim Engh's prairie links: black coal slag in the bunkers, Burnt Creek in play on eight holes, and a par-3 third whose tee sits 80 feet above the green.
Riverwood Golf Course
Parkland golf on the Missouri River flood plain, with wide, tree-lined fairways. On Golfweek's 2016 Best Courses You Can Play list.
Tom O'Leary Golf Course
A short par 69 with mature trees and wide fairways, renamed in 1969 for the first pro at Bismarck Country Club. A nine-holer until the 1986 master plan.
Why tee times in Bismarck & Western North Dakota are hard to get
Golfers in Bismarck & Western North Dakota get maybe six months of good weather, and they all want the same weekend mornings. Demand bunches up from May to September.
Most public courses open their tee sheet a set number of days ahead, often 7 to 14, and many municipal courses give residents or card holders an earlier window. The best weekend-morning times usually go the day they're released. Leagues and outings take blocks of the sheet before the public ever sees them.
When tee time cancellations happen
A full tee sheet rarely stays full. Many courses let you cancel without a fee up to 24 or 48 hours before your time, so spots tend to reappear in the last couple of days. A bad forecast shakes more loose, and a foursome that drops to three opens a single. None of it is announced. The time just shows up again on the booking page, and whoever looks first gets it.
How to get a tee time in Bismarck & Western North Dakota
Yoink
All 8 courses in Bismarck & Western North Dakota, watched for you around the clock
Yoink checks all 8 courses in Bismarck & Western North Dakota every few minutes, so every open time is in one place and you're the first to know when one that fits your day, window and group appears, cancellations included.
Doing it by hand? Here's what works.
- Know the booking window. Find out how many days ahead each course releases times, and whether residents get an earlier window. Be ready the morning it opens.
- Look again 24 to 48 hours out. That's when most cancellation deadlines pass and spots come back.
- Be flexible on group size. Singles and twosomes fit into gaps a foursome can't.
- Try twilight and weekday afternoons. They're the last to fill and often cheaper.
- Keep a quicker course in your back pocket. Nine-hole and executive courses are easier to get on and play faster. Around here that includes Red Trail Links.
Read the full guide to getting a tee time when everything's booked
Tee times in Bismarck & Western North Dakota: questions
How do I get notified when a tee time opens up in Bismarck & Western North Dakota?
Set a watch in Yoink for the courses you want, the days you can play, a time window and the number of players. Yoink checks those tee sheets every few minutes and sends a notification as soon as a matching time appears, cancellations included. You book it directly with the course.
When do tee time cancellations usually show up?
Mostly in the 24 to 48 hours before the tee time, as golfers cancel ahead of the course's cancellation deadline, and whenever the weather forecast changes. They appear without notice and tend to be rebooked quickly.
How far in advance can you book a tee time in Bismarck & Western North Dakota?
It depends on the course. Many public courses open bookings 7 to 14 days ahead, and town or county courses often give residents an earlier window. Each course's own booking page has its policy.
When is golf busiest in Bismarck & Western North Dakota?
Demand is highest from late spring through early fall. Weekend mornings are always the hardest tee times to get.
Which courses in Bismarck & Western North Dakota are quickest to play?
Nine-hole and executive courses such as Red Trail Links take less time and are usually easier to book.
Does Yoink book the tee time for me?
No. Yoink tells you when a time opens; you book it with the course on its own booking page, at the course's price, with no extra fee.
More golf in North Dakota
- Minnesota Lakes Country · 7 courses
- More North Dakota · 7 courses
Sources
Facts on this page come from these pages, checked 2026-09-28. Rates and booking rules change, so confirm with the course.
- bisparks.org · official
- bisparks.org · official
- bisparks.org · official
- bisparks.org · official
- bisparks.org · official
- bisparks.org · official
- ndgolf.org · association
- golfmandan.com · official
- golfmandan.com · official
- heartrivergolfcourse.com · official
Tee times in Bismarck & Western North Dakota, without the refreshing
Watch as many courses as you like. When a time opens that fits your day, window and group, Yoink tells you first.