Pennsylvania
Philadelphia Golf Courses & Tee Times
Philadelphia is where organized American golf got its start. The Golf Association of Philadelphia was founded on February 5, 1897, and calls itself the oldest regional or state golf association in the country. The public side has its own history. Cobbs Creek in West Philadelphia opened in 1916 on a Hugh Wilson design, the same Wilson who built Merion, and the city says it quickly earned a name as the best public course in the country. It welcomed golfers of all backgrounds, and Charlie Sifford called it home. The market runs well past the city line into the Pennsylvania suburbs, South Jersey and northern Delaware.
Good weekend tee times in Philadelphia go fast, and the ones that come back later (cancellations, groups that shrink) aren't announced. Yoink watches the tee sheets at 49 public courses here, from Reading, Gilbertsville, Jamison, Phoenixville and Bensalem, and tells you the moment a time you want opens up.
The longest layout here is Makefield Highlands Golf Club at 7,058 yards; there are 4 nine-hole courses; there is one executive or par-3 course for a quicker round.
Who runs public golf in Philadelphia
Inside the city, the public courses sit on Fairmount Park land. Juniata, along Tacony Creek, opened nine holes on July 14, 1927 and all 18 by Memorial Day 1930, laid out by park engineer Alan D. Corson. Walnut Lane in Roxborough is a par-62 Alex Findlay course built with WPA labor and opened in May 1940. Cobbs Creek closed in 2019 and is being rebuilt by the Cobbs Creek Foundation on a 70-year lease, with Troon running the campus. Its 9-hole Q School short course is open now and the restored Olde Course, by Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner, is slated for summer 2027. In the suburbs, townships run some of the best public golf: Lower Makefield owns Makefield Highlands in Bucks County, and West Norriton owns Jeffersonville, a 1931 Donald Ross course it bought in 1972. The state gets involved too: Skippack Golf Course sits inside Evansburg State Park. Since 1996, public courses can be GAP member clubs, and juniors 6 to 18 can join Youth on Course for $5 rounds at participating courses.
Public courses worth knowing in Philadelphia
- Walnut Lane Golf Club: Alex Findlay's par-62 layout in Roxborough, built with WPA labor from 1935 and opened in May 1940.
- Juniata Golf Course: Fairmount Park course along Tacony Creek, nine holes opened in 1927 and 18 by 1930, laid out by park engineer Alan D. Corson.
- Jeffersonville Golf Club: West Norriton Township's Donald Ross course from 1931, built on an old steeplechase track. In May 2026 it became the first public course to host a GAP major, the Middle-Amateur.
- Makefield Highlands Golf Club: Lower Makefield Township's Rick Jacobson links-style course from 2004, up to 7,058 yards; Golfweek's #9 course you can play in Pennsylvania in 2013.
- Skippack Golf Club: 18 holes, par 70, 6,007 yards inside Evansburg State Park.
- Kimberton Golf Club: The first course George Fazio designed, in Phoenixville.
- Cobbs Creek: Hugh Wilson's 1916 public course, host of the 1928 U.S. Public Links. Hanse and Wagner's restored Olde Course is slated for summer 2027.
49 courses in Philadelphia
Atglen
Bethlehem
Cheltenham
Collegeville
Gilbertsville
Bella Vista Golf Course
Gilbertsville daily fee in Montco — rolling hills, local leagues, and Philly-north value golf. Par 70, 6,400 yards.
Hickory Valley Golf Club - Ambassador
Hickory Valley Golf Club - Ambassador is an 18-hole regulation course in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, playing to par 72 across 6,696 yards.
Glen Mills
Honey Brook
Jamison
Jeffersonville
Jenkintown
Phoenixville
Quakertown
Quarryville
Reading
Chapel Hill Golf Course
One hole moves 35 feet from tee to green. Water borders eleven of the eighteen.
Flying Hills Golf Club
Flying Hills Golf Club, an 18-hole regulation course in Reading, Pennsylvania. There's real elevation change: some holes rise or fall about 59 feet from tee to green.
Manor Golf Club
Manor Golf Club is a shorter 18-hole course in Reading, Pennsylvania, playing to par 70 across 5,442 yards.
Reading Country Club
Reading Country Club is an 18-hole regulation course in Reading, Pennsylvania, playing to par 70 across 6,162 yards.
Warminster
Other
Applecross Country Club
Par 72 and 6,451 yards from the back tees: Applecross Country Club is an 18-hole regulation course near Thorndale, Pennsylvania.
Crossgates Golf Club
One hole moves 32 feet from tee to green. Ten of the eighteen bend.
Four Seasons Golf Course
Water borders six of the eighteen, and the longest par five runs 578 yards.
John F Byrne Golf Course
Juniata Golf Course
Philadelphia's park engineer laid it out along Tacony Creek in the 1920s and meant it to be easier than Cobbs Creek, so more people could play.
Pilgrim's Oak Golf Course
Pilgrim's Oak Golf Course, a championship-length 18 in Pennsylvania. There's real elevation change: some holes rise or fall about 84 feet from tee to green.
Walnut Lane Golf Club
Alex Findlay's par-62 layout, built by WPA crews and opened in 1940; very hilly, with narrow tree-lined fairways, small greens and no water.
Why tee times in Philadelphia are hard to get
Golf in Philadelphia follows the seasons: spring openers and fall weekends are the busiest stretches, and summer mornings fill before afternoons.
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
Booked-up doesn't mean gone. Plans change: groups cancel ahead of the course's cancellation deadline (often 24 to 48 hours out), players drop when the forecast turns, and a group that shrinks leaves an open spot. Those times quietly come back on the booking page, usually for minutes, not hours.
How to get a tee time in Philadelphia
Yoink
Watch all 49 courses in Philadelphia. Hear the moment one opens.
Yoink watches all 49 courses in Philadelphia for you. The open tee times sit in one place instead of a dozen booking pages, and your phone buzzes the moment one fits your day, time window and group, 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 Oxford Valley Golf Club, Sweet Water Golf Course and The Abington Club.
Read the full guide to getting a tee time when everything's booked
Tee times in Philadelphia: questions
How do I get notified when a tee time opens up in Philadelphia?
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 Philadelphia?
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 Philadelphia?
Demand is highest on spring and fall weekends. Weekend mornings are always the hardest tee times to get.
Which courses in Philadelphia are quickest to play?
Nine-hole and executive courses such as Oxford Valley Golf Club, Sweet Water Golf Course and The Abington Club 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 Pennsylvania
- Poconos & Lehigh Valley · 59 courses
- Pittsburgh · 44 courses
- Harrisburg & Central PA · 26 courses
- State College & Altoona · 20 courses
- Erie & Northwest PA · 12 courses
- North Central PA · 9 courses
- Washington DC & Baltimore · 7 courses
- Upstate NY — Capital & Central · 1 courses
- Western NY — Buffalo & Rochester · 1 courses
Just across the state line
Markets with courses within 25 miles of a course here.
- Philadelphia, NJ · 26 courses
- Northern & Central New Jersey, NJ · 75 courses
- Philadelphia, DE · 8 courses
- Philadelphia, MD · 3 courses
- Washington DC & Baltimore, MD · 52 courses
Sources
Facts on this page come from these pages, checked 2026-09-28. Rates and booking rules change, so confirm with the course.
- phila.gov · government
- en.wikipedia.org · media
- spotlightpa.org · media
- cobbscreekgolf.org · official
- cobbscreekgolf.org · official
- pprarchives.libraryhost.com · government
- phillymag.com · media
- juniatagolfcourse.com · official
- lmt.org · government
- golf.com · media
- gapgolf.org · association
- pa.gov · government
- gapgolf.org · association
- en.wikipedia.org · media
- youthoncourse.org · association
- gapgolf.org · association
Tee times in Philadelphia, 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.