Rob Collins and Tad King transformed a worn-out nine-hole municipal track (originally opened 1951) into a modern cult classic in 2014, drawing on Alister MacKenzie's Augusta National ideas to build wide, width-driven fairways and a shared green played twice during the loop. Golfweek has ranked it among the best modern courses in the country despite its nine-hole footprint.
This course is in our GSPro library — pull it up in any bay and play it wall to wall.
No. 8Signature
Par 4 · 371 yds
A double-plateau green that, at 12,500 square feet, is the second-largest on the course — a 4-6 foot swale runs through its interior, and the design has drawn comparisons to the famous 16th at North Berwick; the course rewards approaching from the fairway's outer margins over the safer center line.
"Nine holes, played twice, and somehow never boring - the wide fairways invite aggression but the green complexes demand real touch, and getting a tee time here is its own kind of achievement."
In 2014, architect Rob Collins and design partner Tad King took over a broke-down nine-hole municipal course in rural South Pittsburg and rebuilt it into Sweetens Cove — a King-Collins design that golf historian Anthony Pioppi has compared to the original Augusta National. Every green has multiple hole locations and the course plays from four tee sets, so no two rounds repeat. It's since become a genuine cult phenomenon, drawing a co-ownership group that includes Peyton Manning and Andy Roddick and a top-50 modern-course ranking from Golfweek — remarkable for nine holes built on almost no budget.
Architecture nerds and modern-golf pilgrims chasing a genuine only-in-America story, and anyone who loves wild, undulating greens more than tree-lined resort polish.
The par-3 4th ("King," an Alps hole blind off the tee to a wildly contoured green) and the par-3 9th, played out under a heckling crowd at the pavilion, are the two holes everyone talks about after a round.
Wide, forgiving fairways and minimal rough make it easy to find your ball, but the severely contoured, punchbowl-style greens will humble anyone's short game regardless of skill level.
Sweetens Cove has a confirmed GSPro community recreation listed on major course directories — a great queue for members chasing the cult-course experience without the Tennessee drive; its exaggerated green contours translate well to sim putting.
Semi-private and reservation-only — no walk-up tee times; the club sells limited all-day passes (about 60 weekdays, 45 weekends) booked in advance, with players gathering each morning at the shed for assignments.
Source: web verified · high confidence
