GOLF recently released its latest ranking of the Top 100 Courses in the U.S. (2024-25), a list that includes 11 newcomers. Some of them you might know. Others you might not. Here, in our newcomer spotlights, we’ll introduce you to these rookie Top 100 gems.
Newcomer spotlight: Old Barnwell / Rank: 51st
Location: Aiken, S.C.
Type: Private
Year opened: 2023
Architect: Brian Schneider, Blake Conant
What you need to know about Old Barnwell
Architects Brian Schneider and Blake Conant borrowed classic design principles and applied them in a fresh way on a sandy parcel of rolling land outside of Aiken. The firmness of the turf that superintendent Davis Verner routinely achieves (thanks, in part, to an absence of overseeding) allows the nuances of this design to sparkle. Half-par holes abound. Can you reach the open but long green at the par-5 opener? Should you try to drive the 2nd or 14th greens? (If you try and fail, the hunter quickly becomes the hunted, as deep bunkers guard these two short 4s.) Can you use the mounds at the par-4 8th to kick an approach close on the inverted L-shaped green? Or how about trying to bounce one onto the rolling green at the 235-yard 11th? Meanwhile, the rust color of the centipede rough lends this open course a heathland-like feel. Completing the ideal is the club’s ethos of giving back to the game and the community, as established by Old Barnwell founder Nick Schreiber.
What our raters say
“A visually and strategically compelling course. It invites you to guess with regard to targeted lines of play, rewarding you with success or the immediate desire to try it again with another lap. The architectural creativity draws the player into the course. Some areas struck me as whimsical and others enjoyably strategic, giving players a sense of North Berwick. Well done with an outstanding golf culture that embeds an appreciation for both the architecture and play.”
“Outside of The Lido, Old Barnwell is the most strategic new design of the past 30 years. It requires thoughtful play throughout and is the kind of course where the direct line to the hole is usually not the correct one. The ground is a key element and there are many holes where the line off the tee changes dramatically every day based on where the hole is cut. The greens are bold without being too severe. This is the kind of course you could play every day without getting bored, and it is not so difficult that it can’t be enjoyed by all levels of players.”
