10 Best Golf Courses in Louisiana
Louisiana's public golf courses are distributed across casino resorts, former military land, and cypress wetlands, with most green fees under $100 per round. The state's Audubon Golf Trail links more than a dozen of these courses into a branded statewide route, including a Pete Dye design on the Mississippi River floodplain that has hosted the PGA Tour's Zurich Classic since 2005 and a Tom Fazio layout built around a casino resort in Lake Charles. The ten courses below include details on green fees, lodging, and routing between them.
TPC Louisiana, Avondale
Pete Dye designed TPC Louisiana in collaboration with PGA Tour players Steve Elkington and New Orleans native Kelly Gibson, and Chris Gray refreshed the layout in 2012. The par-72 course covers more than 250 acres of Mississippi River floodplain wetlands and plays 7,425 yards from the championship tees. Typical of Pete Dye designs, the course includes more than 100 bunkers, with several large waste bunkers on the back nine. The par-5 18th features water along the entire right side, and five sets of tees span the course.
TPC Louisiana has hosted the PGA Tour's Zurich Classic of New Orleans since 2005. The club is part of the Audubon Golf Trail and operates as a daily-fee public course, with annual passes available. Green fees typically range from about $74 to $165 depending on day and tee time.
The course is located at 11001 Lapalco Boulevard in Avondale, about 15 miles from downtown New Orleans and 25 minutes from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. The on-site TPC Louisiana Grille serves Creole cuisine, and a full pro shop handles rentals. No lodging exists on the property, so visitors typically stay in the French Quarter or Central Business District. Stay-and-play packages are available through the club.
The Atchafalaya at Idlewild, Patterson
The Von Hagge, Smelek, and Baril firm designed The Atchafalaya at Idlewild, which opened in 2006 as a municipally owned member of the Audubon Golf Trail, routed within Kemper Williams Park. The par-72 layout plays to 7,533 yards from the back tees and passes through cypress wetlands, about 90 minutes from New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Lafayette. Native soil grading created elevation changes uncommon in South Louisiana, and the 175-acre property includes five lakes and ten native wetland areas. Holes 9 and 18 share a common green overlooking a raised Acadian-style clubhouse. The on-site restaurant serves Cajun fare and is open to the public. Patterson has limited lodging, so most golfers base in Morgan City, where chain hotels along Highway 90 are within 15 minutes of the first tee.
Audubon Park Golf Course, New Orleans
Tom Bendelow laid out the original Audubon Park course in 1898 on grounds that had hosted the 1884 World's Fair. Georgia architect Denis Griffiths, ASGCA, redesigned the course during a $6 million renovation that reopened in November 2002. Griffiths converted the 81-acre site into a 4,189-yard, par-62 course with 12 par 3s, four par 4s, and two par 5s, with Bermuda fairways, TifEagle greens, and four lagoons threaded through century-old live oaks. The par 3s alone range from 96 yards at the seventh to 212 yards at the 17th. Audubon Park was the first property in Louisiana certified through the Audubon International Signature Program (a separate program from the Audubon Golf Trail) and earned Silver Signature Sanctuary status in 2004. It was also one of the public courses in New Orleans that reopened after Hurricane Katrina. Green fees typically run about $48 to $65 with a cart.
The course is located at 6500 Magazine Street in Uptown, about 15 minutes from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport. The St. Charles Avenue streetcar stops a block from the entrance, which makes this one of the few American courses reachable by historic streetcar, and the Audubon Clubhouse Café serves food and drink on site. Garden District boutique hotels are the closest lodging, with the French Quarter about a 15-minute drive away.
Koasati Pines at Coushatta, Kinder
Kevin Tucker designed Koasati Pines, which opened in October 2002 as the centerpiece course at Coushatta Casino Resort. At 7,617 yards from the championship tees, it is the longest course in Louisiana, across six tee sets. The par-72 layout passes through longleaf pines and live oaks in Allen Parish, with 65 acres of lakes and wetlands shaping two nine-hole loops, each of which opens and closes on a par five. A bonus 19th "gambling" hole with an island green settles wagers and ties, and the property includes a 12-acre practice facility with PGA instruction. Koasati Pines has hosted the Louisiana Amateur multiple times.
Coushatta Casino Resort operates three on-site hotels off Highway 165 at I-10 Exit 44, with direct access to the casino, dining, and entertainment venues. Lake Charles Regional Airport is about 75 miles south. Stay-and-play packages can be booked through the resort.
Cypress Bend Golf Resort, Many
Cypress Bend opened in 2002 along the shores of Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Texas border as a member of the Audubon Golf Trail. Designed by Jeffrey Blume, the par-72 layout plays roughly 7,000 yards from the championship tees and passes through rolling pine country, with several holes near the lake. Green fees typically range from $55 to $65 and are bookable through the resort's website.
Cypress Bend Resort includes on-site lodge rooms and condo-style lodging, a marina, and a restaurant overlooking Toledo Bend. Shreveport Regional Airport is about 75 miles north, and Alexandria International is roughly 90 miles to the east-southeast. Toledo Bend is also a regionally significant largemouth bass fishery.
OakWing Golf Club, Alexandria
Jim Lipe, a former 26-year lead designer for Jack Nicklaus Golf Services, routed OakWing Golf Club across the former England Air Force Base, which closed in 1992 and was redeveloped into a civilian airport and recreation complex. The par-72 course opened in 2002, plays roughly 7,000 yards from the back tees, and belongs to the Audubon Golf Trail. Mature pines left from the base era frame most fairways, and several lakes come into play on the back nine. Green fees typically run from $39 to $69, with tee times bookable through the pro shop.
OakWing is adjacent to Alexandria International Airport, and runways are visible from several holes. Hampton Inn Alexandria and other chain properties are within a few miles of the clubhouse along MacArthur Drive.
Carter Plantation Golf Course, Springfield
Carter Plantation is the first solo design by Shreveport-born David Toms, the 13-time PGA Tour winner and 2001 PGA Champion. It opened in 2003 as a daily-fee course on land that was part of an early-1800s Spanish land grant held by the Sharp family's ancestors in what was then Spanish West Florida. The 18-hole, par-72 layout plays 7,049 yards from the championship tees and passes through three distinct Louisiana landscapes: live oak flats, cypress wetlands, and upland pine forests. Water comes into play on eleven holes, with TifEagle greens and TifSport fairways. The course is an Audubon Golf Trail member. Green fees typically range from $45 to $95.
The property is about 50 miles from New Orleans and 45 miles from Baton Rouge, within an hour of either airport. Carter Plantation includes on-site villa rentals within a residential community, making it one of the few non-casino Louisiana courses with on-property lodging. The clubhouse restaurant serves food and drink to resort guests and daily-fee players.
Black Bear Golf Club, Delhi
Bechtol-Russell designed Black Bear Golf Club, which opened in 2001 as the northeast Louisiana anchor of the Audubon Golf Trail. The par-72 course plays roughly 7,100 yards across Macon Ridge and wooded creek bottoms, with wide bermudagrass fairways, native grass roughs, and several holes routed through bottomland hardwoods. Green fees typically fall in the $30 range.
Delhi is about 35 miles east of Monroe Regional Airport along Interstate 20. Lodging options are in Delhi and nearby Tallulah, with chain properties at the I-20 exits.
Contraband Bayou Golf Club, Lake Charles
Tom Fazio designed Contraband Bayou Golf Club, which opened in 2005 on the grounds of L'Auberge Casino Resort and is the only public Fazio course in Louisiana. The par-71 layout plays 7,077 yards from the championship tees, with eight lakes and the bayou itself shaping the routing. Water comes into play on 14 holes. Four sets of tees start at 5,091 yards forward. Greens were rebuilt with Champion Ultradwarf Bermuda in 2010, and the wider Fazio fairways make this a more forgiving resort experience than his championship work elsewhere.
Published rates for non-locals typically run $54 to $104. L'Auberge Casino Resort is on property and provides AAA Four Diamond lodging, multiple restaurants, a spa, and a casino floor, with the Golden Nugget next door as a second option. Lake Charles Regional Airport is about 15 minutes from the first tee. Contraband Bayou can be combined with Koasati Pines (75 miles north in Kinder) for a southwest Louisiana casino-golf trip. There is no on-course grill, but the pro shop can order food from the resort for delivery to the group.
Tamahka Trails Golf Club, Marksville
Tamahka Trails opened in 2000 as the resort course at Paragon Casino Resort, owned and operated by the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana in Avoyelles Parish. The design is credited to Steve Smyers, a course architect who has designed courses in seven different countries. The par-71 layout plays roughly 7,000 yards and belongs to the Audubon Golf Trail, with cypress-lined lakes and bermudagrass fairways in the floodplain near the Red River. Green fees typically run $44 to $89, and stay-and-play casino packages can be booked through the resort.
Paragon Casino Resort includes on-site lodging in a hotel tower and RV park, several restaurants, and a casino floor with table games and slots. Alexandria International Airport is about 35 miles north, putting Marksville within a half-day drive of New Orleans, Baton Rouge, or Shreveport.
Planning Your Trip
No single base covers all ten courses. New Orleans anchors the southeast corner, with TPC Louisiana and Audubon Park 15 minutes apart and Carter Plantation within 90 minutes. The casino resorts at Coushatta and Paragon combine lodging, dining, and the first tee in one location. Black Bear and OakWing are options for fly-in golfers through Monroe and Alexandria. Lake Charles pairs the Fazio layout with a Four Diamond resort next door.
Green fees typically fall below $165 at TPC on a weekend, and most Audubon Trail courses run well under $85.
