Chambers Bay Golf Club - hole 9
0 of 12
Chambers Bay Golf Club - hole 9
Chambers Bay Golf Club will host the 2015 U.S. Open. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Salish Cliffs Golf Club - hole 16
1 of 12
Salish Cliffs Golf Club - hole 16
The tee shot on the 16th hole is the most dramatic at Salish Cliffs Golf Club. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Gold Mountain Golf Club - Olympic Course - hole 18
2 of 12
Gold Mountain Golf Club - Olympic Course - hole 18
The drivable par-4 18th hole is one of the signature moments on the Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
The Home Course - hole 7
3 of 12
The Home Course - hole 7
Mount Rainier frames the seventh hole at The Home Course. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Druids Glen Golf Course - Mount Rainier
4 of 12
Druids Glen Golf Course - Mount Rainier
On a clear day at Druids Glen Golf Course, Mount Rainier shines off in the distance. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Willows Run Golf Complex
5 of 12
Willows Run Golf Complex
A pond guards the finishing hole of both courses at Willows Run Golf Complex. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Gold Mountain Golf Club - Cascade Course - hole 15
6 of 12
Gold Mountain Golf Club - Cascade Course - hole 15
The par-5 15th fairway rises, falls and then bends between the pines on the Cascade Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Kayak Point Golf Course - hole 10
7 of 12
Kayak Point Golf Course - hole 10
The 10th hole falls downhill on the Kayak Point Golf Course. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Suncadia Resort - Prospector Course - hole 18
8 of 12
Suncadia Resort - Prospector Course - hole 18
A pond protects the par-5 finishing hole on the Prospector Course at Suncadia Resort. Jason Scott Deegan/GolfPass
Suncadia Resort - Rope Rider Course - hole 3
9 of 12
Suncadia Resort - Rope Rider Course - hole 3
Bunkers snare misses to the third green of the Rope Rider Course at Suncadia Resort. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
Trophy Lake Golf & Casting Club - hole 18
10 of 12
Trophy Lake Golf & Casting Club - hole 18
The 18th hole at the Trophy Lake Golf & Casting Club features a waterfall. Jason Deegan/Golf Advisor
The Golf Club at Newcastle - Coal Creek golf course - hole 17
11 of 12
The Golf Club at Newcastle - Coal Creek golf course - hole 17
Those golfers who avoid the waterfall in front of the 17th green on the Coal Creek golf course at The Golf Club at Newcastle are rewarded with views of the Seattle skyline. Jason Scott Deegan/Golf Advisor
12 Images

Seattle blossoms into a world-class golf destination

SEATTLE -- From evergreen forests and majestic mountains to the dynamic downtown skyline and the shores of the Puget Sound, the Emerald City delivers varied and vibrant backdrops for golfers.

This golf destination in the Pacific Northwest is as good as any summer hotspot, if not better. Name another summer golf getaway with a U.S. Open site (2015 venue Chambers Bay Golf Club near Tacoma), complemented by one of the nation's best municipal courses (the stunning Olympic Course at Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton), a pristine casino course (Salish Cliffs Golf Club at Little Creek Casino Resort in remote Shelton), a really fab 36-hole mountain retreat with its own winery (Suncadia Resort in Cle Elum) and plenty of solid daily fees, such as Druids Glen Golf Course in Covington.

Granted, none of these places are near each other. Yet they're all worth seeking out to create a week of golf in the shadows of snow-capped peaks and towering pines.

The dramatic Chambers Bay, designed along the Puget Sound by Robert Trent Jones Jr., teamed with the deep sod bunkers of The Home Course in DuPont for a links-themed 2010 U.S. Amateur.

Gold Mountain, across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge on the Kitsap Peninsula, has ties to United States Golf Association events as well, having hosted the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur and the 2006 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship.

Summers are mostly sunny in this rain-plagued region, especially across the mountains at Suncadia Resort, one of the driest, windiest sites in the state. Both the Arnold-Palmer-designed Prospector Course and the newer Rope Rider Course by Peter Jacobsen/Jim Hardy are strong.

City folks who don't want to stray too far from Pike Place Market, the Space Needle and the Seattle Mariners/Seahawks can find 36 holes closer to downtown at the affordable Willows Run Golf Complex in Redmond or the scenic but pricey Golf Club at Newcastle in Newcastle.

Jason Scott Deegan has reviewed and photographed more than 1,100 courses and written about golf destinations in 25 countries for some of the industry's biggest publications. His work has been honored by the Golf Writer's Association of America and the Michigan Press Association. Follow him on Instagram at @jasondeegangolfpass and Twitter at @WorldGolfer.
Now Reading
Seattle blossoms into a world-class golf destination