The top-ranked public-access golf course in Iowa, Spirit Hollow in Burlington, promises a casual experience on bold terrain with plenty of elevation changes that have proved to be a hit with Golfweek’s Best raters.
Designed by Rick Jacobson and opened in 2000, Spirit Hollow is No. 1 in the state on Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play list for top public-access layouts around the U.S.
Golfweek’s Best offers many lists of course rankings, with the list of top public-access courses in each state among the most popular. All the courses on this list allow public access in some fashion, be it standard daily green fees, through a resort or by staying at an affiliated hotel. If there’s a will, there’s a tee time.
Also popular are the Golfweek’s Best rankings of top private courses in each state, and that list for Iowa is likewise included below.
(m): Modern course, built in or after 1960
(c): Classic course, built before 1960
Note: If there is a number in the parenthesis with the m or c, that indicates where that course ranks among Golfweek’s Best top 200 modern or classic courses.
* New to or returning to list
Best public-access courses in Iowa in 2022
1. Spirit Hollow
Burlington (m)
2. Blue Top Ridge
Riverside (m)
3. Tournament Club of Iowa
Polk City (m)
4. Amana Colonies
Amana (m)
5. Finkbine
Iowa City (c)
Best private courses in Iowa in 2022
1. Davenport
Pleasant Valley (T73c)
2. Cedar Rapids CC
Cedar Rapids (T88c)
3. Harvester
Rhodes (T77m)
4. Des Moines G&CC (North)
West Des Moines (m)
5. Wakonda Club*
Des Moines (c)
How we rank courses
The hundreds of members of the Golfweek’s Best ratings panel continually evaluate courses and rate them based on 10 criteria on a points basis of 1 through 10. They also file a single, overall rating on each course. Those overall ratings are averaged to produce these rankings.
