Best Golf Courses Near Topsail:
- North Shore Country Club
- Castle Bay Golf Course
There are many families that travel to Topsail Beach, North Carolina every summer.
The island is a great place to spend a week with family as the beaches are beautiful and it is relatively quiet. There are some quality food options and overall it is an excellent beach destination.
I have traveled with my extended family to North Topsail Beach for the past 8 summers and we plan on for many years to come. My father and I have played golf each of the past 8 summers and have tested out various courses in the area.
If you are looking to play some golf, there are some quality options. Keep in mind that unlike Myrtle Beach, Topsail Island and the surrounding area does not have the massive number of courses, but there are some excellent options.
After trying just about every course in the area, we prefer to play two of the courses. These courses provide a great challenge, quality golf courses in excellent condition and an overall excellence experience.
Best Golf Courses Near Topsail Beach NC – Top 2!
Update: I played North Shore and Castle Bay once again this past summer and they remain in quality conditions, highly challenging from the right tees and the customer service was above average. With these two courses, you get a variety and can enjoy your golf when visiting or if you are a regular.
North Shore Country Club
The golf course is located in Sneads Ferry just on the south side of the bridge that takes travelers to the northern part of the island. The close location to the island makes it attractive for those that value proximity and don’t want to spend a significant amount of time traveling to the course.
Upon arriving on the premises you will find a driving range, excellent short game practice area and a practice putting green. The clubhouse looks great and there are items for purchase in the pro shop area.
The course is challenging with water on 10 of the 18 holes. The course can play close to 6900 yards, but there are several tee options throughout the course. We have always found the course to be in excellent condition with above average speed greens that are smooth.
The course is located on the intercoastal waterway so when the wind starts to blow the course can become challenging. On a mild wind day the course is scorable for the single digit golfer, and remains fun for even the highest handicap golfer.
What we value most when playing is the following:
- Quality course conditions
- Great conditioned greens
- Pace of play
- Challenge of course
- Friendless of staff
North Shore Country Club checks all of the boxes above and we have always had a great time and return every year.
The course starts off with a simple par 4 and ends with the most challenging par 4. The par 5s stand out as fun and challenging. There are different styles of golf holes that challenge all facets of your game. The course has times when accuracy is key and times when you can really let one go.
If you are traveling to the island and want a quality championship level golf course that is close to the island, then you have to check out North Shore Country Club. You can expect to pay $50 or more depending on the time of the year you are playing.
With the close proximity to the island we have spent time there in an evening hitting at the range and using the short game practice area. The breeze is nice and the facilities are enjoyable.
Castle Bay Golf Course
Depending on what part of the island you are staying on, you might have around a 25 minute drive, but it is worth it.
Upon arriving you will find a driving range, practice short game area, practice putting green and a beautiful clubhouse. Someone will bring a golf cart to you in the parking lot and you have a great start to your overall experience.
Where this course is different from your traditional course is that it plays like a links style course with very few trees in play on the course. There is tall grass, plenty of water hazards, and waste areas.
The golf course will play just under 6700 yards from the tips with options at 6328, 5793 and 5466. The 1st and 10th holes play pretty similar and are an easy start to the round of golf. They are excellent starting holes to get the round going. While the front 9 is challenging, the fun really starts on the back nine when you arrive at the 11th hole.
The challenge par 5 has water on the right and out of bounds on the left, the hole is reachable in two with a big drive. I find the 12th hole par 3 to be a very challenging hole with water on 3 sides of the green. On a windy day, good luck! The 13th, 14th, and 15th all have a great character and bring about the different shots you must be able to hit.
You get to end your round with a driveable par 4. This green is rather difficult and if you leave yourself long after your drive or wedge shot, you will have a difficult time making par.
Much like North Shore Country Club, Castle Bay checks all of the boxes on what we find to be the most important characteristics of a course. The greens are near perfect and the putts are makeable on such quality greens.
I would highly recommend driving the 25 minutes to play the course and to enjoy the challenge.
Final Thoughts: Play Both!
We love playing North Shore and Castle Bay because they provide different styles of golf from each other. They check the boxes that matter with conditions, challenge and overall experience and you will love both courses.
I would recommend calling in advance to check aeration schedules as we did play on aerated greens on one occasion, but still had a blast.
Other Options In The Surrounding Area
- Belvedere Planation Course
- Olde Pointe Golf and Country Club
- River Landing Country Club
- Porters Neck Planation and Country Club