Published January 28, 2026
Featured Golf Trip: Nemacolin
Two Pete Dye courses headline a resort that somehow also includes safaris, casinos, and axe throwing.
The Northeast may be barren land for elite public golf, but in Nemacolin, the region has an exceptional resort property. Located an hour an a half south of Pittsburgh in Farmington, Nemacolin offers two Pete Dye designs and some luxury livin’ amid Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands.
Golf-wise, Mystic Rock pulls in the most acclaim. Golf Digest calls it “one of the more curious” designs in Dye’s portfolio, with oval greens and rectangular bunkers. “Because many holes were blasted from rock,” the publication writes, “some holes have fields of boulders in the rough and all water hazards are bulkheaded with stacked stone.” That gives the course a distinct feel, and paired with a closing stretch that was apparently Dye’s favorite (really?… above Sawgrass?), Mystic slides in 64th on GD‘s top 100 public courses in America.
The second Dye course on property, Shepherd’s Rock, hasn’t gotten the rankings love of Mystic. But it offers the better mountain views of the two, with a front nine that plays open and exposed and more generous, while the back “demands more precise play as holes are tree-lined with sloping fairways that rarely offer a flat lie.”
Overall, Golf Digest ranks Nemacolin the 15th-best golf resort in the country, a distinction surely impacted by all the property has to offer. There are packages including everything from white water rafting to off-roading, shooting clays, going bowling, exploring on-site wildlife, trying your luck at the casino, throwing axes, or engaging in some family fun. There are also dining options that range from swanky and upscale to relaxed and casual. Those descriptions don’t really do the full breadth of the offerings justice, somehow, but suffice to say there’s something for everyone at Nemacolin—including the golf-obsessed.
Pricing details
Overall range (golf + lodging): $2,050+
• Assumes two days, two nights.
Golf: $550 – $650
• During peak season, greens fees at both courses are $325 before 1p and $275 after.
Lodging: $1,500+
• Several different luxury options, none particularly cheap.
Travel considerations
• Pittsburgh Int’l airport is 1.5 hours away.
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