Great Games Await
With just one step onto the courses of Athens Country Club, you are immersed in endless beauty. At ACC, we strive to provide members and guests with constant exceptional service through our positive and knowledgeable staff with professional appearances and enthusiasm in addition to a breathtaking landscape as you play. This, in combination with our dedication to preserving the traditions of the sport and closely adhering to all club rules/regulations ensures a satisfying, first-class golf experience.
Athens Country Club is honored to showcase our Ross Course and it continues to stay true to the Ross design. The North 9-hole course is undergoing complete renovation and will result in 27 holes of Ross design. Our courses provide both excitement and challenge for all levels of play.
With a full calendar displaying a spectrum of enticing events, there is guaranteed to be something for each member of your family. Competitive tournaments remain in rotation throughout the season, and rest assured there is no shortage of club-sponsored events and men’s/woman’s golf groups to improve your skillset while keeping things fun! ACC hosts the ever-popular OP36 junior program throughout the year to develop passionate, young golfers. Lessons for juniors begin as early as age five, and many of our little ones grow to earn college scholarships through their golf talents. Our Golf Pro Shop is staffed with enthusiastic, knowledgeable PGA Golf Professionals eager to enhance your experience. We offer a TrackMan & SAM PuttLab along with a variety of golf necessities, equipment and apparel.
Ross Course History
When Alonzo "Lon" Dudley founded Athens Country Club in 1926, much of his focus was on creating of one of the nation's top golf courses. Following a trip to Westchester Country Club in New York, Dudley was determined to recruit Donald Ross – the best-known golf architect of his era – to design the first 18 holes at Athens Country Club!
Dudley paid Ross $5,000 to design the course, a princely sum at the time. Following, Ross stayed in Athens for 10 days laying out the course, which was quite unusual for him. Given the difficulty of travel at the time, it is estimated that Ross only walked the terrain at a third of the courses that bear his name and ACC is grateful for his time spent with us. At the end of his time in Athens, Ross produced a charcoal drawing of the course layout and its greens. These charcoal drawings can be seen on display in the clubhouse.
Construction on the course began immediately; no machinery was used to build the course, instead it was shaped with mules and quarter yard pans. The leveling process was completed with mule teams and large railroad cross ties borrowed from the railroad. As a finishing touch, Dudley stocked the lake with fingerling bass and bream from Warm Springs, Georgia.
By mid-1926, the links were ready for opening and none other than the legendary Bobby Jones came to Athens to dedicate the course! His foursome including Watts Gunn and Gene Cook of Atlanta and John Oliver of Valdosta. After shooting a 75 and chipping in on No. 4 for an eagle, Jones noted fondness about his liking of the course and the bright future it had to come. ACC was honored to have Jones later return and play several other times.