Pinehurst No. 4 will be closed from the end of May to early August.
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Pinehurst Resort has 10 regulatory golf courses. But at least nine can be played in a few months.
On Tuesday, Pinehurst announced that its highly ranked and popular fourth course will be closed in late spring, and the resort can complete an unplanned “full green recovery” for most of the summer.
“This season, Pinehurst's 4th green green condition has not responded because our expectations, unfortunately, have not met our standards yet,” the resort said in a statement. “So we made the difficult decision to close No. 4 Pinehurst starting May 19 to complete a full green restoration.”
Pinehurst said the greens didn’t follow the plan after the green winter was lower than the colder ones, which led to the resort’s reinvestment in putter surfaces rather than welcoming visitors in unqualified circumstances.
“Early this spring, we were optimistic that the course will recover as temperatures warm, according to the agronomic experts,” the resort said. “However, despite these expectations, conditions have not improved. Recent follow-up reports confirm what we've seen: The green vegetables of No. 4 have been deteriorating.”
Pinehurst said the fix is expected to be completed by August 7, meaning the course will be closed in total for less than three months, assuming the recovery grows at the expected rate.
“We deeply regret that this will have an impact on the golf experience for guests and members and we have been communicating with them,” the resort said. “But we think it is the right step forward and provides us with the best opportunity to return the 4th to our high standards later this summer.”
The fourth place has become a guest favorite for Pinehurst since Gil Hanse Restoration in 2018. The course was originally designed by Donald Ross, but was redirected sharply by Hanse, who earned praise for his status with Crown Jewel (No. 2) from the second resort.
Seven years ago, the opening of No. 4 and its short-term sibling cradle sparked a large number of events in Pinehurst. Last spring, Pinehurst opened a course designed by Tom Doak on a plot a few miles from the main resort. Last summer, the resort hosted the exciting Us Open on No. 2.
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