Nearly a century ago, Walter Travis left his mark on the state of Georgia’s coast when he designed and constructed the Great Dunes course at Jekyll Island in 1927. Back in the “Golden Age”, Travis was not only a leader in the growing industry of golf architecture… he was a fabulous player in his own right, winning three U.S. Amateur Championships. In its heyday, Great Dunes was an extraordinary course design on an Island that was the winter home of the northeast elite, but its time as such was short lived.
Several factors conspired to the demise of nearly half of the original Great Dunes course, not the least of which was the Great Depression, World War II, and some catastrophic weather events that caused massive erosion. The seaside holes remained and lived on, but by mid-century, Great Dunes was a mere shell of what it once was.
Restoration/Transformation Project
Located just an hour north of Jacksonville, today the Island is the property of the state of Georgia, managed by the JIA (Jekyll Island Authority). Two years ago, the JIA approved the $21 million budget to begin both the projects to renovate their Pine Lakes course (Clyde Johnson) and the transformation of the Great Dunes which reopened to the public on November 1st, 2025.
The new Great Dunes layout, designed by Brian Ross and Jeffrey Stein blends the classic Walter Travis Great Dunes 9, with the land that was a 9-holer known as the Oleander course (originally designed by Dick Wilson). The new iteration is a seamless 18-hole layout that feels like Travis himself returned to redesign what was his last golf course project before his passing in the summer of 1927. The new sequence of holes features an eclectic journey that takes you into the dunes, out to the ocean, over and around wetlands, through the maritime forest, and back through the dunes. The new Great Dunes plays 7014 yards from the tips.
Kudos to the JIA for hiring two relatively young designers for a job of such significance. Some architects never get a chance to work on a sandy seaside project for their entire career, but both Ross & Stein have been around for some time working in the shadows of some well-known entities. Jeff is presently a consulting architect at Seawane, and has worked on many known designs like Tillinghast’s Paramount, with Mike DeVries at Pelham, Gil Hanse at Ohoopee, and with Coore & Crenshaw back in 2011 at Bandon Preserve. Ross has designed Park Mammoth and Ryland Lakes in Kentucky and Starcke Park in Texas as part of his portfolio.
Inspired by Travis’ work, the duo took visits to Cape Arundel in Maine and Garden City Golf Club in Long Island to gain firsthand knowledge of the details of Travis’ work. At Great Dunes, they recreated components of the original holes that were lost and others that Travis elements featured on several of his other works. One of the main intentions Ross and Stein had was to make the property more functional and sustainable. They did this in several ways, but perhaps most importantly, they opened up the air space, peeling back the overgrown and invasive foliage that had masked the magnificent ocean views and kept the coastal winds from moving freely through the land. This also served as a benefit to growing healthy turf. The team chose Paspalum as the grass variety for its saltwater tolerance, lack of invasive stolons, a consistent playing surface, and for its ability to produce bold green color during the cool months when turf tends to go dormant in this part of the Southeast United States.
Jekyll Island Authority Deputy Director Noel Jensen said Ross and Stein spent a great deal of time pouring over the authority’s archives, looking at photos and writings about the course. Much of the design path and inspiration was based on old photographs from nearly a century ago.
Beyond the fantastic setting and fun architectural traits, perhaps our favorite thing about Great Dunes is that it’s essentially a municipal asset for locals, with the duality of being a destination spot for visitors interested in making the resort part of a longer trip. The $135 price point in peak season makes Great Dunes one of the finest values of any resort offering in America… especially considering you’re playing golf in the dunes along the ocean.
The first original Travis hole comes at the par-5 fourth, known as the “Mae West”, which is also where the coastline reveals itself. Golfers will play up and over two massive dunes to a putting surface that’s blind from the fairway.
The view from behind the 4th green, anything long spills into the sand or onto the tee on the par-3 fifth hole, leaving an uphill recovery.
The mid-length par-3 fifth (pictured above) is set within dunes just a few dozen yards from the ocean. This two-hole stretch by itself is worth the price of admission. Travis, a proven amateur champion, wasn’t compelled to offer a run-up option. On many holes, especially the par-3’s, Travis gave “no quarter”; he wanted you to earn your score… often the hard way.
The dogleg left sixth might be my favorite tee shot at Great Dunes. From an elevated tee, the safe play is out towards the tall slash pine in the distance, but the aggressive line that offers the best angle on the approach is just left of the centerline bunker. A minuscule stream to the left of the fairway only furthers the influence to steer right.
The long par-3 seventh is another brutish one-shotter that demands you carry the ball onto the surface, or be relegated to scrambling for your par. The five separate greenside bunkers seem to devour anything less than a stellar strike.
The reachable par-5 eighth was the ninth on the original Travis Great Dunes routing, and is probably my personal favorite on the property. A wide fairway offers freedom down the right center, but it’s the go for it in two approach – up and over the dune on the right that will have you talking after the round. If the hole location is on the right (as it was when we played), your target will not be visible from the fairway.
Once left of the dune, the target reveals itself, but skews perception of its location. This hole appears to be back right, but it is actually closer to the front portion of the green.
Travis offered a duality of intention, on some holes he doesn’t offer the ground game option, but here on the eighth, its pure links design provides it in abundance. From this angle, you can see the hole location, contours and how everything feeds from right to left off the dune. Ross and Stein did a masterful job here, recreating a magnificent design while adding some nuance of their own.
The tunnel built into the sand dune beside the green is a really cool accent feature that adds to the character of the course, and can serve as a temporary shelter during a thunderstorm..
Like so many greens at GD, the tenth sits at grade level, but this one is tucked into the dunes – surrounded by a myriad of unkempt sandscapes.
The 346-yard dogleg right eleventh features a reproduction of the original walking bridge and an elevated back tee that has you playing just over the corner of the tenth green, a feature that wasn’t uncommon during the Golden Age.
Jekyll Island Club Resort offers very reasonable stay and play packages. In fact, guests who stay through March 2026 get the choice of a free round for two at one of the resort’s other two courses – Pine Lakes or Indian Mound (golf on Great Dunes has a surcharge). Consider staying at the seaside Jekyll Ocean Club; it doesn’t have the quaint classic charm of its historic sibling, but this state-of-the-art modern facility has a vast array of amenities, and it overlooks the Atlantic Ocean.
We played Pine Lakes (above) in the morning before heading home, and I’m glad we did. The course takes you through corridors of mature pines and around lakes that aren’t in play on too many holes. The course features a peaceful and secluded feel on each hole. The recent Clyde Johnson renovation has the course in fantastic shape with the pure green surfaces. For those golfers who like to shape shots, Pine Lakes is sure to be an enjoyable experience.
There are very few examples of public access golf along the coastline on sandy terrain in America, so to get a newly transformed layout of this pedigree, and at an affordable price is pretty remarkable. Get Great Dunes on your must-visit list – https://www.jekyllisland.com/activities/golf/
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