The Currituck Club is a centerpiece of the Corolla community on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, a longtime summer retreat for visitors. The region has a rich history of waterfowl hunting dating back to the mid-1800s; nearby Duck earned its name from the area’s exceptional duck hunting. Wealthy railroad and steel magnates once summered here, building grand homes to host friends and fellow hunters. The original Currituck Shooting Club, erected in 1857 and rebuilt in 1879, still stands and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In 1996, Rees Jones routed an award-winning golf course that integrates the site’s native dunes, woodlands and marshes while framing views of Currituck Sound. His design offers both beauty and a fair, challenging game. When the course opened there were few houses around it; today, resort homes line parts of the property, trading some open nature views for scenes of seaside splendor.
Currituck Club’s course earned recognition from Golf magazine as one of the 10 Best New Places You Can Play and was listed by Golf Digest among the Top 25 Courses in North Carolina. I missed the chance to play it with my regular Outer Banks group because of a scheduling conflict. My friends did manage two rounds before Hurricane Sandy forced an evacuation.
Hole 1 | 541 yards, par 5
I arrived solo and hurried to tee off ahead of a slow-moving foursome, so I didn’t study the cart GPS or the yardage book. The tee shot looked straightforward — downhill with plenty of room — or so I assumed. My drive sliced to the right and ended up near the marsh, so I hit a provisional that followed the same line. When I checked, the original ball was barely in play. I smoothed the situation with a 3-wood back into the fairway and approached the green cautiously. The green is well guarded, with a large bunker left and a pond to the right, making the opening hole deceptively tricky.
Hole 4 | 412 yards, par 4
Keep the ball off the right side or you’ll pay dearly on the front nine. A lake parallels the right side of the fairway and runs all the way to the green. The left side has several moguls that help keep errant shots in play. I misjudged the distance and sailed a shot just over the green’s left edge into deep grass, which spared me from two bunkers positioned front and back center. A lob wedge recovery and two-putt produced a bogey.
Hole 6 | 200 yards, par 3
This is an attractive but intimidating par 3. From the tee you must carry a pond and then a large front bunker to an elevated green. The bunker often defeats hopeful approaches. My iron found the green and left me a makeable birdie putt, but I read too much break and settled for par.
Hole 7 | 532 yards, par 5
Hole 7 is striking: Currituck Sound runs along the left with tall reeds between the water and the fairway. It’s a long, straight hole that invites a big swing off the tee. My drive pushed right but stayed playable; a 3-wood left me in the rough but still in position. A long bunker stretches along the left of the green with a smaller bunker to the right, so I played safely from the center. While waiting to tee off I walked down to the sound and watched a flock of geese lift off over the water — a memorable moment.
Hole 11 | 190 yards, par 3
This elevated par 3 is guarded by bunkers on both sides, the right one particularly large. I struck a beautiful iron that landed about three feet from the pin and made birdie, which helped erase some earlier mistakes.
Hole 12 | 454 yards, par 4
Rated the No. 1 handicap hole, this long dogleg right is deceptively demanding. From the tee it doesn’t look severe, but three pot bunkers on the right are perfectly placed to catch wayward drives. I hit a weak drive that left me short and left, forcing a 3-wood to reach a position roughly 40 yards short of the green. Two bunkers protect the green; a lob wedge got me close enough to save a bogey, which felt like a decent outcome on this tough hole.
Hole 16 | 523 yards, par 5
By the back nine I was playing two balls to keep pace with the group ahead while taking notes and photos. Golf can be unpredictable: an off-line drive can turn into a par, while a perfect hit can go wrong. My first tee shot ran right and stopped near the cart path by the trees. I found an opening, hit a 7-iron back into play, then a 3-wood to the front of the green that left me a chance to walk off with a bogey. The green’s front half is protected by four bunkers, and I managed to avoid the fairway bunkers on the left.
Hole 18 | 410 yards, par 4
Near the end of the round I began catching players ahead, and a group pulled up behind me on the tee — the kind of moment that can sharpen your game. I produced a perfect, powerful drive that landed near the 150-yard marker. Waves crash to the left across Highway 12, adding atmosphere to Jones’ finishing hole. The tee shot sets up an approach, but overshooting the green has consequences. Despite the great drive, a series of miscues turned my hole into a double bogey; sometimes par is the smart play.
The Currituck Club
620 Currituck Clubhouse Drive
Corolla, NC 27927
tel 252 455 9518
clubcorp.com/clubs/the-currituck-club