You can always expect the unexpected from golf architects Pete and Alice Dye and their boots-on-the-ground collaborator Tim Liddy. That spirit of creative risk matches the vision of Maggie Hardy Magerko, president of Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, who readily invests in bold ideas that enhance the resort experience.
I returned to Nemacolin, a 2,000-acre luxury retreat in Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands, with high anticipation. I had been there in 1995 for the debut of the original Dye layout, the 7,526-yard Mystic Rock — a breathtaking routing through boulder-strewn terrain that challenges both designer and player. Mystic Rock remains one of my favorites and a stern test, reflected by its USGA rating and slope of 77/149 and its history as a former PGA Tour venue (the 84 Lumber Classic, 2003–2006).
When Shepherd’s Rock opened in July 2017, my loyalty expanded rather than shifted entirely. The new Dye course plays 7,151 yards as a par 72 with a rating/slope of 74.7/138. It’s a joyful, flowing layout that winds through meadows and woodlands, skirts lakes and wetlands, and reveals long mountain views at many turns. The overall feel is pastoral and reminiscent of the British Isles, with waving grasses, rock walls, split-rail fences and even herds of grazing sheep. That whimsical, pastoral character is amplified by stylized sheep sculptures scattered across the property and by luxurious comfort stations — touches credited to Magerko’s willingness to add personality and comfort to the course.
Bunkering is a defining element here: 149 deep sand traps, many backed by sculpted mounds. They’re formidable, but Nemacolin’s director of golf, Mike Jones, emphasizes that they’re also positioned to suggest the strategic route and present meaningful choices to the player.
One striking feature is the collection of “infinity greens,” which seem to sit on the edge of the landscape. Pete Dye often avoids strong backgrounds behind greens so the setting and distant vistas become part of the presentation. The result is visually striking and, as Tim Liddy notes, intentionally deceptive for depth perception — a feeling I experienced firsthand.
HOLE 1 | 590 yards, par 5
Shepherd’s Rock begins with an eye-catching and intimidating par 5. The fairway climbs and banks left around a cluster of pot bunkers edged with tall grasses. The second-shot landing area narrows into a corridor between mounds and bunkers on the right and a steep drop to the left. The front-sloping green is reachable visually, but deep bunkers guard both sides of the putting surface.
HOLE 4 | 619 yards, par 5
The heavy bunkering makes a strong impression from the tee: a series of grassy dunes and sand traps set into the elbow of a dogleg right discourage attempts to cut the corner. Mounding continues down the center of the fairway. Players who favor the left side to avoid trouble face a stern test into the elevated green, where a massive bunker accented with railroad ties protects the approach.
Hole 5 © DONNELLE OXLEY
HOLE 5 | 214 yards, par 3
The first par 3 provides a textbook example of an infinity green. Jones explained that the green was raised from a low-lying spot originally level with the lake to conceal a small irrigation building and the next tee, while deliberately making the shot look more intimidating. From the tee the lake appears to sit directly behind the green, though it’s actually about 50 yards beyond. The tiered putting surface slopes to the front and drops away on the right into two levels of bunkers.
HOLE 10 | 388 yards, par 4
After several open meadow holes dotted with sheep, the course slips into the forest and its personality changes. A grassy hollow sits in the middle of this fairway and pitches right toward woods and thick rough. The depression rarely comes directly into play, but the fairway’s incline matters: drives landing high on the left can bounce down into a wetland pocket beneath a rock wall, or they can trickle to the front of the green and avoid the drop-offs that guard the right and rear of the putting surface.
HOLE 18 | 455 yards, par 4
Originally, the routing planned for the ninth hole to finish the round, a natural close with a climb to a panoramic 50-mile view of the mountains. What is now 18 created design challenges. When the team proposed a dramatic — and costly — rework, Magerko and her father, Joe Hardy, supported the idea. The transformation produced a spectacular finishing hole that runs beside a lake and culminates at a green backed by a waterfall — a fitting and memorable end to the round.
Nemacolin Woodlands Resort Shepherd’s Rock
1001 Lafayette Drive
Farmington, PA 15437
tel 866 344 6957
nemacolin.com