Golf Courses > Golf Courses in VA > Golf Courses in Hot Springs

The Homestead Resort

Course Details

The Homestead Resort

Lower Cascades Course

Cascades Course(18 holes), Old Course(18 holes)

1766 Homestead Rd
Hot Springs, VA 24445-2773

(540) 839-7739

Regulation

Daily Fee Facility

Resort

54

1892

Barry Ryder

Donald J. Ross, ASGCA

$125 weekend
$125 weekday
- twilight

72.2

6579

72

Bent

Bent

Reviews
  Clubhouse / Facilities Avg. Rating:
  Quality of Course Avg. Rating:
  Value for the Money Avg. Rating:
  Overall Rating Avg. Rating:
Overall Rating 4 out of 5 based on 54 user reviews
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/07/22
Course had just been aerated
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/24/22
The Homestead Resort has been a part of Omni Hotels and Resorts since 2013 and is a one-of-a-kind property in Hot Springs, Virginia especially if you enjoy outdoor activities. Several management and investment companies have owned the resort, and each has left its mark, but Omni has taken it to a whole new level. In 2016 The Homestead Resort earned an accolade that is virtually unheard of for any hotel, inn, or resort located in the United States—a 250th anniversary! The Historic Hotels of America is proud to count the Homestead Resort as one of its charter members.

The Homestead is a year-round resort. In the warm spring, summer, and most of the fall months, guests enjoy a plethora of outdoor activities including hiking, swimming, archery, shooting, falconry, tennis, and, of course, golf. In the winter, The Homestead becomes a ski resort, in fact, the oldest ski resort in Virginia. Other winter activities include snowboarding, snow tubing, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, and snowmobiling.

With plenty to do here, golf still seems to be the main attraction, and rightfully so. The Homestead is home to two high-caliber golf courses: The Old Course and The Cascades. Collectively, both courses have been around for over 200 years, yet have stood the test of time. Names such as Donald Ross, Robert Trent Jones, William Flynn, and Rees Jones have built and rebuilt them. They have been updated and restored over the years including lengthening and adapting to keep up with changes in golf equipment technology.

One of the most famous golfers to ever play on the PGA Tour, Sam Snead, lived in or near Hot Springs for his entire life, and for several decades was the Homestead's golf pro. The Sam Snead Tavern – adjacent to The Homestead – contains memorabilia from his career. Rumor has it that Sneed landed the head pro job after he gave one of the member’s wives a lesson and she told the owners it was the best golf lesson she had ever had. He was offered the job the next day!

The Old Course was the resort’s first course and was established in 1892 when the first 6 holes were opened for play. That first hole is still in use today, making it the oldest first tee in continuous use in the nation. The Old Course also has the distinction of being the place where the first sitting President of the United States, William McKinley, played golf. The Old Course became a 9-hole layout in 1896 and expanded to 18 holes and 6,000 yards in 1901. Donald Ross was brought in to redesign the course in 1916 and added his signature contoured fairways and smaller, saucer-shaped greens. It’s unique in that it has 6 par 3s, 6 par 4s, and 6 par 5s.

The Old Course is a true Donald Ross course that will test your shot-making ability. Thanks to a stellar maintenance crew, the course is always in top condition; fairways are thick and green, and the putting surfaces roll quick and true. Tree-lined fairways test your accuracy off the tee and the contouring of the fairway leads to many uneven lies. There’s a lot of elevation change on several holes so a rangefinder with slope is a handy tool to have. The first three holes play uphill.

One of the most memorable holes is Number 13, a long, sweeping dogleg right par 5 that starts from an elevated tee box. Your tee shot plays downhill into a fairway that slopes from left to right which can help save tee shots headed left. Keep your layup shot in play and you should have a short pitch shot into another small green protected front right by sand.

In 1919 things were going so well at the resort that they decided a second course was needed. A nearby farm that was owned by New York stockbroker Jacob Rubino was the chosen site for this new course. Several architects visited the site including A.W. Tillinghast, and all said the land was not suitable for golf. After studying the area, golf course architect William S. Flynn – known for his ability to take seemingly unplayable terrain and turn it into a memorable golf layout – felt that if the adjoining parcel of land could be purchased, plans to move forward with an 18-hole championship golf course could proceed. The land was purchased and on September 12, 1923, construction began on The Cascades.

Thanks to the routing skills of William Flynn, the Cascades is annually ranked as one of the top courses in the country. Because of the routing, a full variety of shot-making is required, and Flynn’s courses will test a player’s accuracy, carry, and length.

The Cascades is a unique layout for a couple of reasons. First, there are no houses on the course. Second, a mountain stream winds its way throughout the layout, bringing water into play on a few holes. Third, the course finishes 3-5-5-3. Enough said!

Course knowledge goes a long way in scoring well on the Cascades too. For example, golfers with course knowledge of The Cascades know that on the 274-yard par 4 3rd hole, the club to hit off the tee is NOT driver! Those of us with little or no course knowledge will try and force a driver between the trees on either side of the fairway. The green is perched upon a shelf, hence the name “Shelf.” Any approach shot that does not make it up the hill onto the putting surface may well roll back down.

The last four holes can make or break a great round. Number 15, “Vanity Fair” plays over 200 yards from any of the three Men’s Tees and doesn’t have a lot of trouble, other than its length.

Number 16, “The Hemlocks,” is a dogleg right par 5 that plays 488 yards from the White Tees and is one of the most photographed holes on the course. It’s not the longest par 5 but the dammed – or damned, if you hit into it - creek that runs in front of the green will have you thinking about going for it in two.

Number 17, “Cress Lakes,” is a dogleg left par 5 that plays 481 yards with that same creek running all the way down the right. Play your tee shot down the right side and leave yourself a clear shot into the green which is reachable with a good drive.

Number 18 is fittingly named “Taps.” It’s a 165-yard par 5 that plays slightly uphill to a large, well-undulated green. Par is a great way to end your round.

Whether you’re looking for a relaxing golf getaway with your spouse, or you’re the person in charge of planning golf trips, there are several reasons to consider The Omni Homestead Resort. First, obviously, is the tremendous golf courses and the opportunity to play on courses that have hosted a number of professional and national tournaments and championships. It’s not often you’ll find two courses of this caliber that both end with a par 3! Best of all, you don’t have to be an elite golfer to enjoy the courses. And, when things aren’t going well on the course, just look around and take in everything you see. I played in the spring and with tall trees everywhere, I can only imagine how beautiful it is in the fall.

Secondly, there is a lot more to a “golf vacation” these days than golf. The Homestead has so much more to offer such as a refreshing bath in the mineral springs and the opportunity to shoot clays at the home of the 199 U.S. Open Sporting Clays Championship. Or take an electric mountain bike ride around the property. And we haven’t even mentioned the dining opportunities at the resort which are numerous.

Most importantly are the people at the Omni Homestead Resort. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable, and will treat you better than the golf courses will!
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/10/22
Best course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
07/15/22
Great resort course!
Review Date Member Overall Rating
04/02/22
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/07/21
Great course! lots of fun and beautiful scenery
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/24/21
Great condition
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/07/20
First time playing elevations like this. Course was in excellent condition and had a great mix of par 5s and 3s. I will come back for another round
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/06/20
T
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/04/20
H
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/19/20
Perfect
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/16/20
Loved the mountain golf
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/07/20
Great course.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
12/26/19
Great placeT
Review Date Member Overall Rating
10/17/19
Fun
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/28/19
Awesome
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/01/19
Hard course but in good shape and tough greens
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/23/19
Fun course. Forgiving.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
07/06/19
Great!
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/29/19
Great
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/01/19
This course features the oldest, continuous first tee. Some of the tee boxes have historically significant facts about the president's who have played there. The views are gorgeous, the course is in great shape. When you hit a ball in the fairway its very possible to have a sidehill,uphill or a downhill lie into small greens so it is a challenging course but really fun. Well worth a trip.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
04/16/19
Great cout
Review Date Member Overall Rating
11/03/18
Great layout and amazing views
Review Date Member Overall Rating
10/29/18
Great course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/17/18
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/30/18
Course in excellent condition. Cost is high.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/09/18
So good
Review Date Member Overall Rating
10/20/17
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/30/17
Small greens, hilly course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/17/17
Review Date Member Overall Rating
04/20/17
Review Date Member Overall Rating
10/15/16
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/10/16
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/26/16
Course was in great shape.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/11/16
Great
Review Date Member Overall Rating
06/04/16
difficult, long par 4s with some great design. very challenging
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/28/16
Good course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
03/26/16
Great
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/29/15
A great mountain course, with a unique layout. It was $195, but probably should have been closer to $165.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/01/15
Course was beautiful
Review Date Member Overall Rating
07/23/15
The rough was flush, greens were in great shape, and the staff were very helpful
Review Date Member Overall Rating
06/21/15
Review Date Member Overall Rating
06/15/15
Good open course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/15/15
Course was in very good shape.
Review Date Member Overall Rating
04/16/15
Nice
Review Date Member Overall Rating
04/16/15
Fun track
Review Date Member Overall Rating
09/26/14
Terrific
Review Date Member Overall Rating
07/28/14
great condition
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/25/14
Course was in great shape
Review Date Member Overall Rating
05/18/14
yea
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/26/13
Sweet course
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/13/13
Sister got married and I broke 100!!!
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/14/12
Top 5 in my fav golf course. People are wonderful. Only negative thing would be they close kitchen at 3pm
Review Date Member Overall Rating
08/20/11
Recent Scores
MEMBER SCORE RT/SL PLAYED
jbarker522 104 70.9/130 09/07/22
eze007 105 70.9/130 08/12/22
johnboyer16 109 70.9/130 08/11/22
johnboyer16 100 70.9/130 08/11/22
johnboyer16 99 68/126 08/11/22
Jamespickering 88 68/126 08/11/22
Jamespickering 93 70.9/130 08/10/22
Jamespickering 92 70.9/130 08/10/22
Risi 84 69.9/130 07/15/22
jhudgins72 97 70.9/130 04/23/22
dmvigar12 86 69.9/130 04/02/22
ScottDB 86 69.9/130 10/10/21
mhansen62 109 70.9/130 09/25/21
mhansen62 119 72.8/134 09/25/21
mhansen62 122 72.8/134 09/25/21
millterp 97 70.9/130 09/24/21
Redbridge 84 68/126 09/06/21
DCE 94 75.3/137 08/24/21
DCE 97 70.9/130 08/23/21
gmcguirevt 88 72.8/134 08/11/21
SP88 91 68/126 06/24/21
SP88 99 70.9/130 06/23/21
SP88 98 70.9/130 06/21/21
SP88 93 70.9/130 06/19/21
SP88 93 69.9/130 06/18/21
Scorecard
Course Tee Gender Rating Slope
Cascade BLUE M 72.8 134
Cascade RED M 65.0 119
Cascade WHITE M 70.9 130
Cascade BLUE W 79.6 142
Cascade RED W 70.2 122
Cascade WHITE W 77.4 137
Cascades Course BLUE M 72.8 134
Cascades Course RED M 65.0 119
Cascades Course WHITE M 70.9 130
Cascades Course BLUE W 79.6 142
Cascades Course RED W 70.2 122
Cascades Course WHITE W 77.4 137
Lower Cascades BLUE M 73.1 136
Lower Cascades RED M 63.7 118
Lower Cascades WHITE M 71.0 133
Lower Cascades BLUE W 79.2 140
Lower Cascades RED W 67.9 117
Lower Cascades WHITE W 76.7 135
Old Course BLUE M 69.9 130
Old Course RED M 63.8 117
Old Course WHITE M 68.0 126
Old Course BLUE W 75.3 137
Old Course RED W 68.1 122
Old Course WHITE W 73.1 133
Map
Course Photos
Be the first to tag a photo of The Homestead Resort here.
Weather
More Details
USGA Copyright Information
Back to the top of The Homestead Resort