Otter Creek Golf Course
About Otter Creek
Check out the Otter Creek Stay-and-Play Packages
Otter Creek Golf Course
11522 E. 50 N., Columbus, IN 47203
812-579-5227
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About the course
Otter Creek Golf Course has been ranked among the top 25 public golf courses in the U.S. since its inception in 1964. Located in the midst of a serene countryside, Robert Trent Jones Sr. created the original eighteen holes of this championship course. His design harmonizes the gently rolling hills of southern Indiana by utilizing the existing contours of the land to ensure that each shot is as natural as it could possibly be.
John “Spider” Miller, captain of the 2015 Walker Cup team, says “the Donald Ross Course at French Lick and Otter Creek are my two favorite courses in Indiana.”
Robert’s son, Rees Jones, designed an additional nine holes that would compliment the original course. Opened in June of 1995, the result is a “Links” course that is as challenging as the original design.
Many championship tournaments have been held at this property, including the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, multiple AJGA tournaments, NCAA regional championships, the Independent Youth classic, and the Indiana Men’s Amateur Championship – 26 times. The course has also served as a qualification site for the U.S and Senior Open, plus the National Public Links.
Otter Creek has hosted:
- Thirty state amateurs – winners include Fuzzy Zoeller and Tyler Duncan
- Three Women’s State Amateur Championships
- NCAA Divison I Regionals
- Three Big Ten Championships
- USGA Public Links Championship
(Fun footnote – at the request of Bobby Jones, Robert Trent Jones Sr. redesigned the 11th at Augusta National Golf Club, the famed first hole of “Amen Corner.” Despite the name similarity, the two men were not related and, in order to make this distinction clear, Robert used his middle name, “Trent,” after working with Bobby Jones.)
PGA Pro Tom Kite selected to redesign Otter Creek
World Golf Hall of Famer Tom Kite has been selected to redesign Otter Creek Golf Course. Kite is a 19-time winner on the PGA Tour, highlighted by his victory in the 1992 US Open. Otter Creek will be the 11th course design for Tom Kite Designs.
“Robert Trent Jones was one of the most creative and prolific golf architects in the history of the game,” Kite said. “Otter Creek was long regarded as the finest course in Indiana and all who play it know that the ‘bones’ of the course are fabulous. But so many things in our game have changed since 1964 and it is time to bring Otter Creek up to today’s standards.”
“I have been an avid admirer of great architecture for years,” Kite said. “So much so, that if I had not been as successful playing golf, I most likely would have ended up being an architect. The opportunity to spend time in Columbus, a city well known for its cutting-edge architecture, is a dream come true…”
From The Republic Newspaper, 21 June 2023
Phil Mickelson won at Otter Creek in 1987
JULY 10.1987 / ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLUMBUS, Ind. — Phil Mickelson of San Diego shot a 71 Thursday to finish with a one-over-par 217 over 54 holes and win the boys’ age 15-18 division title in the Midwestern Junior Golf Championship at Otter Creek Golf Course.
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