PINEHURST, North Carolina — As one of the preeminent golf architectural duos of the early 21st century, Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw made a vow to themselves as their services became more and more in demand.
“Ben and I both try to be very low-key when talking about sites and their potential,” Coore said.
That thought process has worked 99% of the time. However, as Pinehurst No. 11 began to unfold over the last nine months, Coore has had a difficult time containing his enthusiasm for a new resort course that likely will draw worldwide attention from golf travelers in 2027.
“This is one of the most interesting sites that I have ever seen; it’s so extreme, and I mean that in a very positive way,” said Coore, whose resumé with Crenshaw over the years includes such fantastic layouts as Cabot Cliffs, Bandon Trails and Sand Valley. “It’s an old sand and gravel mining site and has been for many decades. These landforms here were not for golf; they were just left over from the mining when it was abandoned. There are giant pine trees growing out of these old ridges and sand piles. It’s something that would take a minimum of 50 years to ever happen naturally.”
Much of the No. 11 course has been laid out over property that was once a golf course designed by Dan Maples called The Pit, which closed in December 2010 following financial struggles and poor course conditions.
The Pit was viewed by many as a gimmicky design that golfers would play once a year for fun, but it didn’t attract golf purists.
Pinehurst Resort CEO and owner Bob Dedman Jr. purchased the property in 2011 and asked Coore and Crenshaw to draw plans for a new course there. The deal fell apart at the time because of the country’s economic downturn.
FROM MINING SITE TO PINEHURST SANDMINES
However, about four years ago, with golf tourism once again in demand, Dedman and the resort’s golf executives revisited plans with a new outlook on a 900-acre site that is now called Pinehurst Sandmines.
“Bob Dedman said to me, ‘You know, Bill, we’ve probably got plenty of land for two courses. We’re thinking about doing a little bigger facility than just one satellite course,’” Coore said. “They began talking about different people to get involved. They said they were also going to hire Tom Doak, whom I’ve known since he was in school at Cornell and wehave worked alongside each other in numerous places through the years.”
Doak’s firm was in a position to begin work immediately while Coore and Crenshaw were tied up with other projects, so “Tom went first” and designed Pinehurst No. 10, which opened in 2024 and received the title of Best New Course from Sports Illustrated.
“I’ve said to Pinehurst president Tom Pashley and Bob Dedman that in all candor I have never seen two more different sites that are contiguous than No. 10 and No. 11 anywhere in my career,” Coore said. “The two golf courses will be massively different in terms of character and presentation, play and characteristics, which we hope is good for Pinehurst.”
Golfers traveling to the North Carolina Sandhills will get a bonus since No. 11 is ahead of schedule and plans to open this spring instead of the fall, according to Pinehurst Resort Executive Vice President Eric Kuester.
“We now expect to have balls in the air with resort guests by early April,” Kuester said. “We’re super pumped. It’s a phenomenal piece of property, and what Coore and Crenshaw have done has exceeded expectations. Obviously, we want that to be validated with guest play and guest comments, but from what I’ve seen, there is plenty of eye candy that Bill calls a weirdly wonderful, quirky, cool layout. It’s going to be all those things and more.”
The Pinehurst Sandmines is about a five-minute shuttle ride from the main clubhouse, but Kuester said golfers will have access to on-site lodging at a resort that will soon have a whopping 207 golf holes. He expects the Sandmines Lodge to be ready to house golf travelers by November 2027.
A DISTINCTIVE WALKING EXPERIENCE
Much like No. 10, the new Pinehurst Resort offering will be a walking course.
“We really want to lean into the caddie experience at these Sandmines courses,” Kuester said. “But in the extreme heat in the summertime, we’ll allow a lot of folks to take a cart if needed.”
With most golf packages at the resort, there will be a $125 premium charge to play No. 11.
Coore and Crenshaw have an architectural style that has been described as “minimalist,” meaning the duo prefers to let the land speak to the layout and not the movement of large amounts of dirt to create landforms. So, at first glance, the look of No. 11 may not match the firm’s reputation.
“People may think, ‘Oh, they came here and tried to create something that looked like Ireland, creating all these ridges,’”Coore said. “Well, it was the mining people from all those years ago who inadvertently created something that became really interesting for golf.”
With iconic Pinehurst No. 2 as an anchor course to a historic resort laced with Southern hospitality, it’s hard to imagine a better golf experience when it comes to choices. But Kuester said the opening of No. 11 will add yet another level of golf experience that separates Pinehurst Resort from its competition.
“Right out of the gate, anything that you attach to the Coore-Crenshaw name is immediate street cred,” Kuester said. “I do believe that they are the best. Their golf courses just have a different vibe, so it deepens the storyline for the Sandmines. It gives us another world-class golf course. It will be top 100. That’s not an overly bold statement. Does it crack the top 50? I don’t know. That would be ambitious to make that statement. But I think No. 11 elevates the Pinehurst experience to maybe the ultimate golf destination because now you can experience the Cradle of American Golf and play No. 2 and have that incredible U.S. Open experience, and then you can also have this true immersive enclave, kind of walk with nature as a golf destination at Nos. 10 and 11.”
“This golf course is nestled into the trees and into the old quirky landforms and mining spoils,” Coore added regarding Pinehurst No. 11. “It’s hard to describe. It’s a course that golfers are going to have to experience to believe.”
