When considering the largest cities in the United States, Houston doesn’t come immediately to mind for most people. But with a population of 2.4 million, it ranks No. 4 in the country. The city also ranks equally high in humidity due to its subtropical climate. Even in the winter months, humidity can range from 50% to 75% during the day. So, whether it is the heat or the humidity, golfers should be prepared when teeing it up in Houston.
But the quality of golf courses in Houston, especially of the public variety, makes a little extra stickiness easier to tolerate.
Arrival day takes golfers to Gus Wortham Park Golf Course, perhaps the most historic public course in Houston, having opened in 1908. It is the oldest continuously operated course in Texas. Gus Wortham Park is located in Houston’s East End along Brays Bayou, about a half- hour drive from George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Led by the Houston Golf Association, the course underwent a massive restoration, reopening in 2018 with a new clubhouse opening in 2021. Gus Wortham Park is home to the men’s, women’s and senior men’s Houston City Amateur, all conducted by the Houston Golf Association.
After golf, dinner is at Ninfa’s on Navigation, which is five minutes away from Gus Wortham Park. This location is the original Ninfa’s, which is the home of one of Tex-Mex’s signature dishes. In 1973, shortly after her husband’s death, Mama Ninfa Laurenzo grilled skirt steak and put it into flower tortillas, creating tacos al carbon, or what we know today as fajitas. They’re not the only item on Ninfa’s menu, but you’d hate to say you had been there and not tried them.
A 36-hole day takes travelers to a pair of PGA Tour courses, one of which hosted an LPGA Tour major championship. We begin at Memorial Park Golf Course, home to the Texas Children’s Houston Open on the PGA Tour and the host of the 2026 Chevron Championship, the year’s first women’s major.
What makes that so remarkable is that Memorial Park, like Gus Wortham, is one of Houston’s municipal courses. Architect John Bredemus redesigned a nine-hole course that was used for convalescing soldiers at nearby Camp Logan. The new course opened in 1936 and hosted the Houston Open from the 1950s through the early 1960s.
An extensive renovation, fueled by a $35 million donation from the Astros Golf Foundation, was undertaken in 2019 by architect Tom Doak with input from five-time major champion Brooks Koepka. The goal was to bring the Houston Open back to Memorial Park, and the PGA Tour agreed to return in November 2020.
In between rounds, lunch can be had at Beck’s Prime, which is next to the driving range and putting green at Memorial Park. Beck’s, which has eight locations in the Houston area, is famous for its burgers, freshly ground on site and cooked over mesquite coals.
For the afternoon round, about a 20-minute drive west will find Golf Club of Houston, a 36-hole club where the Members Course is private and the Tournament Course is open to the public. The Tournament Course, designed by Rees Jones and Tour player David Toms, was home to the Houston Open from 2003 to 2019.
When thinking about dinner, because you’re in Texas, the subject of barbecue is bound to come up. However, trying to pick the best barbecue in town is a fruitless endeavor and ripe for argument. Everyone has preferences and opinions. However, the barbecue restaurants in Houston that seem to receive the most mentions are:
- Blood Bros. BBQ: Fuses traditional barbecue with Asian flavors.
- Gatlin’s BBQ: Known for brisket, housemade spicy sausage and collard greens (don’t turn your nose up until you’ve tried them).
- Killen’s BBQ: Located in nearby Pearland, which is known for its Snake River Farm American Wagyu beef ribs. Keep in mind that Killen’s closes at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 6 p.m. on Sundays.
If Texas barbecue doesn’t tempt you, a couple of options are:
- Goode Company Seafood: Located across from Memorial City Mall, serves all things fresh Gulf Coast seafood from grilled oysters to fried seafood platters to mesquite grilled entrees. The Campechana Extra appetizer was featured in Garden & Gun’s list of 100 Things You Simply Must Eat Before You Die in 2008. And it’s said that the pecan pie at Goode is a must.
- Tony’s: In the Greenway Plaza on Richmond Avenue, is a Houston staple. The restaurant celebrated 60 years in 2025 and is the city’s go-to for fine Italian dining. Tony’s has served movie stars, politicians, athletes and others of fame with a culinary team that totals more than 200 years of experience.
Getaway day will find us at Cypresswood Golf Club’s Tradition Course. The club is a 36-hole facility where both the Cypress and Tradition are open to the public. The club boasts no highway noise and not a single housing development in view.
Be aware that you’ll need to reserve your starting time with an e-mail address and a credit card. Online starting time reservations can be made up to 14 days in advance.
And maybe the best part of finishing up at Cypresswood is that the George Bush Intercontinental Airport is only a 10-minute drive from the club.
