Golf ScoutHow long is a golf course?
It depends on the tees. In the USGA's figures for US courses, the median 18-hole course is 6,518 yards from the back tees and 4,952 yards from the forward tees, and on average men play from 6,089 yards and women from 5,071. Our free course maps show the length of every UK and Irish course they cover, hole by hole.
How long is an 18-hole course?
There's no set length. A course's length depends on its holes and on which tees you play, and most courses have several sets. The USGA looked at 18-hole courses in the United States:
- The median course is 6,518 yards (5,960 metres) from the back tees, and 4,952 yards (4,528 metres) from the forward tees.
- Back tees run from under 6,000 yards to over 7,000.
- On average, male golfers play from 6,089 yards and female golfers from 5,071 yards.
Average course length on UK and Irish maps
We measured the 947 18-hole courses on our course maps, along the line of every hole as it's mapped on OpenStreetMap:
- Average: 6,041 yards (5,524 metres). Half of all courses are longer than 6,078 yards and half shorter.
- Typical range: 8 in 10 courses measure between 5,389 and 6,756 yards.
- Shortest and longest: 1,380 to 8,210 yards. The short end is par-3 and other short courses.
- Over 7,000 yards: 50 courses, including several of the championship links in our Scottish links guide.
- 9-hole courses: 2,263 yards on average, across 189 courses.
Length goes with par. The most common par is 72, on 191 courses.
| Par | Courses | Average yards | Average metres |
|---|---|---|---|
| Par 67 | 10 | 5,239 | 4,790 |
| Par 68 | 28 | 5,508 | 5,036 |
| Par 69 | 60 | 5,701 | 5,213 |
| Par 70 | 147 | 5,982 | 5,470 |
| Par 71 | 161 | 6,215 | 5,683 |
| Par 72 | 191 | 6,493 | 5,937 |
| Par 73 | 34 | 6,540 | 5,980 |
By country, the average 18-hole course measures 6,029 yards in England, 5,948 yards in Scotland, 6,122 yards in Wales, 6,164 yards in Northern Ireland, 6,454 yards in Ireland.
Course data © OpenStreetMap contributors, see about the course data. Lengths run from the tee end of each hole as it's mapped, so they won't match every set of tees on the scorecard.
How long is each hole?
Par for a hole is set mainly by its length. These are the guidelines in the World Handicap System's Rules of Handicapping, for courses below 2,000 feet above sea level. The ranges overlap because par also allows for how hard the hole plays, such as changes in elevation, forced lay-ups and the prevailing wind.
| Par | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Par 3 | Up to 260 yards | Up to 220 yards |
| Par 4 | 240 to 490 yards | 200 to 420 yards |
| Par 5 | 450 to 710 yards | 370 to 600 yards |
| Par 6 | 670 yards and up | 570 yards and up |
Put together, a par-72 course for men with four par 3s of 180 yards, ten par 4s of 380 and four par 5s of 520 comes to 6,600 yards.
Which tees should you play?
The Tee It Forward initiative from the PGA of America and the USGA matches course length to how far you drive. Here it is against the typical driver distance for each handicap from our club distance chart:
| Handicap | Typical drive | Suggested course length |
|---|---|---|
| Scratch | 275 yards | 6,700 to 6,900 yards |
| 10 | 245 yards | 6,100 to 6,300 yards |
| 20 | 212 yards | 5,500 to 5,700 yards |
| 28 | 182 yards | 4,600 to 4,800 yards |
| 36 | 161 yards | 3,900 to 4,100 yards |
Suggested lengths are read from the Tee It Forward chart at each driving distance, rounded to the nearest 100 yards.
If your drive is shorter than the chart's typical number for your handicap, go by your drive. A course that's too long leaves long irons and woods into most greens; the right tees leave more mid and short irons. The guide to driver distance helps you find your real number.
Find the length of your course
Every course on our free course maps shows its total length, par and the length of each hole, with the longest and shortest holes. See also free golf course maps for the UK and Ireland and how to read a yardage book.
See any course's length, hole by hole
Related guides
- Links golf courses in Scotland
- Free golf course maps for the UK and Ireland
- What is a yardage book, and how do you read one?
Sources
Golf Scout shows the distance to the front, middle and back of the green from wherever you stand, on courses mapped on OpenStreetMap. Get Golf Scout on the App Store, free for iPhone and Apple Watch.