Public vs Private Golf Courses in the US
According to US Golf Course Registry's registry, the United States has 15,735 golf facilities: 6,974 public (41 %), 3,651 private, 1,320 municipal and 3,767 nine-hole courses.
| State | Public share | Private share | Semi-private | Resort | Municipal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 12 % | 7 % | 7 % | 0 % | 4 % |
| Alaska | 77 % | 0 % | 4 % | 4 % | 4 % |
| Arizona | 43 % | 22 % | 16 % | 18 % | 8 % |
| Arkansas | 33 % | 30 % | 32 % | 3 % | 5 % |
| California | 43 % | 30 % | 8 % | 9 % | 8 % |
| Colorado | 60 % | 18 % | 11 % | 11 % | 26 % |
| Connecticut | 45 % | 42 % | 11 % | 0 % | 14 % |
| Delaware | 46 % | 42 % | 10 % | 3 % | 4 % |
| Florida | 16 % | 26 % | 19 % | 8 % | 4 % |
| Georgia | 30 % | 34 % | 27 % | 7 % | 4 % |
| Hawaii | 36 % | 15 % | 9 % | 33 % | 4 % |
| Idaho | 64 % | 11 % | 12 % | 12 % | 17 % |
| Illinois | 58 % | 22 % | 13 % | 2 % | 9 % |
| Indiana | 61 % | 16 % | 15 % | 4 % | 10 % |
| Iowa | 47 % | 15 % | 33 % | 2 % | 9 % |
| Kansas | 59 % | 24 % | 15 % | 1 % | 19 % |
| Kentucky | 32 % | 12 % | 10 % | 3 % | 9 % |
| Louisiana | 34 % | 30 % | 31 % | 4 % | 10 % |
| Maine | 58 % | 9 % | 29 % | 5 % | 3 % |
| Maryland | 18 % | 9 % | 6 % | 2 % | 6 % |
| Massachusetts | 48 % | 30 % | 19 % | 2 % | 7 % |
| Michigan | 60 % | 12 % | 12 % | 8 % | 6 % |
| Minnesota | 53 % | 11 % | 23 % | 6 % | 11 % |
| Mississippi | 28 % | 44 % | 21 % | 5 % | 9 % |
| Missouri | 26 % | 9 % | 8 % | 4 % | 4 % |
| Montana | 53 % | 18 % | 24 % | 5 % | 9 % |
| Nebraska | 23 % | 9 % | 10 % | 0 % | 8 % |
| Nevada | 47 % | 19 % | 14 % | 19 % | 8 % |
| New Hampshire | 45 % | 12 % | 30 % | 13 % | 2 % |
| New Jersey | 44 % | 39 % | 13 % | 3 % | 10 % |
| New Mexico | 58 % | 20 % | 8 % | 11 % | 27 % |
| New York | 52 % | 21 % | 13 % | 2 % | 10 % |
| North Carolina | 30 % | 28 % | 32 % | 9 % | 4 % |
| North Dakota | 33 % | 1 % | 13 % | 2 % | 14 % |
| Ohio | 57 % | 24 % | 12 % | 1 % | 8 % |
| Oklahoma | 60 % | 20 % | 15 % | 4 % | 18 % |
| Oregon | 15 % | 17 % | 4 % | 4 % | 5 % |
| Pennsylvania | 52 % | 28 % | 13 % | 5 % | 4 % |
| Rhode Island | 38 % | 37 % | 24 % | 1 % | 2 % |
| South Carolina | 26 % | 26 % | 34 % | 11 % | 1 % |
| South Dakota | 53 % | 11 % | 31 % | 2 % | 20 % |
| Tennessee | 18 % | 11 % | 4 % | 1 % | 7 % |
| Texas | 5 % | 3 % | 3 % | 6 % | 2 % |
| Utah | 72 % | 16 % | 3 % | 6 % | 30 % |
| Vermont | 31 % | 10 % | 43 % | 14 % | 1 % |
| Virginia | 36 % | 31 % | 20 % | 9 % | 8 % |
| Washington | 57 % | 16 % | 13 % | 13 % | 7 % |
| Washington Dc | 83 % | 0 % | 0 % | 0 % | 50 % |
| West Virginia | 31 % | 15 % | 15 % | 35 % | 7 % |
| Wisconsin | 49 % | 9 % | 12 % | 8 % | 7 % |
| Wyoming | 59 % | 15 % | 18 % | 7 % | 31 % |
Methodology
Counts come from an OpenStreetMap-derived course registry (ODbL), machine-verified per course: state assignment by point-in-polygon against Census boundaries, course size derived from par bands (never from mapping coverage), access type normalized from source tags. Facilities with neither a website nor a phone number are excluded from publication until verified. Counts change as courses open and close.