Baltimore Country Club

Baltimore Country Club dates to 1898, and in the 1920s it expanded to its Five Farms property north of the city, where A.W. Tillinghast laid out a bold championship course. Tillinghast planned 36 holes, but only half was built; the East Course opened in September 1926, while the companion West did not follow until 1961. The East quickly earned acclaim for its deep, low-lying bunkers, dramatically contoured greens, and idiosyncratic hazards, including the sprawling Hell's Half-Acre sand on the 14th and an old barn that golfers try to carry on the dogleg par-5 sixth. It hosted the 1928 PGA Championship, where Leo Diegel defeated Al Espinosa 6 and 5, along with other significant amateur and professional events over the years. In 2015 architect Keith Foster completed a restoration that returned much of Tillinghast's original character and strategy to the East Course, reaffirming its standing among the architect's most distinctive designs.