Golf courses in North Dakota

By population, North Dakota has more golf than almost anywhere in the country: 10.51 courses mapped in Yardage per 100,000 residents, second of the 50 states, or one course for every 9,516 people. The state tourism office claims first place outright; in our catalog it is a close second. Either way, in a state of small towns and long drives, the course is usually closer than the next town.

84 courses in North Dakota are mapped in Yardage, and 59 of them are nine-hole against 25 eighteen-hole. That 70.2% nine-hole share is the highest in the country, and it describes the state well: 56 of the 66 towns in the directory have one course, and in 46 of them it is a nine. Beulah, Mandan and Williston keep municipal nines, all mapped; the larger clusters are Fargo (6 mapped courses), Bismarck (4), Grand Forks and Minot (3 each).

The geography is flat in the Red River Valley on the Minnesota line, rolling along the Missouri through Bismarck and Mandan, and broken into badlands out west past Dickinson. Wind is a constant on all of it. The season is short: courses open in late April if the frost is out and most close by mid-October, which is one more reason nine holes suits the place.

The Golf Course Census shows the nine-hole share and the per-capita figure for all 50 states side by side. Passing through on I-94 and stopping for a round at a course you have never seen, read our guide to playing a new course first. The national directory has the neighboring states.

Most courses: Fargo (6), Bismarck (4), Grand Forks (3), Minot (3), Bottineau (2).

Population: U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates (July 1, 2025) (799,358 residents). Counts are courses mapped in Yardage, not an official registry.

Courses by city

Is your course mapped?

Type the name of a North Dakota course or town to see whether it is mapped.

Missing a course?

Small-town nines are the ones we miss most often; if yours is not here, send the town and we will check.

Missing a course, or a green that looks wrong? Email support@theyardageapp.com with the course name and city and we will map it.