French Lick Resort’s new Sand Creek Course
Sand Creek is a true short course with holes ranging between 40 and 90 yards. Playable in an hour, it’s friendly for golfers of all skill levels.
FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort is big and brawny, with long views and seemingly even longer holes. It has all the tricks its namesake architect, who passed away in 2020, could throw at a player: wild slopes, deep bunkers, water, plenty of rough, on and on. The course has hosted the Senior PGA Championship and plenty of other elite championships, and it can challenge the best players in the world.
When the resort decided to add a short course, the property’s operators wanted to offer the opposite while still including some Pete Dye flair. How? Reduce the length and offer a nine-hole, par-3 layout that could be played in about an hour.
Why? In case you’ve been totally focused on your driver swing and the increased importance of length on the PGA Tour, the greatest trend in golf over the past decade has been the introduction of so many short, par-3 and non-traditional courses, including some that have par 4s and par 5s. It’s anything but the same ol’ same ol’, as these layouts typically promise a quick bit of fun before or after rounds on a larger traditional course, or a chance to take a few swings on days away from a property’s larger course. At resorts in particular, the courses tend to be even shorter and more accessible for any level of player. Plenty of the newest offerings require only two or three clubs – shoes optional.
French Lick, home to two full-size 18s – the Pete Dye Course and the Donald Ross Course – as well as a separate nine-holer named Valley Links, wanted in on the action. The Pete Dye Course is ranked No. 1 in Indiana on Golfweek’s Best list of top courses in each state, and the classical Donald Ross Course is No. 2, but something was missing.
“We saw the popularity of short courses throughout the country and realized that was a piece that the pie that we didn’t have,” French Lick Resort’s longtime director of golf, Dave Harner, said. “To have something for young players and to have something for beginners was important. You know, our main courses are pretty challenging, so this is a good alternative to the more difficult championship-type golf courses. And it’s fun.”
The job of creating the Sand Creek par-3 course fell to golf superintendent Russ Apple, who sprinkled Dye-type features into the layout. No. 2, for example, has Dye-inspired volcano bunkers behind the green. No. 9’s green sits atop railroad ties, another famous Dye feature.
The Sand Creek Course measures just 602 yards total, with holes ranging from 41 yards up to 90. Players can take two or three clubs and have at it. Harner said many golfers who have booked tee times at the bigger courses will play Sand Creek before or after their rounds, and occasional golfers –even those new to the game – are wandering over from the plentiful nearby resort accommodations and casino to take a few whacks at the ball. The resort also installed pickleball courts nearby, and Harner said there are plans to add several new putting greens to create what is in essence a big sports park.
It’s all part of a larger plan at French Lick Resort to place even more emphasis on golf, with plans to expand its full-sized offerings – more on that to be officially announced in the coming months.
One player, racing around Sand Creek by himself before a round on the Donald Ross Course, summed it perfectly after teeing off on No. 9 just weeks after the course opened in the summer of 2025. “I’ve got two hours before my tee time on the Ross Course, so I’m going to skip the range and play this again.” There is no greater compliment for a course than players wanting to go around again.
