One Of America's Top 10 Golf Courses Is A Pennsylvania Stunner With Championship Fairways

Merion Golf Club, in the Philly suburbs, has hosted some of the most storied tournaments in professional golf. In 1949, Ben Hogan, one of only six men to have completed golf's Grand Slam, was injured in a head-on collision with a Greyhound, which seemed destined to bring his career to a premature end. Doctors told him he might never walk again, never mind chase a ball around the fairways. Then, in 1950, following a period of rehab and spurred by sheer human willpower, he won the U.S. Open at Merion's East Course, drilling a 1-iron to 40 feet from the middle of the 18th fairway, in what is still one of the most iconic shots ever played.

There was some poetic symmetry when Justin Rose, an Olympic gold medalist, won his first (and to date only) major at Merion East in the 2013 U.S. Open. His winning approach to the 72nd green was hit just four paces from where Hogan hit his own championship-clinching shot 63 years earlier. Hoisting the trophy on Father's Day, Rose dedicated the victory to his dad, Ken, who had died a decade earlier from leukemia — and once again, images from Merion had been consecrated into golfing lore.

Merion, when set up correctly, bares its teeth on a major Sunday, causing all sorts of drama as the world's best golfers hack their way through chompy rough, deep bunkers, and springy, narrow fairways. But it's not just the TV moments that make this course, alongside Oakmont Country Club — the "hardest golf course in America" — the best Pennsylvania has to offer. Following a 2018 renovation at Merion, the twisting, challenging, and beautifully manicured course was ranked sixth in Golf Digest's American course rankings, making it a bucket lister for many keen amateur golfers.

Picture the world's great golf courses — Augusta National, Royal Portrush, Pebble Beach — and usually there's some defining aesthetic, be it sun-dappled greens flanked by flowering azaleas, or fairways splitting a dune system with epic views of the ocean. At only 117 acres, Merion East is smaller than the average American course, many of which are 150 acres plus. But in a subtle way, it's still a gorgeous piece of land.

The open and undulating course is peppered with evergreens and has pristine fairways and high-faced bunkers hugging and mirroring the contours of the landscape. The tough 16th hole plays over a former quarry now dotted with sand traps (good luck splashing out of those), and the 18th, magnificent in its simplicity, is almost dead straight, with a false front and a pinched fairway that's no stranger to wayward drives. Also iconic are the wicker baskets Merion East uses instead of flags, imbuing the course with an appropriately vintage feel.

So often in golf, appearances (and the scorecard) can be deceiving. Merion is much trickier than your average 6,200-yard par 70 course, owing to the thick rough, narrow landing spots on the fairways, and super-slick greens — don't be disheartened if you shoot above your handicap here. If the rough and the bunkers don't get you, beware of the creek woven throughout the course and the out-of-bounds areas pinned to the edges. Merion is often said to have the structure of a three-act play: holes 1 to 6 are collectively dubbed "Drama"; 7 to 13 are "Comedy"; holes 14 to 18, the final stretch, are "Tragedy," as that's so often what unfolds here. Of the five U.S. Opens played here, there's a reason only one has been won by an under-par score.

Given its pedigree, Merion East isn't very accessible to play. This is, after all, a golf club where membership entrance fees are in the region of $70,000. Visiting golfers at Merion are required to play with a member, but according to the course reviewer UK Golf Guy, a lot of Merion's members are keen to show newbies their prized course. 

If you know a member, good for you. If not, you may be able to access one through a charity auction site, like Member for a Day or Charity Buzz. Set up a Google alert or similar to be notified when an auction goes live, and don't be surprised if you have to fork out a few thousand dollars for the pleasure.

If you can't get a tee time or you're a hack golfer but love the game anyway, you can visit Merion East as a fan: the course is set to host more men's and women's U.S. Opens in the coming decades. As the golf club is less than an hour from Philly, you could stay in the City of Brotherly Love and enjoy the many experiences you can't skip on a Philadelphia vacation. And why not make an extended trip out of it? Pennsylvania's scenic bypasses split the tree-lined mountains and make for an excellent road trip. And it's a great golfing state, home to famous clubs like Oakmont, Fox Chapel, Aronimink, and Laurel Valley, the late, great Arnold Palmer's local course.