Sand Hills Golf Club

Origins

Sand Hills began with Lincoln businessman Dick Youngscap's belief that Nebraska's vast Sandhills could support a golf course built around the natural landscape rather than conventional earthmoving. Youngscap explored thousands of acres near Mullen before bringing Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw into the project. The architects spent extended periods walking the dunes and flagging naturally occurring fairways, green sites and teeing areas.

Their search reportedly produced more than 100 plausible golf holes before the alternatives were reduced to a single routing. During that process, an adjoining parcel proved important enough that Youngscap arranged a land swap so the eventual course could incorporate terrain now occupied by holes 12 through 15.

Design Philosophy

The central idea at Sand Hills was to use what already existed. Golf Digest reports that only about 4,000 cubic yards of earth were moved during construction, an exceptionally small quantity for an 18-hole course. Natural blowouts became bunkers, existing contours determined fairway movement, and native prairie grasses were retained around the playing corridors.

The sandy soil was sufficiently well drained that the course required far less conventional green construction than most projects. Wide landing areas often provide several routes to a hole, with the preferred angle determined by ground contours, wind and bunker placement rather than narrow strips of maintained turf. The resulting design became closely associated with the modern minimalist movement in golf architecture.

Development

Construction took place in the early 1990s, with Coore & Crenshaw and the Nebraska Golf Association both dating the course's opening to 1995. Sand Hills was deliberately developed without the scale of surrounding real-estate or resort construction common to major golf projects of the period. Its remote location and seasonal operation instead placed the course itself at the centre of the project.

On-site lodging and clubhouse facilities were developed primarily to serve members and their guests travelling long distances to Mullen. The course has not undergone a documented wholesale redesign; its architectural reputation rests largely on preserving the original Coore-Crenshaw routing and natural character.

Recognition

Sand Hills rapidly became one of the most influential modern American courses. Golf Digest has ranked it among America's 100 Greatest since 1999 and places it No. 8 nationally and No.

1 in Nebraska in its 2025-26 rankings. S. modern courses in 2022.

Its influence extends beyond rankings: the success of a remote, golf-focused club demonstrated that golfers would travel significant distances for architecture and helped validate later destination projects built around natural terrain and minimalist construction. Golf publications frequently cite Sand Hills as a turning point in late-20th-century course design.

Today

Sand Hills remains a highly private member club outside Mullen. The Nebraska Golf Association lists it as private, while regional golf sources state that non-members generally require sponsorship or accompaniment by a member. There is no public tee-time booking system and no reliable current public green-fee schedule.

The club continues to operate the original 18-hole Coore-Crenshaw course, supported by practice facilities, caddies, a golf shop, clubhouse dining and accommodation for travelling members and guests.