A ‘Picasso’ designed this popular PA golf course, ranked as one of the best in the nation

Atop the Allegheny Mountains in Farmington, Pennsylvania, sits the Nemacolin resort, home to one of the nation’s best golf courses.

The Mystic Rocks resort was designed in 1995 by Pete Dye, a famous golf course architect. Dye, known as the “Picasso of golf course design” was famous for his difficult courses and frequent use of bunkers.

Named Editor’s Choice “Best Golf Resorts in the Mid-Atlantic” and No. 1 “Best Courses You Can Play: Pennsylvania” by Golf Digest in 2021, the course is considered one of Pennsylvania’s best.

Open April through November, the 72 par course underwent renovations in 2021, fixing natural erosion and removing some bunkers, depression in the green filled with sand. Now, the course is more scorable without losing its original feel, said Roxann Hoalcraft, golf operations manager at the Nemacolin.

The land that would become the Nemacolin was bought in 1987 by Joseph Hardy, founder of 84 Lumber Company, as a gift for his daughter Maggie, who loved fishing.

Hoalcraft said Dye was a visionary and part of what makes the resort so unique. Hoalcraft is in her third season employed at the Nemacolin but has been playing the Mystic Rocks course for 15 years.

“It’s beautiful, the land that (Dye) had to work with and the vision that like he pulled out,” Hoalcraft said. “At Mystic Rock he said that there was too much rock for him to build on top of it, but he moved mountains and made it work.”

The Mystic Rocks course is designed for all experience levels, unlike the resort’s other course Shepard’s Rock, with is better suited for experienced golfers.

Even for those who don’t golf, the resort has dozens of activities from paintball, to pools, to trail rides and Jeep off-roading. The Lautrec restaurant has won the Forbes five-star award for fine dining, but the resort also holds a tavern, ice cream parlor and several other restaurants.

The resort is located near Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater house, drawing inspiration in one of its own resort buildings, Falling Rock. Hoalcraft recommends just walking around the property, which is dotted with sculptures that appear around the resort and throughout the course.

“We have 2,000 acres so some people just walk around the property,” Hoalcraft said. “It’s beautiful landscaping, you could you know walk for miles and miles.”

Although there are countless things to do at the Nemacolin, Hoalcraft says its hidden gem is the Field Club, offering shooting, archery and fly fishing.

Visitors can stay at one of the three resort buildings, or rent private houses or villas on the property. More information on booking, experiences and the course can be found at the Nemacolin’s website.

What to know: If you’re planning on golfing, make sure to bring casual golf attire, no denim, and soft spikes.

What else to do: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, Fort Necessity National Battlefield

How to get there: From State College, take Interstate 99 to arrive in about 3 hours.

This story was originally published July 6, 2022 at 11:04 AM.