Swannanoa Country Club

Swannanoa is definitely not the best golf course in the Charlottesville area by any stretch, conditioning is rough, the layout's old and worn, but it's a very special place to play golf, and at a reasonable rate. It's on top of Afton Mountain Pass on the Blue Ridge Parkway, just south of the I-64 exit. It's a very old layout from the 1920's, designed by one of the masters of the day, Fred Findlay, but updated over the past 20 years by Pete Land. It's a short par 70 layout of 6,000 yards from the back tees, with a 67.0 course rating and a 112 slope, but you'll not shoot your handicap here. It's very basic golf and the conditioning leaves a lot to be desired. It's purely an old course for the player that truly loves the game of golf with spectacular views everywhere you look. On one side is the Shenandoah Valley and on the other spreads the Piedmont. The layout features tight fairways but gently slope for every shot and nothing but contented golfers, many who walk along, carrying their “Sunday” bags. I play it about once a year for the terrain, solitude and quirkiness of its humble pro shop/trailer. Back in the day it was a prime venue, if only to play and escape the heat and humidity in the valley below. Convenient to I-64 if you're just passing through, and worth a stop.