Riverside is a regionally top-tier, tournament-tested parkland layout with major-club history and championship demands. While lacking top-100 national rankings, its architectural pedigree, recent renovation, and refined conditions make it a must for those with access in the Atlanta area.
Riverside embodies the evolution of American parkland championship design: a Robert Trent Jones Sr. routing adapted and refined by Rees Jones and Tripp Davis. The course winds along the Chattahoochee River, using mature trees, bold bunkering, and water to challenge every club in your bag. The 2022 renovation delivered fresh angles, risk-reward par fives, and more visual punch, notably in how river views and fairway edges now frame key holes. The green complexes, some set close to water and shaped with strategic contour, provide dramatic, high-stakes moments from the 1st tee until the 18th green.
Trent Jones Sr. established the championship bones; Davis’s changes have given Riverside fresh contemporary strategy without sacrificing traditional parkland character.
A daunting opener, this massive par 5 throws you straight into championship caliber. Length alone will not save you if you can't find short grass on both your first and second shots.
Keep the tee shot and layup in the fairway, favoring control over aggressive lines.
Any wild shot brings bogey or worse swiftly into play.
Championship-level, fast fairways, and immaculate greens
Variable; private club spacing but rounds can stretch during events
Serious, tradition-steeped private-club energy
Traditional private-club attire; confirm with club before arrival
The opening six holes are especially penal off the tee; have a go-to club ready for placement.
With deep bunkers and tough green contours, you’ll need soft hands and touch.
If you can, practice putts are invaluable—greens tend to be quick and breaky.
Commit to your numbers on the par 3s and closing holes; indecision is punished here.
Atlanta Athletic Club founded in downtown Atlanta
Riverside Course opens at new Johns Creek site, designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr.
Joe Finger adds a fourth nine, forming two 18-hole courses: Riverside and Highlands
Rees Jones redesigns Riverside, earning Top 10 Best Redesigned nod from Golf Digest
Riverside Course hosts the U.S. Amateur
Tripp Davis completes a major renovation, reopening Riverside with reimagined routing and strategic upgrade
Atlanta Athletic Club’s very address—1930 Bobby Jones Drive—nods to the Grand Slam year of its legendary member. Though Riverside wasn’t his field of play, the club honors Jones’s legacy and maintains a link to Atlanta’s greatest era. Playing Riverside, you’re walking in the footsteps of golf history.
In 2014, the Riverside Course tested some of the best young players in the country at the U.S. Amateur. Its water-guarded greens and punishing par 3s proved equal to the task, adding a fresh championship chapter to the club’s storied past.
The 2022 Tripp Davis renovation reimagined Riverside’s strategic style, accentuating the influence of the Chattahoochee River and modernizing playability. The result is a more thoughtful, visually distinctive parkland test that stands out in Atlanta’s club-rich northern suburbs.
Riverside’s final hole is a masterclass in championship drama, demanding you carry water on your approach with the clubhouse looming above. It’s the kind of finish where matches flip and friendships are made—or tested.
Club’s street address—1930—honors Bobby Jones’s Grand Slam year
Riverside has hosted a U.S. Amateur but never a PGA Tour event
Multiple holes run alongside the historic Chattahoochee River
Riverside’s 18th is regarded as one of Atlanta’s finest finishing holes
Recent renovation brought a new risk-reward dynamic to the back nine
Historic host of PGA Tour Championship and classic Atlanta golf legacy.
Best-in-area public option blending Nicklaus’s favorite global holes.
Highly regarded for tournament conditioning and demanding play.
Tour-heritage test, beautiful setting, and convenient access.
Scenic parkland layout, perfect for a relaxed or arrival round.
Johns Creek/Alpharetta area for best northern access
Courses with the most similar DNA profile — matched by deviation shape across all eight playing characteristics.
Why it matches: There is real overlap here. The Heritage Club makes the greens a central strategic puzzle, making it a compelling counterpart to Atlanta Athletic Club (Riverside Course).
Why it matches: Aronimink Golf Club is a natural next stop after Atlanta Athletic Club (Riverside Course): it a comparable balance of challenge, variety, and character.
Why it matches: There is real overlap here. TPC Boston offers similarly polished playing surfaces, making it a compelling counterpart to Atlanta Athletic Club (Riverside Course).
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