Manakin Sabot, Virginia
Kanawha Club delivers a world-class, intensely walkable par-3 experience built for serious practice and fun. Each hole demands thoughtful club choice, trajectory control, and short-game flair across a tour-level practice environment.
Catch a glimpse of the annual Fred Funk & Friends charity event—invitational star power and a festive atmosphere give the course rare extra buzz.
Lester George’s design for The Kanawha Club fuses short-course variety with championship-level challenge, all on a walkable nine holes carved from former farmland. Every hole delivers a completely different par-3 test, from run-up mid-irons to fiercely defended wedges, with creative green complexes and thoughtful shaping keeping shot value at the forefront. With fast, pristine conditioning and a minimalist, open layout, the golf is pure: there's no filler—just nine uniquely crafted par-3 puzzles.
Lester George was given free rein to realize the dream of a world-class, invitation-only par-3 club — and responded with a routing that prizes both shotmaking and the beauty of the Virginia countryside.
A demanding mid-to-long-iron par 3 that’s exposed to the prevailing wind, hole 2 tests both distance and trajectory control. Slightly raised green offers trouble all around if your aim is off.
Select enough club to reach the center regardless of the flag, and shape your shot to play with or fight the wind on approach.
Any miss left or long can find deep rough or tricky chips.
Greens and surrounds are kept at pristine private-club standard, with perfect turf for chipping and pitching.
Rounds fly by, with most loops easily played in around 90 minutes or less.
Quiet, exclusive, and practice-obsessed — but deeply collegial for members and their invited guests.
Traditional private club attire; collared shirts required, soft spikes only.
Practice hitting 170–225 yard shots to tight targets—you’ll need all your clubface and distance control.
Bring your up-and-down toolbox as short-sided approaches make for some of the round’s biggest tests at Kanawha.
Firm, tightly mowed greens mean approaches can kick and run—brush up on reading contours and controlling spin.
Course opens as a private, invitation-only par-3 club.
Lester George completes the original design on former Goochland farmland.
First 'Fred Funk and Friends' charity pro-am is played at Kanawha Club.
Kanawha noted in Golf Magazine’s '25 Best Par-3 Courses in the World' feature.
Fred Funk and Friends event reaches record fundraising and profile.
The club’s name is a nod to the Kanawha River and County in West Virginia, where the founders are from, blending their roots with Richmond area history. This identity infuses the club with a sense of personal heritage that members relish.
Kanawha was designed specifically for a client obsessed with short-game practice, inspiring Lester George to build an elite venue with full-length par 3s that run from 60 to 225 yards — not your typical pitch-and-putt.
Each year, the club hosts the 'Fred Funk & Friends' charity tournament, drawing local golf personalities and raising significant funds, making Kanawha a hub of philanthropic golf tradition.
The course was inspired by the owner’s West Virginia roots and rich local canal history.
Kanawha's routing lets you play multiple loops and tee combinations for endless variety.
It’s one of only a handful of private, invitation-only par-3 clubs in the U.S.
Fred Funk’s annual charity event brings pros and celebrities to this typically private ground.
Widely considered one of Virginia’s modern gems, just a short drive from Kanawha.
A Tom Doak-designed public track with dramatic shaping and some of the boldest greens in the state.
Williamsburg’s Robert Trent Jones Sr. classic, perfect for public-access championship golf.
Affordable, architecturally interesting short-course options fitting a pure golf trip.
Short Pump or downtown Richmond for the best mix of amenities and relative proximity to top courses.
Courses with the most similar DNA profile — matched by deviation shape across all eight playing characteristics.
Why it matches: If The Kanawha Club is your kind of course, Springdale Golf Club is worth a look because it moves through the round with the same walkable flow.
Why it matches: If The Kanawha Club is your kind of course, Midland Hills Country Club is worth a look because it a comparable balance of challenge, variety, and character.
Why it matches: Garden City Golf Club is a natural next stop after The Kanawha Club: it has a similarly satisfying rhythm on foot.
Top-ranked modern championship course
Renovation for PGA Tour Champions events
Short-course youth golf facility
Innovative public teaching course
Private club upgrade
Community Sentiment
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