TPC River Highlands - Cromwell, Connecticut

Ken Duke won his first-ever PGA title at the Travellers Championship, hosted by TPC River Highlands. Today's course review explores the history, layout, and golfing highlights of this secluded private course.

TPC River Highlands opened its doors to members in 1928 and was originally known as Middletown Golf Club. When the PGA Tour purchased the facility in 1984 and incorporated it into its TPC network, noted golf architect Pete Dye was commissioned to redesigning the course.

Today the course at River Highlands is championship quality but retains the charm and seclusion of a bygone era, with its location near a charming New England town adding to the appeal of this well-aged club. The course is currently number 25 in the United States PGA Tour Course Rankings.

First-time players at River Highlands are usually struck by the shady rough and ambling fairways of this mature parklands course. The gift of time and temperate East Coast weather conditions have allowed the Maple and Oak trees that line the fairways to mature fully, providing golfers with a scenic and stately setting to enjoy eighteen holes of challenging golf. Here are some highlights from the course:

• Golfers who struggle to avoid the water may want to take special care when playing at River Highlands – the lakes and ponds that abound on this course are easy on the eye, but not on the score card. 

• The course provides ample par opportunities and lower-scoring golfers may even score a birdie or two on the front nine, but the course becomes challenging from holes 15 through 18. 

• The final four holes are built around a large lake, and have provided many entertaining moments during the Travellers Championship. However, weekend golfers shouldn’t be overly concerned – the choice of various tees will allow most players to enjoy the challenge of these holes without adding too many shots to their score cards.

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