Karsten Creek Golf Club is located west on State Highway 51, just outside

Stillwater, Oklahoma Stillwater ( iow, Ñápinⁿje, ''meaning: "Water quiet"'') is a city in, and the county seat of, Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. It is located in north-central Oklahoma at the intersection of U.S. Route 177 and State Highway 51. As of th ...

. It replaced Lakeside Golf Course as the home course of the

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

(OSU) Men's and Women's golf teams in 1994. Karsten Creek now stands as one of the most respected college golf courses in America, and is a powerful aid in the recruiting and development of athletes in the 11-time national champion

Cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

golf program. Mike Holder, a former Cowboy golf coach and current athletic director at Oklahoma State, convinced famed golf course architect

Tom Fazio Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

to design the course in hopes of creating one of the most challenging courses in the United States on the

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

plains. The course stretches over with SR1020 bent-grass greens and

zoysia ''Zoysia'' (;"Zoysia."
entry at CollinsDictionary.com. Retrieved 5 September 2021. , -, ...

fairways that wind through native blackjack oak trees. Lake Louise comes into play on many holes, with the greens lying just a few yards away from the water on some occasions. Karsten Creek and Lake Louise earned their names to honor

Karsten Solheim Karsten Solheim (September 15, 1911 – February 16, 2000) was an American golf club designer and businessman. He founded Karsten Manufacturing, a golf club maker better known by the name of PING, and the Solheim Cup, the premier international t ...

, founder of Karsten Manufacturing (manufacturer of the

PING Ping may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Ping, a domesticated Chinese duck in the illustrated book '' The Story about Ping'', first published in 1933 * Ping, a minor character in ''Seinfeld'', an NBC sitcom * Ping, a c ...

brand of golf clubs), and his wife Louise, both of whom have been great supporters of the Oklahoma State golf program for many years. The $4.5 million clubhouse was completed in June 2001."Karsten Creek Golf Club."Oklahoma State University. 2015.
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Honors

Karsten Creek was opened on May 9, 1994, and earned the distinction of "Best New Public Course for 1994" by

Golf Digest ''Golf Digest'' is a monthly golf magazine published by Warner Bros. Discovery through its sports unit under its Warner Bros. Discovery Golf division. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competiti ...

and has earned numerous accolades since. Golf Digest honored Karsten Creek again in 1998, this time awarding the course its first five-star rating, giving Karsten Creek the distinction of being among only ten courses in the United States to earn such an honor. Karsten Creek was selected as host site for the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Men's Golf Championship in 2003, 2011, and 2018. ''Travel & Leisure Golf'' magazine ranked Karsten Creek as the best college course in the country.

Scorecard

Services available

*Restaurant: Breakfast (''weekends only'') Lunch (''everyday'') Dinners (''limited'') *Pro-Shop Merchandise & Apparel *PING Golf Clubs *Certified PING Club Fittings *Individual and Group Instruction *Junior Golf Instruction *Meetings & Events *Lodging

References

External links

Karsten Creek official site
{{Coord, 36, 06, 09, N, 97, 11, 07, W, format=dms, display=title, type:landmark_region:US-OK Oklahoma State University College golf clubs and courses in the United States Golf clubs and courses in Oklahoma Golf clubs and courses designed by Tom Fazio Buildings and structures in Payne County, Oklahoma 1994 establishments in Oklahoma