GLEN ECHO COUNTRY CLUB

The mature oaks and rolling Missouri terrain create legitimate strategic puzzles on this Donald Ross design from the 1920s, where elevated greens demand precise approach shots and course knowledge trumps distance. Ross's signature crowned putting surfaces shed anything but dead-center strikes, particularly on the downhill par-3 12th where a back pin placement can humble single-digit handicappers. The classic St. Louis parkland routing rewards thinking players who understand that surviving these small, tilted targets requires playing to specific quadrants rather than simply firing at flags.