Olympia Country and Golf Club

About This Course: A Century of Golf on Butler Cove

Olympia Country and Golf Club is a private club on Butler Cove in Olympia, where its 18 hole course runs through tall firs above Budd Inlet. The club traces its story to 1917, and the course on this site opened as nine holes in 1926 and grew to 18 in 1958.

Play is for members and their registered guests; the club says property access is limited to them. The card is short at 6,106 yards from the Blue tees and par 71, but the club describes narrow, tree lined fairways and fast greens, so accuracy counts for more than length.

Olympia Country and Golf Club Fast Facts

Course Overview

The club’s own history says it was founded in 1917 in Lacey, on the site that is now Panorama City. In 1923 it bought about 100 acres on Butler Cove, finished the clubhouse in 1925 and opened a nine hole course the following year. The course grew to 18 holes in 1958, when the clubhouse was also remodeled. Longtime member Dr. Angela Bowen bought the club in May 2012 and added the Terrace on the Green restaurant, a new pro shop, cart storage and a parking garage. After her death in 2017 her estate ran the club until February 2021, when a group of members formed an LLC and bought it.

The club describes the course as set among towering firs and overlooking Budd Inlet, with narrow, tree lined fairways and four sets of tees. On the scorecard the front nine plays 2,715 yards at par 35 with three par 3s, and the back nine plays 3,391 yards at par 36. The four par 5s come in back to back pairs, at 6 and 7 and again at 14 and 15. The five par 3s run 127 to 197 yards, and the par 4s run 244 to 444.

Hole by Hole Highlights

Yardages are from the Blue tees.

• Hole 1, 244 yards, par 4: The shortest par 4 on the course opens the round.
• Hole 2, 127 yards, par 3: The shortest hole and the number 18 handicap.
• Hole 4, 385 yards, par 4: The number 2 handicap and the hardest hole on the front nine.
• Hole 6, 472 yards, par 5: The shorter of the front nine’s back to back par 5s.
• Hole 7, 489 yards, par 5: The second par 5 in a row, so the middle of the front nine is where you can gain strokes.
• Hole 12, 426 yards, par 4: The number 1 handicap, the hardest hole on the card.
• Hole 14, 513 yards, par 5: The longest hole on the course, followed by the 488 yard par 5 15th.
• Hole 18, 444 yards, par 4: The longest par 4 closes the round.

Amenities and Practice

Instruction is led by the club’s PGA professionals. Head Golf Professional Mitch Berschauer started his career at the club in 2012 and joined the PGA of America in 2016, with assistants Greg Slosson and Kelly Green. Juniors have the Junior Active Golfer program for ages 5 to 8 and 9 to 13, several times a week from June through August, plus the three day Summer Jam camp. The pro shop carries equipment, apparel and accessories and takes special orders, and rental carts are available. The putting green sits beside the restaurant patio, and GolfPass also lists a driving range.

Off the course, the club has a 25 by 60 foot outdoor pool heated to 84 degrees with views of Puget Sound, a fitness center and pickleball. Members also have more than 250 feet of saltwater beach and a private dock on Budd Inlet, with overnight moorage by permission of the general manager.

Food and Drink

Terrace on the Green is the club restaurant, with views of Puget Sound and Mount Rainier. The menu runs from pastas, sandwiches and salads to locally harvested seafood and premium cuts of meat, with separate breakfast, kids and wine and cocktail menus. It is open Tuesday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., and closed Monday. Call 360-350-0929. It is for members and their registered guests.

Plan Your Visit

Rates, Tee Times and Local Tips

Olympia Country and Golf Club is private, so there are no public green fees or tee times. You play as a member or as a member’s registered guest. Golf memberships include Single, Family and Executive (ages 22 to 39) categories, plus an Out of Area Single for golfers living 40 miles or more away, with four 18 hole rounds and one reciprocal round a month. Junior Golf members, ages 14 to 21, may bring a guest, and green fees apply. Every membership carries a one year minimum. Reach the club through its membership page or at 360-866-7121.

The course opens at 11 a.m. Monday, 8 a.m. Tuesday through Friday and 7 a.m. on weekends (7:30 a.m. October through February), and closes at dusk. Men need a collar or turtleneck, and jeans are allowed only from October 15 to April 15, without frays or patches. Members must tell their guests the dress code. To get there, take Cooper Point Road SW to Country Club Drive NW, which ends in the parking lot, with the clubhouse on the left and the pro shop on the right.

Our Olympia visitor guide covers the rest of the capital, and family fun in Olympia has ideas for the people who are not golfing. For a round you can book yourself, try Delphi Golf Course.

How to Score Here

• Keep the ball in the fairway. The club stresses narrow, tree lined holes, so position beats distance.
• Score early. The front nine is 676 yards shorter than the back, with a short opening par 4 and back to back par 5s at 6 and 7.
• Treat 4 and 12, the two hardest holes on the card, as par holes and accept a bogey.
• Save energy for the finish. The back nine holds the longest par 5 and the longest par 4.

Final Word

Olympia Country and Golf Club offers a century of history, a short, tree lined course and saltwater views on Budd Inlet. If a member invites you, say yes.