Shuksan Golf Club

About This Course: The Public’s Country Club in the Ten Mile Creek Valley

Shuksan Golf Club in Bellingham is an 18 hole public course that calls itself “The Public’s Country Club,” and the reason to make the drive is the land: fairways that fall from a bluff into a valley cut by Ten Mile Creek, with the North Cascades behind much of the round. The club is just minutes from downtown Bellingham.

The course plays to par 72 and 6,508 yards from the Blue tees, with four sets of tees, a driving range and short game area, an online tee sheet, and The Bistro at Shuksan, a restaurant and full bar overlooking the course.

Shuksan Golf Club Fast Facts

Course Overview

Course owner Rick Dvorak designed the layout, and it officially opened in 1994, according to a June 2026 review by Zen Hill in the Lynden Tribune. The name comes from Mount Shuksan, a 9,131 foot peak in the distant Cascades. The club describes 18 distinct holes with dramatic elevation changes, the meandering Ten Mile Creek, wildlife and four sets of tees.

Hill writes that the fairways sweep up and down a valley below the bluff where the pro shop sits, and that water is in play on most of the layout as the creek weaves through the lower basin. The fairways are fairly open, but the greens run on the smaller side, so he calls Shuksan pure target golf: accurate approaches matter more than roll. The front nine is the longer half at 3,341 yards, the back plays 3,167, and each nine carries two par 3s and two par 5s.

Hole by Hole Highlights

Yardages are from the Blue tees on the 6,508 yard rated card.

• Hole 2, 155 yards, par 3: The shortest hole on the course from the back tees.
• Hole 4, 531 yards, par 5: The number 1 handicap hole on every published card for the course.
• Hole 7, 589 yards, par 5: The longest hole on the course, which the Lynden Tribune calls “the true monster.”
• Hole 8, 399 yards, par 4: The longest par 4 on the front nine, a single yard shy of the 16th.
• Hole 10, 376 yards, par 4: The back nine opens from a tee the Tribune describes as a vertical drop into the valley.
• Hole 11, 211 yards, par 3: The longest par 3, so take enough club.
• Hole 15, 307 yards, par 4: The shortest par 4 and a real chance to get a shot back with a wedge in hand.
• Hole 18, 505 yards, par 5: Hill’s favorite finish: an elevated tee, Ten Mile Creek and a network of bunkers across the fairway, and more sand guarding the front and back of the green.

Amenities and Practice

The Lynden Tribune describes a driving range alongside a dedicated short game area with a practice bunker and heavy rough, plus a practice putting green that rolls true to the greens on the course. Carts are $22 for 18 holes and $14 for 9 on the club’s tee sheet. Hill calls the valley slopes “a brutal trek on foot” and suggests a cart, though walking rounds and walking memberships are sold.

Shuksan is a Youth on Course facility: golfers ages 8 to 18 pay $5 for 18 holes, seven days a week after 2 p.m. Regulars can buy a 2026 Club Card, which takes 20 percent off the prevailing golf and cart rates, an annual riding or walking membership, or an 8 round card. In season the club runs a Thursday Social League and Date and Nine nights, which pair 9 holes with a cart and dinner for $65 a player.

Food and Drink

The Bistro at Shuksan pairs course views with a full bar. Weekdays run as fast counter service, with shareable small plates and house favorites like the Shuksan Club ($19) and the Shuksan Burger ($21) on the 2026 menu, which also lists a prime rib dip and a half dozen Judd Cove oysters. Full service brunch runs Sundays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and happy hour is 3 to 6 p.m. and all day Sunday.

The bistro page posts these current hours: bar only Monday and Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., closed Wednesday, open Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and weekends from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. The footer of the club’s site lists different hours, so call before a special trip. The club also books weddings, tournaments and weekday meetings.

Plan Your Visit

Rates, Tee Times and Local Tips

Fall rates, from the club’s online tee sheet for the week of October 12, 2026: $48 for 18 holes and $33 for 9 Monday through Thursday, and $53 and $35 Friday through Sunday, with carts at $22 and $14. Tee times from 4 p.m. are sold as 9 holes walking. The club posts only its summer rates (May through August) on its golf page: $65 and $39 Monday through Thursday, $73 and $44 Friday through Sunday, seniors $60 and $35 or $65 and $41, and juniors $30 and $20. Summer specials included Teerific Tuesday at $70 with a cart, a 1 to 3 p.m. matinee at $53, $60 with a cart from 3 to 5 p.m. and $50 with a cart after 5 p.m.

Book on the Shuksan online tee sheet up to 7 days ahead. Tee times are for 18 holes unless the sheet says otherwise, singles book only by calling the pro shop at 360-398-8888 (extension 1), and the shop asks for 24 hours notice if you cannot make your time.

Our Bellingham city guide covers the rest of your trip, and Bellingham Coffee Shops sorts 18 independents for the drive in. For a second round, North Bellingham Golf Course is about 4 miles away.

How to Score Here

• Take a cart unless you love hills. The valley slopes make this a hard walk.
• Aim for the middle of the small greens. Shuksan rewards placement over power.
• Respect the 4th. At 531 yards it is the number 1 handicap hole, and par is a good score.
• Score on the 15th. At 307 yards it is the shortest par 4 on the course.

Final Word

A creek valley layout under the North Cascades, a real practice area and a bistro with a full bar make Shuksan Golf Club a full day outing north of Bellingham.