Cherokee Country Club is a Private 18 hole golf course located in Knoxville, Tennessee.
The Cherokee Country Club course opened in 1907 as a nine hole layout. In 1910 the course was expanded to 18 holes. In 1920, the course was redesigned, the architect, Donald Ross. Alex McKay first redesigned the course in 1950, followed in 1985 by Don Maples, a golf course architect based in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Maples plan was carried out in two stages focusing on first, the front nine holes, and secondly, the back nine holes, with minimal changes in the Ross routing. The result, however, was the resculpting of the course into a Dan Maples golf course. Ron Prichard, a golf architect known nationally for faithfully restoring more than 40 Donald Ross golf courses, renovated the course some 20 years after Maples work.
This course was built on rolling terrain with numerous trees and several water hazards coming into play on most holes. The fairways are narrow and tree lined. The course plays fair, because there are no hidden hazards, and short with six par 3's. The club has been the site of numerous U.S. Open qualifying tournaments as well as at least one TN State Open championship.
Par for the course is 70. From the back tees the course plays to 6,320 yards. From the forward tees the course measures 4,954 yards. The longest hole on the course is # 5, a par-5 that plays to 550 yards. The shortest hole on the course is # 8, a par-3 that plays to 140 yards from the back tees.
Watch out for # 17, a 470 yard par-4 challenge and the #1 handicap hole on the course. The easiest hole is # 8, the 140 yard par-3.