When tee times open: booking windows at famous courses

Most American resort courses open tee times to non-guests roughly 60-90 days ahead. Most American resort guests get priority 6-18 months ahead. Most UK / Irish links open the visitor ballot 6-12 months ahead. Most private clubs (Augusta National, Cypress Point, Seminole) don't open to non-members at all — there is no public booking process.

Everything below is the typical pattern as last verified. Booking systems shift; the resort or club is always the authoritative source. If you build a trip around a specific opening date, set a reminder and double-check the window a week before.

Resort guests (Lodge, Inn at Spanish Bay, Casa Palmero, Lodge cottages): 18 months ahead with the room booking. Non-guests: typically opens 60 days ahead, with a much smaller pool of available times. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am package is the most reliable way for a non-member to lock in Pebble + Spyglass + Del Monte in a single booking.

The practical answer: if you want a specific date at Pebble, book the resort room first. The room is the tee time.

The Links Trust ballot opens 48 hours before the round. You enter the lottery and find out the next day whether you have a time. Win rate varies: 30-50% in spring/autumn shoulder, lower in peak summer.

There are multiple legitimate ways to lock a time in advance: - Book a multi-round package through an authorised tour operator (R&A-recognised list — usually 6-12 months ahead) - Book the Old Course Hotel or another Links Trust partner property - The Saturday Old Course ballot has its own rules — historically not open to non-resident visitors

Do not pay a re-seller for a single Old Course time without verifying they're authorised. The course has been clear about cracking down on grey-market sellers in recent years.

Resort guests: 12+ months ahead with the room booking. Non-guests cannot realistically string together a multi-course day at Bandon — the resort is structured around stays. If you want to play more than one of the five Bandon courses in a single trip, book a Lodge / cottage room.

The Preserve par-3 course and the Punchbowl putting course are walk-up when not crowded.

Resort guests: typically opens 6-12 months ahead with the room booking. Non-guests: 30-60 days ahead, with limited availability around the major championships. The resort runs multiple packages that include rounds at No. 2 plus the other resort courses — these are usually the smarter way to book.

Open-rota Scottish + English championship courses typically open visitor times 6-12 months ahead. Visitor windows are usually weekday-only (Tuesdays / Wednesdays / Thursdays are the common days; Mondays and Fridays vary). Book directly through the club — most have a visitor-times page on their official site.

Muirfield is the famous exception: visitor times are limited to Tuesdays and Thursdays and require an advance application. The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers is a real members club, not a resort.

These courses do not open to non-members through any public process. We don't include them as bookable on the site:

- Augusta National Golf Club - Cypress Point Club - Seminole Golf Club - National Golf Links of America - Pine Valley Golf Club - Shinnecock Hills (severely limited visitor access)

Your only path in is a member invitation. There is no waiting list, no public lottery, no resort package. Build the trip around what you CAN book and treat the rest as bonus.

Pick the course you want to play. Note the typical opening window (e.g. '6 months ahead'). Subtract from your target trip date. Set a calendar reminder a week before that opens. Verify the current booking process on the club's site the day-of (or the day before, if booking is at midnight local time).

This is the kind of thing the Caddy Trips notification feature can help with — sign up to be reminded when a specific course's booking window opens.