Bellerive Country Club

Bellerive is the Green Monster of Ladue: a Robert Trent Jones design opened in 1960 and repeatedly refined by Rees Jones. Its identity is not simply length. Crowned zoysia fairways make short grass precious, a creek or connected water feature influences much of the routing, and large greens are divided into distinct landing and putting sections. The course rewards players who choose an approach section before chasing a flag.

The current greens are not the pre-2018 surfaces. After the 2018 PGA Championship, every green was rebuilt from the base up, the intended Rees Jones contours were restored, drainage and growing conditions were renewed, and A-4 bentgrass was replaced with T-1. Current PGA TOUR reporting describes firm tournament targets prepared around 12.5 feet on the Stimpmeter. Historical LiDAR may explain the design lineage, but it must never be presented as a survey of a surface that no longer exists.