Holston Hills Country Club

Ross's 1927 routing at Holston Hills is frequently cited by golf architecture critics as one of his most intact surviving designs, having avoided the kind of heavy mid-century or modern renovation that reshaped many other Ross courses. The course plays across natural ridgelines with green sites that use the land's existing contours rather than built-up mounding; the par-5 7th (a classic Ross "half-par" hole) and the short, well-bunkered par-4 6th are frequently singled out, along with the closing stretch through holes 14-16. It is consistently ranked among Golfweek's Top 100 Classic Courses in the U.S. and among the top courses in Tennessee. McConnell Golf's 2016 acquisition preserved the course rather than modernizing it, consistent with the club's broader positioning around its historic-course portfolio.

Holston Hills operates as a private, non-equity club under McConnell Golf's ownership — members pay an initiation fee plus recurring dues for access, but do not own an equity share of the club itself. Membership is available to any applicant who goes through McConnell Golf's application process; it is not restricted to residents of the Holston Hills neighborhood, and conversely, buying a home in the neighborhood does not include or require club membership. Neither the club nor McConnell Golf publishes specific initiation fee or dues figures online.

The Holston Hills neighborhood is one of Knoxville's oldest and most architecturally consistent golf-oriented neighborhoods, built out mostly from the 1920s through the 1960s with later infill. Homes are primarily single-family, and the area is bordered by the Holston River to the south and Highway 11 to the north. It is not a gated or guard-access community — it reads as an established, open city neighborhood organized around the country club rather than a walled modern development.

Club amenities beyond the golf course include tennis, pickleball, a seasonal pool, a fitness component, and chef-driven dining and social programming, consistent with McConnell Golf's full-service private-club model across its portfolio.

Holston Hills sits on Knoxville's east side, a short drive from downtown, distinct from the west-Knoxville/Farragut corridor where Fox Den and Gettysvue are located and from the old-guard Cherokee Country Club/Sequoyah Hills area on the west side of the Tennessee River.