Some courses get played once and never loaded again. Others get played every single session. The difference is not always about quality. It is about name recognition, the shot that makes you reload, and the course that makes you forget you are standing in a garage.
These are the ten most-played courses in sim golf, ranked by platform availability, community download data, forum discussion volume, and the simple fact that every sim golfer has played them at least once.
1. Pebble Beach Golf Links
Pebble Beach is the most-played simulator course in the world, and it is not close.
The course appears on every major platform. GSPro has a top-tier community version. E6 Connect sells it as premium content. Trackman has a LIDAR-scanned version. GOLFZON Wave has it through the Pebble Beach Company partnership. Awesome Golf has it. FSX Play has it. GOLF+ VR has it. WGT has it.
No other course has this level of universal availability. The reason is simple: Pebble Beach is the most recognizable golf course on television, and the ocean holes create the most dramatic sim experience possible. The 7th hole is a 109-yard par-3 that plays over the Pacific. The 8th is a 428-yard dogleg along the cliffs. The 18th is the most famous finishing hole in America.
The Pebble Beach Company actively licenses the course to simulator platforms, unlike Augusta National, which refuses all licensing. This means Pebble Beach is the default “famous course” on every platform, and it is the first course most sim golfers play after setting up their system.
Read the full breakdown of the best version in our Pebble Beach comparison guide.
2. Augusta National
Augusta National is the most-searched-for course in sim golf and the most-wanted course that no platform has licensed. Every sim golfer searches for it within the first week of owning their system. The community demand is so high that every platform with user-created content has multiple versions.
Augusta is on GSPro as a community recreation (search “Augusta” in the course database). It is on TGC 2019 with multiple versions of varying quality. It is not on E6 Connect, GOLFZON Wave, Trackman, FSX Play, or any platform that requires official licensing. Augusta National does not license its course to simulator software, period. Every version you play is a community approximation.
The best version is on GSPro, built by the community’s top designers. The terrain, the azaleas, the elevation changes, and the green complexes are all modeled from public data and tournament footage. It is not the real Augusta. It is the closest you will get.
Our full guide covers finding and playing Augusta on every platform.
3. St Andrews Old Course
The Old Course is the other universal course. It appears on every major platform, same as Pebble Beach. The difference is that St Andrews is harder to simulate well.
The double greens are enormous. The shared fairways do not make sense on a rectangular screen. The wind is the whole defense of the course, and sim wind is never as good as real wind. The Road Hole (17th) is the most famous single hole in golf, and most sim versions get it wrong by flattening the approach angle.
GSPro has the best version for the playability-to-fidelity ratio. The double greens break correctly. The Valley of Sin reads right. The approach to 17 feels like the real shot — over the hotel, bailout left, hope you are not in the road bunker.
GOLFZON Wave has the best version for the ground game. The physics engine handles bump-and-run shots better than any other platform, which matters more on St Andrews than any other course.
4. TPC Sawgrass (Stadium Course)
The 17th hole at Sawgrass is the single most-replayed hole in sim golf. It is the party trick that every sim golfer shows their friends. Hit the island green, celebrate. Hit the water, laugh. Either way, you reload.
The course itself is consistently ranked in the top 5 most-played on every platform. The Stadium Course is a Florida parkland design with water in play on nearly every hole. The 17th gets the attention, but the 18th — a 462-yard par-4 with water left and bunkers right — is a better test of nerve.
The best sim version depends on your platform. GSPro has a strong community version. E6 Connect has it as premium content. Trackman has a LIDAR build. GOLFZON Wave has the green slope on 17 that makes the shot play correctly.
5. Pinehurst No. 2
Pinehurst No. 2 became one of the most-played sim courses after the 2024 US Open elevated its profile. The course is a desert-style test with crowned turtleback greens, waste areas instead of rough, and a routing that demands precise approach shots.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, FSX Play, and Awesome Golf. The post-restoration routing is the standard on all platforms.
The difficulty is what keeps players coming back. Pinehurst No. 2 in a simulator is genuinely hard. The greens reject shots that land more than 10 feet from the pin. Three-putts are common. The course punishes you for playing it like a target golf course.
6. Bethpage Black
Bethpage Black is the most-played public course in sim golf. It is the people’s US Open venue. The warning sign on the first tee — “The Black Course is an extremely difficult course which we recommend only for highly skilled golfers” — is the most famous sign in golf, and sim golfers love to test themselves against it.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, FSX Play, Awesome Golf, and GOLF+ VR.
The defining feature of Bethpage Black in sim is the rough. The fescue rough is penal on every platform. Hit a fairway, you are fine. Miss by five yards, you are punching out. The 5th hole — a 504-yard par-4 with a blind approach — is the hardest hole on the course and the hardest hole in sim golf.
7. Torrey Pines South
Torrey Pines South is the most-played West Coast course in sim golf. The 2008 US Open (Tiger vs Rocco) and the Farmers Insurance Open every year keep the course in the public eye. The ocean views, the paragliders, the closing stretch on the cliffs — it is a visual experience that works well on a simulator screen.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, FSX Play, and Awesome Golf.
The 6th hole — a 515-yard par-5 that plays along the cliffs with the ocean on the right — is the most-replayed hole on the course. The downhill approach plays shorter than the number, and sim golfers who hit the green in two have a real eagle chance.
8. Bandon Dunes
Bandon Dunes is the most-played links course in sim golf after St Andrews. The Bandon Dunes Golf Resort has become a bucket-list destination for American golfers, and the sim version lets you play the course that started it all.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, FSX Play, Awesome Golf, and WGT.
The entire Bandon Dunes property is the best sim golf destination in the world. You can play Pacific Dunes, Bandon Trails, Old Macdonald, and Sheep Ranch alongside Bandon Dunes on GSPro and GOLFZON Wave. The full Bandon rotation is a weekend in sim golf that rivals the real thing.
9. Whistling Straits
Whistling Straits is the most-played Pete Dye course in sim golf. The Straits course on Lake Michigan is a links-style layout with 1,000 bunkers, fescue-covered dunes, and a closing stretch that hosted the 2015 PGA Championship, the 2020 Ryder Cup, and the 2021 U.S. Senior Open.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, and FSX Play.
The 18th hole at Whistling Straits — a 520-yard par-5 along the lake with bunkers everywhere — is the most-replayed finishing hole in sim golf. The decision to go for the green in two or lay up depends entirely on the wind direction, and the sim version gives you wind that makes the decision different every time.
10. Oakmont Country Club
Oakmont rounds out the top 10 because it is the most-played major championship venue in sim golf. The course is the hardest on the US Open rotation. The church pew bunkers, the lightning-fast greens, the tree-lined fairways — Oakmont demands everything you have.
The course is available on GSPro, E6 Connect, Trackman, GOLFZON Wave, FSX Play, and Awesome Golf.
Oakmont in sim golf is a test of patience. The greens are the fastest on any platform. The church pew bunkers on the 3rd and 15th holes are the most penal bunkers in sim golf. The course rewards conservative play and punishes aggression. It is the course that sim golfers play when they want to know if they are actually good.
The Courses That Almost Made the List
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Pine Valley (rank 80 in courses.json) — The most-searched-for private course after Augusta. Not on any licensed platform. Only available on GSPro and TGC 2019 as community recreations.
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Royal County Down (rank 57) — The world #1-ranked course in the real world. Limited sim availability. GSPro has the best version.
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Kapalua Plantation — The most-played resort course in sim golf. The downhill tee shot on 18 is one of the most dramatic visuals in any sim.
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Wolf Creek — The most-played desert course in sim golf. The elevation changes are extreme. The visual is unforgettable.
The Verdict
The most-played courses in sim golf share three things: name recognition, platform availability, and a signature hole that makes you reload. Pebble Beach has the 7th. Sawgrass has the 17th. St Andrews has the 17th. Torrey Pines has the 6th. Whistling Straits has the 18th.
If you are building a sim library and want to prioritize the courses that other sim golfers play the most, start with these ten. Every one of them is available on multiple platforms. Every one of them is worth playing. And every one of them has a hole that will make you want to hit the reset button and try again.
FAQ
What is the most-played course in golf simulators?
Pebble Beach Golf Links is the most-played course in sim golf. It appears on every major platform and the ocean holes create the most dramatic sim experience.
Can I play Augusta National on a golf simulator?
Augusta National is available on GSPro and TGC 2019 as community-created recreations. It is not available on any platform that requires official licensing, as Augusta National does not license the course to simulator software.
What is the hardest course in sim golf?
Oakmont Country Club is widely considered the hardest course in sim golf, with the fastest greens and most penal bunkers (the church pews). Bethpage Black and Pinehurst No. 2 are close seconds.
Which platform has the most of these top 10 courses?
GSPro has all 10 courses. E6 Connect has 8 (missing Augusta National and Pine Valley). Trackman has 8 (missing Augusta National and Pine Valley). GOLFZON Wave has 7 (missing Augusta National, Pine Valley, and Whistling Straits).
How many courses should I download for my sim library?
Start with these 10. They cover every type of golf — links, parkland, desert, ocean, public, private, major championship. After you have played these, add the best courses from your platform’s library. Our best courses on GSPro guide is a good next step.