Loraloma Golf Club

Overview: Loraloma Golf Club is a new private Hill Country course near the Pedernales River, west of Austin. David McLay Kidd designed the 18-hole layout around the existing landscape rather than flattening it into a conventional resort grid. The operator highlights dramatic elevation changes, views over the river and forced carries across ravines that can reach more than 100 feet. Five tee boxes are intended to make the course playable for different standards, while the current FAQ lists a range from 4,825 to 7,060 yards. The playing surfaces are described as Zoysia across the tees, fairways, rough and greens, reinforcing the club’s low-impact approach to the site.

History: Loraloma opened its golf course to members in October 2025. That makes it a current course rather than a future directory concept, but its opening is still recent enough that early descriptions should be read as the club’s developing identity. McLay Kidd is the sole architect named by the operator, and the design brief is closely tied to preserving the natural topography. The golf course sits within a larger private community, so access is membership-based rather than a normal public tee-time market.

Did You Know? Loraloma’s own description calls it the only Texas course designed by David McLay Kidd, whose work also includes Bandon Dunes, Gamble Sands and Mammoth Dunes. The course’s identity is therefore unusually easy to place geographically: it combines a Scottish-influenced architect’s strategic style with the dry, rugged ravines and wide Hill Country views of Central Texas. The golf house and comfort stations are positioned as part of the routing, not as separate resort facilities.