Boone Links Golf Course

Boone Links Golf Course is a 27-hole public facility in Florence, Kentucky, operated by Boone County and offering three distinct nine-hole combinations across its Brookview, Lakeview, and Ridgeview nines. The original eighteen holes were designed by Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin and opened in 1979, with a third nine by Dr. Michael Hurdzan added in 1989. Located just minutes from the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, the course has earned a four-star rating from Golf Digest.

Boone Links Golf Course stands on the site of the former Boone Aire Country Club, a private club that once occupied land in Florence, Kentucky, in the Cincinnati metropolitan area. When the county acquired the property and converted it to a public facility, it engaged the design team of Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin to reshape the layout into a full public championship course. Von Hagge and Devlin were among the most prolific golf course design partnerships in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s, responsible for dozens of courses across the country, including work in the Southeast and Midwest. Their redesigned Boone Links opened in August 1979, comprising two nine-hole loops — the Brookview and Lakeview nines — that could be combined into an 18-hole configuration. The layout was designed to serve the rapidly growing suburban population of Northern Kentucky, providing affordable public access to a quality golf experience within easy reach of downtown Cincinnati. The facility expanded a decade later when Dr. Michael Hurdzan, a Columbus-based architect known for his environmentally sensitive design approach and his prolific public-course work, was commissioned to add a third nine. The Ridgeview nine debuted in 1989, giving Boone Links its current 27-hole configuration and enabling three different 18-hole combinations: Brookview/Lakeview, Ridgeview/Lakeview, and Brookview/Ridgeview. Each combination presents a distinct playing experience with different yardages, challenges, and terrain profiles. The Brookview/Lakeview combination plays to 6,742 yards from the back tees with a course rating of 72.8 and slope of 133. The Ridgeview/Lakeview combination plays to a shorter par 70, while the Brookview/Ridgeview combination plays to 6,040 yards at par 70, with a slope of 125. This variety ensures that the course retains freshness for regular players who visit frequently.

Boone Links has earned a four-star rating from Golf Digest, a recognition of consistent quality that places it among the more commended public-access facilities in Kentucky. Its location off I-75, just fifteen minutes south of Cincinnati and five minutes from the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, makes it a standout conveniently accessible public course in the region. The course is administered by Boone County and operates alongside Lassing Pointe, another county-owned facility, under the Boone County Golf umbrella. Together, the two venues provide an extensive public golf offering for residents of Northern Kentucky and visitors to the greater Cincinnati area. Boone Links continues to attract a loyal following of regulars who value the combination of well-maintained conditions, variety across the 27 holes, and competitive green fees. Boone Links Golf Course plays its 27-hole layout across three distinct nine-hole configurations in Florence, Kentucky, managed by the Boone County Fiscal Court as a public recreation resource for one of Northern Kentucky's most populous communities.

The 27-hole format gives Boone Links operational flexibility that 18-hole courses cannot match — varying the combination of nines to provide course variety for regular players while accommodating different group sizes and pace-of-play requirements. The Kentucky Golf Association maintains Boone Links Golf Course among its member facilities, and the course has served as a competitive venue for Boone County and Northern Kentucky golf programs that value accessible public championship conditions. The combination of the county management model, the 27-hole variety, and the Florence suburban location has sustained Boone Links as one of Northern Kentucky's primary public golf destinations for several decades — a facility that serves the recreational golf needs of one of Kentucky's fastest-growing communities at prices appropriate to a county-operated public recreation program.