Cambrian Ridge Canyon/Sherling

Cambrian Ridge sits in Greenville, roughly an hour south of Montgomery along Interstate 65, and most Trail visitors encounter it as a detour rather than a destination. That is a miscalculation. Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed the original 27 holes in 1993, with Roger Rulewich, and the Canyon nine was reconstructed in 2016 to strengthen its already considerable character. The Canyon in particular produces some of the most visually arresting and strategically demanding golf on the entire Trail.

The Canyon and Sherling nines form the standard 18-hole routing, playing 7,427 yards, par 72, slope 149. That slope is the highest on the Trail. The Canyon takes its name from the terrain. Holes drop into and climb out of ravines carved through former hunting grounds, with elevation changes that exceed anything on the other nines. Tee shots play dramatically downhill with the fairway visible below and the green beyond it. Approaches play uphill, demanding an extra club and a trajectory that accounts for the slope.

The Sherling pairs well with the Canyon precisely because of the contrast. Where the Canyon is vertical and theatrical, the Sherling moves through more open terrain with broader fairways and gentler contours. The transition at the turn changes the character of the round completely, and the adjustment is part of the challenge. Greens throughout are classic Jones Sr.: large, contoured, and defended by bunkering that punishes the wrong-side miss. The third nine, the Loblolly, provides a less extreme alternative for a different 18-hole experience on a return visit.