Kalúhyat Golf Club at Turning Stone Resort • Casino

Located 30 miles east of Syracuse in upstate New York, Kalúhyat Golf Club presents a classic golf course design in a natural setting on Oneida Nation land. Kalúhyat means “the other side of the sky,” and this golf course does provide a taste of heaven.

Kalúhyat is routed through three distinct topographies: grasslands, woodlands, and wetlands. One of our design challenges here was to integrate these disparate terrains into a single, comprehensive, and seamless whole. Using an apt analogy, considering that the course is a component of a casino resort complex, Robert Trent Jones, Jr. compared the different holes to the suits in a deck of cards, saying “Each has its own distinct features but works well with the others.”

This traditional shot-makers’ course plays from 5,293 to 7,105 yards and places a premium on strategic decision-making and accuracy as much as it requires length off the tee. Kalúhyat is generally regarded as the toughest golf course at Turning stone. Elevation changes add to the challenge of negotiating narrow, tree-lined fairways, open links-style holes, and the shorelines of six lakes. Fairway bunkering and angles of play encourage well-placed tee shots that will open up clear approaches to the often-elevated greens. The greens themselves slope to greenside collection areas that will test the nerve of even the most inveterate golf gambler. And those who enjoy a long-shot can take on the course from the longest of five sets of tees, which has earned the second highest slope rating in New York State (146)-surpassed only by Bethpage State Park’s Black Course, host to the 2002 U.S. Open.

Roy Halbritter, the visionary head of the Oneida Nation, expressed his excitement about the course thus: “Robert Trent Jones, Jr. has given the Nation, Turning Stone, and the golfers of the Northeast a beautiful gift, one in harmony with Mother Earth, and one that speaks to the soul of anyone who walks. If you love the game of golf, you will love Kaluhyat and appreciate the work of this master designer.”

Make sure to grab a tee time next time you're in the area and get there early to try the amazing practice facilities as well. Experience world-class golf next time you visit this gem of a golf course. With numerous dining options for all budgets, the Turning Stone Resort keeps everyone happy.