How to Get Tee Times in Colorado
Colorado has a Tom Doak public course you can book a week out, a grand mountain resort you reach through your hotel room, and private clubs that need a member to open the gate. Knowing which route a course takes, and exactly when its tee sheet opens, is the whole game, with the added twist that the high country only wakes up once the snow melts. Here is how to get on in Colorado, the three routes, the booking windows and indicative 2026 fees.
Photograph: The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs, via Google
The short version
Almost every course worth playing in Colorado falls into one of three buckets, and each has its own way in. The municipal and daily fee courses are pay to play, booked online a few days out, and they include real gems, above all CommonGround in Aurora, the Tom Doak design owned by the Colorado Golf Association. The resort courses, the ones attached to the big mountain and Front Range properties, are reached through a stay and play package, the cleanest route onto the marquee names like The Broadmoor and Red Sky Ranch. And the state's very best private clubs, Ballyneal and Castle Pines among them, need a member to host you, so they sit outside the public system entirely.
Get the route right and the timing follows, with one Colorado wrinkle: the season. The Front Range plays from spring to late fall, but the high country mountain courses only open once the snow clears, usually from late May or June. Munis reward speed on the morning the window opens; resorts reward booking your room early; private clubs reward who you know. Below is how each one works, the courses to target and what they cost in 2026.
The three routes onto a Colorado tee
Municipal and daily fee: book early, online, a few days out
This is the value end and it holds some of the best public golf in the Rockies. CommonGround in Aurora, the Tom Doak design owned and operated by the Colorado Golf Association, is the standout, a wide, firm, strategic course that rewards ground game golf. Its tee sheet opens online: Colorado Golf Association members can book seven days out from midnight, the general public six days out, and planners can lock a time up to ninety days ahead for a premium of around twenty dollars a player. Across the Front Range the daily fee scene is deep, from the Pete Dye Dunes at Riverdale near Brighton to Fossil Trace in Golden and the Denver and Colorado Springs municipals, the affordable backbone of Colorado play.
Resort stay and play: book the room, get the course
The simplest way onto the marquee courses is to stay at the resort that owns them. The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, a grand five star resort whose championship courses have a deep US national championship history, comes with your room, as do the two mountain courses at Red Sky Ranch near Vail, a Tom Fazio and a Greg Norman design reached through the club's lodging partners, and the high country golf at Keystone and Breckenridge. These packages bundle rooms, carts and tee times and can be locked weeks or months ahead, which for a visiting golfer is the most reliable and least stressful route, especially in the short, busy mountain summer.
Private clubs: you need a member
The state's elite clubs cannot be booked publicly. Ballyneal, the Tom Doak links in the sandhills near Holyoke and consistently rated the best course in Colorado, is a private, walking only club, and Castle Pines Golf Club, the Jack Nicklaus design south of Denver that hosts the PGA Tour's BMW Championship, is also private, as is historic Cherry Hills. Access needs a member to host you or a reciprocal arrangement through your own club. If your group has a connection it is worth the effort, but build your trip around the public and resort golf and treat a private round as a bonus.
Key courses and how to book them
| Course | Route and booking window | Indicative 2026 fee |
|---|---|---|
| CommonGround, Aurora | Public; online 6 days out, or 90 days for a premium | Around 60 to 90 dollars; confirm live rate |
| Riverdale Dunes, Brighton | Public; online daily fee, book ahead | Around 50 to 80 dollars |
| The Broadmoor, Colorado Springs | Resort; stay and play through the resort | Package based; confirm with the resort |
| Red Sky Ranch, near Vail | Resort; stay and play via lodging partners | Package based; confirm with the club |
| Ballyneal / Castle Pines | Private; member host required | Not publicly bookable |
Access, booking windows and indicative fees verified June 2026 from course and resort sources. CommonGround booking windows are set by the Colorado Golf Association and favor members. Fees move with season and demand. We do not quote our own pricing, so always confirm directly before booking. Check tee time availability.
Booking windows and timing tips
For the public gems, the booking window is everything. CommonGround and courses like it release tee times a set number of days out, online, so create your account in advance, save your details and be ready the moment the clock turns, or pay the small premium to book further ahead. For resort golf, the opposite logic applies: book the room as far ahead as you can, because the tee times come with it, and the mountain resorts fill fast for the short summer peak. The Colorado season itself is the other lever: the Front Range plays spring to late fall, but the high country only opens once the snow clears, usually from late May or June, so plan mountain golf for July to September. And remember the altitude, which sends the ball roughly a tenth farther, so club down.
Need a base near the golf? See our recommended Colorado hotels and resorts across the Front Range and the mountains.
Plan your Colorado golf trip
Tell us the courses you want and roughly when, and one concierge holds the resort packages, navigates the public booking windows and the mountain opening dates, and costs the trip to the head. Summer tee times go early, so the sooner we start the better. No obligation.
Colorado tee time questions
How do you get a tee time at CommonGround in Aurora?
CommonGround, the Tom Doak public course owned by the Colorado Golf Association, opens its tee sheet online. Colorado Golf Association members can book seven days in advance from midnight, while the general public can book six days out, and planners can reserve as far as ninety days ahead for a premium of around twenty dollars a player. The prime weekend and evening times go quickly, so book the moment your window opens. Always confirm current rates and the booking window directly before booking.
Can the public play The Broadmoor?
Yes, through a stay and play package. The championship courses at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, a storied resort that has hosted multiple US national championships, are open to resort guests. Booking a room at The Broadmoor is the simplest and most reliable way onto the golf, with tee times arranged through the resort, and the same package logic applies at mountain resorts such as Red Sky Ranch near Vail and Keystone. Always confirm package details and tee times directly before booking.
Can you play Ballyneal or Castle Pines?
Not publicly. Ballyneal, the Tom Doak links in the sandhills near Holyoke and consistently rated the best course in Colorado, is a private, walking only club, and Castle Pines Golf Club, the Jack Nicklaus design that hosts the PGA Tour's BMW Championship, is also private. Both need a member to host you or a reciprocal arrangement through your own club. Build a Colorado trip around the public and resort golf and treat a private round as a bonus. Always confirm access directly before travelling.
When can you play golf in Colorado?
The Colorado golf season runs broadly from spring to fall. On the Front Range, around Denver and Colorado Springs, courses such as CommonGround and The Broadmoor often play from March or April into November. The high country mountain courses near Vail, Keystone and Breckenridge open later, typically from late May or June once the snow clears, and close by October. Summer is the prime season throughout, and the thin air at altitude sends the ball noticeably farther, so club down. Always confirm seasonal opening and current rates before booking.
Related
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Tee time windows, course access changes and the trips worth taking. Every other week.
Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Access, booking windows and indicative fees verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.