Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 10
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 10
The 10th hole at Potomac Shores Golf Club is a downhill par 5 and features two trees and a split fairway near the green. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club
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Potomac Shores Golf Club
Take a spin around the new Jack Nicklaus-designed Potomac Shores Golf Club in northern Virginia. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 13
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 13
Probably the most challenging par 3 at Potomac Shores G.C. is the 230-yard 13th hole. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores golf course
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Potomac Shores golf course
Rolling greens await at Potomac Shores Golf Club in Dumfries, Virginia. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 15
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 15
The par-3 15th hole is the shortest of the par 3s at Potomac Shores Golf Club in Dumfries, Va. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - No 17
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - No 17
Potomac Shores Golf Club has many elevated tees such as the straightaway, par-4 17th hole. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - clubhouse
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - clubhouse
The 8,000-square-foot clubhouse at Potomac Shores Golf Club. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores G.C. - 18th hole
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Potomac Shores G.C. - 18th hole
Potomac Shores Golf Club's 18th hole is a sharp, dogleg right. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 9
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - No. 9
The approach shot on the par-4 ninth at Potomac Shores Golf Club is severely uphill. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores golf course - No. 9
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Potomac Shores golf course - No. 9
What goes down must come back up? Potomac Shores' ninth rewards long hitters with less of an uphill approach shot to the green. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - firepit
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - firepit
A pleasant outdoor patio area at Potomac Shores Golf Club includes a fire pit. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores Golf Club - turtle
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Potomac Shores Golf Club - turtle
Located next to the Potomac River, you never know what kind of wildlife will interrupt a round at Potomac Shores. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Jack Nicklaus
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Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus hit the ceremonial first tee shot on May 21, 2014, to open Potomac Shores Golf Club. Brandon Tucker/Golf Advisor
Potomac Shores
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Potomac Shores
The Jack Nicklaus-designed Potomac Shores Golf Club sits on the shores of the Potomac River. Courtesy of Potomac Shores G.C.
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Take a spin around the new Jack Nicklaus-designed Potomac Shores Golf Club in northern Virginia

DUMFRIES, Va. -- Northern Virginia has a new, upscale public golf course: Potomac Shores Golf Club, located in Dumfries on the shores of the Potomac River.

Designed by Jack Nicklaus and opened for play in May 2014, the course is set on rolling, forested hills on the banks of the Potomac. Almost every hole is encircled by dense forest, and very few holes are very flat. Most tee shots feature beautiful, elevated vantage points, particularly the ninth hole, which makes for one of the better visual and risk-reward holes on the course. There are four sets of tees and can play to more than 7,000 yards if need be. Greens are large and undulating (and were rolling quite fast when we played), so precision on approach shots is the key here.

The golf course is part of a 1,920-acre development with 4,000 potential home sites and will eventually also feature a hotel beside the golf club. The clubhouse has a fantastic vantage point overlooking the course. An enormous practice facility is also fully complete.

Potomac Shores G.C. was originally slated to open in 2007, but the development became a casualty of the economic downturn. Nicklaus, who surveyed the course at the grand opening for the first time since 2006, was mostly pleased with how the course crossed the finish line but said there were still a few small grading issues he'd like to tweak over the course of 2014.

Brandon Tucker is the Sr. Managing Editor for GolfPass and was the founding editor of Golf Advisor in 2014, he was the managing editor for Golf Channel Digital's Courses & Travel. To date, his golf travels have taken him to over two dozen countries and nearly 600 golf courses worldwide. While he's played some of the most prestigious courses in the world, Tucker's favorite way to play the game is on a great muni in under three hours. Follow Brandon on Twitter at @BrandonTucker and on Instagram at @btuck34.
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Take a spin around the new Jack Nicklaus-designed Potomac Shores Golf Club in northern Virginia