Located in Johns Creek, Georgia, close to the Atlanta Athletic Club, the Rivermont Country Club was originally developed as a municipal golf course back in 1973, and later purchased by the golf professional charged with its daily operation. The initial layout was designed by prolific architect Joe Lee, and was most memorable as the site of an unfortunate golf cart accident involving legendary daredevil Evel Knievel.

Still owned by the same golfing family, in 2006 the course underwent a major redesign with virtually every hole modified by local designer Michael Riley. The layout itself is arranged in two loops on either side of a central clubhouse, and because the holes are mostly set down in narrow valleys between trees and home sites there wasn’t a lot of room for Riley to shift the playing areas. Instead he focused on green complexes and bunkering, transforming a fairly penal course into one with a more strategic focus.

Riley’s work at Rivermont is impressive, and this is now a much more interesting golf course to play than many of its better-known neighbors. While there are still a few areas where golf fights the terrain a little, the quality of holes like the 6^th, 10^th and 18^th, and green sites like the 2^nd, 6^th, 13^th and 15^th make this a layout that purists should seek out when next in the general Atlanta area. The operator’s focus on presenting lean and tight playing surfaces instead of lush and green grass is also refreshing.