Oxmoor Valley, on the south-west edge of Birmingham, was the first site on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail to open, in May 1992. It lies between Red Mountain and Shades Mountain on land that U.S. Steel once mined and then gave to the project. The Ridge Course is the hillier of its two championship eighteens, a par 72 of 7,055 yards with heavy tree cover and plenty of shots played downhill from one bench of ground to the next. Plan around one date: the Ridge is closed from 10 May to 1 October 2027 while its greens are rebuilt.
RTJ Golf Trail at Oxmoor Valley (Ridge Course) green fees and tee times.
There is no membership hurdle at Oxmoor Valley. Online booking on rtjgolf.com, or in the Trail’s app, opens a week before the date; for a time sooner than that, phone the shop on the day itself, because advance phone reservations stopped in June 2026. Your card details hold the slot and are charged on arrival. For trips planned weeks or months ahead, the Trail’s central reservations team quotes packages, often with a night at Ross Bridge, and asks for a US$100 deposit per golfer. Specials are paid in full in advance, need 48 hours’ notice and do not cover the Back Yard. No handicap certificate is asked for. Refunds or rain checks for a cancellation inside 24 hours are at the course’s discretion.
INDICATIVE GREEN FEE · CHECKED NOVEMBER 2026From US$85
Trail-wide winter “2 Days or More” special, 16 Nov 2026–7 Mar 2027: per golfer per day with cart and range balls, two days minimum; Winter Magic (one round here, one at Ross Bridge) is US$200. Day rates vary by site; standard single-round prices show only when you search the tee sheet.
Winter 2 Days or More, per day, from
US$85
Winter Unlimited golf, per day, from
US$115
Winter Magic: Oxmoor Valley plus Ross Bridge
US$200
Prices change by season and booking route, so confirm the current rate with the operator. Official rates ↗
The courses at RTJ Golf Trail at Oxmoor Valley (Ridge Course).
Ridge Course
Par 72, 7,055 yards from the purples. Tree-lined and up-and-down, with the shale-backed 3rd green and a long par-five finish. Greens are aerified on 6–10 December 2027, and the course is shut from 10 May to 1 October 2027 for new greens.
Valley Course
Par 72 and 7,327 yards from the back, slope 147. It was renovated in 2021 with new tees, bunkers and TifEagle greens, and several holes were redesigned, including the 18th, which the Trail admits used to be notorious. It winds along creeks and lakes between the ridges and is the course to play here in summer 2027.
The Back Yard
Nine par threes of 59 to 132 yards, opened in 2022 and walking only, with no water and only a handful of bunkers. A foursome gets round in about an hour. The Trail lists prices from US$35 plus tax. Rocking chairs around a fire pit overlook the 1st tee.
The round, in perspective.
In 1989 Jefferson County’s legislators and business leaders asked the state pension fund to back a public course near the city, and David Bronner of the Retirement Systems of Alabama answered with a 54-hole complex that became the model for the whole Trail. The Ridge is the steeper of the two big courses, hilly and undulating, with many downhill shots and long views. Its best-known feature recalls the mining past: the green of the par-five 3rd, 539 yards from the back, is held up by a shelf of exposed shale. The 2nd and 3rd are back-to-back par fives, and the round ends with a 592-yard par-five 18th, the hardest hole on the card. Slope from the purple tees is 141, and the teals measure 4,974 yards.
Know before you go.
Carts
Walking allowed; carts included in every special
Dress
Shirts with sleeves and a collar; shorts to the knee
Coolers
Personal ice chests not allowed
The Back Yard
Walking only; about an hour for a foursome
Pace
Trail expects 4 hours 20 minutes
Range
Closed for part of every Tuesday
Make the trip work.
The clubhouse is at 100 SunBelt Parkway, a few minutes from downtown Birmingham. If the Ridge is the point of the trip, go in winter or spring 2027, before the May closure, or from October; in summer 2027 switch to the Valley, avoiding its full aerification on 5–7 July. Overseeding on 8–10 November 2027 keeps carts in the rough for about a week. A two-day, 54-hole trip with Ross Bridge is easy to arrange, and the Trail asks you to check in at least 30 minutes before your tee time.
Birmingham-Shuttlesworth (BHM) is 18 miles away on the Trail’s mileage chart, and Atlanta 168 miles. Downtown Birmingham, with most of the city’s restaurants, is a short drive north over Red Mountain. Capitol Hill in Prattville is 86 miles south, and Grand National is 117 miles south-east. You will need a car.
Most golfers pair Oxmoor with a night at the Renaissance Birmingham Ross Bridge, two miles away, which the Trail packages with both courses. The Trail also lists an on-site Oster Golf House and a spread of chain hotels: a DoubleTree in Homewood and a Hilton Garden Inn on Lakeshore Drive, both about 6 miles off, a Drury Inn & Suites at 7 miles and an Aloft at Soho Square in Homewood at 10.
Make a trip of it.
Ross Bridge, five minutes away, is the obvious partner and is sold with Oxmoor as the Magic special. After a round, the Back Yard’s fire pit and nine short holes make a relaxed evening. Further afield, Silver Lakes is 87 miles away and The Shoals 124. Off the course, Vulcan Park on Red Mountain has the view of downtown shown in this guide’s photograph, and the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute tells the city’s civil rights story.
Find your season.
Birmingham golf is best in spring and autumn; summers are humid, and the Trail keeps its courses open through winter, when its cheapest specials run from 16 November to 7 March. For the Ridge, 2027 is a split year: open until 9 May, closed through the summer for new greens, and back from 1 October.
Is the Ridge Course at Oxmoor Valley closed in 2027?
Yes, from 10 May to 1 October 2027, for greens renovations, according to the Trail’s maintenance schedule. The Valley Course and the Back Yard stay open, though the Valley has its own aerification on 5–7 July 2027 with about two weeks of recovery.
Ridge or Valley: which Oxmoor Valley course should I play?
Both are par 72. The Valley is longer, at 7,327 yards, and rates harder from the back (slope 147 against 141), and it was rebuilt in 2021. The Ridge is shorter and more up-and-down. With a full day, play both: the Trail’s winter unlimited special starts at US$115 per person.
How much are green fees at Oxmoor Valley?
Single-round prices appear only in the Trail’s online tee sheet and change with the day and season. What it does publish: 9 holes cost 60% of the 18-hole rate, the Back Yard starts at US$35 plus tax, and winter specials run from US$85 a day with a cart.
Last checked 10 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
