The LINKS 100—the world’s top 100 courses as voted on by members of the three leading architects’ societies—delivered some very familiar names and results. It also served up a few eye-opening surprises.
However, there were several notable omissions on the list, courses that keen observers might have expected to see—and didn’t. In a couple of cases, candidate courses were so new that not enough architects were able to see the finished product before the voting deadline. That also held true for courses that had undergone recently completed renovations. In other cases, courses that hadn’t officially opened were intentionally omitted from the ballot. With that in mind, look for some changes in the next LINKS 100.
Given the additional time and exposure, here are 10 courses to watch for that may well find top 100 glory in the next edition of The LINKS 100.
Point Hardy Golf Club at Cabot Saint Lucia—Cap Estate, St. Lucia
Opened in December 2023 and perched above the Atlantic Ocean, Point Hardy is Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw’s first Caribbean course. It winds through lush terrain, over rocky cliffs jutting into the ocean, and along meandering valleys and sandy beaches. With nine holes playing along the ocean, the 6,650-yard par-71 course enchants at every turn. The four-hole closing stretch at Point Hardy features forced carries, jagged rocks, and crashing waves. Those holes include the 307-yard par-four 15th; back-to-back par threes at the 156-yard 16th and the 187-yard 17th; and the 502-yard par-five 18th.
“It’s very possible that Cabot Saint Lucia is the most visually stunning piece of land we have ever worked with,” said Coore, an ASGCA member. “It was a privilege to work with the Cabot team on this one-of-a-kind site, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished.” Given Coore’s sentiments and the wildly positive reviews of the past several months, Point Hardy makes a strong case for appearing in the next LINKS 100.
The Lido at Sand Valley Resort—Nekoosa, Wis.
A re-creation of a long-gone, legendary Golden Age classic, this Lido opened in 2023, via the handiwork of architects Tom Doak and Brian Schneider of Renaissance Golf, who teamed with historian Peter Flory and developers Michael and Chris Keiser. The group brought to life every nook and cranny of the fabled original C.B. Macdonald layout on Long Island, which ranked among the top three courses in American golf before its demise in the 1940s. Blame its disappearance on the U.S. Navy, which needed the land for military use during World War II. This faithful recreation among the sand dunes of central Wisconsin stretches well over 7,000 yards and features a multitude of blind shots, massive greens, and the familiar template holes such as “Redan,” “Biarritz,” and “Punchbowl.” The showstopper might be the par-five 4th, “Channel,” which embraces a risk/reward forced carry to an island fairway.
Old Barnwell—Aiken, S.C.
Just across the river from Augusta, Ga., Old Barnwell opened in 2023, a design collaboration between Brian Schneider and Blake Conant, the former a longtime associate of Tom Doak’s Renaissance Golf Design Group, the latter often associated with constructing Renaissance’s designs. The 7,095-yard layout plays to an unusual par-73—just three par threes—and features 575 acres of sandy loam that stretches across valleys and ridges, through prairies and timber forests, with holes framed by native vegetation. Wide, firm-and-fast fairways and wildly undulating greens are prevalent throughout, but what stands out from early critiques are the amazing assortment of hazards and strategies, some stunningly original and others that nod to the ancient elite courses in the U.S. and abroad. Attracting plenty of attention already is the 285-yard par-four 14th; there are at least a half-dozen legitimate ways to play it. A safe 180-yard drive followed by a blind wedge is the most conventional of the options.
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Pinehurst No. 10—Aberdeen, N.C.
Pinehurst Resort’s highly anticipated No. 10 course opened on April 3, 2024, so it was too new to qualify for The LINKS 100 ballot. Give it a year or two and it could well wind up being a mainstay on every rankings list. Designed by Tom Doak, with Angela Moser serving as lead associate, No. 10 is located three miles south of the main resort clubhouse in Aberdeen. It’s draped atop ground that had once housed a Dan Maples-designed course called The Pit that existed from 1985 until 2010. With natural ridgelines, intriguing landforms, towering longleaf pines, streams and ponds, Doak designed a course that complements the resort’s other courses through its contrasts.
“The site is topographically distinct and drastically different from anywhere in Pinehurst,” says Doak. “It’s bigger, bolder, and more dramatic. There’s about 75 feet of elevation change, and we worked our way up to it around the mid-point of the layout. You have expansive views from this apex over the rest of the course. It’s an unforgettable experience for golfers.”
At 7,020 yards, par 70, the walking-only layout incorporates the native sand and wiregrass to perfection. Most memorable is how Doak utilized the massive dunes, notably at the 385-yard par-four 8th, which is graced by a huge mound known as “Matterhorn” just to the right of the tee. The green is partially hidden to the left, behind another large hillock. It’s merely one in a collection of inspired holes.
Medinah Country Club (Course #3)—Medinah, Ill.
A staple of Top 100 lists for decades, this beautiful brute in suburban Chicago was most famous for sending scores soaring at a variety of major championships. Still, its many changes since its 1932 debut—the majority carried out by Roger Packard and then Rees Jones—robbed it of any genuine architectural identity. Most recently, alterations were carried out by Australian firm OCM (consisting of Geoff Ogilvy, Mike Cocking, and Ashley Mead) and completed in 2024. They have been extremely well-received. Gone is the layout where Tiger and Sergio dueled in 1999, and in its stead is a more varied and thought-provoking course. OCM crafted a fistful of new holes and re-routed and redesigned others. Fairways have more width, greens have more contouring, and the course boasts more strategic interest. Look for Medinah #3 potentially filling a LINKS 100 spot after more architects discover what it now looks and plays like.
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Commonwealth Golf Club—South Oakleigh, Australia
Commonwealth missed The LINKS 100 by eight hundredths of a point—finishing in 101st place. Designed in 1921 by Sam Bennett, Charles Lane, and Sloan Morpeth, it’s another of those superb Melbourne Sandbelt courses lauded by so many for so long. Tom Doak was always a huge fan, but in his most recent edition of The Confidential Guide, in 2018, he rued the loss of some of the course’s best design features and the overgrowth of trees. So why do I think it might climb in the next LINKS 100 ranking? Because Doak himself has recently assisted the club in a renovation/restoration. Together with associate Brian Slawnik, Doak oversaw a two-phase renovation (one in 2022, the other in 2024) that primarily involved relocated and redesigned greens, plus bunker and tee work. In addition, Australian architects Paul Mogford and Harley Kruse designed and carried out a vegetation plan—including tree thinning—that helped improve sightlines and playability. With work from this formidable quartet of architects, Commonwealth could be on the rise.
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Oakland Hills Country Club (South)—Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
One of the most conspicuous absences in The LINKS 100 was Oakland Hills (South), the fabled tournament layout in suburban Detroit that boasts a design pedigree that includes Donald Ross, Robert Trent Jones Sr., Arthur Hills, and Rees Jones, four prominent ASGCA architects. A fifth ASGCA architect, Gil Hanse, completed a resto-vation in 2021, in tandem with partner Jim Wagner and lead shapers Kye Goalby and Blake Conant. The return of the Ross features received plenty of accolades, but perhaps a tragic clubhouse fire in February 2022 took attention away from the revamp. The U.S. Open touches down at Oakland Hills (South) in 2034; between now and then, the architects will have plenty of time to consider or reconsider the course’s design merits.
Te Arai Links (South)—Te Arai, New Zealand
It’s a long way for virtually any of America’s or Europe’s society architects to get to New Zealand. Yet, there are so many great courses popping up in the land of the Kiwi, that return trips are warranted. Perhaps then the number of voters will rise for this remarkable Coore & Crenshaw design that opened in 2022. Located 90 minutes north of Auckland’s Central Business District on New Zealand’s North Island, Te Arai (South) looks and plays like a classic links. It’s set along the sea; it plays atop crispy fescue turf with a sandy base; it sports wide fairways and expansive greens, complete with ripples; and it asks for ground game prowess amid the coastal breezes. Between the architects’ artistry and the wind-shaped sandscapes, it’s nearly impossible to discern between nature and the hand of man. Come to think of it, this 6,779-yard par 72 is an authentic links—reason enough to go to New Zealand, and likely reason enough to see it move up the ranks. Also worth watching—where Te Arai’s Tom Doak-designed North course likewise lands in the next iteration of The LINKS 100.
Interlachen Country Club—Edina, Minn.
Everybody loves a good comeback—witness Interlachen in suburban Minneapolis. Originally a William Watson design from 1911, Interlachen was completely redesigned in 1919 by Donald Ross. It achieved early renown as the venue for the 1930 U.S. Open, won by Bobby Jones in his Grand Slam year. Interlachen’s small ridges, cunningly placed bunkers, and vexing greens provided sufficient challenge at the 1993 Walker Cup, 2002 Solheim Cup, and at the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open, won by Inbee Park—but some of the teeth and design flourishes had vanished over time. Enter restoration specialist Andrew Green. At the conclusion of Green’s work, Interlachen looked as if Ross had done it himself. Green yanked out trees, widened landing areas, restored bunker complexes, and expanded greens to their original dimensions. Green also created or re-positioned a half-dozen greens, all in vintage Ross style. Interlachen’s restored Ross features will be on display when it hosts the 2030 U.S. Women’s Open.
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Yale Golf Course—New Haven, Conn.
Students pursuing a Ph.D. in golf course design appreciation could do no better than Yale. Designed in 1926 by C.B. Macdonald with Seth Raynor, Yale dishes out classic template holes that mimic the greatest examples of British links tests—that were somehow successfully transplanted to the hilly, rocky, wooded terrain of southern Connecticut. The Biarritz-style 9th and the Redan 13th are standouts—but every hole is distinctive. The world’s architects already strongly admire Yale; it ranked 108th in The LINKS 100. The final push to Top 100 glory will likely be traceable to a comprehensive restoration by Gil Hanse that is underway. Hanse, Jim Wagner, and their team are reconstructing each green to USGA specs and expanding each one to Macdonald/Raynor’s specs. They are also overhauling tees, fairways, bunkers, drainage, and irrigation. Trees will be managed—some pruned, others eliminated—to bring back the massive scale of the grounds. In addition, Hanse plans to move the green at the par-four 3rd from its current location, behind a hill, down to its original spot, closer to a pond. Hanse expects Yale to reopen in 2026.
What golf course(s) do you think will make the cut in the next edition of The LINKS 100?
What a time to be alive with all these amazing new courses and renovations happening. The last recession and Covid were both dreadful, but every cloud has a silver lining, I suppose.
High Pointe GC , Traverse City MI
Great stuff to contemplate up here today in the icy northeast. I’ve always loved Yale, but I hope Hanse and Wagner correct some of the weaknesses caused by the inability to move as much dirt in 1925. First and foremost, #18 is a poor hole and should be reimagined. I love the shifting of the green on #3. It makes perfect sense that the original placement was closer to the lake. JP
It’s a true shame Arcadia Bluffs isn’t in the Top 100. It’s usually in the Top 50 of most lists recently. With the addition of the Chicago inspired South Course, it’s truly a destination trip!!
Indeed…. and now they are adding a 12 hole course to make it an even better destination!
Broomsedge in Rembert, SC!