8 Courses with an Unconventional Number of Holes
Little doubt that you haven’t heard the old golfer’s tale that a standard golf course is 18 holes because that’s how many shots it takes to polish off a bottle of Scotch. It makes for a good story, but alas, it’s a myth. The roots actually extend to St. Andrews, where the links layout now […]
7 of the Strangest Bunkers in Golf
For almost 50 years, golfers have encountered (or avoided) a greenside bunker at the par-three 6th hole at Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course that’s shaped like Mickey Mouse’s head. It is, quite literally, “Mickey Mouse golf.” The iconic and ironic bunker was completely rebuilt in 2017 and shortly thereafter two more Mickey-shaped bunkers were added at […]
10 Top Volcano Holes in the U.S.
The most fearsome tee shots in golf are those where the golfer has nowhere to miss. The Volcano green certainly qualifies. A bit of a rarity in the golf design world, Volcano holes have a green that is built up on at least three sides, often appears to be raised above the tee box, and […]
What Courses Offer All-Day Play Passes?
Surely no golfer is going to play more holes in a day at Sweetens Cove than Matthew Adamski did last year, but that doesn’t mean they can’t try. The popular Tennessee 9-hole course has embraced a unique operational approach as its avid following has grown: all-day play passes. The concept—not unlike a daily lift ticket […]
10 of the Top Punchbowl Holes in the U.S.
There’s something to be said for the anticipation created by an approach shot into a Punchbowl green—some golfers love it… others, not so much. The Punchbowl is one of golf’s best known template holes: A green surrounded by mounding that gives it a bowl shape and funnels balls toward the center of the putting surface, […]
Inness: The King-Collins 9-Hole Sequel to Sweetens Cove
Inness, the newest 9-hole course from the creative minds of Rob Collins and Tad King, is a wild ride in upstate New York—a dramatic deviation from the traditional Westchester County golf clubs just under two hours south. But for many golfers, the inevitable comparison will be to Sweetens Cove in Tennessee, the new age 9-hole […]
7 of Golf’s Best Secondary Logos at U.S. Clubs
Every so often, a video of a black bear cub playing with a golf flag makes its rounds on social media. The curious cub rubs its back against the flag stick at Fairmont Hot Springs Mountainside Course in British Columbia, then grabs it and runs around on his hind legs, bending the flag as it’s […]
12 of the Best Biarritz Holes in the U.S.
The Biarritz is perhaps the most memorable example of a template hole in golf: A par three that stretches between 210 and 240 yards to a very long green with a prominent swale three to five feet deep cutting across it. The original design was found at The Biarritz Course in France, with brothers Willie […]
Top Golf Courses in National Parks: From Washington, D.C., to Yosemite
“I think all our parks should be opened for golf unless there is some specific objection in public needs.” -President William H. Taft During the Golden Age of Golf in the early 20th century, eight public golf courses were built within the nation’s capital. Three of those historic facilities remain today, among them East Potomac […]
6 of Golf’s Top Youth Programs
If it seems like there have been more kids on the golf course recently, well, you’re right. The number of junior golfers (ages 6–17) rose by 24 percent in 2020 as fairways and greens became safe refuge amid the pandemic. It was the industry’s biggest junior jump since 1997, the year a 21-year-old wunderkind named […]
