Best Drivable Par Fours
It’s not often on the PGA Tour that you witness crowds roar merely because a caddie has handed his player a wood instead of an iron. Drivable par fours provide that experience. Par fours that are designed to be driven under the right circumstances, based on yardage, weather, or course conditions are among the most […]
6 Design Traits of Residential Community Golf Courses
What architects do—and don’t do—when creating residential community golf courses It’s hardly a revelation to say that golf course architects are charged with delivering attractive, compelling designs with every new course they construct. In the case of courses for residential communities, however, there are some different considerations at play. Because each development is unique, requiring […]
Nine Must-Play 9-Hole Courses
According to the National Golf Foundation, there are nearly 15,000 golf facilities in the United States, with 9-hole courses accounting for more than a quarter of that total. Yet, 9-hole courses get little love. Nobody trumpets its “Championship 9-hole course.” Still, 9-holers definitely deserve more respect. After all, the very first U.S. Open in 1895 […]
10 Courses with Great Collections of Par Threes
Nearly 30 years ago in the pages of LINKS Magazine, author/broadcaster Ben Wright opined that the Golden Horseshoe’s Gold course in Colonial Williamsburg, Va., featured the best set of par threes on a single course of any he knew. Bentley was a shrewd, well-traveled judge—and a designer himself—so I’ll give him his due. I also […]
America’s Top 10 Munis
The chief requirement for making this list is that the golf course must be owned by a municipality. We’re judging here on the quality of the design, test of golf, scenic appeal, and tournament lore. For best-value munis? We’ll leave that for another time. Here then are the 10 best municipal courses in the U.S. […]
Old Head: The World’s Most Spectacular Course Turns 25
The most spectacular course on earth celebrates a special anniversary There are bucket list courses. Then there’s the Old Head. More than two decades have passed since I boldly proclaimed the new Old Head Golf Links to be the most spectacular course in the world. Following a fall 1998 visit, I put into words what […]
12 Absolute Must-Play Resort Courses in Mexico
With more than 160 courses, some that embrace mountain and jungle settings, others that take in ocean and desert landscapes, golf in Mexico is all about variety. What the majority of the country’s greatest courses share, however, is their accessibility to resort guests. Not every top Mexican course is open to outside play, but many […]
Pete Dye’s 9 Scariest Holes
Tiger Woods once asked me, “Has anybody ever built harder courses than Pete Dye?” I replied, “Nobody has ever built courses that are more visually intimidating than Pete Dye.” Tiger shot back, “Exactly.” Indeed, Dye himself stated, “My overall philosophy is to make the hole appear more difficult than it really is.” In reality, Pete […]
The 7 Best Alister MacKenzie Courses You Can Play
Whether it’s early April when the Masters rolls around at Augusta National or any time of year when somebody posts a jealousy-inducing tweet about their round at Cypress Point, the topic of Alister MacKenzie’s genius is front and center. Having said that, only the fortunate few can swing a tee time at Augusta or Cypress. […]
The Greatest Course Never Built
Beverly Hills Country Club had it all—except an opening date The script was straight out of Hollywood. Crooked lawyers. Mob money. Politicians on the take. L.A. nightclubs. Legendary entertainers. All set against the backdrop of the Vietnam War, the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, and the toniest enclave in the City of Angels. This is […]
