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 […]
8 Great Courses with Gigantic Greens
Jumbo-sized greens have been around forever—or at least since the beginning. The oldest course on earth, St. Andrews, sports a fistful of the largest greens in creation. Golden Age masters from C.B. Macdonald to Alister MacKenzie, both enamored with the Old Course, crafted vast putting surfaces to emulate St. Andrews. In mid-century, Robert Trent Jones […]
Golf’s Most Intimidating Courses
No course intimidates so thoroughly as Pine Valley Legendary scribe Bernard Darwin called Pine Valley “an examination in golf.” It’s been called far worse. Perennially ranked as the world’s best golf course, it is also likely the most intimidating, certainly for a middle handicap golfer. Its bunkers sport sinister names such as “Hell’s Half-acre” at […]
What to Watch for at Quail Hollow for the 2022 Presidents Cup
Year after year, few PGA Tour courses electrify with as much drama as the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C. Renowned for its pulse-pounding closing stretch of holes known as the “Green Mile,” Quail Hollow has witnessed countless crooked numbers on its final three holes during the annual Wells Fargo Championship, as well as during […]