Golf’s Ultimate Tests of Precision
Chasing bullseyes: Harbour Town Golf Links is golf’s ultimate test of precision Swing from the heels. Grip it and rip it. Let the big dog eat. Not at Harbour Town, you don’t. A bomber’s paradise? Harbour Town is anything but. “I get angrier here than anywhere else,” said Jack Nicklaus back in the day. “This […]
The Five Greatest Masters Moments
Extraordinary stories and lore practically define the Masters. Any listing of the top 10 moments might well include tales of Jones, Sarazen, Hogan, and Palmer—or perhaps the Watsons (Tom and Bubba), Faldo and Norman, Player and Mickelson. To narrow it to a top five, however, we employed a single criterion: To what extent did the […]
Top Epic Masters Meltdowns
Bold risks, dramatic comebacks, Amen Corner roars, and heroic victories are integral parts of the Masters Tournament’s lore. Unfortunately, so are splashed approaches, missed putts, Amen Corner groans, and titanic tumbles. Over the past 89 years, Augusta National has seen it all. Here are the seven most unforgettable Masters disasters. 7. Rory McIlroy’s prayers go […]
The Seven Best Golf Courses That Tangle with Train Tracks
Until 110 years ago, riding the rails was the preferred mode of transportation to reach golf clubs situated in the countryside. In fact, the building of golf courses often went hand in hand with where the railroad stopped, making it a leisure-time marriage of convenience and enjoyment. While passenger train travel has ebbed significantly in […]
Golf’s Most Beautiful Courses
Incomparable eye candy: Cypress Point reigns as golf’s ultimate beauty queen In 1920, architect Alister MacKenzie articulated 13 essential features that define an ideal golf course. Number seven stated: “The course should have beautiful surroundings, and all the artificial features should have so natural an appearance that a stranger is unable to distinguish them from […]
Six Tough Questions for Six Top Architects
A half-dozen of course design’s finest practitioners share their thoughts about dream collaborations, underrated architects, and plenty more The Cast DAVID MCLAY KIDD In a career spanning 25 years, the Scottish-born Kidd has earned every honor possible for designs that include Bandon Dunes, Mammoth Dunes at Sand Valley, Nanea, and the Castle Course at St. […]
Top 10 Penultimate Par Threes
Typically, the 18th hole is a course’s grand statement, the big finish that settles all bets. On occasion, however, it’s the 17th hole that steals the show. On a fistful of courses, it’s the next-to-last hole that resonates strongest, where history has been made, especially when that hole is a par three. Combining challenge, lore, […]
7 Toughest Golf Courses to Play in the Wind
As the Scots like to say, “Tis nae wind, nae golf.” However, when a balmy breeze stiffens into a howling wind, an already demanding golf course can become almost unplayable. Admittedly, even friendly tests can turn torturous when a freak wind blows through. In the first round of the 2021 Bermuda Championship at Port Royal […]
7 Great Courses You Didn’t Know You Could Play
There’s a small but significant roster of courses that is part of a special breed. You’ve watched these courses on television, seen the photos, and noted the rankings—but you thought that getting to play them was out of the question (unless you had connections). Not so fast: Some of the courses on this list are […]
Toughest Set of Par Fours
It’s neither length nor configuration alone that makes for a tough par four. It’s any combination of those two traits, plus lack of width, invasive bunkers, adroitly placed water hazards, terrain, wind, and the severity of the green complexes, including extra-speedy or wildly contoured greens. We’ve identified the 10 toughest sets of par fours in […]
