Three New Golf Courses Coming to Scotland
By Tony Dear Some Scottish golf is royal. Much of it is ancient. It’s the home of the game to which nearly a quarter of a million devotees travel each year in order to play the most sanctified courses in the world. To many disciples, this ground is holy. The country couldn’t be accused […]
Tom Doak’s Sedge Valley – A Sub-Par 70 Design at Sand Valley
By Tony Dear Golf course design priorities have seen a welcome shift in recent years. The emphasis on demanding, arduous golf has started to give way to fun, sustainable courses that you’d want to play again and again. The new wave is seen in the boom of short courses across the country (Pinehurst’s Cradle, […]
Arcadia Bluffs South Course – A True Modern Classic
By Tony Dear Thanks largely to social media, the names C.B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor have become familiar to more than just a small group of golf historians and architecture geeks in recent years. As their fame has grown, so has the desire to play the numerous top-100 courses they designed during the Golden […]
What Next for the Bally Bandon Sheep Ranch?
By Tony Dear It has become decreasingly mysterious with every passing article—and there have been many—but the Sheep Ranch still possesses sufficient intrigue and anonymity to ensure the golfer recounting his experiences of the place speaks mostly to a hushed audience. Images and stories have been filtering through for nearly two decades, and its […]
You’ve Got to Play: 17th at Danzante Bay
By Tony Dear As you climb the sharply uphill par-four 16th at Danzante Bay, all thoughts are on what lies over the ridge behind the green. You putt out a little quicker than normal, then drive vigorously to the crest of the hill. You’ve heard about the par-three 17th hole. Maybe you’ve watched Round […]
Carnoustie Golf Links Hosts its Eighth Open Championship
By Tony Dear Scott Dunlap tied for tenth at the 1999 Open Championship at Carnoustie. He finished five shots out of the three-man play-off contested by the hapless Frenchman Jean Van de Velde who had blown his chance of outright victory with a calamitous triple-bogey seven on the 72nd hole, 1997 champion at Royal […]
Beau Welling: Person of Interest
For years, the unofficial title of “golf’s most interesting man” has belonged to Miguel Angel Jimenez. But let us make the case for Beau Welling. Consider the course designer’s extensive range of interests and accomplishments. He is a great fan of the arts and sits on the board of the Carolina Ballet Theatre. During the […]
A Favorable Lie: Courses with Rooms
Terry Lundgren, retired Executive Chairman of Macy’s Inc., estimates he has stayed in the Ben Hogan Room at Riviera Country Club about 60 times. A member of the Pacific Palisades, Calif., club for 10 years, the former executive has roots in Southern California and used to visit Los Angeles regularly on business. Instead of staying […]
Coore & Crenshaw’s 5 Best Public Golf Courses
At Trinity Forest Golf Club, just nine miles southeast of downtown Dallas and venue for the AT&T Byron Nelson Classic, PGA Tour players got a dose of Golden Age-style course architecture. Used to more predictable, formulaic designs where stock shots and a fixed method get the job done, competitors were asked to think about lines, […]
The Best Pete Dye Golf Courses You Can Play
It’s fair to say Pete Dye will be revered as long as golf is played. Here are a few of his greatest designs that are open to the public.
