7 Exceptional Holes that Bring the Ocean into Play

punta mita

In his fictional work The Old Man and the Sea, author Ernest Hemingway described the ocean as “something that gave or withheld great favors.” He also opined that the sea could do “wild or wicked things,” but that such things could not be avoided. While the novella chronicled the heroic and sometimes futile attempts of […]

The Best Public Golf in Charlotte

charlotte

North Carolina’s largest city and its outlying suburbs are rich with premier private golf clubs. Residents of the Queen City are familiar with the likes of Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte Country Club, and Carolina Golf Club, but thanks to ongoing restoration and revitalization projects, great public-access golf has also become plentiful in the Charlotte area. […]

Must-Play Courses in Mexico

costa palmas

Cinco de Mayo isn’t really celebrated in Mexico. But that hasn’t stopped beer companies from using it as an excuse to launch promotions and sell six-packs. Pretty much everywhere outside Mexico, May 5th is the recognized date to celebrate Mexican culture, cuisine, music—and beer. The world should add golf to that list. Golf came late […]

10 Hidden Gems in England

england gems

England is a long way for American readers to go—and when they do, they’re likely to head to Open Championship venues and/or Surrey and Berkshire’s world-renowned heathland layouts. But we know there’s a small percentage of readers who go often and for whom the historic courses are old hat. Those are probably familiar with a […]

8 Unique Critters & Creatures in Golf Course Logos

golf logos

Playing golf around the Ring of Kerry in southwest Ireland is a bucket-list journey—the opportunity to play phenomenal links courses like Lahinch, Waterville, and Tralee. Yet one of the biggest surprises from my last trip was a wonderfully fun course called Dooks, which is stretched across sand dunes tucked into a stunning corner of Dingle […]

Gil Hanse’s Architecture 101: Still On the Tee

tee architecture

Still on the Tee: There’s more to the importance of tee design than you—and the author—suspected We have already determined three things relating to the position of tees: 1) The routing of the course will establish the location of the tees; 2) The strategy of the hole will determine the angles of approach that each […]

Golf’s Meanest Greens

greens

Destination Yipsville: The meanest greens in golf belong to Oakmont Country Club Gene Sarazen once described Oakmont as possessing “all the charm of a sock to the head.” The smackdown begins at the first green and never lets up, due mostly to the ferocity of the putting surfaces, a lethal combination of speed, contour, and […]

Classic Courses: Plainfield Country Club

plainfield country club

From revolution to evolution, this more than 100-year-old Donald Ross layout has stood the test of time On the spot where the Revolutionary War’s Battle of The Short Hills was fought in 1777, it is fitting that Plainfield Country Club has given golfers all the fight they can handle since it opened in 1921. However, […]

Sand Valley: America’s Next Great Golf Resort

sand valley

Bountiful Barrens: Less than five years old, Sand Valley is already America’s next great golf resort—and so much more Gazing out on an August evening from the back porch at The Lodge at Sand Valley, I found it difficult to imagine what this land must have looked like just 10 years ago, before more than […]