The Best Public Golf in California
Ranking the states for the quality of their golf is a subjective business, though it’s clear some are better than others. Florida, Michigan, New York, Hawaii, Arizona, South Carolina, Wisconsin, and even Ohio all get high marks, and another ever-present in the conversation is California whose course count almost reaches 1,000, and which boasts an impressive number of layouts […]
How to Choose the Best Golf and Ski Community for You
Love to golf and love to ski? Quite a few communities will satisfy both those passions. Here’s how to choose the best one for you. “The mountains are calling, and I must go.” So said John Muir, the Scottish-American naturalist and founder of the Sierra Club. Muir spoke of mountains as “recreational playgrounds for the […]
What Does the Future of Golf Travel Look Like?
The Covid-19 pandemic threw a monkey wrench into a lot of people’s golf travel plans. Golf may have attracted new players to local courses—people looking for ways to recreate in a safe, physically distanced way. And domestic golf resorts within driving distance of population centers may have benefited from fewer people traveling overseas to play. […]
Forrest Richardson: The Innovative ASGCA President
He’d never say it, never hint at, or even joke about it. He’d reject the idea absolutely, in fact, and ask that you never repeat it. But technically, in a manner of speaking, it could be argued—quite convincingly actually—that Forrest Richardson is currently the highest-ranking golf course architect in America. No, he’s not the best-known […]
LINKS Golf Podcast Ep. 71: Pace of Play Expert Dr. Lou Riccio
Dr. Lou Riccio is a golf pace of play expert and founder of the Three/45 Golf Association, a not-for-profit organization that teaches faster play.
Top Short Course Openings for 2021
One of the noteworthy shifts the golf industry has experienced in recent years is the increased popularity of shorter courses, frequently as a complement to traditional courses at established facilities or in golf-rich locations. As such, this installment focuses on some of these alternative offerings: par-3 courses, 9-holers, and courses featuring a non-traditional number of […]
American Dream Courses: Best of the Rest
Regular readers will know the emphasis of the “American Dream” series—highlighting really good golf where everyone is welcome and everyone can afford to play—has not been on identifying notable, affordable golf in every state, but rather in each of nine regions around the country: Southeast, Deep South, Southwest, Northwest, Mountain West, Midwest (West), Midwest (East), […]
Could Bunkerless Golf Courses Gain Footing?
At the conclusion of a site visit for a much-needed overhaul of the aging Eisenhower municipal golf course outside Annapolis, Md., consulting architect Andrew Green stopped 50 yards from the 18th green, turned to Damian Cosby, chief of golf operations for Anne Arundel County, and asked, “What do you think about going to no bunkers?” […]
Best Public Golf Courses of Palm Springs
There are golf hotbeds around the country and then there are destinations like Palm Springs, Calif., where the label of “Golf Mecca” seems more appropriate. With close to 125 golf courses in the near vicinity, options are aplenty with accessibility extremely high. Here’s a look at five of the best public courses in the Palm […]
LINKS Golf Podcast Ep. 70: Lt. Col. Dan Rooney
Lt. Col. Dan Rooney—a fighter pilot with three combat tours in Iraq, a PGA professional, and the founder of the Folds of Honor Foundation—joins Digital Editor Al Lunsford on this week’s episode of the LINKS Golf Podcast. Rooney, who played golf collegiately at Kansas, discusses his collaboration with Jack Nicklaus on the newly designed American […]