Golf’s Most Exhilarating Courses
Ireland’s Old Head is golf’s most exhilarating experience There are moments in golf that you wish could be frozen in time: Stepping onto the first tee of the Old Course at St. Andrews; emerging from the trees to greet 15, 16, and 17 at Cypress Point; staring down the daunting approach over the Pacific at […]
The Legacy of Sand Greens
Donald Ross’s original greens for Pinehurst No. 2 lacked one critical component—grass Only a dozen years old yet already a burgeoning golf mecca, the Pinehurst Resort saw its reputation soar soon after Donald Ross expanded and redesigned Pinehurst No. 2 in 1907. Dozens of golf ’s most influential figures praised the layout in reverential terms. […]
Best Public Golf Around Pinehurst
Come for one of the country’s premier golf resorts—but stay (or come back) for the incredible collection of public courses around Pinehurst Let’s cut to the chase. There’s one reason every golfer wants to haul their sticks to the middle of North Carolina: taking on Donald Ross’s “Mona Lisa,” Course No. 2, and the rest […]
First Peek: Pinehurst No. 10
Pinehurst Resort’s first new course in nearly three decades is part of a property that will redefine the Cradle of American Golf There’s not much out at the Pinehurst Sandmines (yet), the 900-acre, mostly wooded parcel of land in development at Pinehurst Resort about four miles south of the main clubhouse. But there is a […]
13 Years Later: Bill Coore Reflects on the Restoration of Pinehurst No. 2
Of course they were honored—which golf course architect wouldn’t be? Of course they were humbled—again, would anyone whose vocation in life was to build, renovate, and revive great golf courses not question if they were up to the task, if only for a moment? And yes, of course they were a little nervous about the […]
Donut Greens: 5 Holes with Bunkers on the Putting Surface
When George Thomas designed Riviera Country Club’s championship layout during the late 1920s, he introduced a unique element that gave the course instant notoriety: a pot bunker set smack dab in the middle of the par-three 6th hole’s putting surface. Since then, the design feature has been replicated in other parts of the country (and […]
Top 10 Kentucky Courses You Can Play
Unfortunately for visiting golfers, 2024 PGA Championship host Valhalla in Louisville, Ky., is private, as are most of the region’s top courses. However, the Bluegrass State boasts a slew of value-oriented, scenery-soaked, public-access layouts. Here are the 10 best courses you can play in Kentucky. Lassing Pointe—Union Long heralded as one of the nation’s top […]
Bourbon & Birdies: Making the Rounds in Kentucky
Bourbon is the primary reason for visiting the Bluegrass State, but cutting it with a dash of good public golf makes for a tasty cocktail Northern Kentucky will be thrust into the spotlight this May when the PGA Championship returns to Louisville for the fourth time. Golf may take center stage that week—with special attention […]
Hyperscapes: A Member Club Built Around Virtual Golf Courses
Would you pay $50,000 to join a golf club without an actual course? Hyperscapes Golf Club is the first members-only club built around fully virtual courses, and the first layout—crafted by Nicklaus Design on a stunning Scottish landscape within a recreated Caledonian forest from 6,000 years ago—will be available for member play on golf simulators […]
18 of America’s Best Short Par Threes
The 9-hole course I played as a kid, Canton Public Golf Course in Connecticut, culminated with a short, downhill par three that would make or break every round I played there, sending me home on my bike either smiling or steaming. Sadly, that terrific family-owned course no longer exists, but my memories of that 9th […]
