Gil Hanse’s Architecture 101: How Bunkers Look

There’s more to a bunker’s visual appeal than meets the eye The highest form of the art of golf course architecture is blending the design seamlessly into the surrounds through the use of shaping/grading or vegetation. I certainly feel that way about bunkers. Perhaps, in my case, it is a nod to the original eroded, […]
Ranking The World: Asia/Oceania

In the third installment of our four-part series ranking the world’s golf countries (outside of the U.S.), we turn to the diverse landscape of Asia/Oceania The Asia/Oceania region is one of great contrasts. It is more densely populated than anywhere in the world, but home to some of the smallest countries and most sparsely populated […]
My Courses: Greg Norman

From Australia to Hilton Head, Greg Norman has played courses all over the world. The Shark gives us his answers in this edition of “My Courses.” MY FAVORITE COURSE: The Composite Course at Royal Melbourne—one of the most natural courses in the world. Alister MacKenzie didn’t move any dirt. The flow of the course, the […]
My Courses: Gary Player

Very few golfers have played such a global variety of golf courses as Gary Player—the nine-time major champion shares his answers here in “My Courses” MY FAVORITE COURSE: If you were asked to choose your favorite rugby player and your child happened to be a star, you would have to pick him, right? So, I’ll […]
Geoff Ogilvy’s Melbourne Sandbelt
By Geoff Ogilvy with Adam Schupak I was blessed to be born and raised in Australian golf’s spiritual home, with 600 acres of golf courses within two square miles of my house. The sandy soil is some of the best terrain for golf on earth: Course designers fall in love with the bunkering and […]
5 of the Hardest Tee Times in Golf
By Graylyn Loomis Some of the most exclusive courses in the world are also the most famous. Think Augusta National, Cypress Point, Shinnecock Hills, and others. Thanks to “best lists” and hosting major championships, those courses are well known even if extremely difficult to get on. But then there’s another level of exclusive courses—those so […]
The Architect’s Ultimate Golf Trip
By Erik Matuszewski Golfers love few things better than a great road trip, with the opportunity to experience new courses in new locations. With this being LINKS, it only made sense to envision the ideal golf excursion for an aspiring golf course architect or aficionado of course design. Setting aside logistical obstacles—such as costs […]
Mike Clayton – A Course Architecture Name to Know
Golfers astute enough to follow Australian course architect Mike Clayton on Twitter would recently have seen images of the work he and his partners Geoff Ogilvy, Mike Cocking, and Ashley Mead—known collectively as OCCM—completed on the 14th hole at Royal Canberra. The before and after images demonstrate just what Clayton and the team are capable […]
Graylyn Goes to… Melbourne, Australia
Our Assistant Editor made a whirlwind tour of the golf offerings Down Under
First Peek at Cape Wickham Golf Course
On an island between Australia and Tasmania, a true links course with ocean views from all 18 holes beckons serious golfers