Who Deserves Credit for a Golf Course Design?
The recent publication of Golf Digest’s top-100 course ranking raised eyebrows and set tongues wagging. And rightly so, raising eyebrows and stirring debate is precisely what rankings are for, though cynics might insist there are less philanthropic reasons. As all credible grading is apt to do, this list launched a million conversations over the relative […]
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 […]
Restoring a Classic: Sleepy Hollow Country Club
By Ian Critser With a resume that includes restorations at Winged Foot, Merion, Fishers Island, and dozens of others, Gil Hanse is no stranger to giving new life to classic courses. While Sleepy Hollow Country Club north of New York City may not be as well known, the work that he and his team have […]
A Deep Dive on the Black Course at Streamsong Resort
By Graylyn Loomis Walking Streamsong Black before it opened, I was struck by its size and scale. The fairways were wide, the greens huge, and everywhere you turned were long views across thousands of acres of central Florida. It took me more than a year to return with my clubs and actually play the […]
Classic Course: Quaker Ridge
With its gently rolling terrain, stately trees, and intimate playing environment, Quaker Ridge epitomizes Westchester County parkland golf. The course’s routing is Muirfield-esque—the holes of the front nine run counter-clockwise around the club’s perimeter, embracing the clockwise homeward nine—allowing for a highly satisfying exploration of the property. Jimmy Demaret once said that Quaker Ridge could […]
Fun is the Name of the Game at The Cradle, Pinehurst
Golf is too hard, too expensive, and too time-consuming. These preconceptions about the game are exactly what Gil Hanse and Pinehurst owner Bob Dedman are looking to shatter with the resort’s new short course, The Cradle. The nine-hole, 789-yard layout is the latest in a string of fun-loving short courses to be built in the […]
Graylyn Goes To Streamsong Black
By Graylyn Loomis Few architects are hotter at the moment than Gil Hanse, and none of his upcoming designs are more anticipated than the Black Course at Streamsong Golf Resort in central Florida. I was fortunate to visit Streamsong recently to take a tour of the Black Course ahead of its scheduled opening in late September […]
Golf Course Architects Discuss Firestone CC South
By Tony Dear The South Course at Firestone CC in Akron, Ohio, has hosted big-time golf since the mid-1950s. First came the Rubber City Open whose winners included Tommy Bolt, Ed Furgol, and Arnold Palmer. It staged three PGA Championships—1960, ’66, and ’75. From 1962 to ’98, it was the venue for the World […]
Golf Course Architects Discuss Firestone CC South
By Tony Dear The South Course at Firestone CC in Akron, Ohio, has hosted big-time golf since the mid-1950s. First came the Rubber City Open whose winners included Tommy Bolt, Ed Furgol, and Arnold Palmer. It staged three PGA Championships—1960, ’66, and ’75. From 1962 to ’98, it was the venue for the World […]
First Peek: Mossy Oak Golf Club
Gil Hanse wowed the world last summer with his Olympic course. But since Rio isn’t exactly around the corner, it’s good news that Hanse recently unveiled another exciting example of minimalist design that’s easier to get to. Not a lot easier, but easier. Located in West Point, in north-central Mississippi, Mossy Oak is across the […]
