10 of Scotland’s More Underappreciated Golf Courses

underappreciated golf

Scotland is notably famous for its Open Rota venues—celebrated courses where you can experience links golf at its finest and walk in the shadow of history. These acclaimed courses each merit high ranking on any traveling golfer’s bucket list. But there’s so much more to Scottish golf than the courses you see on television. There […]

Links Living: Diamante Cabo San Lucas

diamante

A third Tiger Woods course is in the works at this family-oriented community sitting along the Pacific Ocean on Mexico’s Baja Peninsula   Tiger Woods’s imprint is all over the Diamante luxury resort and community. Set along the coastline at the tip of Mexico’s Baja Peninsula, Diamante first made golf headlines for Davis Love III’s Dunes […]

Links Living: Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club

grand harbor

This storied golf and beach club in Vero Beach is now under member control—and back in the top tier of local communities  Nothing breeds success like success. For decades, Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club was among the very best (if not the top) premier private clubs in Vero Beach. However, membership was growing increasingly […]

Best Drivable Par Fours

drivable

It’s not often on the PGA Tour that you witness crowds roar merely because a caddie has handed his player a wood instead of an iron. Drivable par fours provide that experience. Par fours that are designed to be driven under the right circumstances, based on yardage, weather, or course conditions are among the most […]

8 Hidden Gems in Hawaii

hawaii gems

Every year, Kapalua Resort and Waialae Country Club take turns sharing the spotlight as the PGA Tour makes a brief swing through Hawaii. Between those two prolific golf properties, along with resort courses such as Princeville Makai, Mauna Kea, and Manele (not to mention Four Seasons properties in Lanai, Hualalai, and Wailea), there’s no shortage […]

6 Design Traits of Residential Community Golf Courses

community golf

What architects do—and don’t do—when creating residential community golf courses It’s hardly a revelation to say that golf course architects are charged with delivering attractive, compelling designs with every new course they construct. In the case of courses for residential communities, however, there are some different considerations at play. Because each development is unique, requiring […]

6 Mostly Undiscovered U.S. Golf Destinations

undiscovered

You might picture long-established centers like Scottsdale, Myrtle Beach, and Palm Springs when asked to think of a golf destination. They could obviously get by without it but, for most people—certainly LINKS subscribers, anyway—the golf is really what you go for. Or you might be imagining Bandon Dunes, Streamsong, and Sand Valley, built for no […]

The Oldest Course in Every State

oldest course

Identifying the oldest and still operating course in each of the 50 states has all the makings of a good detective story  WHAT: I thought it would be easy to identify the oldest golf course in each state. Silly me. The first step was defining what we were looking for, which is a course that […]

Nine Must-Play 9-Hole Courses

9-hole

According to the National Golf Foundation, there are nearly 15,000 golf facilities in the United States, with 9-hole courses accounting for more than a quarter of that total. Yet, 9-hole courses get little love. Nobody trumpets its “Championship 9-hole course.” Still, 9-holers definitely deserve more respect. After all, the very first U.S. Open in 1895 […]

10 of the Best U.S. Courses with No Water

no water

Ask most golfers about the type of hazard that beckons most ominously during a round and there’s a good chance they’ll go with “water;” from oceans, bays, and Great Lakes to rushing rivers, tranquil streams and man-made ponds that can swallow golf balls by the thousands. At the same time, water can bring an undeniably […]