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 […]
10 U.S. Golf Holes with the Most “Water Balls”
Who among us hasn’t stepped up to a take a shot, made a quick hazard assessment after surveying the landscape (or waterscape) in front of them, and then pulled a different ball out of our golf bag to play? And how often did that beat-up ball we resigned to losing end up in a watery […]
The 10 Most Influential American Golf Courses You Can Play
If you’re seeking the best of the best and don’t have private club access, here are the top 10 influential American golf courses you can play.
18 of the Best Dogleg Holes
It would be a gross overgeneralization to say all straight golf holes are boring. The Old Course at St. Andrews has a lot of straight or straight-ish holes, but thanks to a combination of tantalizing fairway/green contours, bothersome bunkers that really are best-avoided, firm ground, and an ancient stone bridge, there’s not a single hole […]
The 10 Best Trios of Closing Holes
Frequently, the 18th hole is a course’s grand statement, the big finish that settles all bets and creates lasting memories. On occasion, however, it’s the 17th hole that steals the show. Rarer still is when a great 16th hole kicks off an outstanding homestretch, making for a truly unforgettable conclusion to the round. To find […]
The 5 Greatest Moments of the PLAYERS Championship in the TaylorMade Era
Amid the pressure of competing to capture golf’s most coveted trophies, it’s easy to see why the game’s biggest stages yield the most compelling memories. While tradition, glory, and lore have come to define these historic moments, many of the iconic images that continue to resonate with fans have occurred since 1979, the year TaylorMade […]
10 Courses with Back-to-Back Par Fives
Much of the time, par fives are polarizing golf holes. Some players step on the tee with confidence, expecting to be on the green in regulation, often with a makeable putt. Others tee it up feeling as if they’re miles away from the flag. Not unlike layouts with back-to-back par threes, courses that feature consecutive […]
12 of Golf’s Scariest Watery Graves
Whether you call them water hazards or penalty areas, golf’s lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans often become final resting places for our errant shots. You can recover from deep rough or a bunker. But there’s no coming back from a water hazard unless it’s a very shallow one and you’re feeling especially courageous. Here’s a […]
Pete Dye’s 9 Scariest Holes
Tiger Woods once asked me, “Has anybody ever built harder courses than Pete Dye?” I replied, “Nobody has ever built courses that are more visually intimidating than Pete Dye.” Tiger shot back, “Exactly.” Indeed, Dye himself stated, “My overall philosophy is to make the hole appear more difficult than it really is.” In reality, Pete […]
Great Public Golf Spots in Northern Florida
As his follow-up to building Michael Jordan’s exclusive Grove XXIII course, architect Bobby Weed designed an innovative and environmentally sensitive course called Stillwater outside Jacksonville that opened in 2022. The 18-hole layout features a unique and versatile routing that can also be played in loops of 3, 6, 9, and 12 holes. There’s no rough, […]
