World's Top 100 Courses 2010

the world’s

top 100 courses 2010

WhAt mAKes A greAt course?

The ingredients that must go into a Top 100 venue

tom doAK on his best WorK

The top designer reveals his British inspiration

compiled by experts/ All the info you need / stunning photos

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

89

TPC Sawgrass (Stadium)

86

Noordwijkse

Ponte Vedra, Florida Par/length: 72/7,215 yards

TEL: 001 904 273 3235 WEBSITE: www.tpc.com/sawgrass GREEN FEE: From £330 (with overnight stay) DESIGNER: Pete Dye (1980) DESCRIPTION: Early in 2006, after the final putt fell at the Players Championship, work began to make TPC Sawgrass play the way Pete Dye had always intended.

Greens were revamped, bunkers were deepened, dead trees replaced, and a drainage system installed. The result is a firmer, faster and fairer course.

Leiden, Holland Par/length: 72/6,908 yards

MY FAvouRiTe CouRSe (uSA)

TEL: 0031 252 373 761 WEBSITE: www.noordwijksegolfclub.nl GREEN FEE: £110 DESIGNER: Frank Pennink (1972) DESCRIPTION: One of Holland’s hidden links, along with the likes of Kennemer and The Hague, this is a wonderful layout. Like Formby, it combines holes running through dunes and pine woods. The Dutch Open was held here nine times.

88

PGA Catalunya (Stadium)

85

The Berkshire Red

83

Royal Adelaide

Girona, Spain Par/length: 72/7,204 yards

TEL: 0034 972 472 577 WEBSITE: www.pgacatalunya.com GREEN FEE: £70-£110 DESIGNER: Angel Gallardo/Neil Coles (1999) DESCRIPTION: Popular with pros at last year’s Spanish Open, some suggested it was a future Ryder Cup venue. The manicured, tree-lined fairways open up to reveal numerous water features and views of the Pyrenees. Golf World’s No.7 ranked course in mainland Europe.

Ascot, Berkshire Par/length: 72/6,452 yards

TEL: 01344 621 495 WEBSITE: www.theberkshire.co.uk GREEN FEE: £100-£125 DESIGNER: Herbert Fowler (1928) DESCRIPTION: A renovation project to clear trees and restore heather is paying dividends at this classic heathland course. Slopes, streams and swales affect many shots and Fowler’s ability to blend the course into the natural surroundings is staggering.

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87

Prestwick

84

Royal Zoute

82

North Berwick

Prestwick, Ayrshire Par/length: 71/6,544 yards

TEL: 01292 671 020 WEBSITE: www.prestwickgc.co.uk GREEN FEE: £120-£145 DESIGNER: Old Tom Morris (1851) DESCRIPTION: A big year for Prestwick, which celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first Open played over these links in 1860. The course itself has changed little since then; blind shots, huge bunkers, dog-legs, penal rough… when we invited Geoff Ogilvy for a round here last year he loved the place.

Cadiespad, Belgium Par/length: 72/6,749 yards

TEL: 0032 50 601 227 WEBSITE: www.zoute.be GREEN FEE: £85 DESIGNER: Lt Col Allen (1940s) DESCRIPTION: Created inland amid a landscape of pine, hawthorn hedges, silver birch and poplar trees, Zoute’s Championship course has hosted many Tour events, and winners here have included the classy quartet of Clarke, Faldo, Karlsson and Westwood.

Trevor immelman

Augusta National

Padraig Harrington Augusta National

Retief Goosen

Augusta National

Jim Furyk

Olympia Fields Country Club

Tiger Woods

Augusta National

Phil Mickelson

Whisper Rock

vijay Singh

Augusta National

Geoff ogilvy

Cypress Point

Mike Weir

Augusta National

Findon, South Australia Par/length: 73/7,238 yards

TEL: 0061 883 565 511 WEBSITE: www.royaladelaidegolf.com.au GREEN FEE: £120 DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie (1926) DESCRIPTION: This wonderful links looks fairly flat from the 1st tee and there’s a railway line next to it. But you soon forget that from the 2nd hole, as the hard fairways start to run through dunes, marshes, pines and swamp oaks. It has hosted nine Aussie Opens.

North Berwick, East Lothian Par/length: 71/6,458 yards

TEL: 01620 895 040 WEBSITE: www.northberwickgolfclub.com GREEN FEE: £80-£95 DESIGNER: Unknown (1832) DESCRIPTION: About as traditional a links as you will find, set on a narrow strip of land between the town and the Firth of Forth. The West Links is typified by the 17th, a short par 4 calling for an imaginative approach to a sunken green behind a wall.

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Kawana (Fuji)

78

Butler National

75

San Francisco

Kawana, Japan Par/length: 72/6,766 yards

TEL: 0081 557 451 111 WEBSITE: www.princehotels.co.jp GREEN FEE: £195 DESIGNER: CH Alison/Kinya Fujita (1936) DESCRIPTION: Two hours by train south of Tokyo, and within sight of Mount Fuji, Kawana has been dubbed the Pebble Beach of Japan. It sits on a peninsula and features very hilly fairways, many of which drop off cliffs to the Pacific. Star hole is the 470-yard par-5 15th, where the fairway falls away on the left to the sea.

Oak Brook, Illinois Par/length: 71/7,523 yards

TEL: 001 630 990 3333 WEBSITE: www.butlernational.org GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: George Fazio & Tom Fazio (1974) DESCRIPTION: Used to hold the PGA Tour’s Western Open, when it was one of the toughest courses in the calendar. A private men-only club, it’s a Midwest parkland track which features several water hazards.

Recent work has seen trees thinned out and bunkers moved and made deeper.

San Francisco, California Par/length: 71/6,828 yards

TEL: 001 415 469 4122 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: AW Tillinghast (1918) DESCRIPTION: Unlike many courses on this stretch of coast which utilise trees and shrubs to shape and contour the fairways, Tillinghast allowed the rolling land to dictate how the course looks and plays. Lots of fairway bunkers demand a good strategy.

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Spyglass Hill

77

Gleneagles Kings

74

Casa de Campo

Pebble Beach, California Par/length: 72/6,953 yards

TEL: 001 831 625 8563 WEBSITE: www.pebblebeach.com GREEN FEE: £230 DESIGNER: Robert Trent Jones (1966) DESCRIPTION: Somewhat overshadowed by its neighbours, Pebble Beach and Cypress Point, some say Spyglass is the best of the three. The first six holes in particular are stunning, rising and falling with terrific views of the Pacific and the Monterey Peninsula. From the tips it’s one of the toughest courses in the USA.

Auchterarder, Perthshire Par/length: 71/6,790 yards

TEL: 01764 662 231 WEBSITE: www.gleneagles.com GREEN FEE: £95-£155 DESIGNER: James Braid (1919) DESCRIPTION: “If heaven is as good as this, I sure hope they have some tee times left,” Lee Trevino said of the Kings. There are few more dramatic places to play than this, with pristine fairways framed by heather, gorse, firs, pines, silver birch and, of course, the dramatic moorland all around.

Casa de Campo, Dominican Republic Par/length: 72/6,989 yards

TEL: 00809 523 3333 WEBSITE: www.casadecampo.com.do GREEN FEE: £65-£100 DESIGNER: Pete Dye (1971) DESCRIPTION: Pete Dye has done some famous courses, but he says the Teeth of the Dog course is his finest. The par 3s are the stars with the 5th being the signature hole, played over the Caribbean and a beach to a green guarded by a lone tree on the right.

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79

Formby

76

West Sussex

73

Lahinch (Old)

Formby, Merseyside Par/length: 72/7,028 yards

TEL: 01704 872 164 WEBSITE: www.formbygolfclub.co.uk GREEN FEE: £100-£120 DESIGNER: Willie Park (1884) DESCRIPTION: Part of the best stretch of golfing coastline in England, Formby is an unusual mix of heathland, woodland and linksland, with ribbons of tight, short turf framed by dunes, pines and heather. It was home to the 2009 Amateur Championship, which was won by Italy’s Matteo Manassero.

Pulborough, West Sussex Par/length: 68/6,274 yards

TEL: 01798 872 563 WEBSITE: www.westsussexgolf.co.uk GREEN FEE: £70-£80 DESIGNER: Guy Campbell/Cecil Hutchison (1931) DESCRIPTION: Donald Steel said of Pulborough: “There are few lovelier places to play inland golf, on such noble terrain of heather, pine and birch; complemented by surroundings of tranquil green and distant views of the Downs that far exceed the more cloistered reaches of the famous Surrey courses.” We couldn’t agree more.

Shannon, County Clare Par/length: 72/6,950 yards

TEL: 00353 657 081 003 WEBSITE: www.lahinchgolf.com GREEN FEE: £150 DESIGNER: Old Tom Morris (1892) DESCRIPTION: “The first 10 holes at Lahinch are some of the coollest links holes I’ve ever played,” said Stewart Cink, who practised here in 2009 before winning The Open at Turnberry. Martin Hawtree oversaw a recent renovation, but Lahinch is a step back in golfing time.

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Shadow Creek Las Vegas, Nevada Par/length: 72/7,560 yards TEL: 001 702 399 7111 WEBSITE: www.shadowcreek.com GREEN FEE: MGM Mirage guests only DESIGNER: Tom Fazio (1990) DESCRIPTION: This is what you can achieve in a flat desert landscape when money is no object. It allegedly cost $40million to build 20 years ago, and is only playable by the high-rollers staying in the MGM Mirage casino hotels. It’s nothing like the usual desert golf either, with tree-lined, undulating fairways and greenery and water features everywhere. Tom Doak’s renovations last year saw new bentgrass greens added.

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The Honors Course Chattanooga, Tennessee Par/length: 72/7,260 yards

TEL: 001 423 238 9123 WEBSITE: www.honorscourse.net GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Pete Dye (1983) DESCRIPTION: Created to honour the game of amateur golf, this private club has hosted many events including the US Amateur. Pete Dye did an exceptional job here creating a balance between easy and difficult holes, and long and short ones. Another Dye characteristic is the number of lone trees in fairways, which must be navigated in order to have a clear shot.

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Ganton Scarborough, North Yorkshire Par/length: 73/6,934 yards

TEL: 01944 710 329 WEBSITE: www.gantongolfclub.com GREEN FEE: £80-£90 DESIGNER: Tom Dunn (1893) DESCRIPTION: Gary Player once said that Ganton is the only inland course worthy of holding the Open Championship. It’s not managed that, but it has hosted an illustrious roll-call of team events, including Ryder, Walker and Curtis Cups. Gorse, heather and tight heathland lies are Ganton traits, while the club is proud that its bunkers are very real hazards.

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National Golf Club of Canada Woodbridge, Ontario Par/length: 72/7,009 yards

TEL: 001 905 851 7422 WEBSITE: www.nationalgolf.ca GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: George & Tom Fazio (1976) DESCRIPTION: An exclusive men-only club which could be dubbed ‘Canada’s Augusta’. Its narrow, tree-lined fairways are immaculate, while the greens are some of the most slick and treacherous in the country. Local boy and former Masters champion Mike Weir rates it among the top three courses in North America.

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County Louth (Baltray) Drogheda, County Louth Par/length: 72/7,031 yards

TEL: 00353 419 881 530 WEBSITE: www.countylouthgolfclub.com GREEN FEE: £90 DESIGNER: Tom Simpson (1892) DESCRIPTION: County Louth – home to last year’s Irish Open, won by amateur Shane Lowry – is one of the best-kept secrets of Irish golf. Small greens and some fantastic par 3s, amid towering dunes, characterise the course. The 14th, a short par 4 of 332 yards, and the 15th, a tricky 152-yard par 3, are the only two holes that run parallel to each another.

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Cabo del Sol (Ocean Course) Cabo San Lucas, Mexico Par/length: 72/7,103 yards TEL: 001 877 703 4394 WEBSITE: www.cabodelsol.com GREEN FEE: £230 DESIGNER: Jack Nicklaus (1994) DESCRIPTION: A Nicklaus signature course which he describes as having “the three finest finishing holes in all of golf”. Among seven holes along the Baja shoreline, the 17th (pictured) is the most famous; it’s a par 3 that makes you hit over a sandy cove to reach a green perched on a granite rock with the Sea of Cortes looming in front and to the right of the green.

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Nairn

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Castle Pines

Nairn, Highlands Par/length: 72/6,721 yards

TEL: 01667 453 208 WEBSITE: www.nairngolfclub.co.uk GREEN FEE: £85 DESIGNER: Morris/Braid/Simpson (1887) DESCRIPTION: An upwards move of six places to No.25 in Golf World’s last GB&I Top 100 shows this outpost on the Moray Firth just east of Inverness is getting the recognition it deserves. As we said at the time: “If these rankings were judged on the quality of the greens, Nairn would be in the Top 10.”

Castle Rock, Colorado Par/length: 72/7,400 yards

TEL: 001 303 688 6000 WEBSITE: www.ccatcastlepines.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Jack Nicklaus (1981) DESCRIPTION: A former PGA Tour stop just south of Denver, Nicklaus plotted a recently renovated course through the ponderosa pines, with dramatic elevation changes and breathtaking views of the Rockies. The clubhouse sits on a ridge almost 7,000 feet above sea level. Because the air is so thin, shots don’t spin as much and fly lower and go further.

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Kauri Cliffs Kerikeri, New Zealand Par/length: 72/7,119 yards TEL: 0064 9407 0010 WEBSITE: www.kauricliffs.com GREEN FEE: £140-£190 DESIGNER: David Harman (2000) DESCRIPTION: In much the same way as Cape Kidnappers just down the coast, Kauri Cliffs is a blowyour-socks-off kind of course, set atop high cliffs with spectacular views. Fifteen holes overlook the Pacific, six of which play right along the cliff tops. The inland holes wind through marsh, forest and farmland. The fairways are wide, and the tee boxes (5,200 to 7,100 yards) allow you to choose your challenge depending on the strength of the inevitable wind.

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Hirono

55

Prairie Dunes

53

Morfontaine

Kobe, Japan Par/length: 72/6,925 yards

TEL: 0081 794 850 123 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Charles Alison (1932) DESCRIPTION: This parkland layout features many tree-lined fairways and heavily-bunkered green complexes. In a 1963 exhibition match Jack Nicklaus became the first man to reach the 565-yard, par-5 15th hole in two, but not many outsiders since have had a chance to duplicate the feat; it’s exceptionally private.

Hutchinson, Kansas Par/length: 70/6,708 yards

TEL: 001 620 662 7301 WEBSITE: www.prairiedunes.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Perry Maxwell (1937) DESCRIPTION: Kansas is the last place anyone would expect to find a links-style course with rolling hills reminiscent of a Scottish links. Yet that’s what’s been created here. The course was moulded from the land using 18 horses, under Maxwell’s mantra that “a course should be there, not brought there”.

Paris, France Par/length: 72/6,633 yards

TEL: 0033 344 546 827 WEBSITE: www.golfdemorfontaine.fr GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Tom Simpson (1913) DESCRIPTION: Such is the look and feel of Morfontaine, you could take a blindfolded golfer there, stand him on a tee, take the blindfold off and he’d swear blind he was in Surrey. It winds quietly through heather and pines, and, as so few people get to play it, the conditioning is immaculate. Our No.2 in Europe.

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Crystal Downs

54

Barnbougle Dunes

52

Bethpage State (Black)

Frankfort, Michigan Par/length: 70/6,518 yards

TEL: 001 231 352 7979 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie/Perry Maxwell (1931) DESCRIPTION: This course was built on a hill overlooking Lake Michigan and Crystal Lake. It’s very hilly, so uneven lies are the norm and the greens are severe… a combination which is made even tougher by numerous blind shots. Parts of it feature heather and silver birch, and are reminiscent of Walton Heath.

Bridport, Tasmania Par/length: 71/6,723 yards

TEL: 0061 36356 0094 WEBSITE: www.barnbougledunes.com.au GREEN FEE: £60 DESIGNER: Tom Doak/Mike Clayton (2004) DESCRIPTION: Those who’ve made the long trip here assure us it was worth it. The evocatively-named Barnbougle hugs the north-east coast of Tasmania, with fairways full of humps and hollows splitting wild dunes. It’s not long, but you need to plot a suitable path according to your ability; it’s very playable for all levels.

Farmingdale, New York Par/length: 71/7,366 yards

TEL: 001 516 249 4040 WEBSITE: www.nysparks.state.ny.us GREEN FEE: £66-£80 DESIGNER: AW Tillinghast (1936) DESCRIPTION: The world’s best muni? In the wake of its USGA-funded makeover by Rees Jones, to bring it up to spec for the US Open (hosted in 2002 and 2009), this gem is the brawniest parkland course in the USA. It offers the most golf for your money in America, but be prepared to sleep in your car if you want a tee time.

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Whistling Straits Sheboygan, Wisconsin Par/length: 72/7,362 yards TEL: 001 920 565 6050 WEBSITE: www.akohlerexperience.com GREEN FEE: £225 DESIGNER: Pete Dye (1998) DESCRIPTION: Billionaire bathroom supplier Herb Kohler had a dream of building a Scottish-style links on a two-mile stretch of Lake Michigan, and Pete Dye’s creation exceeded his expectations. It’s a rugged, windswept 18 which looks like it’s been transplanted from the Western Isles. Host of this year’s US PGA and a future Ryder Cup venue.

Wade Hampton Cashiers, North Carolina Par/length: 72/7,218 yards

TEL: 001 828 743 5950 WEBSITE: www.wadehamptongc.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Tom Fazio (1987) DESCRIPTION: This course is spread across a valley floor in mountain bowl, rising to 3,486 feet above sea level and surrounded by 28,000 acres of forest. It has fast, undulating greens and narrow fairways. Most holes play downhill and the elevation change is only 110 feet.

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Walton Heath Old Walton on the Hill, Surrey Par/length: 72/7,462 yards

TEL: 01737 812 060 WEBSITE: www.whgc.co.uk GREEN FEE: £115-£145 DESIGNER: Herbert Fowler (1904) DESCRIPTION: “Walton Heath is one of the true classic golf courses in the world today,” according to Ernie Els. He’s right; though it’s only a wedge from the M25, you’re secluded in an oasis of heather, gorse and birch. Every hole is memorable, with lots of strategic decisions.

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Bandon Dunes Bandon, Oregon Par/length: 72/7,212 yards

TEL: 001 541 347 4380 WEBSITE: www.bandondunesgolf.com GREEN FEE: £50-£180 DESIGNER: David McLay Kidd (1999) DESCRIPTION: Set on the shores of the Pacific, this was the first course at this resort. Though it may now be overshadowed by Tom Doak’s amazing Pacific Dunes (see No.17), Bandon is still fantastic, with a raw, linksy edge among the woods, gorse and wild grasses.

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Wentworth (West) Virginia Water, Surrey Par/length: 73/7,324 yards

TEL: 01344 842 201 WEBSITE: www.wentworthclub.com GREEN FEE: £360 DESIGNER: Harry Colt (1924) DESCRIPTION: England’s most famous course has recently undergone one of its biggest revamps yet, with Ernie Els overseeing changes on every hole, including USGA-spec greens, raised greens, many new bunkers and several new water hazards.

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Kiawah Island Ocean Course Kiawah Island, South Carolina Par/length: 72/7,296 yards

TEL: 001 843 266 4670 WEBSITE: www.kiawahresort.com GREEN FEE: £168 DESIGNER: Pete Dye (1991) DESCRIPTION: There are no prevailing winds at this Ryder Cup venue; it whips in from every direction, and an eight-club difference from day to day is not unusual.

Dye took this into account and designed two courses into one – one for an easterly wind, one for a westerly.

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Oakland Hills (South) Bloomfield Hills, Michigan Par/length: 72/7,445 yards

TEL: 001 248 433 0671 WEBSITE: www.oaklandhillscc.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Donald Ross (1917) DESCRIPTION: The South course opened in 1918 with Walter Hagen as its first head pro. Signature hole is the par-4 16th, which requires two shots up a dog-leg right fairway to reach a very small green. The last five holes are known as the ‘fearsome fivesome’.

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Medinah (No.3) Medinah, Illinois Par/length: 72/7,508 yards

TEL: 001 630 773 170 WEBSITE: www.medinahcc.org GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Tom Bendelow (1928) DESCRIPTION: This Major championship course is one of three on the property, and hosted three US Opens and two US PGAs. The holes have been carved out of a forest and have narrow, tree-lined fairways. The signature hole is the 13th, a 219-yard par 3 with a tee shot over Lake Kadijahto to a small green.

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The European Club Brittas Bay, Co Wicklow Par/length: 71/7,335 yards

TEL: 00353 404 47415 WEBSITE: www.theeuropeanclub.com GREEN FEE: £160 DESIGNER: Pat Ruddy (1992) DESCRIPTION: Like his friend Padraig Harrington (who warms up for The Open here), owner and designer Pat Ruddy is a tinkerman who is continually looking to improve his links. The last winter has seen more changes, including ‘loosening’ some of the tighter fairways and adding more pin locations on two of the par-5 greens.

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Portmarnock Old Portmarnock, Dublin Par/length: 72/7,382 yards

TEL: 00 3531 846 2968 WEBSITE: www.portmarnockgolfclub.ie GREEN FEE: £160 DESIGNER: WC Pickeman/George Ross (1893) DESCRIPTION: Located 10 miles from Dublin on a peninsula with water on three sides. No two holes play in the same direction and wind is a key factor. The eminent golf writer Bernard Darwin wrote: “I know of no greater finish in the world than that of the last five holes at Portmarnock”.

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Royal Lytham St Annes on Sea, Lancashire Par/length: Par 71/6,882 yards

TEL: 01253 643790 WEBSITE: www.royallytham.org GREEN FEE: £140-£212 DESIGNER: George Lowe Jnr (1886) DESCRIPTION: This links is unique on the Open rota in that it’s not by the sea and surrounded on all sides by houses. Yet you can feel the history as you walk around the links and the fascinating clubhouse. They’re now in the process of updating many of the holes in readiness for its 11th Open in 2012.

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The Country Club, Brookline Brookline, Massachusetts Par/length: 71/6,577 yards

TEL: 001 617 566 0240 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Willie Campbell (1895) DESCRIPTION: The first ‘country club’ in the USA, it has small greens and wide fairways, with deep bunkers and two water hazards. When the club needs a championship course, they combine different holes from the full 18 and their nine-hole layout. Site of the famous 1913 US Open, won by amateur Francis Ouimet.

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Royal St George’s Sandwich, Kent Par/length: 70/7,102 yards

TEL: 01304 613 090 WEBSITE: www.royalstgeorges.com GREEN FEE: £130 DESIGNER: Dr Laidlaw Purves (1887) DESCRIPTION: This links climbs among the dunes and epitomises old-fashioned golf, with lots of blind and semi-blind shots, impossibly deep pot bunkers and plenty of uneven lies. The first English course to hold an Open was discovered by two Scots who wanted to build a St Andrews in the south. 2011’s Open venue.

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Royal Liverpool Hoylake, Merseyside Par/length: 72/7,218 yards

TEL: 0151 632 7772 WEBSITE: www.royal-liverpool-golf.com GREEN FEE: £140 DESIGNER: Robert Chambers/George Morris (1869) DESCRIPTION: Though flatter than many Open venues (except at the far end) the layout is brimming with strategy and subtlety. Unusually, it also has out-ofbounds inside the course, and is renowned for its exacting closing stretch. After an absence of 39 years from 1967-2006, it will host The Open again in 2014.

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Ballybunion Old Co Kerry, Ireland Par/length: 72/6,542 yards

TEL: 00353 682 7146 WEBSITE: www.ballybuniongolfclub.ie GREEN FEE: £60-£160 DESIGNER: Tom Simpson (1893) DESCRIPTION: It is the sheer size and windswept feel of the dunes which leave an indelible mark on the memory. All the greats of the game have spoken in reverential terms about this classic links.

No wonder Tom Watson used to warm up for our Open here.

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Muirfield Village Dublin, Ohio Par/length: 72/7,221 yards

TEL: 001 614 889 6740 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Jack Nicklaus (1974) DESCRIPTION: During the 1966 Masters, Jack dreamt of building his own course in his home town, and seven years later it opened. Since then, it has held the classic 1987 Ryder Cup, not to mention the Memorial every year. Water comes into play on 11 holes, there are 71 bunkers and the conditioning is always immaculate.

Waterville Waterville, County Kerry Par/length: 72/7,341 yards TEL: 00353 669 474 102 WEBSITE: www.watervillegolflinks.ie GREEN FEE: £150 DESIGNER: Hackett/Mulcahy/Fazio DESCRIPTION: Extraordinary dunes sandwiched on a peninsula between the Atlantic and the estuary of the River Inny, the 100-year-old links have been enhanced recently by some impressive alterations by Tom Fazio.

Waterville has always been one of Ireland’s purest links. No wonder Tiger Woods, Payne Stewart, David Duval, Mark O’Meara et al used to make a point of playing here before The Open.

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Les Bordes Orleans, France Par/length: 72/7,008 yards TEL: 0033 254 877 861 WEBSITE: www.lesbordes.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Robert von Hagge (1986) DESCRIPTION: Recent investment has meant von Hagge’s masterpiece has got its teeth back. This is a wonderfully serene corner of the Loire valley, and the conditioning of the course is exceptional. Imagine a cross between a heathland course and Sawgrass and you get the picture; railway sleepers front many of the greens.

Kingsbarns Kingsbarns, Fife Par/length: 72/7,129 yards

TEL: 01334 460 860 WEBSITE: www.kingsbarns.com GREEN FEE: £165 DESIGNER: Kyle Phillips (2000) DESCRIPTION: After Sir Michael Bonallack made his “it has to be seen to be believed” remarks just after it opened, the legacy of the course was assured. It is a remarkable design from a flat, uninspiring site; and has rightly been described as Scotland’s answer to Pebble.

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Sunningdale Old Sunningdale, Berkshire Par/length: 70/6,627 yards

TEL: 01344 621 681 WEBSITE: www.sunningdale-golfclub.co.uk GREEN FEE: £190 DESIGNER: Willie Park/Harry Colt (1900) DESCRIPTION: A classic heathland track framed by Scots pines and one of the finest inland layouts in Britain. Bobby Jones wished that he could take the entire course back to America; instead, he took many of the design elements and incorporated them into Augusta National.

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Royal Dornoch

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TEL: 001 631 283 0559 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Charles Blair Macdonald (1908) DESCRIPTION: Windmills, punchbowl greens, blind shots, ponds and 365 bunkers, Macdonald built many of the holes from plans of famous British holes. A very private club, right next to Shinnecock Hills.

TEL: 01862 810 219 WEBSITE: www.royaldornoch.com GREEN FEE: £95 DESIGNER: Old Tom Morris (1877) DESCRIPTION: All the greats of the game from Old Tom Morris to Tom Watson have left their mark here. It is a beautiful links, with gorse and stunning views on the front nine, before you come along the shore line on the back. It takes commitment to visit; but it’s well worth it.

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Leopard Creek

National Golf Links of America Southampton, New York Par/length: 73/6,873 yards

Chicago Golf Club Wheaton, Illinois Par/length: 70/6,574 yards

TEL: 001 630 665 2988 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Charles Macdonald (1895) DESCRIPTION: One of the five founding clubs of the USGA in 1894, Chicago was the USA’s first 18-hole course.

It is one of the most exclusive in the world, with a reputed 107 members. The links-style course features wide fairways and large greens. Uneven lies are the norm.

Dornoch, Sutherland Par/length: 70/6,595 yards

Mpumalanga, South Africa Par/length: 72/6,629 yards

TEL: 0027 137 912 000 WEBSITE: www.leopardcreek.co.za GREEN FEE: £170 DESIGNER: Gary Player (1996) DESCRIPTION: Rated as the No.1 course in the country, this Tour stop is set in the heart of the African bushveld, complete with hippos in the water hazards and giraffes on the immaculate fairways. The signature hole is the par-5 18th, with its island green.

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Oak Hill (East)

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Seminole

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Loch Lomond

Rochester, New York Par/length: 71/7,145 yards

© Golf diGEst (stEpHEN szUrlEJ)

TEL: 001 585 381 1900 WEBSITE: www.oakhillcc.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Donald Ross (1925) DESCRIPTION: A classic parkland track with tight fairways framed by large maples, oaks and other mature trees that make the landing areas narrow. The club hosted the 1956, 1968 and 1989 US Opens, and the 2003 US PGA, won by Shaun Micheel.

Juno Beach, Florida Par/length: 72/6,836 yards

TEL: 001 561 626 0280 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Donald Ross (1929) DESCRIPTION: Designed to look like a traditional links, there are few trees and many holes play alongside the Atlantic. Most of the greens and tees are elevated, as the ground is flat. One of the hardest clubs to get into; they even turned Jack Nicklaus down for membership.

Luss, Dunbartonshire Par/length: 72/7,140 yards

TEL: 01436 655 555 WEBSITE: www.lochlomond.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Tom Weiskopf/Jay Morrish (1994) DESCRIPTION: A stunning lochside location and stunning conditioning – helped by the fact that so few people play it – combine to make this one of the most prestigious private courses in the world. Extensive drainage work has improved it further.

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Cape Kidnappers Napier, New Zealand Par/length: 71/7,119 yards TEL: 0064 6875 1900 WEBSITE: www.capekidnappers.com GREEN FEE: £140 DESIGNER: Tom Doak (2004) DESCRIPTION: Built on a 5,000-acre former sheep ranch sat atop the vertical cliffs that descend into the Pacific Ocean, Cape Kidnappers has some of the most astounding views of any course on earth. It’s designed around seven long strips of land with steep drop-offs on either side. The 15th is the star hole, a 650-yard par 5 which, from the fairway, appears to fall off the edge of the planet. Doak says: “The site is not like anywhere else in golf. If it were any bigger or any more dramatic, it would probably be cordoned off as a national park.”

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Fishers Island Fishers Island, New York Par/length: 72/6,566 yards TEL: 001 631 788 7223 WEBSITE: www.fishersislandclub.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Seth Raynor/Charles Banks (1926) DESCRIPTION: This links-style course is on an island which is only two miles wide and eight miles long. The Long Island Sound comes into play on nine holes, and seven ponds are threats on the rest of the holes. Architect Tom Doak said: “I cannot deny that on a breezy summer’s day, Fishers Island is one of the most idyllic places possible for a round of golf.”

New South Wales Sydney, New South Wales Par/length: 72/6,511 yards

TEL: 0061 296 614 455 WEBSITE: www.nswgolfclub.com.au GREEN FEE: On application DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie (1926) DESCRIPTION: MacKenzie said that with the exception of Cypress Point he knew of no other course in the world with views as beautiful as this. The character of the course is unique, a links set among the hills and valleys that hug the Pacific coastline near Botany Bay. With water on three sides, wind is always a factor.

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Pinehurst No.2 Pinehurst, North Carolina Par/length: 72/7,335 yards

TEL: 001 910 295 6811 WEBSITE: www.pinehurst.com GREEN FEE: £180, but many deals DESIGNER: Donald Ross (1907) DESCRIPTION: It’s been said that you can land a jumbo on the fairways without dislodging a pine cone, but it’s one of the toughest courses from 50 yards in, with its upturned-bowl greens. Due to host the mens’ and womens’ US Opens in consecutive weeks in 2014, so Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore are in for a renovation.

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Woodhall Spa Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire Par/length: 73/7,080 yards

TEL: 01526 352 511 WEBSITE: www.woodhallspagolf.com GREEN FEE: £120 DESIGNER: Stafford Vere Hotchkin (1896) DESCRIPTION: Quite simply, heathland golf at its very best. Set in a deep forest, in flat, rural Lincolnshire, it is a heady mixture of heather, pines, silver birches, gorse and broom. The bunkering is quite exquisite, wonderfully strategic, and good, old-fashioned traps which are both very deep and have very steep faces.

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Mamaroneck, New York Par/length: 72/7,258 yards

TEL: 001 914 381 5821 WEBSITE: www.wfgc.org GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: AW Tillinghast (1923) DESCRIPTION: Tillinghast’s famous pear-shaped bunkers (narrow at the front, wide at the back) which often have drop-off areas and big undulations provide much of the challenge. He said the 10th hole was the best hole he ever built. Six Majors (five US Opens and one US PGA) add to the mystique of the place.

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royal Portrush County Antrim, Northern Ireland Par/length: 73/6,867 yards

TEL: 028 7082 2311 WEBSITE: www.royalportrushgolfclub.com GREEN FEE: £140 DESIGNER: Harry Colt (1888) DESCRIPTION: The only Irish course to have held an Open, this was Colt’s favourite design, and he had Pine Valley and Sunningdale on his portfolio. Fierce rough and small greens give it teeth; and the views over the Giant’s Causeway and Dunluce Castle make it hugely memorable.

Padraig harrington 5th, Pebble Beach

retief Goosen

12th, Augusta National

Jim Furyk

15th, Augusta National

tiger Woods

16th, Cypress Point

Phil Mickelson

12th, Augusta National

vijay singh

18th, Pebble Beach

Geoff ogilvy

13th, Augusta National

Mike Weir

8th, Pebble Beach

© Golf diGest (stepHen szurlej)

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Winged Foot

MY Favourite hole (usa)

trevor immelman

12th, Augusta National

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Pacific Dunes Bandon, Oregon Par/length: 71/6,633 yards TEL: 001 888 345 6008 WEBSITE: www.bandondunesgolf.com GREEN FEE: £65-£180 DESIGNER: Tom Doak (2001) DESCRIPTION: The best of the quartet of great courses right on the Oregon coastline; this one opened less than 10 years ago, and yet is well worth its place. Rippling fairways and very natural bunkers give this beautifully conditioned course a wonderfully rugged and natural feel; and it is refreshingly not overly long so raw power is not the answer.

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Carnoustie

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Muirfield

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Merion

Carnoustie, Angus Par/length: 72/6,941 yards

Kingston Heath Melbourne, Australia Par/length: 72/6,987 yards TEL: 0061 385 582 700 WEBSITE: www.kingstonheath.com GREEN FEE: £200 DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie (1928) DESCRIPTION: In the heart of the famous sandbelt, this classic layout is renowned for the amazingly natural looking, deep bunkers (which MacKenzie was responsible for). Invariably immaculate, it is better to be on the billiard table-smooth fairways than in the tea trees, marram grass or sandy hollows.

TEL: 01241 802 270 WEBSITE: www.carnoustiegolflinks.co.uk GREEN FEE: £130 DESIGNER: Robertson/Morris/Braid (1839) DESCRIPTION: Martin Hawtree’s improvements have underlined what an outstanding layout this course is and it’s no wonder it has held seven Opens. The variety of different holes and the Barry Burn wriggling about at the climax make the experience unforgettable.

Edinburgh, Lothian Par/length: 70/7,034 yards

TEL: 01620 842 123 WEBSITE: www.muirfield.org.uk GREEN FEE: £105-£185 DESIGNER: Harry Colt (1925) DESCRIPTION: The fairness of the design is what sticks in the memory, and the bunkering is clever and thought-provoking. You often have to land the ball well short of the greens to get close to flags; and with no hole more than a couple of holes from the clubhouse, the site for the 2013 Open is far from a traditional links.

Ardmore, Pennsylvania Par/length: 70/6,846 yards

TEL: 001 610 642 5600 WEBSITE: www.meriongolfclub.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Hugh Wilson (1912) DESCRIPTION: The venue for the 2013 US Open differs from other big American courses because its green complexes are aesthetically appealing and the mounding gives this inland layout a linksy feel. Golf history (Bobby Jones’ Grand Slam, Ben Hogan’s 1-iron) coats every blade of grass.

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trevor immelman “Extreme 19th” at the Legends Golf Resort, South Africa

Favourite hole (world)

Padraig harrington

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12th, Royal Portrush

retief Goosen 9th, Sun City

Jim Furyk 8th, Troon

tiger woods 18th, St Andrews Old

Phil Mickelson 5th, Lahinch

vijay Singh 17th, St Andrews Old

Geoff ogilvy 7th, Royal Melbourne (West)

Mike weir 7th, Muirfield

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Oakmont Oakmont, Pennsylvania Par/length: 71/7,255 yards

TEL: 001 412 828 8000 WEBSITE: www.oakmont-countryclub.org GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Henry Fownes (1903) DESCRIPTION: This big, tough parkland course has hosted more Major championships than any other American course, including eight US Opens and three US PGAs. With 210 deep bunkers (including the infamous Church Pews, pictured) and hard, fast greens which slope away from the player, it is an incredibly tough test.

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The Old Course St Andrews, Fife Par/length: 72/6,721 yards

TEL: 01334 466 666 WEBSITE: www.standrews.org.uk GREEN FEE: £130 DESIGNER: Mother nature DESCRIPTION: The Home of Golf, where the game was first played 600 years ago. Many visitors still say the place is an acquired taste, and it’s true you need to play it several times before you appreciate all the nuances – like the fact that the further right you go off the tee, towards the trouble, the easier your approach to the green. But it’s a ‘must play’.

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Royal Birkdale Southport, Lancashire Par/length: 72/6,817 yards

TEL: 01704 552 020 WEBSITE: www.royalbirkdale.com GREEN FEE: £120-£195 DESIGNER: George Lowe Jnr (1889)/Fred Hawtree (1932) DESCRIPTION: One of the finest courses on the Open rota, Golf World also rates it the No.1 in England. The conditioning is immaculate, and the design makes full use of the high dunes as ribbons of fairway cut through the wild grasses, ending at some subtle, contoured greens (discounting the 17th, which was redone for the 2008 Open).

Sand Hills Mullen, Nebraska Par/length: 71/7,089 yards TEL: 001 308 546 2237 WEBSITE: www.sandhillsgolfshop.com GREEN FEE: £100 DESIGNER: Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw (1994) DESCRIPTION: This is the course which took the design pairing of Coore and Crenshaw right to the top, and convinced them to stop revamping courses and concentrate on original designs. Built for only $1.2million and opened just 16 years ago, it has made up for its lack of history with a spectacular design on duneland topography.

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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Pebble Beach Pebble Beach, California Par/length: 72/6,737 yards TEL: 001 831 624 3811 WEBSITE: www.pebblebeach.com GREEN FEE: £325 DESIGNER: Jack Neville/Douglas Grant (1919) DESCRIPTION: TV pictures from this year’s US Open will lavish attention on Pebble’s iconic closing holes, but the real magic is to be found on the front nine. The most spectacular holes are five to eight, which are on the promontory between Stillwater Cove and the Pacific. For most visitors, though, it’s about the final two holes, scene of so many major moments (Watson’s chip-in, Nicklaus’ 1-iron flag-clatter). Is it worth the stupendous green fee? Yes, just once.

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Shinnecock Hills

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Royal County Down

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RoyalMelbourne(East/West)

Southampton, New York Par/length: 70/6,781 yards

TEL: 001 631 283 3525 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: William Flynn (1931) DESCRIPTION: With the help of 150 Shinnecock Indians from the nearby reservation, a 12-hole course was constructed in 1891; Flynn’s modern incarnation was finished in 1931. The brilliant design uses the wind to its advantage; there are only two occasions where consecutive holes run in the same direction.

Newcastle, County Down Par/length: 71/7,181 yards

TEL: 02843 723 314 WEBSITE: www.royalcountydown.org GREEN FEE: £50-£180 DESIGNER: Old Tom Morris (1889) DESCRIPTION: No.2 on Golf World’s Top 100 in the UK and Ireland. Every blade is perfectly manicured, but the layout feels untouched by human hands as it snakes through heather and gorse. Against a backdrop of the Mountains of Mourne, the links stretches along the shores of Dundrum Bay, zig-zagging back and forth to provide a different view from virtually every hole.

Victoria, Australia Par/length: 72/6,984 yards

TEL: 0061 613 9598 6755 WEBSITE: www.royalmelbourne.com.au GREEN FEE: £230 DESIGNERS: Russell (1932)/MacKenzie (1926) DESCRIPTION: A sandbelt classic. There’s no water, just lots of strategically-placed bunkers and speedy, slopey greens. The East is built on less dramatic land, but its bunkering and greens are similarly stunning. A recent drought has forced many of the greens to be relaid and fairways resown.

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oPInIon

Tom doak

on what makes a great course

“Travelling Through ScoTland, england and ireland TaughT me whaT makeS a Truly greaT courSe”

W

hen most of us think of a “great” golf course we all come up with the usual suspects – St Andrews, Muirfield, Royal Melbourne, Cypress Point, Winged Foot, Pine Valley, Merion, the list goes on.

So what makes a great golf course? As yet nobody has come up with some definitive guidelines which say this is a “great” course and this is just a good one. Golf magazines list their top 100 based on level of difficulty, quality of holes, location and even historic importance.

All are equally valid, but the game is all about opinions and the answers you get depend on who you ask and what day of the week you are asking.

Take Pebble Beach for example – one of the most celebrated places to play golf anywhere on the planet. It ticks many of the boxes required in a “great” course, but opinion is always divided. A testing course in a stunning location, it has a run of holes along the Pacific Coast that consistently rank among the best in golf. But do a handful of “great” holes make it a “great” course? Some would argue not.

In my experience most players judge a course purely on how well they play it. Everything is subjective.

If they hit the ball a mile, they like a long challenging layout. If they are strong iron players they favour small greens they can attack. If they can putt, they love fast sloping greens like those at Augusta National or Pinehurst No. 2. I have yet to hear any player – tournament pro or top amateur – describe a course with narrow sloping fairways as “great” when they have struggled badly off the tee. No matter what its reputation is.

Length is also a consideration. A red flag issue at the moment, it’s generally believed that many of the world’s “great” championship courses have to be excessively long as befitting a Major venue. The same now applies to many of the courses used on the PGA Tour.

Today, anything under 7,200 yards is considered short, but this headlong drive for extra yardage is misleading. I believe what the pro game does should not really affect how we judge a great golf course. I would argue that Rye on the south coast of England is a real test of golf (at 6,474 yards) off the medal tees. The same applies to Harry Colt’s strategic masterpiece at Swinley Forest in Surrey at just over 6,000 yards! Extremely short by modern standards, I would have no hesitation in describing both of them as “great” golf courses.

Location is another key factor. With the notable exception of St Andrews most great golf courses do occupy great land. Think of Royal St George’s, Royal County Down and the sand belt area of Melbourne.

Today most people believe that it must be easier to produce a “great” golf course if the ground you have been given to work on is exceptional. In some cases, not all this is true. I have been asked to build courses on anything from swamps to former waste dumps. Every job is different and every course is a product of the land it is built on. In simple terms, the land dictates which holes go where, how long they are and what features can be incorporated into the design. I have been fortunate to work on some really cool sites in places like New Zealand (Cape Kidnappers) and the result has been hugely satisfying. But if you ask: “Is building a golf course on a great piece of property a slam dunk guarantee of building a great golf course?” Definitely not.

So what about St Andrews? Flat and uninspiring at first look, nobody could have built a better course on the land provided.

Proving that great course design was around even five centuries ago, it presses the golfer to put the ball in the right place off the tee and the right place on the green. What more can anyone ask?

As with St Andrews time also plays its part in assessing the greatness of any particular layout. All golf courses evolve and few, if any, are considered design classics right off the bat. A good example is Augusta National, which looked like a potato field when it first opened up in the early 1930s.

Thankfully opinions change and mature, including my own. In the mid-1980s I was fortunate to have spent nearly a year travelling through Scotland, England and Ireland. Exposed to some of the finest golf courses in the world it taught me a deep and lasting appreciation of what elements make up a truly “great” golf course. Back then I was a 25-year-old design student, but many of the views I hold today about course architecture were born out of that time.

Will any of my own designs be described as “great?” I will leave that decision to others. All I know is that over two decades after my first visit to the United Kingdom I am still in awe of the many wonderful courses this part of the world has to offer. n As told to Dale Concannon. With thanks to the Renaissance Club at Archerfield, East Lothian.

‘golf courSeS evolve and few, if any, are conSidered claSSicS righT off The baT’

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010 Pine Valley Pine Valley, New Jersey Par/length: 70/7,047 yards TEL: 001 856 309 3203 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: George Crump/Harry Colt (1918) DESCRIPTION: One of the mainstays of any list of the world’s best courses, this private club near Philadelphia is a series of visually intimidating islands of greens, fairways and tees surrounded by sand, scrub, rough, woodland, water and steep drop-offs. Secluded by the pines, this club is a world of its own and steeped in history.

© Golf diGest steve szurlej

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THE world’s Top 100 coursEs 2010

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Turnberry AilsA Turnberry, Ayrshire Par/length: 70/7,201 yards

TEL: 01655 334 032 WEBSITE: www.turnberry.co.uk GREEN FEE: £190 (twilight £90 from 3.10pm) DESIGNER: MacKenzie Ross (1949) DESCRIPTION: The course was showcased at its very best during last year’s Open, where TV cameras on cranes captured the setting beautifully. Most of the first 11 holes play by the sea to the lighthouse, before you turn back to face the imposing Ailsa Craig rock and the iconic white hotel. Tom Watson’s heroics last year merely cemented its reputation as Golf World’s No.1 course in Great Britain & Ireland.

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T

he shot everyone remembers is the drive on the 9th, out by the iconic lighthouse, right on the edge of a cliff, with the waves foaming and crashing below you, and a marker-stone on a hump-backed fairway to aim at.

But, there are plenty of others. The new 10th tee (built before last year’s Open) is almost as spectacular, again on a rocky clifftop above the sea. And that 10th hole (with the polo-mint bunker) was in many people’s ‘Favourite Holes in the World’, even before the new tee was built.

My personal favourite hole is the 5th,

a wonderful dog-leg left, with an amphitheatre green. There are few more glorious sights than during an Open, when the banks surrounding this green are jam-packed full of families having picnics, watching the golf.

And the finish is now a real classic, with the new 16th over that magnetic stream, the long 17th (where most of the field couldn’t even reach the fairway in the Amateur Championship a couple of years ago), and the dog-leg 18th, where everyone who plays it will now be looking down at the spot from where Tom Watson played his second shot (and his chip) and thinking they could

have done better. But it’s not just the individual holes which makes the Turnberry experience so memorable. It is the newly refurbished five-star hotel, looking down imposingly at you from the hill. It’s the granite birthday cake in the sea (otherwise known as Ailsa Craig) where gannets dive for their breakfast off the rocks, and where every curling stone in the world used to be cut from. It’s the four Opens, two of which (1977 and 2009) have been Championships which will never be forgotten. On a lazy, summer afternoon, it is very difficult to think of a better place to be. – Jock Howard n

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Cypress point Pebble Beach, California Par/length: 72/6,509 yards

TEL: 001 831 624 6444 WEBSITE: n/a GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie (1928) DESCRIPTION: Jutting out into the boiling Pacific, the par-3 16th hole at Cypress is one of the most photographed in golf. It’s also one of the most exclusive clubs in golf. Bob Hope, a doyen of the California golf circuit, once quipped: “One year they had a big membership drive at Cypress. They drove out 40 members.”

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he first question is never how was it? Or how did you play? Or even what did you shoot on 16? It’s how the hell did you manage that?

Usually followed by expletives and teeth gnashing. Fort Knox, it seems, is only marginally more inaccessible than this legendary layout.

But getting on Cypress Point is only half the fun. The course is as sensational, as intoxicating as you hope it will be, with towering trees giving way to mammoth dunes and, then, finally, the crashing ocean and a stretch of holes that has no equal in the world.

The back-to-back par 5s (five and six) are exquisite, but for sheer drama, 15

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and 16 take some beating. Two more spectacular par 3s you couldn’t find in world golf. If you think the 1st at St Andrews is nerve-wracking, try facing a 200-yard carry over the Pacific. Words, even pictures, can’t convey its majesty.

But as memorable as MacKenzie’s Monterey masterpiece is, it’s the experience of simply being there that defines any visit. Like so many great courses, it’s a low-key affair. No Ferraris in the car park, no armed guards outside, no towering fences, no grandiose clubhouse... just a quiet little place with a few hundred members and a course to die for. From the rather spartan changing rooms to the quaint lunch room with a small serving hatch

and simple menu, everything is understated.

Perhaps surprisingly, I couldn’t have been made more welcome. At this club, guests are treated as such.

The May afternoon I spent there was a little glimpse of paradise and one I‘ll never forget. Under a clear sky and gentle sun our group (five golfers, five caddies, one dog) was, quite literally, the only one on the course. After a shaky start I even managed to play well on the back nine, parring four of the last six holes - alas not the 16th - and capped it all by holing out from off the green at the last. The perfect end to a perfect day on a course that is, quite simply, perfect. – Richard Green n

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

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AugustA NAtioNAl Augusta, Georgia Par/length: 72/7,435 yards

TEL: 001 706 667 6000 WEBSITE: www.masters.com GREEN FEE: Members only DESIGNER: Alister MacKenzie/Bobby Jones (1933) DESCRIPTION: When Bobby Jones retired from golf in 1930, he and Clifford Roberts looked to build a golf club. They discovered a 365-acre former fruit nursery in Augusta, where flowering plants and trees were in abundance. Construction began in 1931, and the course opened in 1933. It hosted the Augusta National Invitation Tournament in 1934, which became the Masters in 1939. Now one of the most iconic courses in golf is, sadly, also one of the most private.

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hy is a golf course that’s impossible to play No. 1 on our list? It’s simple; no other course in the world has the same combination of shot values, design variety, resistance to scoring well, memorability, aesthetics, conditioning and ambience.

In recent years, Augusta National seemed to be falling out of fashion. The course had been stretched out to cater for technology, and the players, patrons and public didn’t like it.

Former Masters champions Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer berated the club for creating a beast they didn’t recognise. Fans moaned that the cheers

were gone from Sunday afternoons. But the risks and rewards of Amen Corner are often cited as benchmarks when judging the shot values of any course.

The greens and surrounds are among the most challenging in the game. The aesthetics and memorability are unrivalled, as the statuesque pines, blooming azaleas and dogwoods vie for a golfer’s attention with the history which can be felt with every step.

I had the good fortune to be pulled out of the annual media ballot to play the course on the Monday after the Masters in 2008. The hairs on the back of your neck stand on end as you drive down Magnolia Lane; they don’t rest again until you leave.

The difference between the Masters tees and the members’ tees is great in places – a full 100 yards on the 11th – but that takes nothing away from walking among the shadows of every great golfer ever to play the game.

There haven’t been many times on a golf course when I’ve been overwhelmed, but on walking off the 11th tee and seeing Amen Corner open out in front, I just had to stop for a couple of minutes to take it all in.

There are lots of private courses; there are lots of Major championship courses; there are lots of courses in pristine condition. But there’s only one Augusta National, and that’s why it’s our No.1 course in the world. – Chris Jones n world top 100 // june 2010

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the world’s top 100 courses 2010

the top 10 courses in this ranking doesn’t sit on largely sandy property.

The irony, of course, is that the exception is the place ranked as the world’s best course. Augusta National, rivalled only by St Andrews for the title of ‘Most Famous Golf Course’, is an outlier in many ways. The property isn’t sandy; it was, famously, a plant nursery before Bobby Jones acquired it and hired MacKenzie to turn it into his ideal course. It’s too steep, in many ways, to be perfect for golf. And, opened in 1933 at the height of the Depression, it basically represents a bookend to Sunningdale.

There are a few exceptions, such as the Black course in Bethpage State Park (No.52), built in 1936, and Prairie Dunes in Kansas (55), dating from 1937, but essentially, Augusta is the last flowering of the Golden Age. In its design, Augusta was a deliberate attempt by Jones and MacKenzie to replicate the virtues of St Andrews, their favourite course. It was wide open, and its large, massively contoured greens meant that players had to stand on the tee and, based on the location of the pin, figure out where in the expanse of fairway was the best place to put their drive. Like St Andrews, which on a calm day and with accessible flags can seem a pretty easy course to good players, Augusta was to be playable even by the hacker; but push the tees back and tuck the pins behind bunkers or close to slopes, and beware!

Thus was the home of the Masters born.

What other themes can we draw from this list? One, to my eye, is obvious: that links golf retains its allure as the game’s original and purest form. Look down the rankings, and the great links courses of Britain and Ireland are well represented, as you’d expect. But so are a number of less well-known, or newer courses. The highest-ranked post-war foundation, Sand Hills in Nebraska (14), designed in the 1990s by the team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, is essentially a links, albeit that it is more than a thousand miles from the sea; shaped by the wind over thousands of years, the dunes that make up Sand Hills could be in Ireland. And the spread of links golf around the world is also highlighted by the rankings: Tom Doak’s Barnbougle Dunes course in Tasmania (54) and Noordwijk in Holland (86), designed by Anglo-Dutch architect Frank Pennink, prove the point.

Sand Hills is, in its way, as important a course to this ranking as Sunningdale or Augusta. It heralded a revival in oldfashioned golf, and it proved that great sites for golf courses could still be found, if you looked hard enough. And, as such, it was the precursor to many of the new courses that populate this list – and a few that might break into the rankings in the future. The sister courses on the Oregon coast, Bandon Dunes and Pacific Dunes (49 and 17 respectively) couldn’t have happened without Sand Hills. Nor could the aforementioned Barnbougle, and its soon-to-open second course, Lost Farm, which Sand Hills designers Coore and Crenshaw are readying for a debut this November, and which, from a visit I made there late last year, is a certainty for top 100 consideration. Castle Stuart in Scotland, which opened last year, is another pretty remote destination course, near Inverness. And, of course, Donald Trump’s course near Aberdeen will surely be a contender, even if Mr Trump’s repeated protestations that it will be the best in the world need to be taken with a very large pinch of salt.

But for me the real excitement in the future lies further afield. Japan, represented here by Hirono (57) and Kawana (81), probably lacks the land to add significantly to its tally of top 100 courses. But the appearance, at the bottom end of the list, of Nine Bridges, located on volcanic Jeju Island in South Korea, and designed by the globetrotting team of Ron Fream, David Dale and Kevin Ramsey, heralds the arrival of a new force. Korea, with golfers aplenty and the first Asian man to win a Major, is building courses furiously. And China, the world’s most populous nation, is the game’s next superpower.

Golf in China has, up to now, been about land speculation and real estate development, but the first signs of “golf for golf’s sake” are just starting to emerge. On Hainan Island in the far south of the country, Coore and Crenshaw – them again – are building a course called Shanqin Bay on a beautiful coastal site, and other stunning properties are being made available for golf.

Will a Chinese course crack the world’s top ten in the next few years?

Don’t bet against it. n

‘links golf retains its allure as the game’s original and purest form’

Adam Lawrence is editor of Golf Course Architecture magazine (www.golfcourse architecture.net)

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THE TOP 100 COURSES IN GREAT BRITAIN & IRELAND 2010 The original and The besT gb&i ranking plus all this n ToP insTrUCTion

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48 JUNE 2010 // world top 100

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