Top 100 Courses in the U.S. and World

What do you think of the Top 100 Courses in the U.S. and World? Would you have ranked them differently? Do you think there's a course our panelists overlooked?

Comments

[Zakaria O]

Hello
You overlooked the Red Course of Royal Golf Dar Es Salam, Rabat, Morocco. It is located in natural oak forest just outside the city. It used to be Payne Stewart's favorite course as he never missed the Hassan II Golf Trophy. The golf has 45 holes and the red course is the most beautiful one.

[Richard Yeary]

Shoal Creek, Shoal Creek, Al . Always in the top 100 for the past 30 years, where are your raters. Be happy to host any of your raters.

[Kim Davis]

Highly neglected Colorado - Gregg Norman's new course up in the hills; Vail's mountains are gorgeous; Evergreen's mountains and wild life; Arrowhead's natural settings-beautiful; Fossil Trace's natural rock and beauty. Cherry Hills (63) and Castle Pines (85)???
Your panelists need to come off the "usual" and start looking for the "unique" - 63 and 85 are not really much at all and definitely not special by any means!! Look at Colorado a little closer - minutes from Denver!! A golfer's paradise...

[Tony Vaughan]

I have had the fortune to play a number of the top 100 courses in the US, Ireland, Australia and Japan. My opinion is unbiased, but few can compare with the majesty and location of the Trent Jones, Peter Thomson and Greg Norman trio of glorious design and challenge at The National on Australia's Mornington Peninsula.

[jeff fleishman]

The Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in Williamsburg, Virginia is a true Classic...the best of Robert Trent Jones and everyone agrees with his statement that the course has the "finest collection of par threes in the US". Not too long, but plenty challenging with an outstanding mix of friendly and difficult holes...natural beauty surrounds and the service levels are outstanding, as are the Williamsburg Inn and Williamsburg Lodge...a treat to play each and every time!

[Dermot]

More attention should be paid to the "hidden gems" of N W Ireland. Enniscrone, Rosses Point, Murvagh etc.

[Johnson]

I can only comment on courses in the UK so my addtions would be in Ireland( Carne, Enniscrone and Rosa penna(Sandy Hills)) and in Scotland a great course on Islay is The Machrie. I was somewhat disappointed in Machrihanish but probably because of the build up, still a nice course but not as good as The Machrie. All the great links courses are pretty much in the list but the above mentioned courses are worth the trip. If you are planning a trip to Ireland, just look at courses Eddie Hackett had a hand in and you will not be disappointed. His courses include, Ceann Sibeal, Connemara, Carne, Waterville,Enniscrone,Donegal,Rosapenna Old course. Some more of his courses should be and will be on the list as people start travelling to the remote parts of Ireland and enjoy better courses and pay less than half you would at a Tralee or Doonbeg, both great courses but not better than Carne.

[Scott Burdette]

I have been to a lot of great courses including Kiawah, Hilton Head, and Myrtle. I would nominate Ross Bridge in Birmingham Alabama as probably one of the best courses I have or will play in my life. Even though it is a very young course, it offers extremely challenging, yet fair play and great design. Hopefully Golf Digest will give it some attention it really deserves!

[Jimbo]

A few things always jump out from the Top 100 list. Year after year, the top 5 don't change. PV, Cypress, Pebble, Augusta and Shinnecock jockey for position. It was headline news when PV fell from grace to #2... Oh My! I'm not questioning the selection - Being from NY I live just an hours drive from about 15% and have been fortunate to play most if not all - I'm questioning the selectors and the process. Are you telling me that with all the advancements in agronomy, the development of turfgrasses, machinery, drainage and creativity, there's not a single designer out there with enough vision to create something that can crack the top 5? Is there something taboo about not including every course built before 1940? Coore and Creshaw are making inroads with 2 in the top 30... and Friar's Head isn't even complete. Currently they are working on no less than 5 holes. A work in progress I guess that just happens to be in the top 25. Granted, fantastic course - so will it jump another 20 pegs upon completion? That will break the big 5.Another thing that is oddly curious; the number of courses from the east - again, I'm from NY, but Baltusrol Lower in the top 30? Sure, it has the history and noted designer, but, there are at least 5 courses in NJ alone I'd rate better (Ridgewood comes to mind), never mind in the entire country. Again, I'm not questioning the selection - being in close proximity to the greatest courses in the world is nothing if not convenient. I don't know what I'd do if I had to drive an hour or more to play Black in the morning and Shinnecock in the afternoon. How does the rest of the country do it?

[Fraser]

I worked on the build of Bayonne Golf Club and no course in the world comes close to the views it has.. For those who dont know - its looks right into Manhatten! It is not a flat site like Liberty national next door where you can only see the tips of buildings from some holes-At Bayonne you can see the whole of Manhatten - All bridges and more. It is a must must play!

The best design in america i think is Augusta - best design in Scotland is Prestwick..

[Jason]

Why Pebble is still ranked above Pacific Dunes is beyond me. Pebble has plenty of weak holes, whereas Pacific is great from 1-18.

[Pete]

Only Colonial CC from the entire state of Texas? Where do you think all of the great players from Texas learn to play, in Florida or California? Why are there more voters from Japan than from Texas? Come on, there has to be at least one other great, world-class golf course in Texas.

[Cary]

Spring Creek Golf Club in Gordonsville, VA. Equal if not better than Kinloch.

[Tim]

I've been reading golf course ratings lists for a long time and I know how much they anger people and, at the same time I can only begin to imagine how hard it must be to rate over 16,000 courses in America alone.

But, do you see just a little irony in having the same people who do the ratings also do "The Most Underrated?" Most notable on that list is Lawsonia. There's no way in the world it should be left off the best public list and it's unimagineable that it was left off the "Thrifty Fifty" list. The course isn't exactly obscure; it first appeared in a top 100 list in the 1930s.

[Mark Chaplin]

Royal Cinque Ports better known as Deal in England is a sleeping giant that is under going a restoration under the skillful eye of Gordon Irvine MG.

[David]

SHOAL CREEK, VICTORIA NATIONAL... How in the world do these get left off??? It appears as though you came out with a list to be different from another famous publication. Please, Please, Please, don't put out an embarrassing list like this again.

[Daniel Johnson]

I had the pleasure of playing Diamond Creek in Banner Elk, NC this weekend and let me tell you, it was nothing short of spectacular. At just over 4,000 feet in elevation the views are unmatched and the course presented a challenge unlike any I've played. I know the course was just built in 2003 and isn't eligible for the Top 100 list yet, but it would be a shame for this course to not make it in 2009. I have played 4 or 5 Tom Fazio designs and this one is by far the best I've seen.

[Greg]

Kinloch and The Kingsley Club more than deserve to be on the U.S. list (if not the world list).

[jnf1975]

Bayonne Golf Club. There's nothing like it in the US.

[Tom Keller]

I have played many of these courses. I am surprised Les Bordes (outside Paris) is left off. Traditionally one of the best in Europe.

[Scott]

Following an update last year by Keith Foster, the Baltimore Country Club East Course at Five Farms(Tillinghast design) needs to be returned to the Golf Magazine top 100.

[MD]

I was pleased to see the European Club in the Top 100 golf courses. It's definitely one of the best courses in Europe. I played it last year in april and it was in a perfect condition. Pat Rudy and his family were great hosts.

[AL]

To not have Coeur d'Alene on this list is a joke. Ive played some of the courses on this list including Shadow Creek, Bethpage, Sawgrass, and others that dont even compare. I know that it is on the top 100 you can play in the US, but it is deffinatly worthy of Top 100 in the US or even the world

[Dale Tindall]

Best Course in the World is Old Head
makes Pebble Beach look like a day in the park.

[David Vessey]

I've played a quarter of the courses on your list so I'm always puzzled when courses like Bear Dance in Colorado or Deacon's Lodge in Minnesota or We Ko Pa in Arizona don't make it.

[frank]

Cascata in Las Vegas blows away Shadow Creek, I don't know what kind of rankings these are but Cascata has the best greens in America, not to mention you never see another group and the caddies are the best in the biz.

[greg]

The Club at Black Rock

[Larry]

The Pete Dye Course in Bridgeport, WV is an absolutely fantastic course. The beauty is amazing; the condition of the course is pristine. To me, great courses have holes that are memorable. I have played the course two times - most recently four years ago - and can remember virtually every hole. I can't say that about other course - even those on the list that I have played, i.e. Kiawah Ocean, Spyglass, etc.

[Josh McNamara]

Ellerston in NSW, Australia is ranked easily amongst the top 5 Australian courses which should put it comfortably in the world's top 100. Some reviewers say in fact that it is the best course in Australia but it is not ranked that way because of political reasons.
It is privately owned and does not have any members. Only those that are invited by the owners, the Packer family, can play and only a few hundred rounds are played there per year. Hence only a small number of the reviewers have played the course and there is a bit of resentment that the access is so tightly restricted. The now deceased Kerry Packer famously said that if there is too much pressure on him to allow people to play it he will simply bulldoze the lot.
Would like to hear if anybody on your ranking list has played it and their opinion.

[PJ]

Oak Hill at 32? In 2003 after the PGA, #1 Woods called it the toughest, fairest course he's ever played. #2 Els went one better and called it the best, toughest and fairest course he's ever played. It was #10 then, did all the other courses get that much better?

[Art Schmon]

Vijay Singh called the Shaugnessy Golf and Country Club, site of the 2006 Canadian Open (won at only 6 under par), one of the top 10 courses he had ever played. I am a member of Shaughnessy and have also been privaledged to have played a number of the courses on your top 100 list, including St. Andrews, Cypress Point, Augusta and Pebble Beach. Shaughnessy is a beatiful, fair, tough test of golf and, in my opinion belongs on your list. Just ask Vijay!

[Rob]

You all apparently haven't played Kinlock Golf Club outside of Richmond, VA. It's ranked in the low 20's in other "best courses" rankings... you should try to make your way on in '08. It will blow you away.

[Vic]

Punta Espada in Cap Cana, Dominican Republic, is a breath taking course designed by Jack Nicklaus. Did you take it into consideration? I'm sure if you had it would have been in the top 50.

[Charlie Hanger]

Joe Passov, a.k.a. Travelin' Joe, the architecture and course rankings editor for GOLF Magazine, responds to reader comments regarding GOLF Magazine's Top 100 Courses in the U.S. and the World.

Dear Greg,

While trendspotting is good fun when it comes to course design, changes to classic courses should be treated on a case-by-case basis. That's the fun of architecture and course rankings -- there are no absolutes. In Oakmont's case, the brains behind the club, William and Henry Fownes, never intended it to be a parkland design. The tree-planting took place mainly in the 1960s, in response to a perceived slap by legendary writer Herbert Warren Wind, who called the course "ugly." By removing the trees, initially a controversial move, it restored Oakmont to its early glory.

In the case of Augusta National, indeed many critics frowned at the aggressive tree-planting. Bobby Jones and Alister MacKenzie intended their design to embrace the shot values that St. Andrews' Old Course provided, with width, angles and multiple options. By any stretch, adding rows of trees and narrowing the avenues of play goes against the founders' original intent. Yet, the vast majority of our panelists apparently felt that Augusta National retains its greatness in spite of these changes. The incredible contouring, remarkable risk/reward par-5s, thrilling back nine and unbeatable inland beauty remain in place -- elements that help explain the continuing lofty status Augusta National enjoys.

Dear Jason,

Recognizing greatness in golf course architecture must include all courses, private and public. True, most of our readers will never get to play most of the courses on our Top 100, as they are members only. However, just because I'll never be able to purchase a Ferrari doesn't mean I don't like looking at them and talking about them -- and recognizing their greatness.

However, we also acknowledge that we like checking items off a list as much as anybody, with the ultimate goal of playing them all. That's why we put out a ranking every two years of the Top 100 Courses That You Can Play -- a salute to the very best public courses in the U.S. (Note: This forum does not allow for links in the comments. To see the Top 100 You Can Play, click Courses & Travel at the top of this page, and then click Top Course and Resort Rankings. The Top 100 You Can Play is the third blue button from the left at the top of the page.)

[tim]

I have played several in the top 10 and many of the top 100. There are two courses that should be on the list. Westchester CC , Harrison NY and Wannamoisett CC, Rumford RI. Westchester is a great layout and is the PGA Tour players favorite. Wannamoisett has arguably the finest greens in the entire country and is a Donald Ross gem.

[Pete]

I don't understand including courses that are private and restricted to members play only, if I can't go there and play they may as well not exist. How about a realistic top 100 of courses that everyone can play?

[Armand Lembo Jr.]

Every rating leaves off the Innisbrook Copperhead, why? To prove how wrong you are look at how it plays when the pro's play it yearly on tour at the Chrysler and now the PODS. its 5's and some of its 4's are statistically the toughest on tour. I've played both and if Seminole didn't have nostalgia the Copperhead would be #1 in Fl every year.

[Joe O'Connor]

Old Head might be the most spectacular golf course on earth. Blows away your top 10.

[Larry Pilk]

I suppose your 'judges' are East coast or West coast oriented. Try traaveling the US more. All the best are NOT on the aforenentioned coasts. Take your heads out of the sand and really check the rest of the country out, especially Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico.

[harve]

two courses... one very old and one very new; Enniscrone in NW Ireland and Mountain top in Cashiers, NC

[Phil Dawson]

Sand Ridge in Chardon, Ohio is easily in the top three in the state and yet you have several lesser courses in your top 100. Sand Ridge is a Fazio gem that is golf only, with an excellent mix of tree lined and meadow holes, conditioned better than almost anything you can play, and wonderfully challenging to all levels of player.

[James Snow]

Did you consider Bayonne Golf Club? I have not played it, but have heard it is the best new course on the East Coast.

[Mike Coates]

Mountaintop, Cashiers, NC; just finished last year by Tom Fazio. 18 magnificent mountain holes, with unsurpassed service and facilities.
Wade Hampton is now #2 in the area; just ask Mr. Fazio.

[J L Rusher]

I concur with the suggestion that The Dunes Club in Myrtle Beach deserves a closer look. This is a classic RTJ layout that continues to improve with age. Once ranked among your Top 100, recent improvements make it worthy of your (re-)consideration.

[Benjamin Jarvis]

I agree with the comment regarding Westchester CC, it is a classic layout with a mature setting. I am also interested in gathering the panelist thoughts on Wannamoisett CC in Rumford, RI. I believe this course has cracked your top 100 list in the past and believe that it warrants further consideration.

[Jason]

I just wanted to say how dissapointed I was to see this list come out, I mean how is the average golfer supposed to play 90% of these courses that you say are the best in the country/world when they are mostly private? I think a list comprising courses that the average joe could play would have been much more enjoyable to see, from my point of view anyway. I would love to play all of these courses but how am I ever supposed to do that? Thanks Golf Magazine, where is my Golf Digest?

[John Egan]

Of the (relatively few) private courses I have ever played, Westchester CC in Harrison, NY is right up there with the Winged Foot courses. A really wonderful mix of long and short holes in an old-style natural setting. In Maine, someone should play the two "ski mountain" courses: Sugarloaf in Carrabassett, and Sunday River in Newry - especially during foliage season. Breathtaking.

[Marc]

Your raters need to play The Dunes Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C. and Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in Pawleys Island, S.C. We've been going down for years to play these great courses. They deserve a look from the panel!

[greg]

Oakmont was rewarded for it's recent tree removal program, yet Augusta National wasn't penalized for it's recent misguided tree planting program. That doesn't make much sense.

[chris]

why did kapulua the plantation course get removed? this course is extremely difficult with the tradewinds and hills. it also has the beautiful pacific overlooking it as it plays host to the first tournament of the year.

[Jim Lee]

Have you seen/played Old Head, Kinsale, Ireland? Beats the hell out of Pebble Beach and Cypress Pointe combined.