The Best Holes and Courses

What is the best golf course in the world?

Alas, there is no simple answer. The top golf courses in the world are quite varied and it depends on what you value the most. The question is too simple and deserves a more compliated answer. Sometimes, it is impossible to separate the context and location of the club from the course.

Greatest Golf Courses
Sand Hills
Carnoustie
Royal County Down
Royal Portrush
Shinnecock Hills
Prairie Dunes
Crystal Downs
Merion
The National Golf Links of America
Pine Valley
Sunningdale
Woodhall Spa
Cypress Point
Camargo
Royal Melbourne(Composite)
Barnbougle Dunes
Jack's Point
Whippoorwill Club
Augusta National

The Best Views and Awe Inspiring Locations
The National Golf Links of America
Kingsbarns
Turnberry
Pebble Beach
Sand Hills
Bandon Dunes
Pacific Dunes
Royal County Down
Old Head
Loch Lomond
Kawana
Cypress Point
Kauri Cliffs
Cape Kidnappers
Jack's Point
Augusta National

The Most Historic
The Old Course at St. Andrews
Royal Liverpool Golf Club
Royal St. George's
Prestwick
North Berwick
Merion The
National Golf Links of America
Garden City
Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers)
Augusta National

A Unique Experience, you will remember for a long time
Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers)
Fishers Island
Cruden Bay
Durban
Shadow Creek
Yeamans Hall
Pine Valley
The National Golf Links of America
Morfontaine
Cypress Point
Augusta National

Special Places
Sunningdale
Woodhall Spa
Yeamans Hall
Merion
Maidstone
The National Golf Links of America
San Francisco Golf Club
Los Angeles Country Club
Morfontaine
Cypress Point
Camargo Club
Somerset Hills
Augusta National

Clubs I would want to join
Maidstone
San Francisco Golf Club
Royal Liverpool Golf Club
Sunningdale
Yeamans Hall
Somerset Hills
Camargo Club
Shoreacres
The Links Club

These clubs combine a world-class golf course, a unique and intimate club with great history and are just a bit understated. They also have what the french call a je ne sais quais - that certain something that is hard to put your finger on.

The best hotels I stayed at on the quest
Udny Arms (Cruden Bay)
Dower House Hotel (Woodhall Spa)
Lochgreen House (Royal Troon & Loch Lomond)
Greywalls (Muirfield)
Charleston Place (Yeamans Hall)
Four Seasons George V (Morfontaine)
Westin Valencia (El Saler)
Westin Sydney (New South Wales)
Sea Island Resort (Ocean Forest)
88 Lodge (Kauri Cliffs)
The Marriott Courtyard (Augusta, Georgia)

The Hardest Courses
Pine Valley
Bethpage Black
Olympic (Lake)
Royal County Down
Oakmont
Naruo

The Best Clubhouses

Rossdhu House - Loch Lomond, most grandeouse
Garden City - A museum
National Golf Links of America - Like a London gentleman's club
Morfontaine - Cozy french hunting lodge
Camargo - understated elegance
Shoreacres - Up on a bluff overlooking the lake, classy and classic
Seminole - Pink, just like my favorite shorts
Oakmont - Golf mecca, old-style, old world charm
Augusta National - the former plantation house has no equals

The Best Caddies
Carnoustie
Augusta

The Best Driving Range
Augusta National
Kauri Cliffs

Best Conditioned Greens
Augusta National
Winged Foot
Carnoustie
Peachtree
Camargo

Best Food Along the Way
In-and-Out Burger (California)
Lobster lunch (National Golf Links of America)
Best golf lunch (Royal St. George's and Prestwick)
Sticky Toffee Pudding (Udny Arms near Cruden Bay)
Sip 'N Soda (Breakfast, before Shinnecock or National. Great local scene and cash only!)
Ginger Snaps with Peanut Butter (Somerset Hills)
Graeters ice cream, since 1870 (Camargo)

Favorite Courses
Augusta National
National Golf Links of America
Camargo
Carnoustie
Cruden Bay
Cypress Point
Jack's Point
Loch Lomond
Los Angeles Country Club
Maidstone
Merion
North Berwick
Sunningdale
Royal Adelaide
Royal County Down
Royal Portrush
Royal Liverpool (Hoylake)
Royal St. George's (Sandwich)
Sand Hills
Shoreacres
Somerset Hills
Whippoorwill Club
Woodhall Spa
Yeamans Hall

The Best Holes I've Played
Aronimink #1 (a donald ross gem, one of the best starting holes)
Augusta National #11 (the start of Amen corner, water left)
Augusta National #12 (155  yards over Rae's Creek, narrow green)
Augusta National #13 (the single best golf hole in the world?)
Baltimore Five Farms #14 (a brilliant Tillinghast par five on great terrain)
Barnbougle Dunes #4 (the greatest short par four in the world)
Bethpage Black #4 (could be the single best hole in the world)
Bethpage Black #15 (could be the hardest uphill hole in the world)
Camargo #11 (a "short" prototype hole has Raynor at his best)
Cape Kidnappers #15 (a par five with balls, built on a cliff, gets progressively narrower)
Carnoustie #17 (watch the burn, a harder hole than #18)
Chantilly Veneuil #17 (Simpson´s magic par three in the valley)
Chicago Golf #12 ("Punchbowl", tee shot over hill, uphill to punchbowl green)
Cruden Bay #15 ("Blin' Dunt", blind, dog-leg par 3, have to see it to believe it)
Crystal Downs #7 (Mackenzie gem, tree in the middle of fairway)
Cypress Point #14 (sharp dogleg right, up the hill through the Cypress trees)
Cypress Point #15 (the sexiest hole in golf, par 3 in an alcove)
Cypress Point #16 (the most famous par three in golf, 200+ carry over water)
Cypress Point #17 (tee off on top of the headlands over water, 2nd shot over trees)
Durban #3 (a par five in a valley surrounded by bush)
Fishers Island #4 ("Punchbowl" that is out of this world!)
Fishers Island #5 ("Biarritz", demanding par three. A "big" little hole)
Forsgate #8 (world-class par five by "Steamshovel Banks", long and hard)
Highlands Links #7 (par five set in a tree lined rolling valley with moguls)
Hirono #14 (a par four so hard that it has its own escalator)
Hirono #15 (par five with three distinctive fairway areas between ravines)
Honors Course #12 (Short Pete Dye par 4 with tree blocking approach, small green)
Inverness #7 (Downhill-Uphill, par 4 with a snaking burn)
Jack's Point #15 (Over a sheep paddock and stone wall, up the hill)
Kawana #15 (par five along the Pacific; as good as any hole at Pebble Beach)
Kingsbarns #6 (spectacular drive-able par four over the gully, down the hill)
Kingsbarns #12 (world class par 5 along the ocean with Pebble Beach views)
Lahinch #6 ("Dell", blind par 3 anyone?)
Los Angeles Country Club #6 (short downhill par four with a tough to hit green)
Los Angeles Country Club #8 (a true three shot par five over the barranca)
Maidstone #8 (ok, so I like blind par threes!)
Maidstone #9 (between the dunes and the ocean, not one weak thing about the hole)
Maidstone #14 (within the dunes, finest one shot hole in the world?)
Merion #1 (pressure from the lunch crowd, great scene)
Merion #11 (the hole Bobby Jones won the grand slam on)
Mid-Ocean #5 ("Cape", impossible to hit the fairway into the wind)
Morfontaine Valliere #3 (short par four with risk, heather and magic)
Morfontaine Valliere #4 (downhill par three in a sea of heather and fern)
Muirfield Village #5 (fantastic five with multiple paths to water fronted green)
Muirfield Village #11 (downhill par five, thread your shots to the tough green)
Myopia Hunt Club #18 (what a finishing hole should be)
National Golf Links #3 ("Alps". Better than the original, ring the bell!)
National Golf Links #16 ("Punchbowl", up the hill, into the bowl)
National Golf Links #17 ("Peconic". Play it once before you die!)
Naruo Golf Club #8 (Double dog leg left, sweeping semicircle, Alison gem)
New South Wales #5 (best use of a hill to create blind tee shot, dramatic finish)
North Berwick #15 (the original Redan, magical place)
Pebble Beach #18 (sometimes the hype is true, certainly true here)
Pine Valley #2 (deceptively narrow fairway, hugh upill second shot, severe green)
Pine Valley #5 (A heroic par three)
Pine Valley #7 (Hell's Half Acre, strong par five)
Pine Valley #10 ("Devil's Ass H---". Avoid the front bunker!)
Plainfield #17 (Now that's a dog-leg right, up the hill, need to think)
Prairie Dunes #8 (uphill all the way, wavy fairways)
Prairie Dunes #12 (Cottonwood tree sentinals force a low shot to a hard green)
Prestwick #1 (we know it's short, but the history and railroad make it ideal)
Prestwick #17 (the original Alps hole, wicked hard par four, par is like birdie)
Riviera #10 (who says a short par 4 can't be challenging?)
Riviera #18 (Challenging, long and a true championship finisher)
Royal Adelaide #3 (drivable par four with a small green in a bowl)
Royal Adelaide #13 (blind tee shot, ampihtheatre green across wasteland)
Royal Liverpool #3, previously #1 (O.B. right, no bunkers, 90° dogleg right)
Royal Melbourne #6 (classic Mackenzie risk-reward par four with elevated green)
Royal Melbourne #10 (short par four up a hill with a gigantic bunker protecting)
Royal St. Georges #4 (world class bunker, wild fairway, severe green)
Royal St. Georges #8 (par 4, super contouring around the green)
Royal St. Georges #14 (par 5, O.B. right, strategic bunkering on approach)
Royal County Down #9 (one of the most scenic par 4s)
Royal Troon #8 ("Postage Stamp", much harder than it looks)
Sand Hills #8 (short par 4 with great risk/reward)
Sand Hills #14 (short 5 with great risk/reward and a severe front/back green)
Sea Island Seaside Course #4 (now that is a dog-leg. So sharp you can cut yourself)
Sebonack #2 (between the Elms, through the sand and up the hill)
Shoreacres #11 (carry the massive ravine on your tee shot and to the green
Shoreacres #12 (another classic rendition of a "Short" Raynor hole)
Somerset Hills #15 ("Happy Valley", the name says it all, great par 4)
Sypglass Hill #2 ("Billy Bones", risk-reward par four with view of Monterey Bay)
St. Andrews Old #17 ("The Road Hole". Par is a great score here)
Sunningdale #6 (the best use of cross-bunkering to be found)
Sunningdale #7 (blind, dogleg, elevated green, scenic, near perfection!)
Sunningdale #10 (one of the prettiest courses anywhere, hit down into the valley)
The Country Club #11 ("Himalayas", hit between the rock & canyon on this par 5)
Valderrama #10 (Dogleg around the cork tree with no margin for error)
Whippoorwill Club #6 (downhill par five with humps routed through rocks, horseshoe green)
Whippoorwill Club #14 (par four and half, two ways to the elevated green)
Winged Foot West #10 ("Pulpit", Tillinghast excelled at par 3s)
Winged Foot East #13 ("Cameo", a quintessential Tillinghast hole)
Woodhall Spa #16 (who says short par 4s are easy?)
Yeamans Hall #1 (one of the best and most interesting greens in the world)

Favorite Architects
Charles Blair MacDonald
Willie Park, Jr.
H.S. Colt
Tom Simpson
Seth Raynor
Perry Maxwell
Charles Alison
Alister Mackenzie

Under Rated Courses
National Golf Links of America
Carnoustie
Cruden Bay
Sunningdale (Old)
Kingsbarns
Bandon Dunes
Winged Foot (East)
Royal Liverpool (Hoylake)
Kawana (Fuji)
Naruo
Valderrama
Camargo

Over-Rated Courses
Medinah #3
Royal Troon (Old)
Oak Hill (East)
Royal Birkdale
Ocean Forest
Wentworth (West)
East Lake

Courses that Should be on the List
Jack's Point, Queenstown, New Zealand
Myopia Hunt Club, Hamilton, Mass.
North Berwick, Scotland
Old Head, Kinsale, Ireland
Prestwick, Scotland
Sebonack, New York
Whippoorwill Club, Armonk, New York
Chantilly, France

Best Opening Holes
Merion
Prestwick
St. Enodoc
Spyglass Hill holes 1 through 4
Highlands Links holes 1 through 8

Best Finishing Holes

Carnoustie holes 16 through 18
National Golf Links 16 through 18

Worth the trip

The Playboy mansion off the 13th green at Los Angeles Country Club
Monkeys on the course at Durban Country Club
Nude sunbathing on an adjacent beach at El Saler
Outside traction system for clubs and escalators for players add to Naruo's allure
Standing on the first tee at the Old Course at St. Andrews
The 19th century and regal feel of Myopia Hunt Club, especially when the riders are out
Traveling to Tasmania to play Barnbougle Dunes
Visiting the South Island of New Zealand, Queenstown and Jack's Point

Best Entry Drives
Augusta National
Cape Kidnappers
Morfontaine
Yeamans Hall
Sand Hills
Kauri Cliffs

Best Halfway Houses
Pine Valley
Sunningdale
Maidstone
National Golf Links of America

Hardest Walks
Bethpage Black
Highlands Links
Naruo
New South Wales
Olympic
Wentworth West

Best Walks - "Wow" moments
Augusta National - Driving down Magnolia Lane
Augusta National - Approach Rae's Creek on the 11th hole
Augusta National - 12th tee to 12th green over Hogan bridge
Augusta National - 13th tee to 13th fairway over Nelson bridge
Cypress Point from 14th green to 15th tee
Cypress Point from 15th green to 16th tee
Barnbougle Dunes from 4th green to 5th tee
Royal County Down, up the 9th fairway
National Golf Links from 16th green to 17th tee
Friar's Head from the 14th green to 15th tee up the "Stairway to Heaven"
St. Andrews across the Swilcan Bridge and up the 18th
Kauri Cliffs from the 7th green to the 8th tee
Jack's Point up the the fifth fairway to the green
Walking over the hill and seeing the 4th Punchbowl green at Fishers Island
12th green to 13th tee half mile walk along the river at Highlands Links
Walking up and over the hill to the first green at St. Enodoc

Best Rituals
Muirfield's pomp, lunch and alternate shot afternoon Lunch after nine holes
Bath after round, Japanese Golf (Naruo and Hirono)
Sand Hills overnight stay in the middle of nowhere