Golf Digest, or is it Golf Magazine… or maybe it is both… always coming up with their top 100 courses lists. Top 100 courses in the world. Top 100 courses in the USA. Top 100 public courses. Top 100 private courses. Top 100 courses you can play. Top 100 courses built in a leap year. Top 100 courses built before 1987. Top 100 courses built after 1987. Top 100 listings of top 100 course lists…. You get the idea.
Time For MY List
I’m not sure I’ve even played 100 courses, so I’m now setting out to do a couple of things: post my list of top 10 “favorite” courses I’ve played, and create a list of all the courses I have played.
Criteria
My criteria for these ratings is simple. First and foremost is the total “experience” at the course. High influence goes to the quality of of the golf, shot by shot. I take into account playability, course architecture, scenery, originality. From there I factor in the facilities, location, and staff. Regarding course architecture I’m not a snob like some golf writers. The course doesn’t need to have X number of redan holes, X number of dogleg-left and dogleg-right holes and all that. I consider playability, strategy, and the number of options available to play a particular hole or shot. For instance, does an approach to a particular green offer the golfer two options, high carrying shot or a run-up shot?
Drum roll please… Below is the list my top 10 favorite golf courses played, and links to the course review/photos/blogs if available.
#1: Black Mesa Golf Club – La Mesilla, New Mexico
Black Mesa Golf Club has stolen my golf heart. From the first round I played this Baxer Spann design in 2007 through the last eight years, there isn’t a course I’ve played that has given me more enjoyment. There isn’t a course I’ve played which places so much value on EVERY shot, on every hole. There are no sleeper holes. There are no boring shots. None.
Aerial Photo of New Mexico’s Black Mesa Golf Club – © 2014 by Tony Korologos
Combined with the serenity and scenery of a high New Mexico desert there is no place like it. To top it off the pro and director of golf Tom Velarde has become one of my best friends in golf, a relationship I value deeply.
The course has had some maintenance issues recently, which is tough. The staff is working hard to bring the course back to the condition it was in for the years that it was ranked the #1 course in New Mexico.
#2: Kingsbarns Golf Links – Kingsbarns, Scotland
Another course which owns a piece of my golf heart is the fabulous Kingsbarns Golf Links. Kingsbarns is a “modern links” course a short 15 minute drive from the town of St. Andrews. I could spend the rest of this month describing how beautiful this layout is, with so many waterside holes looking over the North Sea.
Look at the precision maintenance at Kingsbarns
With the standard prevailing winds this challenging links course has razor sharp teeth. Nowhere else have I been beaten up on a course and loved it so much. I fondly remember crushing a four iron to the 132 yard 8th hole, downhill. So much wind that shot, which would have normally gone some 225-230 at home, went 125 yards…. DOWNHILL! Then on the next hole, the par-5 9th, I remember debating going with 3-wood or hybrid, from 134! I went with hybrid and killed it. Nice shot, about 20 yards short.
The course architecture at Kingsbarns is fantastic. Credit designer Kyle Phillips. The facilities tremendous. The Kinsgsbarns chili is to die for. The “wee pints” are frosty.
I also have a great friend in director of golf Alan Hogg. Yes, HOGG!
#3: Carnoustie Golf Links – Carnoustie, Scotland
One of the most satisfying and amazing golf experiences I’ve ever had was playing Carnoustie Golf Links. Carnoustie is regarded by many as the toughest golf course in the world. Carnoustie is a “links” course and water is nearby, but not visible from the course. Carnoustie does not feature any notable elevation change, unless you count the elevation change between being in a bunker and out of one. Then it is huge. The bunkering on this golf course is the most amazing I’ve ever seen, or played.
Try and get this bunker shot up-and-down at Carnoustie
The layout is so enjoyable yet challenging, especially when the wind kicks up. Playing the par-5 6th hole “Hogan’s Alley” was such a thrill, and I made a hell of a bogey after my tee shot went out of bounds left. Yes, made birdie on the 2nd ball. No, I don’t play mulligans.
The layout at Carnoustie is stunning. I can’t wait to get back there. Two supposed “friends” told me (1.5 handicap) I couldn’t break 100 there and I did so easily, an 88 without losing a ball. I started off great, even par after the first five holes. The course slowly consumed my shots from that point on, and I loved every second.
Golf masochism.
#4: The Old Course – St. Andrews, Scotland
Hell of a list when the Old Course is in 4th place! Realistically the Old Course should be in its own list of one. This is the most unique golf course I’ve ever played. There is nothing like playing this layout, which has been serving up pars and birdies for over 1,400 years. The architecture of the course is so unlike anything else with it’s shared greens, amazing bunkering, criss-crossing holes, wind, weather, caddies, history. All the greatest players the game of golf has ever seen have competed on this course, from Tom Morris to Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Seve Ballesteros (except Ben Hogan)… I could go on.
Picking the ball out of the hole after holing out from 196 for par on the Road Hole
The Road Hole? What a golf hole. We have a love/hate relationship. My only par on the 17th was following an out of bounds shot that hit the Old Course Hotel observatory, an all glass building. No worries, it is bullet-proof glass. The price I had to pay for that amazing par? Nothing better then a double-bogey on the rest of my rounds on the Road Hole.
The finishing hole and I have a deeply loving relationship. In the four times I’ve played the 18th during a round of real golf* I’ve carded two pars and two birdies. Two-under lifetime!
*I have played the finishing hole a few times with a putter, a ball, golf partners, and a wee bottle of scotch at around 2 a.m.
#5: Ballyneal – Holyoke, Colorado
Back in 2006 I had the distinct opportunity to play the Tom Doak designed Ballyneal two weeks before the course officially opened. At that time my round there was the most pure, enjoyable, and amazing golf experience I’d ever had. I had not been to Scotland yet.
Tom Toak is an amazing golf architect and his product built in a set of dunes in the middle of the flat plains of central USA is tremendous. The course played like a true links, hard and fast. The routing and layout found a great path through the unique dunes situated in the middle of thousands of acres of cornfields.
Blasting out of a bunker at Ballyneal
I haven’t been back to Ballyneal since, but I’m aching to. Need to get there soon.
#6: Sand Hollow Championship Course – Hurricane, Utah
Pretty cool that one of my top 10 courses is in my home state of Utah. From my garage it is exactly a 3.5 hour drive to Sand Hollow Resort, with its Championship Course and 9-hole Links Course. I’ve spent many rounds enjoying what could be the most stunning back nine anywhere.
Sand Hollow’s 11th hole aerial shot by me
#7: Diamante Dunes – Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Diamante Dunes is rated the #1 course in Mexico, and for good reason. The Davis Love III design sits next to the confluence of the Pacific Ocean and Sea of Cortez. It sits on top of, winds through and around huge white sand dunes left there by the constant thrashing of the ocean over hundreds of thousands of years.
Diamante Dunes is the sister to the new Tiger Woods design which just opened called El Cardonal.
Diamante Dunes 16 Green
My experience at Diamante Dunes was pure golf, ocean, wind, air, and dunes. A marvelous experience. Soon (perhaps already) the holes will be lined by real estate development, high end homes and such. That purity will forever be gone, except in my memory.
#8: Balcomie Links – Crail, Scotland
A short 20-30 minute drive southeast of St. Andrews, Scotland lies the very salty and wonderful town of Crail. Crail is home to Balcomie Links, a Tom Morris design which opened in 1895.
Fantastic Balcomie Golf Links in Crail, Scotland
Balcomie Links is not about length, difficulty, or even par-72. Balcomie Links is authentic Scottish links golf and absolutely bleeds character. This is perhaps the most enjoyable walk I’ve had in Scotland.
The golf was fabulous too.
#9: La Cima Club De Golf – Andes Mountains, Colombia
One of the world’s best ski areas is a 20 minute drive from my house. The highest ski lift at Alta Ski Area dumps skiers off at 10,450 feet. Colombia’s La Cima Club De Golf’s highest green is a mere 450 feet lower, at 10,000 feet above sea level.
La Cima Club de Golf – Click to enlarge
La Cima is not an architectural masterpiece. The course is not designed by a famous designer (to my knowledge). It isn’t the home of major championships. It isn’t in the heart of Scotland, on the coast of Monterey, or in Florida. Though it is none of those things, it is truly one of the coolest golf experiences I’ve had, especially teeing off “above the clouds” and watching my ball disappear into them.
#10: Colonial Williamsburg Gold Course
Picking number 10 was tough. There are many courses which could occupy this spot, and picking one means the rest are left out. I narrowed it down to two courses, oddly enough both designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. The first option was Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico, the second, Colonial Williamsburg’s Gold Course.
When looking back at some of my experiences on so many great courses, I couldn’t help noticing my body and mind felt “it” when I came across my Colonial Williamsburg Golf Course review. What a special place.
Island Green built decades before the 17th at TPC Sawgrass
Colonial Williamsburg’s Gold Course is on nationally preserved real estate and will never be altered or developed. There will not be homes on the course, nor will there be a Red Lobster near the entrance. The Golf Course was designed by one of golf’s all time great architects Robert Trent Jones, Sr. and plays fantastically.
The whole experience at the Golden Horseshoe is a bucket list worthy item.
Honorable Mention
Gil Hanse’s home course: Applebrook in Pennsylvania. Hanse is the architect for the 2016 Olympic golf course in Rio.
Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico (Nicklaus). Best tacos of any course…
Black Lake Golf Course in northern Michigan.
Oasis Palmer Course in Mesquite, Nevada.
Ardgowan Hotel St Andrews
In the previous post I announced the gallery of images of the biggest hotel in St Andrews, the Fairmont. The Fairmont is a short drive from downtown St Andrews and from the Old Course. It is a very posh place with large rooms/suites.
On the opposite end of the spectrum is the Ardgowan Hotel, built in 1847.
Location Location Location
The key feature to the Ardgowan is its location along with a more affordable price as compared to the Fairmont or other more fancy places in the “Auld Grey Toon.” The Ardgowan is located about a 30 second walk from the 18th green and 1st tee of the Old Course, and a 20 second walk from the most famous pub in town, the Dunvegan. I’ve made that 20 second walk home from the Dunvegan at 2 a.m. on many a night. I’m guessing it was a little longer than 20 seconds, but then again I don’t really remember.
Rooms
The Ardgowan’s 29 rooms are quite small but clean. They’re so small and the stairway to get to them so tight that most golfers store their clubs in the locker behind the hotel’s front desk.
There are a few different room options which feature single or double beds.
Features
The Ardgowan features the minimum I need as a traveling golfer and nothing more: a place to store my clubs, a bed, a bathroom, a desk with wireless internet connection (for emailing pictures of the Old Course back home to my jealous friends), and a pub/restaurant in the basement (see first image).
Top Floor?
I have to share a slightly embarrassing and funny story. One of my stays at the Ardgowan was in the top floor in a single-bed room. The architecture of the building is that of a Georgian townhouse, and most buildings on North Street share the same slanted roof style. The top floor room is basically in the attic, so part of the room “features” a slanted ceiling (see image below).
Ardgowan Hotel Room – St Andrews, Scotland
In the wee hours of the morning and after a few too many wee pints at the Dunvegan, I had the sudden need to get to the bathroom and quick. An urgent need, if you catch my drift. One or two too many wee pints I suppose. When I very quickly got up from bed in the dark I didn’t realize the ceiling was slanted. I hit my head so hard getting up fast that I nearly knocked myself out.
That morning I had to cancel my tee time at the New Course and sleep off the wee pints and the cranial impact. I did however enjoy the rest of the morning exploring the St Andrews castle while my pals were off golfing.
Conclusion
The Ardgowan serves purpose and does it well. It provides a perfect lodging location within walking distance of the Old Course, New Course, Jubilee Course. Strathtyrum Course, and Eden Course. No car required and that’s a good thing. Parking in the Auld Grey Toon can be tough.
This is not the Ritz Carlton. If that’s your fancy, perhaps consider the Old Course Hotel or the Fairmont. If location is important, the Ardgowan is one of the best lodging options in St Andrews.
I’ll be posting a full review of the Fairmont Hotel in St. Andrews, Scotland soon. In preparation for that review, I’ve processed a gallery of Fairmont Hotel Scotland photos and posted in the Hooked On Golf Blog photo gallery. Click the photo below to see the full gallery.
Fairmont Hotel – St. Andrews, Scotland – As seen from the Torrance Course – click to see full gallery
The Fairmont is quite a place. Very large. The rooms are so much bigger at the Fairmont than the tiny rooms at the hotels close to the Old Course. In fact, I’d guess that my room at the Ardgowan last time was the same square footage as the bathroom in my suite at the Fairmont.
Stay tuned for my Fairmont Hotel St. Andrews review coming soon.
I’ve added some aerial photos of the nicest private golf club in Salt Lake City, “The Country Club.” The course is also known as Salt Lake Country Club.
Salt Lake Country Club
Click the photo above or the following link to see more aerial photos of The Salt Lake Country Club.
If you are interested in aerial photos or video, for golf courses or any other subject, use the contact form here to send me a note.
I’ve added a few aerial photos of Salt Lake City’s Rose Park Golf Course to the Hooked On Golf Blog photo gallery. Below is a sample, and you can click the photo to see more.
Rose Park Golf Course
Located very close to downtown Salt Lake City, Rose Park Golf Course opened in 1958. The course was deisnged by Mick Riley.
“Rosey” is not a high-end golf course, nor would I recommend it for tourists who want to play the best golf courses in northern Utah. That said, the flat layout and always high quality greens make for an enjoyable walking experience.
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