biggest sleeper you've ever played?

[Wayne Freeman]

Glen View -  beautifully conditioned, wonderful old U.S. Open
                  course in Chicago area.
                 

Somerset-    this Raynor beauty gets overlooked with the
                  biggies in the Minneapolis area.

Kirtland-      this Colt/Alison gem outside Cleveland has some
                 of the best holes in the country on the back nine.

St. Louis-     great variety and greens, a true classic.

[Sean_A]

After all of the anti Arthur Hills sentinment I've read here, I must nominate Shepards Hollow in Clarkston, Mi.  I played holes 10-27 today and I was truly wowed. 

David

Excellent call.  Even though the course was highly touted I didn't expect much.  I was very pleasantly surprised and would certainly go back even though the course is strictly for carts.

Ciao

[Jim Nugent]

Gleneagles, in San Francisco.  

[Andrew Mitchell]

Brora - went on a trip up to Dornoch some years ago and played Brora as a warm up. We were warned in advance of going about the fences round the greens to keep the livestock off so went there expecting something equivalent to a farmer's field! To say we were pleasantly surprised is an understatement!

[Jim Franklin]

Garland -

I did not mean NGLA was a sleeper as in never hearing of it, but a sleeper in that I never imagined it to be THAT great. I thought it would be nice, but never in a million years did I think it would rival Cypress Point as my favorite course on the planet.

[John Kirk]

Tokatee in central Oregon, about 50 miles east of Eugene.  I haven't played it in 15 years, and the golf architecture probably isn't great, but it's a stunning walk in the park.  Really nice.

[Jason Blasberg]

I also have to add Cape Arundel to the list.  I played it about 5 years ago during a trip to Maine for my sister-in-law's wedding.  I had never heard of the club, had absolutely zero expectations and had an absolute blast.  

A storm rolled through, my wife and I got drenched, and we went out for the last 6 holes soaking wet when it passed.  

You know it's a fun place when the Mrs. places drenched to the bone.  

[Kenny Lee Puckett]

Charlotte Golf Links.

With a week of Charlotte C.C., Quail Hollow for the Wachovia Pro-Am, Myers Park, TPC Piper Glen, River Hills, River Run, Charlotte Golf Links was the course that I played the worst on and enjoyed the most.


Of course, it's no F.B.M.G.C., but hey, does every course aspire to be?

JWK

[Geoffrey Childs]

Two that I made sure that Ran got to see. Check his course reviews

USA- Fenway (no longer a sleeper - at least among this group)

overseas - Siloth on Solway - It blew me away and was my most pleasant surprise during an England/West coast of Scotland trip.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Didn't expect this.  Only seen 1 other reference to this course on GCA but somone must be able to identify it?  I'm going back soon with camera to check just how "great" it is.

[Thomas_Brown]

Tony - Is that Royal Belfast?  looks too green for North. Ireland

[Pete Lavallee]

Although I went to Oregon to play at Bandon, Eagle Point near Medford was a very enjoyable RTJ Jr design.

[Tom_Egan]

A few of these in relation to the time I first played them:

Sankaty Head (Mass) - 30 years ago
Tamarack (NY) - 30 years ago
Forsgate (NJ) - 30 years ago
Montclair (NJ) Nines # 2, 3 and 4
Equinox (VT) - 40 years ago
Crag Burn (NY)
Seaview (NJ) - Both courses 25 years ago
Morris County (NJ)
The Knoll (NJ)
Shawnee-on-Delaware (PA) - 45 years ago
The Country Club (OH)
Kirtland (OH)
Maketewah (OH)
Sultan's Run (IN)
Broadmoor (IN)
CC of Virginia
Colony West (FL)
Indian Creek (FL)
Tulsa CC (OK)
Walloon Lake CC (MI)
Cherokee CC (GA)
Glen Echo CC (MO)
Salishan (OR)

Some of these have become better known over the years, but at the time I first played them, they were wonderful surprises to me.

[David Kelly]

Essex County CC in West Orange, NJ.

[Tony_Muldoon]

Tony - Is that Royal Belfast?  looks too green for North. Ireland

Thomas it's Thorndon Park an unheraded Colt/Alison  course that Pat Ward Thomas called "a gem of it's kind".  I'm going there soon with my camera.

[HamiltonBHearst]

Huntington CC.  Raters have other bigger priorities on LI and in the metro area.

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