Having played both , watched tournament s at both , and think both are fabulous tests of gofl, albeit different.
Pine Valley is aerial golf at it finest, with a little bump and run thrown in for good measure (4/12/13) ....arguably the best greens in the world for their brilliant design ... it becomes exponentially difficult at stroke play for amateurs as their handicaps increase from zero (0) ....and under tournament conditions it can test the best players in the world ...as Shinnecock has certainly proven! The place has a tranquil beauty that must be seen to be appreciated
Shinnecock is a fabulous test of championship golf, it's probably a little more fun for members play on a dail y basis than Pine Valley...which can be a very good thing..It is located on one of the best pieces of land for golf in America, as evidenced by the greatness of the neighboring courses ! It is the closest thing to Ireland that I've played in the states, which is a very good thing.....After I played Shinnecock for the first time it was my favorite course , we played right before a hurricane watch in late September , the wind was blowing
the air had a crisp smell of the ocean ...and then I played Merion at its finest two weeks later...for the twentieth or so time, and was confused as to my favorite once again...
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Doesn't it beg the age old question about beauty by the way who is who is better looking, Charlize Theron,
Diane Lane, or Jessica Alba.....good luck with that one too! LOL!
Forget the clubhouse....food .....ambience .....caddies.....ac (lol) ...ease of access and all the other things that make a golf course your personal favorite.........I remember Dave Thomas ...the founder of Wendy's ...pulled me aside after his first trip to Pine Valley in the parking lot and said " Archie" what am I missing ....it's hot as hell ....there's no room service...my bed is hard (pre-cottages) and I have to share the mens room with a bunch of old fat men ...lol...he really said it ! He then said as an aside. I can't play any of these blasted holes anyway ....Dave loved golf but wasn't much of a purist or player for that matter ....sooooooooo.....isn't beauty in the eye of the beholder ?
I hate rankings but architecturally ... for our purposes here on GCA ...isn't that the top critierai for our review in this forum......can you really beat Pine Valley .... it's pretty hard to match up with the brilliance ,hole after hole of great architecture...it just doesn't have any real weaknesses ...there are no mistakes ..... no weak holes .....I don't think I have ever played a golf course that can make this claim......