Joel:
1). How many of Pete's designs have you actually played ? If you have not played them all -- did you walk others?
2). If you had to list a top ten of what Pete has done -- based on any criteria you wish to use -- what would they be along with a short answer of why?
Matt--Until you asked this question, I never bothered to quantify the entire project in this way. Here are the answers:
There are 87 courses discussed in the book--75 of Pete's and a dozen extra of his sons, nephews and niece. (There are nearly 200 courses left OUT of the book also, other than the index. (To be fully inclusive would have required 2 more years, 300 more pages, 8 more pounds of book, an extra c-note on the cover price, and a hideous divorce on my part!)
Anyway--I digress. I played or toured (mostly played..few tours) about 85% of the Pete Dye Courses in the book, and two-thirds of the "Next Generation" courses. This was a fluid project--there were courses I traveled to and played that never made the final cut (Trump National in L.A., which was originally Pete's Ocean Trails, Harbour Trees in Indy, Robber's Row--a Pete re-design on Hilton Head, etc.) There were also some last-minute additions that Pete himself asked me to include---Va Tech, Urbana CC, to name two, which time constraints as deadline approached precluded my ability to visit.
As for your second question, I answer that in some detail, or at least attempt to, in my upcoming interview on this site..though I face the unenviable position of coming on the heels of the fantastic 2-part Sandy Tatum interview....Thanks also for the nice comments about the book!