[Richard Choi]

I am FAR more interested in this list than the regular list since I will most likely visit many of these courses over my golfing career. I was waiting for GD to publish the list on-line, but I got tired of waiting so I typed it up.

1   Pebble Beach Golf Links   Pebble Beach   CA
2   Pacific Dunes   Bandon   OR
3   Whistling Straits (Straits)   Haven   WI
4   The Ocean Course   Kiawah Island   SC
5   Bethpage State Park (Black)   Farmingdale   NY
6   Pinehurst Resort and Country Club   Pinehurst   NC
7   Bandon Dunes   Bandon   OR
8   Shadow Creek   North Las Vegas   NV
9   TPC Sawgrass (Stadium)   Ponte Vedra Beach   FL
10   Arcadia Bluffs Golf Course   Arcadia   MI
11   Spyglass Hills Golf Course   Pebble Beach   CA
12   The Prince Course   Princeville, Kauai   HI
13   Hourbour Town Golf Links   Hilton Head Island   SC
14   Bandon Trails   Bandon   OR
15   Tullymore Golf Course   Stanwood   MI
16   Blackwolf Run (River)   Kohler   WI
17   Karsten Creek   Stillwater   OK
18   Forest Dunes Golf Club   Roscommon   MI
19   Fallen Oak Golf Club   Saucier   MS
20   The Quarry at Giants Ridge   Biwabik   MN
21   Wolf Creek Golf Club   Mesquite   NV
22   May River Golf Club at Palmetto Bluff   Bluffton   SC
23   The Broadmoor Golf Club (East)   Colorado Springs   CO
24   The Homestead (Cascades)   Hot Springs   VA
25   Kapalua Golf Club (Plantation)   Kapalua, Maui   HI
26   Mauna Kea Golf Course   Kohala Coast   HI
27   The Golf Club at Redlands Mesa   Grand Junction   CO
28   Osprey Medows at Tamarack Resort   Donnelly   ID
29   Pasatiempo Golf Club   Santa Cruz   CA
30   Whistling Straits (Irish)   Haven   WI
31   Sea Island Golf Club (Seaside)   St. Simons Island   GA
32   Golden Horseshoe Golf Club (Gold)   Williamsburg   VA
33   The Heritage Club   Pawleys Island   SC
34   Black Lake Golf Club   Onaway   MI
35   The Challenge at Manele   Lanai City, Lanai   HI
36   The Harvester Golf Club   Rhodes   IA
37   Chambers Bay   University Place   WA
38   The Dunes Golf & Beach Club   Myrtle Beach   SC
39   The Golf Club at Cuscowilla   Eatonton   GA
40   The Classic at Madden's Resort   Brainerd   MN
41   Tidewater Golf Club & Plantation   North Myrtle Beach   SC
42   Shepherd's Hollow Golf Club (2nd/3rd)   Clarkston   MI
43   Paa-Ko Ridge Golf Club   Sandia Park   NM
44   The Ocean Course at Ginn Hammock Beach Resort   Palm Coast   FL
45   Cog Hill Golf and Country Club (No. 4)   Lemont   IL
46   World Woods Golf Club (Pine Barrens)   Brooksville   FL
47   Eagle Eye Golf Club   East Lansing   MI
48   Kiawha Island Golf Resort (Turtle Point)   Kiawah Island   SC
49   Cascata   Boulder City   NV
50   Barton Creek Resort and Country Club (Fazio Canyons)   Austin   TX
51   Pinehurst Resort and Country Club (No.    Pinehurst   NC
52   The Links at Spanish Bay   Pebble Beach   CA
53   The Links of North Dakota   Ray   ND
54   Pinehurst Resort and Country Club (No. 4)   Pinehurst   NC
55   Quarry Oaks Golf Club   Ashland   NE
56   Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club   Southern Pines   NC
57   Great River Golf Club   Milford   CT
58   Crosswater   Sunriver   OR
59   Black Mesa Golf Club   La Mesilla   NM
60   Cordevalle Golf Club   San Martin   CA
61   Circling Raven Golf Club   Worley   ID
62   Bay Harbor Golf Club (Links/Quarry)   Bay Harbor   MI
63   Belgrade Lakes Golf Club   Belgrade Lakes   ME
64   Torrey Pines Golf Course (South)   La Jolla   CA
65   Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course   Stateline   NV
66   Caledonia Golf and Fish Club   Pawleys Island   SC
67   Old Works Golf Course   Anaconda   MT
68   Nemacolin Woodlands Resort (Mystic Rock)   Farmington   PA
69   Lakewood Shores Resort (Gailes)   Oscoda   MI
70   Bay Hill Club   Orland   FL
71   PGA West (Stadium)   La Quinta   CA
72   The Legend at Giants Ridge   Biwabik   MN
73   Granite Links Golf Club (Granite/Milton)   Quincy   MA
74   TPC Deere Run   Silvis   IL
75   Coeur d'Arlene Resort Golf Club   Coeur d'Arlene   ID
76   The Tribute Golf Club   The Colony   TX
77   Grande Dunes (Resort Club)   Myrtle Beach   SC
78   Hawktree Golf Club   Bismark   ND
79   Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Ghost Creek)   North Plains   OR
80   Mattaponi Springs Golf Club   Ruther Glen   VA
81   Bulle Rock   Havre de Grace   MD
82   Tobacco Road Golf Club   Sanford   NC
83   Avalon Lakes Golf Course   Warren   OH
84   Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles   Rancho Palos Verdes   CA
85   Saratoga National Golf Club   Saratoga Springs   NY
86   Lakota Canyon Ranch Golf Club   New Castle   CO
87   La Quinta Resort & Club (Mountain)   La Quinta   CA
88   Ko'olau Golf Club   Kaneche, Oahu   HI
89   Stonewall Resort Golf Club   Roanoke   WV
90   Promontory, The Ranch Club (Dye Canyon)   Park City   UT
91   Wailea Golf Club (Gold)   Wailea, Maui   HI
92   The Club at Cordillera (Summit)   Edwards   CO
93   Branson Creek Golf Club   Hollster   MO
94   Doral Golf Resort & Spa (Blue)   Miami   FL
95   Blackwolf Run (Meadow Valleys)   Kohler   WI
96   Brefoot Resort & Golf (Fazio)   North Myrtle Beach   SC
97   Turtle Bay Resort (Palmer)   Kahuku, Oahu   HI
98   Longaberger Golf Club   Nashport   OH
99   Barefoot Resort & Golf (Dye)   North Myrtle Beach   SC
100   Robert Trent Jones Trail at Capital Hill (Judge)   Pratville   AL

A couple of interesting notes...

Osprey Meadows at Tamarack Resort debuts at 28th (wow), and promptly closes (is anyone buying the golf course at least?). There are several other courses on the list in bankruptsy.

Chambers Bay debuts at 37 (wow, Osprey Meadows must have been AWESOME!!!), no doubt getting killed on Conditioning (which will promptly do a 180' once it hosts US Open).

Count by State:

SC   11
CA   9
MI   8
HI   7
NC   5
FL   5
OR   5
CO   4
NV   4
WI   4

[Tim Leahy]

How does Cordevalle make the top 100? 
I wouldn't put it in the top 50 public courses in CA except for highest green fees.

[jonathan_becker]

You didn't have to type all that....someone posted the link a short while back. I can't remember it off hand, but Im sure it's in the first few thread pages.

[Sean Leary]

I probably need to get back to Osprey Meadows assuming it opens again.  I played there only once, and was so underwhelmed, I canceled tee times there the following two days.  When I played, many of the fairways were wet dirt as grass hadn't grown in.

Obviously the raters saw something that I didn't see.

[Jerry Kluger]

I played Pinceville - Prince and Kapalua, Plantation on the same trip and I cannot imagine how the Prince course is rated higher.  I have to believe that the rating is from many years ago and it has never been changed. 

For me, I think that Gary Player's Cougar Point on Kiawah is more interesting than Nicklaus' Turtle Point. Turtle Point has 3 holes on the ocean but they are below the dunes and not much from a design standpoint.

[Jeff_Brauer]

Oddly enough, I have played 67 of the GD top 100, but only 29 on the public list......One would think that ratio might be reversed.

[Adam Clayman]

Notable omissions;

Wild Horse - Nebraska

Lawsonia - Wisconsin

I'm shocked some of these are Public;
Bay Hill
Tullymore

Would Black Mesa be the #1 for under $100 category?

[Mike Wagner]

Am I missing something, or is Erin Hills not on here?

[jonathan_becker]

Am I missing something, or is Erin Hills not on here?

Ron Whitten helped design the course.  therefore, it won't be ranked by GD.

[Brad Fleischer]

Wow , I don't even have time to get started but man like I said don't have time to get started. This list looks pretty much like the last list. Not sure why but great river stood out oh yea I know why because it was ahead of black mesa ouch. I really try not to look at the numbers , if you make the list It usually makes me want to take a look but some on there are mind boggling with some glaring omisions.

[Michael Robin]

No Rustic Canyon??? Again?

I always thought Promontory was private. Did that change or has there always been a public access component?

[Jim Franklin]

The Quarry at Giants Ridge is outstanding and I highly recommend to anyone.

[Mike Boehm]

I take a trip to Myrtle every year, so I always pay attention to how the courses on the Grand Strand rate.  One of the biggest surprises for me is the high rating of Heritage, which according to this list, would be the #1 course in Myrtle Beach area.  Of the courses I've played in MYrtle, I would comfortably put Caledonia, True Blue (not on the list), River's Edge (not on the list), Tidewater, Barefoot Love (not on the list) and Barefoot Fazio ahead of Heritage.  I'd call Heritage a toss up with King's North and Tiger's Eye (also both not on list).  I just can't figure out what Heritage offers that a course like Caledonia doesn't offer more of...

[Mike_Cirba]

Personally, there are at least 25 courses in Myrtle Beach that I'd prefer to play than the Heritage.

In fact, some of it is so overwrought and contrived, I think it's much closer to a Doak Scale 0 than a 5.

[Andy Troeger]

Notable omissions;

Wild Horse - Nebraska

Lawsonia - Wisconsin

I'm shocked some of these are Public;
Bay Hill
Tullymore

Would Black Mesa be the #1 for under $100 category?

Paa-Ko Ridge is $99, the last time I played Tullymore it was $100 and would just miss. Pretty sure that Redlands Mesa and some of the Michigan courses are under $100 as well.

[Bill_McBride]

Oddly enough, I have played 67 of the GD top 100, but only 29 on the public list......One would think that ratio might be reversed.

You must be one of those access guys I hear about here all the time......

[David Stamm]

No Rustic Canyon??? Again?

 

Exactly, Michael. Rustic  is not even on there, yet Trump National is?? Rustic is the best public in So Cal!!! Period! I would put it top 3 publics in all of California behind only Pebble and Pasatiempo. And Pasa 18 spots behind Spyglass?? Please! What the hell are the GD raters looking at?? No Barona Creek?

[Adam Clayman]

Andy, I'm not one who thinks Paa Ko Ridge is a better GC, or has better GCA, than Black Mesa. $99? That's significantly higher than it was a few years back. 50% They must be full of themselves because of the rankings?

Clearly there are some GD panelists who take their positions seriously and attempt to study architecture, but with lists like this, the majority appear enamored with something else.

[Matt_Ward]

Four Mile Ranch in Canon City is a far better overall layout than Redlands Mesa. I mean it's not even close. I've played in the range of 13-15 Engh layouts and his evolution is in top form with FMR. Redlands Mesa is a fine layout -- it's just not as good as so many GD raters believe.

With Paa-Ko Ridge rated #43 then Black Mesa is clearly being under-appreciated even though it's rated among the top 100. In my mind, I can easily see BM being easily rated among the top 25 public courses. I can make a very solid case that it's within close proximity of being in the top 15.

The Summit at Cordillera? What a crock. Where is the love for the Greg Norman layout at Red Sky Ranch as a suitable replacement.

Saratoga National is a superb Roger Rulewich layout in NY. It's just not a top 100 layout. Frankly, beyond Bethpage Black I don't see any NY, Pennsy, NJ or NE layout being able to crack such a listing. The entire area I just mentioned is a certifiable hot bed for private courses -- not the public variety at THAT high a level in my mind.

Another comedy -- if Links of ND is rated #53 and Wild Horse doesn't even get a sniff something is terribly wrong. The reality for me would be the reverse situation.

The problem with a public listing is that without segmenting it according to price you have a listing of layouts that require a good bit of investment from those interested in playing so many of them.

[Andy Troeger]

Adam,
I didn't intend to argue which one is better again--I thought you were asking if Black Mesa was the highest ranked course on the list under $100, which its not. That's Paa-Ko's peak season weekend rate--you can get on during the week or in shoulder season for quite a bit less I would think. I haven't noticed much of a rate change in the three years since I first played it. Same as Black Mesa is something like $82 maximum, but I would think a fair bit less at other times.

There are a lot of places where my own list varies pretty significantly from the GD results.

[Chris_Blakely]

Notable omissions;

Wild Horse - Nebraska

Lawsonia - Wisconsin

I'm shocked some of these are Public;
Bay Hill
Tullymore

Would Black Mesa be the #1 for under $100 category?

Why are you shocked that Tullymore is public?  There is not much around the Canadian Lakes region and I believe that they can barely support the one completley Mathews private course that they have there.  Tullymore is well worth a play and when I was out there several yearas ago, they did not have a clubhouse or any houses on the course!!
Chris

[Adam Clayman]

Chris. I was there this last summer and it was the gargantuan clubhouse that made me think it was private.   Dang it Andy I really wanted to argue.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Can anyone walk in off the street and play Bay Hill? I thought one had to stay at the Lodge there  to play. To me, that's a resort course with a private membership component.

[Andy Troeger]

Chris. I was there this last summer and it was the gargantuan clubhouse that made me think it was private.   Dang it Andy I really wanted to argue.

Another time    Between you and Matt I can only handle the Paa-Ko/Black Mesa debate once every six months or so. BM took a steep fall on the GolfWeek list too--you guys need to work on that!

I didn't even realize Tullymore had a clubhouse--it was the trailer both times I was there. Time flies when you move across the country! They made the St. Ives course private?

[Anthony Butler]

No love for Arizona, the other big public course state?

We-Ko-Pa Sagauro is comfortably better than at least 3 courses I've played on this list.

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