[Kenny Baer]

The other thread on Green complexes got me thinking about Greens.  There are so many courses that it is hard to have a discussion about which are the "best" or most "severe".   

I am interested in how some of you who have played or at least have some knowledge of the Top 10 courses in the USA would rank them in order of their green's severity/greatness/interstingness...yada yada.


The Top 10 according to Golf Magazine
1.    Pine Valley
2.    Cypress Point
3.    Augusta National
4.    Pebble Beach
5.    Shinnecock
6.    Oakmont
7.    Merion
8.    Sand Hills
9.    Pacific Dunes
10.  National Golf Links of America

[Tom_Doak]

When you put the question that way, it's very hard to distinguish between the courses with the most SEVERE greens and the most INTERESTING greens.

The first lesson is that NONE of the top ten courses have anything less than difficult greens.  The most innocuous greens of the bunch are Pebble Beach's, but they are mostly 3500 square feet with a fair amount of tilt, so they are anything but easy.  Shinnecock's don't stand out as severe when you first play it, either; but if any of you remember Retief Goosen putting off the first green on Sunday of the Open, you will give up on that line of questioning.  Only a few of the greens at Cypress Point look obviously severe (7, 8, 9), but a lot of them have enough back-to-front tilt that can make putting off the green a distinct possibility.

At the other end of the scale, Oakmont, Augusta, Pine Valley and National are the most difficult of the ten.

[C. Sturges]

I really like the 3rd green at Pine Valley.  I could play around there all day and never get board.  It is demanding, but you would never lbe bored.

[Ian Andrew]

Kenny,

You certainly got me thinking with your question.

2. Pine Valley
The difficulty continues into the greens, otherwise it wouldn’t be the golf course we admire. You are often forced to putt defensively because of the wild contour and the chance the putt will get away from you and end up in a different area code.

6. Cypress Point
These are the most deceptive than the others. They don’t look steep or complicated; except up in the dunes, but there always seemed to be a lot more break in putts from the side. Behind the green is dead.

1. Augusta National
I could not believe how many fell backwards and the massive elevation changes in most. These are the hardest greens I’ve even seen.

8. Pebble Beach
They are certainly steep, but the contour is less than the others. These are the least interesting of the set on this list, but they are also the smallest which does not allow for much contour.

7. Shinnecock
There is not a better set of green edges anywhere in the world. The heart of the greens is not too bad, but pins near the edge can be incredibly hard to get to. These are one of the best set of greens I have seen

5. Merion
Some of the greens are excessively steep and near impossible to putt while others are fine. It’s real mix of challenges depending on the green.

4. Pacific Dunes
I really liked the greens, there is lots of contour in them to make the putting as fun as hitting the shots to the greens. Everything about the course is about having fun and negotiating tricky putts is part of that experience.

3. National Golf Links of America
The greens are so good that they elevate the golf course more than any other set of greens. Depending on the pin location any green can vary from near impossible to very friendly and that’s pretty damned cool if you ask me.

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