Tom,
Not a single time have I stated that any architect is superior to another in this thread. I have tried to answer the WHY one architect's work, and by this I do not mean Tilly but "one" in a general sense, may be viewed as superior by arguing that the historical importance of his work may be a better means of judging.
You bring up an interesting point by asking where we would fly to, and then mentioning that Tilly would have loved to work at Bandon & you would have wanted to do a course in Westchester. The point I refer to is the importance of the sites themselves as aiding the greatness of the architect's final design. Crashing Pacific waves certainly would have a tendency to magnify any hole as compared to a large hill inhabited by a few scrawny deer in northern New Jersey. Should the difference in setting then be the deciding factor when judging a question of the type put forth as to who the "best" is? Or should one look at the work done in lesser locations to see how a poor site was turned into something special be a more accurate barometer?
By the way, Tilly once wrote that the finest place to build a golf course in his thinking would be out on the dunes of the south shore of Long Island... He missed out on there also, but, you are right, he would have loved to worked out at Bandon!
By the way, my bags are packed and ready... when do we leave!
Dale, I meant that it is how one chooses to measure that provides the answer to the question posed. Each has their own "measuring stick" so to speak.