Golf.com's Top 10 Par 3 Courses

[Keith Doleshel]

Golf.com's Joe Passov lists his top 10 par 3 courses in his latest article.  Any thoughts on his picks?  The only one I have played is the Challenge Course at Monarch Dunes, which is great fun in a cool setting.  I am a big fan of par 3 courses, 9 hole courses, and anything out of the generally accepted notion that golf has to be played on an 18 hole regulation course.  The courses he lists in the article all sound like a blast to play.

[Kyle Henderson]

The par 3 course at Colorado Golf Club is the best I've played. It's absence from the list is troubling...

The only course I have played that made the top 10 in this article is the Monarch Beach Challenge Course, which offers great holes but too many forced water hazards (especially for coastal dunes) and features very long walks between future home sites. A 12-hole par 3 course should not service more cart ballers than walkers, IMHO.

[Garland Bayley]

"This 12-hole Damian Pascuzzo/Steve Pate collaboration on California's Central Coast offers nearly as much variety as many 7,000-yard tracks. Comes with intriguingly contoured greens, and tall, fescue-topped mounds that lend a linksy ambience."

How come he doesn't mention the ugly stinking ponds, and the cart ball track between the housing development. This has to be the most disappointing golfing experience I have had in a while. Why can't someone create something where the busy professional can get out of behind his desk in the afternoon and go for a pleasant walk instead of this cart ball monstrosity. Of course I should not have been surprised after seeing earlier how Pascuzzo could ruin a great sandy area with huge ugly ponds for an 18 hole course.

I guess is must be a symptom of our culture where most people are closeted in artificial cities, so they have no clue as to what should be appropriate when in nature.

JMHO

[Alex Miller]

I've only played Terrenea, so I can't comment on where it belongs on the list, but it certainly does belong on there. It may have some of the best architecture built in SoCal in the last 30 years. If it were a full length course with the same aesthetics and design qualities, I'm not sure I'd want to play anywhere else. If you're in Palos Verdes, skip Trump and play Terrenea.

[Matthew Rose]

Threetops is the only one on the list I've played.... I have to admit, it is a lot of fun. I'm not informed enough to really compare it to anything else, though.

[David_Tepper]

Here is the article: http://www.golf.com/golf/courses_travel/article/0,28136,2071403,00.html

[John Blain]

Awfully hard to believe that the Cliffs course at the Olympic Club isn't in the top 10. Sandstone Hollow at Turning Stone Resort is really good as well although it's general condition is as wet as a swimming pool

[JNC Lyon]

Awfully hard to believe that the Cliffs course at the Olympic Club isn't in the top 10. Sandstone Hollow at Turning Stone Resort is really good as well although it's general condition is as wet as a swimming pool

Do you think Sandstone Hollow is the best course at Turning Stone?  I thought it was more enjoyable than Kaluhyat.

[Ronald Montesano]

Graduate,

Dental surgery sin novocaina is better than Kaluhyat from the wrong tees. SH is a terrific nine, but is by no means a better course than any of the three full 18s. Kaluhyat is RTJ2 b.c. (before chambers) and is a perfect example of what he used to do (and hopefully, won't do again.)

I have also played threetops and, due to the ridiculous elevation changes, rank it above SH.

[Alex Lagowitz]

Awfully hard to believe that the Cliffs course at the Olympic Club isn't in the top 10. Sandstone Hollow at Turning Stone Resort is really good as well although it's general condition is as wet as a swimming pool

I think the article has the top 10 par 3 courses the YOU CAN PLAY...
Then Joe gives his best private par 3 course as the one at Hamilton Farm.  He insists that this is better than Pine Valley, Augusta, and Olympic, so he must be insisting that Olympic is in his top 5 private par 3 courses

[John Blain]

Awfully hard to believe that the Cliffs course at the Olympic Club isn't in the top 10. Sandstone Hollow at Turning Stone Resort is really good as well although it's general condition is as wet as a swimming pool

Do you think Sandstone Hollow is the best course at Turning Stone?  I thought it was more enjoyable than Kaluhyat.

John-
There is no question in my mind that Sandstone Hollow is the best course at Turning Stone. It's not even close!

Alex-

Thanks for the clarification. I need to learn how to read