[Matt Osborne]

A course that has appeared in admittedly only the higher reaches, like 80-99, of a number of top-hundred world rankings over the past few years but has not made this architects listing is The Emirates Club, in Dubai.

Okay I know there were other courses in pretty hot, arid climates before it opened for play in 1988, but The Emirates was a game changer in that it introduced green-grass golf to the Middle East and has since been followed by a whole series of further grass courses in that part of the world. It's also a seriously good golf course, a strong test of golf, and constructed in terrain where there was absolutely no vegetation at all beforehand, just wind blown sand hundreds of feet deep, and at 45* nearly ever day for months on end surely building and maintaining it is one hell of an achievement. A top-100 achievement? Just a thought.
All the best

Thomas, I agree. It is a seriously good golf course with a handful of really iconic holes - the topography of the site is perfect and although it is a warm season grass course with no scope at all for ground game, it still manages to hold interest on virtually every hole. The whole vibe of the place is top notch, in fact. I would certainly include the Emirates in a personal top 100 and would not begrudge it a World top 100 spot in a major magazine.

Brian, perhaps not many have seen it or played it. If so, a shame. And the area surrounding it as seen on TV theses days when they play the Desert Classic is nothing like what it was when the course was first built when it was truly a green golfing oasis with just miles and miles and miles of pure sand, no rocks or vegetation at all, just pure sand all around it, nothing else nearby either, oh, except for a camel farm at the top of a big sand hill a couple of miles out the back and one enormous walled Sheiks palace by the nearest beachfront.
All the best

Since I live in Dubai I thought I'd quickly chime in here.  While I agree that the history and prestige of the Majilis course (the Desert Classic course) make it a top draw in this region, I personally do not see it in the top 100 courses worldwide.  It's a solid course, but I do not seem to find anything particularly outstanding about the layout or design.  I imagine it was quite a sight when it first opened with so little around it but desert, but there are now quite a few golf courses in Dubai and the UAE and it is much less unique.  I would say the general opinion of most of the golfing community here is about 50-50, either to seeing it your guys' way or my way, so I guess at the end of the day its more a matter of opinion. 

I did not submit a top-10 list for this survey (as I originally did not think I had seen enough of the top courses to make it worthwhile - although in hindsight I wish I would have) but the Majilis course would not have made my top-10 list.   

[Ally Mcintosh]

Hey Brian - Matt has been involved with some designs over there.... He might think there are better?

[Matt Osborne]

Hey Brian - Matt has been involved with some designs over there.... He might think there are better?

I'm sure - as I said - my fondness for the Emirates is only partly related to its design. I'll definitely be interested to hear the thoughts of a professional in the field far more qualified than I to make comments about design...

Haha, not being pulled into that one. 

But you are right Brian, there is much more than just the design to make the total golfing experience.  And again, it is a good, solid course, sets up well for big tournaments and it does have that bit of consistency (except the club house re-design) with all of the hi-speed construction that has surrounded it over the years.  And it has been the standard bearer that many of the other courses here look to replicate.  It also has the advantage of maturity, history and location (middle of the city) that bumps up its stature as well.  It is a definite must-play while in Dubai, but just not sure if it's a top-100 course design-wise. For the total golfing experience it could be though (I need to play more top-100 courses before I could decide that).

Quick side note:  Yas Links is a very good course, but tough as nails for the average golfer.

[Thomas Dai]

Matt,

If you live in Dubai and are in the design business and reckon you wouldn't have voted for The Emirates in an architects top-100 then that's good enough for me despite, like Brian, the fondness of many for the place. The list is an architects list after all rather than a punters list.

As an aside when The Emirates first opened the maintenance crew and clubhouse staff, of whom there were a great deal, and who were predominantly originally from the Philippines, Sri Lanka and India I understand, built there own self made sand course for their own personal use outside the perimeter fence behind the 10th green just past the accommodation buildings. Long gone I presume.

Also, as an aside is Dubai Country Club with it's sand/oiled greens still in existence? Or has it gone by the wayside? There was a sand course in Sharjah as well I recall. I wonder if that's still there.

Also, out of curiosity, what would be your ranking of the grass courses in the Gulf? Not just Dubai but those all the way from Ras al Khaimah to the top of the Gulf.

All the best.

[Bill_McBride]

Joel, do you think Torrey is as good as Olympic now? 

I'll rephrase your question, Do I think Olympic is as bad as Torrey, yes.

Both reworked their golf courses for 1 week in June and wrecked their golf courses.  Both are long, hard and no fun.  They are poster children for what is wrong in American golf.  The good news is both could be fixed.

Joel, would you have ever considered the Lake at Olympic "fun?"

Daunting, challenging, intriguing yes.

I put it in the same category as Oakmont.  Highly respected, perhaps brutal, certainly penal.  But not "fun."

Just my thoughts.

[Matt Osborne]

Matt,

If you live in Dubai and are in the design business and reckon you wouldn't have voted for The Emirates in an architects top-100 then that's good enough for me despite, like Brian, the fondness of many for the place. The list is an architects list after all rather than a punters list.

As an aside when The Emirates first opened the maintenance crew and clubhouse staff, of whom there were a great deal, and who were predominantly originally from the Philippines, Sri Lanka and India I understand, built there own self made sand course for their own personal use outside the perimeter fence behind the 10th green just past the accommodation buildings. Long gone I presume.

Also, as an aside is Dubai Country Club with it's sand/oiled greens still in existence? Or has it gone by the wayside? There was a sand course in Sharjah as well I recall. I wonder if that's still there.

Also, out of curiosity, what would be your ranking of the grass courses in the Gulf? Not just Dubai but those all the way from Ras al Khaimah to the top of the Gulf.

All the best.

Thomas,
 
To answer your questions:

1.  Yes, I believe any sand course next to the emirates is long gone.  Lots of villas and apartment buildings around it now.

2.  The Dubai sand course is gone as well, but the one in Sharjah (Sharjah Wanders) is still there. 

3.  I would not really be comfortable in ranking the courses here as the company I work for has been involved in the design and/or construction of many of them.  You'll just have to come back out here and play them all.   

[Thomas Dai]

Matt,

Thanks for the answers to q1 and q2. I understand completely your situation regarding q3. Apologies for even asking it. Reference your separate introductory post, welcome aboard.

45* and spectacles misting up every time you step out of an air conditioning building/vehicle. 4 left hand gloves hanging from a buggy trying to dry them out mid-round. Grips needing changing ever few months. Ah yes, I remember!

All the best.

[Joel_Stewart]

Joel...I think there are a ton of surprises on the list.

Starting at 100 and moving up, I am blown away by some of the courses on the list.  And The Old Course is not atop any other Top 100 list that I can think of right now.

I think there is good food for thought here.

 "Blown away"?   I'm not blown away by any of these.  Torrey Pines making the list is probably the biggest surprise.

Other surprises to me are,

56.  St Andrews New.   Glad to see it on the list, I want to play it next time I'm there.
60. Maidstone.  It has been dropping, currently Golf Digest at #100.  C&C have worked magic in the dune restoration.
72. Los Angeles CC.   I have it about 30 spots higher.
73. The Country Club.  After seeing Rans review it should be 40 spots higher.

Maidstone, LACC and TCC are all reflected in good architectural work, using quality architects and support of management and  memberships.

Olympic in the 90's is reflective of bad work and very bad management.

The southern hemisphere seems underrated.   Asia is completely underrated. 

It's thought provoking and I'm glad they put it together.

[Tom_Doak]

The southern hemisphere seems underrated.   Asia is completely underrated. 

It's thought provoking and I'm glad they put it together.

Joel:  It depends on what you mean by "underrated", I guess.  There are lots of great courses in Australia, but there are only four that I can imagine would ever get a top-ten vote from anyone who'd traveled there and elsewhere -- Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath, New South Wales, and Barnbougle.  Didn't notice if NSW actually did get the votes, but the other three did.

There are only 4-5 courses in Asia that I know of that are legitimate contenders for the top 100 in the world, much less a top ten vote, and very few of the people polled have actually played any of them.  I've played four, but obviously none of them were going to get my vote as one of the top ten courses in the world ... the best of them, Hirono, would be somewhere between 25 and 50 on my list.  So, not surprising that none of those courses were listed by this method.

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