What specifically makes a course great , in your opinion?

[Tommy Williamsen]

The first time I played Pebble my playing partner friends said, unbeknownst to me, "You walk with Tommy for a while. I don't need to hear that much about the course."

The guy obviously can't appreciate a good sermon!    His loss

They've heard me preach and didn't like it. They'd rather play golf with me. 

[Dan Herrmann]

Some features:
1.   Holes of varying lengths.  Par 3's, especially, should be of varying lengths.
2.   18 unique holes.   Who wants to play the same hole twice in a round?
3.   Great drainage.
4.   Clever use of angles.   I don't think anything challenges the mind better than angles.
5.   Interesting green surfaces.   Large, round, and flat is boring.   It's good to fear a putt once in a while
6.   A sense of a journey from the 1st tee through the 18th green.   It should be like a great novel - introduce the characters, build the story, reach a climax, and denouement.
7.   Plays well for both match and stroke play.
8.   Doesn't require a rules expert to enjoy.
9.   Not many lost balls.
10. Naturally sits in its landscape.


And for the "artistic" side of me:
1.   Great landscape architecture
2.   Sensory joys - the smell of pine at Pine Valley, the sound of the ocean at Pacific Dunes, and the sight of the prairie at Sand Hills.

[Patrick Kiser]

...
6.   A sense of a journey from the 1st tee through the 18th green.   It should be like a great novel - introduce the characters, build the story, reach a climax, and denouement.

For me at least, I tend to find this particular aspect is what separates the truly great courses from the also rans.  Of course, both the greats and also rans have the other features outlined as well.

[Sean_A]

There's great and then there is Great.

For the former, you can maybe make up your own checklist of things the course should have.  But the courses in the smaller, latter group will tend to prove your checklist is meaningless, because they are undeniably great in spite of violating at least one or two of your criteria.

Tom

For what I consider great courses I am desperately trying not to have a checklist at all.  Although, I do think that being such a fickle concept, greatness is greatly over-rated.  None the less, from where I sit, the only two courses I have played which I would stick in exhaulted company are Merion and Sandwich.

Ciao

[mike_malone]

 Greatness is certaintly a feeling or an impression not a rational evaluation. It does have specificity though, I believe. There are things like variety, excitement, memorability, challenge which seem to be common in answers to the question.


  I sense disagreement when it comes to predominantly penal/strategic courses.

[Mike Hendren]

A great course:  Makes me wish I was a better player.

[Kalen Braley]

Over the years, I think i've been able to come up with how I determine great.  Courses that I thoroughly enjoy playing with lots of fun shots, variety of shots, different things to try.


A few examples that come to mind:
SageBrush
Pasa
Pac Dunes
Ballyneal
RCCC
Black Rock

[Kirk Gill]

Lots of different ways to go with the word "great," but I think immediately of two.
 
There's Tony the Tiger grrrrrrrreat!
 
And there's Garrick Ollivander, who said to Harry Potter "But I think it is clear that we can expect great things from you. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things. Terrible! Yes. But great."
 
Tony's use of it isn't so very involved. It has some very good characteristics, and is therefore grrrrrrreat!
 
Ollivander, though, is talking about some kind of historical.........heft. So if I think of golf courses in this way, the specific characteristics of a course, the strategy, the bunkering, the routing, might not be as relevant as how the course has been thought of, its importance to the game, or to a specific area. Brookline, for instance, might be considered great because of what transpired there in 1913. There are many other examples.
 
But that might create situations where one course is a greater course, but not a "better" course. For the purpose of this exercise, I guess I can live with that.

[Adam Clayman]

Mayday, We need a 25,000 word paragraph from TePaul on feelings, to make any headway on this subject.

[BCrosby]

A great course:  Makes me wish I was a better player.

Well said.


Bob

[Niall C]

I've played plenty of courses that made me wish I was a better player (or indeed give up the game !) but not because they were great, just that they were a slog to the average player which I very much am. Arguably a great course should give you something no matter what level you are at.


Niall

[Sean Ogle]

In my opinion? Fun.


Everything else is irrelevant.

[BCrosby]

Niall -


We all wish we were better players. I read Mike to be saying something more interesting than that.


I think he means (Mike is invited to correct me if I'm getting him wrong) that because only better players are able to pull off certain shots, only better players are in a position to fully experience the exquisite temptations presented by great courses.


Bob