Are architects the right people to rate golf courses?

[Ally Mcintosh]

Back in 2013, Golf Architecture published a Top 100 based on a survey of I think 200+ architects. It is a useful list because it does reflect tastes/philosophies that differ from the dominant view here although that dominant view is heavily reflected in the list. I do not remember if there was any requirement that the architects needed to have played a course or an indication of how many total courses each played. Maybe Adam Lawrence can pop in and speak to the methodology and why they have not repeated the exercise.

Just to remind everyone:
https://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/content/architects-choice-top-100-golf-courses-in-the-world

[Tom_Doak]

That was kind of a questionable methodology because they only asked for people's top courses, which skews the results in favor of the courses the most architects had seen.  And the magazine is based in Europe, so it wound up a bit more euro-centric than most lists.  That's the only way the New course at St. Andrews winds up being rated that highly, for example.

[Peter Pallotta]

Tom,
your post got me thinking about a question I'd like to ask all those architects, ie;
What 10 courses do you most wish you had designed yourself? In other words, what 10 courses in the world would you most love to be associated with as their original architect-designer?
I imagine that the answers might give as a good idea about what architects tend to look for and particularly value in the courses they rate and rank.

[JMEvensky]

Tom,
your post got me thinking about a question I'd like to ask all those architects, ie;
What 10 courses do you most wish you had designed yourself? In other words, what 10 courses in the world would you most love to be associated with as their original architect-designer?
I imagine that the answers might give as a good idea about what architects tend to look for and particularly value in the courses they rate and rank.

If you don't mind another question in the same vein--which golf course would you most like to play every day?

[Tom_Doak]

Tom,
your post got me thinking about a question I'd like to ask all those architects, ie;
What 10 courses do you most wish you had designed yourself? In other words, what 10 courses in the world would you most love to be associated with as their original architect-designer?
I imagine that the answers might give as a good idea about what architects tend to look for and particularly value in the courses they rate and rank.

Peter:


I'm not going to provide a list of ten, but an honest answer would include the ones that I don't know if I could have done -- Sand Hills for its true minimalism, Shadow Creek for its maximalism, Himalayan Golf Club for its necessity-is-the-mother-of-invention, and places like Prestwick and St. Andrews for their simplicity.

[Tom_Doak]

If you don't mind another question in the same vein--which golf course would you most like to play every day?

That's an entirely different question and it shows up the rankings for what they are [and what they aren't].


Just to apply it to my own work, I think the answers might be courses like St. Andrews Beach and The Loop [for its optionality], rather than Barnbougle or Cape Kidnappers.  I guess Ballyneal and Tara Iti provide the best of both worlds. 


For sure, too, the walkability of the course is a more important factor if you are talking about playing it every day, which is why it's hard to keep St. Andrews out of the conversation.  There is not a more easily walkable course on earth than The Old Course [unless you are going back to the championship tees].

[Brad Lawrence]

Considering how many bad golf courses there are, I’m not sure I’m willing to hold their collective opinion in high esteem. But in all seriousness, I don’t think their opinion is any more important than the next person’s.

[AChao]

I would find it really interesting if there were ratings from ...
1)  Architects2)  Top men tour professionals and top juniors
3)  Top senior men tour professionals4)  Top ladies tour professionals and top juniors
5)  +2 to 2 handicap players6)  8 to 10 handicap players7)  Players who can hit the ball but can't putt8)  Players who can putt but can't hit the ball