[Adam Sherer]

What is your "white whale"?

What golf course will you never play?

For instance, Pine Valley, NGLA, etc.

This may be in part to the lack of invitation or fear of actually playing the course.

I know what you're thinking, "fear of playing? What is he smoking?"

In response: honestly, there has to be a golf course out there that you hold in such high regard that to play it might compromise what you think to be the pinnacle of golf.  (Ie. I think that the OC is the home of golf and to play the course and not like it, would certainly bring my pre-conceived notions of gca crumbling down to the brink of career suicide

As such, I am afraid to play the Old Course (however I do not believe that the OC is the ONE golf course I will never play).

[Dale_McCallon]

Of course the reason most of us will never get to play certain courses is  the lack of access.  This list would just go on and on.

But, I like your question of being so fearful of a course you might never play it.  Mine is simple--Cypress Point.  I think if I somehow scored an invite there, I would be sleepless for weeks on end.  Then I can only imagine the shakes that I would have to battle on the first tee.

The course just looks perfect--probably too perfect for this hillbilly.

[TEPaul]

Adam:

I certainly wouldn't let some grandiose or unrealistic expectation concern you---as far as being let down.

It seems to me some of the greatest courses and architecture in the world don't always hit you over the head initially but some can seriously grow on you over time.

Really great architecture rarely seems to show itself quickly.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I can't think of any course that I either would not play because I don't want to or that I may not get on.  I am an eternal optimist.  On the other hand, there are a few courses I don't ever want to play again.  But I prefer not to mention them.

Actually there are two courses I probably will never get to play.  One is at Windsor Castle in England and the other is Balmoral Castle in Scotland.  There is not much royal blood in my veins.

[cary lichtenstein]

Mine is Durban, too old to make another trip to South Africa

[Bill Shamleffer]

There are quite a few courses I would never play because of the high fee.  But the best of the lot is Pebble Beach.  I will never pay the fee Pebble Beach charges.  I would possibly pay the same fee to play Pinehurst, but even Pinehurst is becoming questionable.

[Glenn Spencer]

I am with Bill. The only way I am playing Pebble is in the CA amateur if I end up living there or not at all. I don't care if I had a tree in the backyard, I am not paying $500 to play golf on a crowded golf course.

[Tim Bert]

I have a couple of sub-categories because NEVER is a very strong word.

Course I won't play unless money becomes no object - Pebble Beach.  I'd love to play the course, but right now there are too many values that keep me way.  And by value, I don't mean dirt cheap golf.  I mean I can play 54 holes (same day) at any of the courses at Bandon Dunes plus another 18 the next morning for the price as 18 at Pebble Beach.  Neither is cheap, but the Bandon option (4 rounds) represents value to me.

Course I'd be most nervous about playing and likely won't play - CPC.  It represents the ultimate (based on what I've read, seen, and imagined) of all the golf courses for me.  I would be equally concerned about bringing a bad round and the course not living up to the pedastal on which I've placed it.

Course I'd be most nervous about playing that I'll eventually play (assuming time is on my side) - TOC.  Based on everything I've read about it, it is an acquired taste for some.  It grows with play, as one learns the options available.  I have two concerns here:  1) I won't get it, or, perhaps worse 2) I'll get it and love it and never make it back to be able to fully appreciate what it offers.

[Brian_Sleeman]

I agree with Tim about the worries of not "getting" The Old Course in the first trip around.  I'm certain that there are more courses in this category than one would first think, but The Old Course has to be at or near the top.

Hence my worry is not that I won't be able to play it, but that I won't be able to play it 50 times.

I'm sure I'll play Pebble at some point but I'll never pay that kind of price to do it unless, like some have echoed, money becomes no object.

I'm also pretty sure I'll never play Trump National in LA - played it as Ocean Trails, and have no desire to set foot there again.

[Tim Gavrich]

Based on my experience playing Yale (and my anticipation of possibly playing Fishers Island this spring), I dream of playing all the great Macdonald/Raynor/et. al courses.  But I don't know how many I'll get to play.  However, being 17, time appears to be on my side !

I feel like I'd be really nervous to play courses like Pine Valley, Cypress Point, Augusta Nat'l, and the like, just because of how highly they are praised.  I think I'd kinda be afraid to take a divot at ANGC, but hopefully I'd get over it soon enough .

[Jim Nugent]

Back in the early 90's I probably could have played Olympic Lake, through a business associate.  Hadn't played for a long time, though, and felt my game was a wreck, do I didn't follow through.  Foolish pride.  Later the business association ended, and so did the OL opportunity!

[Matt_Cohn]

I can dream of playing a remarkable number of America's best courses in competition: the Crump Cup at Pine Valley, the Coleman at Seminole, even Augusta if I have the week of my life at a USGA event.

So for me, the courses I'll probably never play are those that don't host tournaments and are far from my California comfort zone.

NGLA comes to mind, although I've walked the layout. Fishers Island, too.

[Dan Boerger]

.... hopefully doesn't exist.

Now, if the questions was "the one golf course I will never play AGAIN", I suspect there would be a very different set of responses!

[Tom Huckaby]

Which courses will I never play because I never get an invite, or never get to the area, or never find them?

That's a VERY VERY long list.  There are a lot of golf courses in this world.

But what course would I never play by choice?

NONE.  Easy answer.  It's weird to me to even think that way.  They're only golf courses, guys.  Hell yes I was excited to play TOC, and Cypress, and many other greats... to the point of losing sleep going over them in my mind as the days led up to the round, yes... but taking that to the next level that one would NOT play them?  That I don't get.

TH

[George Pazin]

The obvious answer, to me, is what Sean says, the great Japanese courses. I doubt I'd travel all that way and not end up in Australia.

And while I can see Huck's point, I can also say with relative certainty that I'll never fly over to Ireland and play a parkland-ish course. I can't imagine being near all those great links and teeing it up on a course that would fit in here in western PA.

[Tom Huckaby]

And while I can see Huck's point, I can also say with relative certainty that I'll never fly over to Ireland and play a parkland-ish course. I can't imagine being near all those great links and teeing it up on a course that would fit in here in western PA.

Good call.  I'd never seek those out intentionally either, which I said in the K Club thread.   Same goes for Scotland as well.  But that assumes the normal limited time trip.

But in a perfect world of unlimited time?  Hell yes I'd play K Club and all others like it.   I'd also gladly play any of the courses in Japan, or China, or anywhere in Asia.  Hell if there's a course in Siberia I'd play it; just make it in the summer, please.  

Of course such a perfect world of unlimited time does not exist, sadly.  Thus one does prioritize.  But that's not what I thought this thread was asking about.

TH

[George Pazin]

Of course such a world does not exist, sadly.

Coulda fooled me - seems like a bunch of guys on this site are living in it!

[Tom Huckaby]

Of course such a world does not exist, sadly.

Coulda fooled me - seems like a bunch of guys on this site are living in it!

I doubt there's anyone who's living it completely.  But yes, some here do come close.

[PThomas]

is there a firm that arranges games at all the good Japanese courses??  would have to be for the quite wealthy......

[Mark Pearce]

Let me get this right. This thread is about courses we think are so good we wouldn't want to play them in case we were disappointed?  Can't say I can think of any that fall into that category.  Plenty of great courses I'll never play for other reasons, though.

[Tim Leahy]

Bad knees will never allow me to walk the Bandon tracks and I would never travel that far or pay that much to walk a course in bad weather.

[Kalen Braley]

Bad knees will never allow me to walk the Bandon tracks and I would never travel that far or pay that much to walk a course in bad weather.

Tim,

Supposedly you can play Bandon if you get a note from your doctor.  Missing most courses is not a big deal, but if you can be accomated by Bandon on this one, it would be worth the trip IMHO.

[Jay Flemma]

Anything by Donald Trump.

[David Sneddon]

Course I'd be most nervous about playing that I'll eventually play (assuming time is on my side) - TOC.  Based on everything I've read about it, it is an acquired taste for some.  It grows with play, as one learns the options available.  I have two concerns here:  1) I won't get it, or, perhaps worse 2) I'll get it and love it and never make it back to be able to fully appreciate what it offers.

One of the joys of being in St Andrews is that you can walk the course prior to, and in-between rounds. I'd highly recommend that - walk the course both as played and backwards (green to tee).  You'll see a lot more that way than when you are playing and concentrating solely on your shot.

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