As winter settles in on the Midwest and Northeast, and as we close in on the shortest day of the year, I wonder what might rank as the best 12-month, year-round-play golf club in the U.S.? In the world? Some of the obvious world's best golf courses are automatically excluded by weather and by seasonal closures: Seminole, ANGC, Pine Valley, NGL, Shinnecock, Merion: sorry -- you're all out this time.
SFGC comes to mind, along with CPC, naturally. (Does Cypress have a seasonal closure?) Riviera and the Valley Club must be strong candidates. I suppose there may be some Florida clubs -- Calusa Pines? -- that are open year-round, and perhaps some in the Carolinas -- CC of Charleston? -- that have the weather to do it. Texas?
In the UK, I can't imagine that there are any clubs north of about Manchester or Leeds that can lay serious claim to year-round play, even though there are probably some insane Scots and Irish that play in any weather, even if they barely get enough sunlight in a day for golf. Having lived a winter in London, I am willing to allow that those clubs would qualify. St. George's Hill? Wentworth?
Royal Melbourne?
Your turn.