Forgettabout Peper And Forgettabout Best - What Are Your 10 Favourite Links?

[Ryan Taylor]

Top 10 links played...

1a St. Andrews Old
1b Royal County Down
3 Pac Dunes
4a Carnoustie
4b Lahinch
6 Royal Portrush Dunluce
7 Old Mac
8 Royal Portrush Valley
9 Royal Dublin
10 Arcadia Bluffs (I'm kidding!!)

[Steve Salmen]

HCEG
Dornoch
Machrihanish
North Berwick
Elie
Askernish
Brora
Formby
TOC
Cruden Bay

[Steve Green]

The Old Course St. Andrews
Cruden Bay
Portmarnock
Pacific Dunes
Lahinch
Old MacDonald
Bandon Dunes
Royal Aberdeen

and a couple of links courses no where near an ocean

Sand Hills
Ballyneal

[Sean_A]

There are a few oddballs trying to redefine what a links is, but I would expect nothing less from this crew  But if I have to pick one screwball from the crowd it must be Sheehy because he should know better  

I am very surprised nobody mentioned Highland Links (though I am very suspect of this as a True Links) or Cabot Links.  

It is clear I need to make it up to Elie.  

I doubt my last two will be listed so I add them now to a list in no particular order; Strandhill and Carnoustie Burnside.  

Enniscrone
Portrush Valley
Lahinch
Cruden Bay
North Berwick West Links
Pennard
St Enodoc
Prestwick

Ciao

[jeffwarne]

Pennard
Brora
Portsalon
Narin and Portnoo
Dunfanaghy
Portrush valley
Northwest
Dooks
RCD
Dunaverty
St. Enodoc

[Tom Kelly]

So far;

TOC
North Berwick
Prestwick
Barnbougle Dunes
Royal Dornoch
Carnoustie

After that it is abit of a blur at the moment without going back to play them again.

[Tom_Doak]

Hard to reconcile how I could leave two of my 10's out of my ten, but these are the ones that first came to my heart.

Which 10's did not make it?

Muirfield and Dornoch.

[Ulrich Mayring]

Two that haven't been mentioned, but are in my Top Ten, are Kennemer and West Cornwall.

Ulrich

[Chris DeToro]

My top 10 links played:

1) County Down
2) The Old Course
3) Muirfield
4) Royal Troon
5) Carnoustie
6) Portrush
7) Cruden Bay
Royal Aberdeen
9) Lytham St Annes
10) The New Course

[Mark Bourgeois]

Sean

Based on my understanding of your tastes and on what's on your list, I'm not sure you'd love Elie. It's not entirely a flat links, but it's mostly a flat links. You'd probably like it, though. Go play it.

Also, stop beating on Sheehy. His plumping of inland US courses is ink and oxygen taken away from the otherwise relentless RCP Machine. Huzzah huzzah.

[Rory Connaughton]

Limited in that I have only been to Ireland . . albeit often . . . and not sure how to count Bandon

RCD
Enniscrone
Portrush
Lahinch
Portmarnock
Pac Dunes
Baltray
Ballyliffin Old
Rosses Point
The Island

[Sean_A]

Sean

Based on my understanding of your tastes and on what's on your list, I'm not sure you'd love Elie. It's not entirely a flat links, but it's mostly a flat links. You'd probably like it, though. Go play it.

Also, stop beating on Sheehy. His plumping of inland US courses is ink and oxygen taken away from the otherwise relentless RCP Machine. Huzzah huzzah.

Mark

Sheehy has a good life.  He needs checking once in a while.

I never really think about flat vs hilly vs dunesy, but looking at my favourites I seem to go for hilly/dunesy courses. I think what my courses demonstrate, for the most part, is a good walk thru varied terrain and a good mix of challenge/easy/funk without being terribly difficult.  I would like nothing more to find more interesting flatish courses.  A few on my list don't have much elevation change. And I admit that if TOC wasn't super famous with all the baggage and hassle that comes with it, it would likely make my list. 

Ciao   

[JC Urbina]

My favorite links played to date in no particular order.

St Andrews
North Berwick
Lahinch
Dooks
Portrush
Royal County Down
Muirfield
Western Gailes
Prestwick
Elie

I have seen countless others but for me each of these gave me lasting memories that I will never forget.  I have left out Troon, Ballybunion, Cruden Bay and countless others.  How can you fault Peper for liking what he put in print, to each their own.

[Jim Tang]

1.  Royal County Down
2.  Royal Dornoch
3.  Ballybunion - Old
4.  Pacific Dunes
5.  Ballyneal
6.  The Old Course
7.  Lahinch - Old
8.  Royal Portrush - Dunluce
9.  Royal Aberdeen - Balgownie
10. Cruden Bay

[Pete Lavallee]

The Old Course
Royal Dornoch
Royal County Down
Ballybunion Old
Lahinch
Pacific Dunes
Barnbougle Dunes
St Enodoc
Ballyneal
Perranporth

[Jason Topp]

This list is not real original, but links golf needs to have a bit of magic to make my list.  My memories from these venues included some magic.

Old Course - match with my father was one of my favoroite golf experiences

Lahinch - too long of a story to fit here, but great fun in a terrific setting

Western Gailes - Round at twilight was magical and totally unexpected because the course was not on our itinerary.  I heard about it somewhere and set it up - good move

Lundin Links - many wonderful memories from the Buda Cup held there

Royal Dornoch - played it when the gorse was in bloom

Turnberry Ailsa - have visited twice and played the course 4-5 times.  Generally Americans will list it as my favorite

Prestwick - I hit a great tee shot slightly left of the pin on 2.  The caddie had told me to keep it right but this seemed close enough to be ok.  My playing companion said "great shot."  My caddie said - "that is dead."  The caddie was right.

Ballybunion Old - Not a much better place to spend 3 hours in evening light

Pennard - I do not like the 18th, but the rest of the course makes up for it

Royal Porthcawl - it was a thrill to play a course without manure on the Wales trip.  Greatly enjoyed my rounds there

[Joey Chase]

This was exactly the post I was thinking of when I saw the other one.  My ten favorites are, in no particular order...

Lahinch
Machrihanish
The Old Course
Enniscrone
Royal St. Georges
Royal Cinque Ports
Brora
Portrush
North Berwick
Waterville

[Andrew Moss]

In no such order
1) Muirfield
2) Carnoustie
3) Prestwick
4) Turnberry
5) Royal Lytham
6) Gullane 1
7) North Berwick
Western Gailes
9) Kingsbarns
10) Panmure

Such good memories of them all and also of the 10 I've probably left out!!!

[Ash Towe]

In no particular order:

Muirfield
St Andrews Old
RCD
Ballybunion Old
Portmarnock
Barnbougle
Royal Birkdale
Paraparaumu
Lahinch
Pacific Dunes

[Sean_A]

Two that haven't been mentioned, but are in my Top Ten, are Kennemer and West Cornwall.

Ulrich

Zowie, West Cornwall?  While, it doesn't make my list, I have a lot of time for the course.  I still recall being intrigued by a bag tag many moons ago.  I struck up a conversation with a guy who was a country member.  He had high praise for West Cornwall.  I knew I had to see it!  Its one of those Doak 4s that is pure joy - quite unusual that.

Ciao

[Ryan Coles]

A lot of love for Enniscrone in this thread and rightly so.

For those who played it before, are the additions by Donald Steele for the better?

[Rory Connaughton]

Ryan

 I did not play it before Steele's work but the 9 hole Scurmore consists of a number of holes that were abandoned after Steele went into the high dunes.  They are quite good in their own right though a few are on very flat terrain.  The best of the bunch is the par 3 seventh which plays blind up into the dunes. A very cool and quirky hole!

[henrye]

Sean.  I understand your desire for finding good value in courses, but when listing a top 10, do you really not consider any of the big names worthy?  RCD, Old Course, Muirfield, RSG?  I know in the past you've mentioned your fondness for RSG, so that's the reason I'm asking.  Some of the ones I have enjoyed.

RCD, RSG, Deal, Portrush (Dunluce), Enniscrone, Carne, Rye, Portstewart.

[Sean_A]

Sean.  I understand your desire for finding good value in courses, but when listing a top 10, do you really not consider any of the big names worthy?  RCD, Old Course, Muirfield, RSG?  I know in the past you've mentioned your fondness for RSG, so that's the reason I'm asking.  Some of the ones I have enjoyed.

RCD, RSG, Deal, Portrush (Dunluce), Enniscrone, Carne, Rye, Portstewart.

Henry

Sure the courses you mention are worthy.  I like them all to one degree or another.  But for several years now I have been "down-sizing" my golf  The down-sizing light bulb moment came many years ago when I played Brora and Dornoch back to back.  I had more fun at Brora and for less than half the green fee.  Anyway, I have many heavyweights among my favourites, just not top championship designs simply for the reason that I find championship courses too difficult to really be fun for me. 

Ciao

[Jud_T]

Henry

Sure the courses you mention are worthy.  I like them all to one degree or another.  But for several years now I have been "down-sizing" my golf  The down-sizing light bulb moment came many years ago when I played Brora and Dornoch back to back.  I had more fun at Brora and for less than half the green fee.  Anyway, I have many heavyweights among my favourites, just not top championship designs simply for the reason that I find championship courses too difficult to really be fun for me. 

Ciao

Bingo.  I can't recall more important words spoken here for the average lurking 15 handicapper.  Why much of the various Top 100 list criteria do a huge disservice to the fat part of the golfing bell curve and why those who slavishly seek out only ranked courses are to be pitied.