Opinion: Is Harry Colt The Greatest Golf Architect Ever?

Debating who the G.O.A.T. is—the Greatest of All Time—is a tale as old as time, in as many mediums as humans can possibly open the conversation in. Michael Jordan vs Lebron James is a classic; in modern times, Kendrick Lamar and Drake are beefing over the crown in Hip Hop; Tiger Woods vs Jack Nicklaus in a more relevant debate to this website, and so forth. Whatever the case, a fierce debate lingers over any sort of discussion on whom the greatest of all time is. Rightfully so, the magnitude of being the singular best at one thing across any era, century, or time period is quite the achievement, but especially something in the public eye like sports or any art form.

So, who is the deserving G.O.A.T. of golf architecture? There are more than a few candidates worthy of the crown. How do we define the G.O.A.T.? I have some criteria before we get into it:

• First & foremost, the golf courses they design and build ought to be of quality, with at least a few World Top 100 golf courses to their name (for this, I’m using Golf Magazine‘s Top 100);
• Variety is the spice in life, having a variety of golf course aesthetics, styles, soils, and regions helps;
• Influence is a factor, with those who were either heavily inspired by or the architect’s family tree and their status helping;
• While not necessary, those who built golf on at least two continents helps their case;
• Literature, writings, or other contributions to the game are a bonus.

Throwing it all the way back to the game’s origins (or, at the very least, the game’s origins of what we know as golf today), Old Tom Morris has a reasonable inclusion on this list of brilliant architects, and as the oldest of the lot, the “O.G.,” so-to-speak. His work is exclusively located in the British Isles, but an impressive resume nonetheless. That includes multiple Open Championship venues like Carnoustie, Prestwick, and The Old Course, four of the World Top 12 on Golf Magazine‘s World Top 100, and an additional four World Top 100 credits as well (Lahinch, Carnoustie, Machrihanish, and Cruden Bay). Though Harry Colt renovated Muirfield and Alister Mackenzie renovated Lahinch, his presence and influence on the layout is without question—rounding out an impressive eight World Top 100’s. While his big-name layouts are impressive, Old Tom has numerous cult-classics and golf courses worthy of celebration as well, including Cleeve Hill and Askernish.

To further add to the debate, Old Tom Morris’ influence is substantial. So influential, in fact, that his fingerprints on golf as a whole (not just architecture) are reasonably the most of any single individual on the game of golf. Circling back to golf archicture, after mowing from Prestwick to St. Andrews in 1865, he hosted a plethora of some of the greatest golf minds of all time, including Harry Colt, A.W. Tillinghast, C.B. Macdonald, and Donald Ross, who was so infatuated with Royal Dornoch and their green complexes that he transported them stateside to Pinehurst No. 2, his magnum opus. Ross was a pupil of Old Tom, and his body of work, had he not watered it down with numerous so-so golf courses, could have been among the finest of the craft.

Fast-forward from Old Tom, Alister Mackenzie puts up a decent argument for the G.O.A.T. as well. Cypress Point is his highest ranked golf course in the World Top 100 at 2nd, with two others (Royal Melbourne at 7 and Augusta National at 9) rounding out an impressive 30% of the ten best golf courses in the world. Kingston Heath, Crystal Downs, Lahinch, California Golf Club of San Francisco, New South Wales, and Victoria round out a whopping nine contributions to the Top 100 World. Two of those—Augusta National and Royal Melbourne—are heavily influential to the golfing climates in both locales, with each layout meant to be the “Old Course” of their continent. In modern times, Augusta National is a significant name in the game of golf and the golf course is arguably the most recognizable in the game of golf, but that is accredited to The Masters more than Dr. Mackenzie.

Perhaps Old Tom Morris’ influence on specific individuals in the game of golf is more impressive, but credit should not be taken away from Mackenzie, who dramatically altered how people saw golf in Australia and New Zealand, while contributing golf courses in North America and the British Isles. Where Mackenzie strives and increases his odds as being crowned the best of all time is his contributions to the world of golf and the global golf climate, rather than Old Tom’s presence in the United Kingdom and Ireland alone (note: Morris’ influence is much more vast than that, but speaking in tangible contributions).

Perhaps a modern choice? It might be early, but Tom Doak and Bill Coore are reasonably putting up stellar bodies of work worthy of a fringe inclusion at the very least. Tom Doak’s highest contribution to the world Top 100 comes at 20th with Tari Iti, and Pacific Dunes, Barnbougle Dunes, St. Patrick’s Links, Ballyneal, Cape Kidnappers, The Lido (if that even counts as a Doak design or not), and Rock Creek Cattle Company all ranked inside the top 73. Coore, on the other hand, has the higher ranked golf course with Sand Hills just missing the Top 10 at 11th, with an impressive supporting cast of Friar’s Head, Cabot Cliffs, Point Hardy, Te Ari, Bandon Trails, and Shanquin Bay ranked between 23rd and 95th. In both occasions, they each have a significant architectural tree worthy of further discourse, which includes the likes of Gil Hanse, Riley Johns, and Brian Schneider on the Doak side, and Rod Whitman, Dave Axland, and Keith Rhebb under the Coore side, among many other impressive golf architects who have come through both stables.

And then there was Harry Colt. Granted, there are a decent amount of other architect’s one could argue if they so choose, and maybe even a dark horse like Tom Simpson, A.W. Tillinghast, or James Braid perhaps, but Colt’s entire package is a strong case for being considered the G.O.A.T. as any. Having a very important voice in co-designing Pine Valley, the unanimous best golf course in the world helps, but so-too does No. 12 Muirfield, No. 16 Royal Portrush, No. 25 Sunningdale (Old), No. 33 Royal St. George’s, No. 46 Swinley Forest, No. 54 Sunningdale (New), No. 58 Woodhall Spa (Hotchkin), No. 71 St. George’s Hill, No. 72 Rye, and No. 93 Royal Liverpool. In total, eleven Top 100 World golf courses accredited to Colt, or the most of any architect, and they’re not just random layouts: Muirfield is one of the most recognizable golf courses in Scotland, and likewise for Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. They’re both recent Open Championship hosts, and his contributions to the English sand hills are very important as well.

Aside from the obvious list of household names and impressive layouts designed or renovated to his name, Colt’s influence should not be underestimated. That includes Stanley Thompson, who watched H.S. Colt route the golf course at Toronto Golf Club, beginning with the par 3’s and continuing on afterward. Throughout Thompson’s career, he also began his golf courses by routing the par 3’s first, leading to a rather impressive portfolio of one-shot holes like the 4th at Banff Springs, the 9th at Jasper Park Lodge, the 3rd at St. George’s, and more. Colt’s presence in Canada altered how golfers in the nation saw golf and golf architecture, and set the measuring stick for a great golf course at Toronto Golf Club.

Captain Alison, or Charles Hugh Alison, or Hugh Alison—whichever you prefer—is another architect under Colt’s umbrella as his partner under Colt & Alison, Colt, Alison, & Morrison, and Colt, Mackenzie, & Alison. Alison’s influence in Japan is a keystone part of their golf course contributions to the worldwide debate; largely, contributing to a handful of celebrated layouts at places like Kawana and Hirono. Stateside, Alison’s most notable work is largely at Milwaukee, Davenport, and Kirtland, while his European designs in The Netherlands are an important piece to the continental European scene.

Without skipping over “Colt Mackenzie, & Alison,” that Mackenzie refers to Dr. Alister Mackenzie, who is a couple paragraphs above. He went on to have a decent career—to undersell it—himself, and one wonders if it would have been the same with Colt.

This week, Hamilton Golf & Country Club plays host to its seventh RBC Canadian Open. It is the second most of any golf course to host (note: Royal Montreal has hosted ten times across a few different locations). It is just the sixth Colt golf course remaining in North America—Pine Valley, Old Elm, Toronto, Bloomfield Hills, Hamilton, and Indian Hill—and a key part of golf in Canada. Regardless of who the G.O.A.T. is or not—whether Colt, another name here, or your own choices—having the TOUR on a golf course of such significance, with the architect who largely pioneered the profession of being a golf architect, is a welcomed breath of fresh air to the TOUR’s slew of TPC and post-WWII slug tests. Take in and enjoy a master at work, especially in contrast to the usual venue hosts on the TOUR… we only get so many weeks with such architectural significance!