Posted by Jason Sobel
Wow.
Seriously, that's my first reaction. Wow. I'll let you all in on a little secret: Usually the feedback e-mails for this blog range from a couple dozen per entry (for something controversial about Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson or Michelle Wie) to "Is there anybody out there?" status.
When I asked you, dear readers, to name your five favorite courses you've played, I expected the number of responses to fall somewhere in this range. Instead, the inbox was flooded with hundreds of messages as answers extended from the world's top venues to hometown gems of a more personal nature. Here's what I learned from each of you: Great golf courses can cost $300 or $30. They can play 6,000 yards or 7,500. They can reside in the U.S., Ireland, Scotland or (as you'll notice below) even Pakistan. They are infinitely more enjoyable when shared with friends or family members. They are infinitely more memorable when accompanied by a successful score. And they inspire passion in each one of you.
Thank you for the responses. I'd love to keep this blog more interactive in the future. Click here to submit questions or opinions about anything golf-related (whether it's about your favorite course, something on the PGA Tour, equipment, instruction -- really, anything at all) and I'll try to open up the blog as a forum to discuss different topics.
Unfortunately, it's simply not possible to post every response received the past few days. I've picked out 15 that should serve as a pretty good representation of your e-mails as a whole. Hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have:
Top five courses I have played:
1. Whistling Straits: Links golf. Many holes on Lake Michigan. Great brats at the turn.
2. Cypress Point: Visually, the most spectacular course ever. Hated my caddie.
3. Pebble Beach: Absolutely great experience. Layout is fantastic. Tried and failed to chip in on 17 like [Tom] Watson.
4. Pinehurst No. 2: Great history. Have seen the last two U.S. Opens there. Some greens should have windmills and a clown's mouth on them.
5. Pasatiempo: Hidden gem in Santa [Cruz], Calif. Alister MacKenzie design. Reasonable price.
-- Greg, Charlotte, N.C.
1. Bethpage Black: Sleeping in the parking lot the night before with a good group of people and playing early the next morning is right up there with the truest golf experiences possible.
2. Quarry Oaks, Ashland, Neb.: Set on hills overlooking a river. Great vistas, very well kept course.
3. Yale Golf Course, New Haven, Conn.: Beautiful layout. The course has so much character. And as a Yale student, the $25 greens fee can't be beat.
4. Great River, Milford, Conn.: Bunch of nice holes along the Housatonic River.
5. Stanford University Golf Course: The view from the 18th tee of the Golden Gate Bridge and downtown San Francisco is beautiful.
-- Sandeep, New Haven, Conn.
1. Pacific Dunes: Just unbelievable. Played all 3 courses there, Pacific Dunes last, and it was the best. Spectacular in every way.
2. Pasatiempo: How does a 6,300-yard course make you hit every club in the bag? I can remember most holes even playing it seven years ago.
3. Bethpage Black: Meaty. Fierce. Not tricky, just tough.
4. Olympic Course at Gold Mountain, Bremerton, Wash.: Super, underrated course, and public! Great deal and a fantastic track.
5. Victoria (B.C.) Golf Club: Great, tricky track right on the ocean. Beautiful views.
-- John, Tacoma, Wash.
1. Oakmont C.C., Oakmont, Pa.: First time I ever played with a caddie and enjoyed the course. A classic.
2. Shadow Creek, Las Vegas: Unbelievable.
3. Half Moon Bay, Santa Cruz, Calif.: 18th hole on Old Course has an additional set of tees facing the Pacific.
4. Majestic at Lake Walden, Hartland, Mich.: I broke 80 for the first time with a birdie on the par-5 18th.
5. Lakewood Shores Resort, The Gailes, Oscoda, Mich.: Played with two friends and on the par-5 15th, scored eagle, birdie, birdie.
-- Peter Neary, Plymouth, Mich.
1. Pacific Dunes: I've played Pacific Dunes when it was 60 degrees, calm and sunny, and when it was 40, with 30 mph sustained winds and five inches of rain -- and I've loved every minute I've been on the course.
2. Bandon Dunes: The first time I played Bandon Dunes, it blew away all of the other courses I had played to that point. The last time I was there, I stood on the 16th tee for a few minutes just staring out at the ocean with the sun setting on a clear January day. It was the final nine (with no one else on the golf course) of a day in which I played all three of the resort's golf courses.
3. Druids Glen, Covington, Wash.: Great set of par-3 holes, some nice par-4s and the first, and only course, on which I've managed to shoot even par.
4. LaQuinta (Mountain): Despite leaving an 8-foot downhill eagle putt short in the cup on the last hole, it's the first course that I've played that's set right next to, and in, the mountains.
5. Hawks Nest, Creston, Ohio: A rolling, well designed, fun golf course in the middle of nowhere that (I believe) used to be a farm. For around $30 on the weekend, it's one of the best bargains in the country.
-- Emery, Seattle
1. Ko'Olau, Oahu, Hawaii: "Hardest course in the U.S." Slope ratings: 162, 158, 132 and 134, respectively. The starter asked me, "What's your handicap?" I told him 16. He says, "Expect to lose that many balls." I did.
2. Islamabad Golf Club, Islamabad, Pakistan: My first time experiencing caddies. He got my handicap down to 6!
3. Rawalpindi Golf Club, Rawalpindi, Pakistan: President Musharraf's house is about 100 yards off one of the holes, helipad included. Saw his helicopter take off (he wasn't in it).
4. Bay Hill: Tiger's backyard. 'Nuff said.
5. Torrey Pines (South course): Only cost me $41 by being in the military!
-- Stine Fontenot, Tampa, Fla.
1. Old Course, St. Andrews: Despite two quads and a triple, breaking 90 was awesome there.
2. Turnberry: Second-lowest round ever and the conditions were great.
3. Waterville, Ireland: Perfect weather to go with a perfect Irish caddie.
4. Tralee, Ireland: Both times I played in pouring rain and it was still outstanding.
5 Winnetka (National North course): Home course with the buddies has to be in the top five.
-- Will, Winnetka, Ill.
I'm adding a slight twist to the blog. Here are my five favorite Donald Ross designs that I've played. Most are in New England:
1. Pinehurst No. 2
2. Salem Country Club
3. Essex Country Club
4. Orchards Golf Club
5. Charles River Country Club
-- Brian, Gloucester, Mass.
1. Pasatiempo, Santa Cruz, Calif.: Mini-Augusta, designed by MacKenzie.
2. Troon CC, Scottsdale, Ariz.: Try playing the 17th from the tips into the wind (660 yards).
3. Waterville GC, Waterville, Ireland: The third hole is as good as it gets.
4. Lahinch GC, Lahinch, Ireland: If the big goat is out and hanging around the second or third hole, you know it's going to rain.
5. Cog Hill No. 4: Site of the Western Open. Good old-fashioned Jemsek course. Hard to beat it on a warm Midwestern summer day.
-- Mike Walsh
1. Spyglass Hill: More consistently great than even Pebble.
2. Pebble Beach: Best holes are just breathtaking.
3. Coeur D'Alene: Not that challenging, but incredibly beautiful and fun.
4. Shadow Creek: Truly one of a kind.
5. Challenge at Manele: Ridiculously beautiful views throughout.
-- Gregg Pasternack, Los Angeles
As a lobbyist, I've been pretty lucky to get on some courses I could never otherwise afford, so my top five looks like this. (I will say though, that the only one I played to my standards is the only one I actually paid for. I guess the golf gods have sense of justice after all.):
1. Pebble Beach
2. Robert Trent Jones Golf Club
3. Firestone (South Course)
4. Baltusrol
5. Congressional CC
-- Mark, Washington D.C.
1. Spyglass Hill: I still regard my 85 there as my best round ever (and I am a 7 handicap). Toughest course I have ever played, by far.
2. Baltusrol (Upper course): Non-U.S. Open 18 is several times better than the one everyone knows.
3. Pebble Beach: First played it when I was 12 years old. 4:30 p.m. tee time for free in exchange for chipping balls out of the ice plants at the range the next day. Played 16-18 in the dark. That stuff doesn't fly with new management nowadays.
4. Montclair (N.J.) Golf Club: Yogi Berra's club, this classic Robert Trent Jones Sr. four-9s is consistently the best conditioned course I have seen in the Northeast. Greens as difficult as anywhere. Membership is the best guys you will find anywhere.
5. Rock Spring, West Orange, N.J.: My home course growing up. The par-3 195-yard third hole over a 70-foot quarry is still the toughest par-3 I have ever seen. Anywhere.
-- Paul, New York
1. Bandon Trails: Great course. Played in 40 mph wind, shot 76. It has one bad hole (14).
2. Pacific Dunes: Breathtaking, great caddie.
3. Pebble Beach: History.
4. Bandon Dunes: Easiest course of the three at the resort.
5. Pasatiempo: Underrated gem on Monterey coast.
-- Thomas, Fresno, Calif.
1. Cypress Point: Step on whomever you have to in order to get an invite. Unbelievable.
2. Olympic Club (Lake): Walking the fairways previously graced by Hogan, Jack, Arnie, etc. gives you goose bumps.
3. Pebble Beach: Worthy of the hype, but not the greenies (at least not more than once).
4. Medinah (No. 3): Best inland course I have ever played. Trees everywhere.
5. Wolf Run Golf Club, Zionsville, Ind.: The best course you've never heard of.
-- Chris, Indiana
1. Old Course, St. Andrews: A week after the 2000 Open, with all the scoreboards and grandstands still up, after having camped out at the starters hut all night and awaking to the magnificent sunrise over the North Sea.
2. Sutton Bay, South Dakota: Not another foursome on the course or within 500 miles, I would imagine.
3. Pinehurst No. 2: Even though I duffed it into the only water hazard -- which isn't even in play -- on No. 16.
4. Birdwood, University of Virginia: Three-hour rounds, four times a week during college.
5. Harding Park, San Francisco: Single-handedly made me decide that I'm going to move to the West Coast. Great weather, great people, great conditions, and a pace of play you could only dream of finding at any public course on the East Coast.
-- Huan, Washington, D.C.
