Your favorite golf course

But my favorite course is anyone I can take your money on...

 

This brings up a question for me.
I am pretty bad at golf. I shoot in the 105-120 range. If I ponied up to play at one of these really nice courses, would they kick me off for not being very good? Or if I played fast enough, would I be OK?

 

Getting on many of these courses isn't as simple as "poneying up" to play them. For example, Rockbottom was lucky enough to be drawn in the post-Masters lottery for one of the playing spots. I've talked to about a half-dozen of my writer buddies who have played Augusta and every one of them said their hands were shaking on the first tee.

And many of these other course references came as a result of media days; i.e. I played Riviera seven times and Sherwood four -- all on media days.

If you couldn't break 100, you wouldn't want to take on something like the Ocean Course at Kiawah, where on a windy day, you probably wouldn't break 150 and would consequently, have a miserable time.

That said, if someone offers you a round at a Riviera or a Shinnecock or a Shoal Creek, thank them profusely and ask them what time you need to be there. Then get there 20 minutes earlier.

 

Maybe I'm a masochist, but I wouldn't trade the round I played there for a round anywhere ... except Augusta National (edit: or St. Andrews, for that matter).

As long as you're able to keep your expectations in check and enjoy the round for the experience of playing it, The Ocean Course is amazing.

/no, the wind wasn't what it could have been
//and the round was free

 

The outburst of vicious course envy makes this thread worthwhile.

 

I don't have any one favorite. If I did, it might be Buck Hill Falls in the Poconos, an altered Donald Ross which is where I learned the game as a kid. Not because it's a great course, it's just a good one, but it's where I learned to love golf.
For pure aesthetics, I have been fortunate enough to play the following. These are not ranked, it's just as they come to me.
Ballybunion, Ireland
The Country Club, Brookline, Mass.
Olympic, San Francisco
Mid Ocean Club, Bermuda
Lahinch, Ireland
Truro Highlands, Truro, Mass.
TPC Sawgrass
The original Sawgrass
Yale Golf course, Connecticut
Merion
Honorable mention for weirdness: Golf de Vichy, Vichy, France. The course is part of the town's humonguous recreational park. Out of bounds to the left on one par 4 is the backstretch of the race track. Horse racing and golf being what they are, you just know at least one duck hook has coldcocked at least one 6-5 favorite with a Titleist right between the eyes.

 

I'll echo what rb said about Pinehurst. Went down there with a couple of buddies right after graduation as a gift to ourselves. We played 90 holes in 48 hours, including the just-opened No. 7. Playing two foursomes behind us on 7 were Ben Crenshaw and Andy North, who were in town being wooed by Pinehurst in hopes of landing a U.S. Open there. Talked briefly with Crenshaw after the round and he seemed like a nice guy. One of the few autographs I actually own to this day.

Also, if you ever find yourself in South Jersey in late September, make a point of heading over to Pine Valley to watch the Crump Cup final, match play against the top two amatuers in the area. It's the only day the course is open to the public and it's worth the trip.

 

Amazing isn't quite what I think of when it comes to The Ocean Course at Kiawah.

What were Pete and Alice Dye thinking to build the first fairway eight feet above the level of the sand that runs virtually the entire length of the hole? If you're a player, you don't know where to stop the cart because you're so far below the level of the fairway. If you're a spectator, you see the top half of the player for the same reason.

The finishing stretch of 16, 17 and 18 is terrific, but overall, I think the experience is just OK. I put this in the group of courses where there's no way I'd dig into my own pockets for the green fee.

And, you can't get there from here.

 

Ooh ... I will add a few more.

* Kiva Dunes, Gulf Shores, Fla.
* Castle Pines, Castle Rock, Colo.

rb

 

Pebble Beach I love
The Honors Course I lost balls
I should die lucky