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US Pacific Division Best in State Rankings 2016

US Pacific Division Best in State Rankings 2016
Five States in the West Region are updated in the first of nine US divisional revisions
Top 100 Golf Courses inaugurated its Best in State rankings for the United States in 2012 so this is the second biennial update of those listings. Two years ago, we published the revised standings for the fifty States in four geographical groupings. This time around, we plan to spread the announcements across nine distinct Divisions, starting with the five Pacific States of California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii and Alaska.
We’ve also extended the number of courses that we feature in nearly every state. For the Pacific Division, we’ve increased our coverage from 120 to 195 courses, thanks mainly to doubling the size of the Californian chart from a Top 50 to a Top 100. In total, there are 17 Pacific tracks ranked in our national Top 100 for the United States so it’s a division that’s hardly lacking in high quality golf courses.
California
The Top seven places in our Californian listings remain exactly as they have been since 2014 so that means Alister MacKenzie’s Cypress Point remains in the number 1 position – hardly a surprise when you consider it’s also our current US and World No. 1. The course attracted an excellent review last year when somebody posted a wonderful pictorial account of their visit (having spent more than a year carefully planning the trip beforehand ) and their comments ended with the wish that “many more readers of this site get the chance to play [the course], because it really is an experience like no other”.

One of only two courses to make upward moves within the Top 10 standings, California Golf Club of San Francisco rises two places to number 8. Originally laid out in the 1920s, “the Cal Club” was extensively renovated by Kyle Phillips in 2007/8 and the results of that fabulous upgrade are now reflected in the layout’s latest chart position. Mention must also be made to another couple of courses which the same architect has revived with extensive makeovers in recent years: Menlo (at number 48) and Wilshire(at number 50), which are two of the highest new entries in our latest Top 100 for the Golden State.
Rank/ | Course | Move |
1 | Cypress Point | No change |
2 | Pebble Beach | No change |
3 | San Francisco | No change |
4 | Riviera | No change |
5 | Los Angeles (North) | No change |
6 | Olympic Club (Lake) | No change |
7 | Pasatiempo | No change |
8 | California | Up 2 |
9 | Valley Club of Montecito | Down 1 |
10 | Spyglass Hill | Down 1 |
11 | Monterey Peninsula (Shore) | No change |
12 | Bel-Air | Up 4 |
13 | Mayacama | No change |
14 | Preserve | No change |
15 | Quarry at La Quinta | No change |
16 | Torrey Pines (South) | Down 4 |
17 | Stone Eagle | No change |
18 | Madison | Up 1 |
19 | Martis Camp Club | Up 3 |
20 | CordeValle | No change |
21 | Monterey Peninsula (Dunes) | Up 3 |
22 | PGA West (Stadium) | Down 4 |
23 | Sherwood | Up 2 |
24 | Rustic Canyon | Up 8 |
25 | Lahontan | Up 6 |
26 | Links at Spanish Bay | Down 3 |
27 | Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe | No change |
28 | Barona Creek | Down 2 |
29 | Tradition | Up 6 |
30 | Meadow Club | Up 3 |
31 | Shady Canyon | Down 10 |
32 | Bighorn (Canyons) | Down 4 |
33 | Pelican Hill (Ocean South) | Down 3 |
34 | Bighorn (Mountains) | No change |
35 | Vintage Club (Desert) | Down 6 |
36 | Rancho Sante Fe | Up 1 |
37 | Olympic Club (Ocean) | Down 1 |
38 | Vintage Club (Mountain) | Up 1 |
39 | Stanford University | Up 1 |
40 | Eldorado | Up 3 |
41 | Pelican Hill (Ocean North) | Down 3 |
42 | TPC Harding Park | Down 1 |
43 | Trump National - Los Angeles | Up 4 |
44 | Pauma Valley | New entry |
45 | Saddle Creek | Up 1 |
46 | La Purisima | Down 4 |
47 | Maderas | Down 3 |
48 | Menlo CC | New entry |
49 | Poppy Hills | New entry |
50 | Wilshire | New entry |
51 | Indian Wells (Players) | Down 6 |
52 | Cayote Moon | New entry |
53 | San Diego | New entry |
54 | La Costa (Champions) | New entry |
55 | Lakeside | New entry |
56 | La Quinta (Mountain) | New entry |
57 | Half Moon Bay (Ocean) | Down 9 |
58 | Shadow Ridge | New entry |
59 | PGA West (Palmer Private) | New entry |
60 | Desert Willow (Firecliff) | Down 10 |
61 | Toscana (South) | New entry |
62 | Reserve | Down 13 |
63 | Bayonet & Black Horse (Bayonet) | New entry |
64 | Sandpiper | New entry |
65 | Pacific Grove | New entry |
66 | Claremont | New entry |
67 | Granite Bay | New entry |
68 | PGA West (Nicklaus Private) | New entry |
69 | Lake Merced | New entry |
70 | Aviara | New entry |
71 | Dark Horse | New entry |
72 | Old Greenwood | New entry |
73 | Grand GC San Diego | New entry |
74 | Ironwood (South) | New entry |
75 | Indian Wells (Celebrity) | New entry |
76 | Bayonet & Black Horse (Black Horse) | New entry |
77 | Mission Hills (Pete Dye Challenge) | New entry |
78 | Classic Club | New entry |
79 | Torry Pines (North) | New entry |
80 | TPC Stonebrae | New entry |
81 | Journey at Pechanga | New entry |
82 | Monarch Beach | New entry |
83 | Silverado (North) | New entry |
84 | Peninsula G&CC | New entry |
85 | Wente Vineyards | New entry |
86 | Saticoy | New entry |
87 | PGA West (Nicklaus Tournament) | New entry |
88 | Grizzly Ranch | New entry |
89 | Poppy Ridge (Merlot & Zinfandel) | New entry |
90 | Porcupine Creek | New entry |
91 | Winchester Country Club | New entry |
92 | Whitehawk Ranch | New entry |
93 | Annandale | New entry |
94 | Sonoma | New entry |
95 | Yocha Dehe | New entry |
96 | SilverRock (Arnold Palmer Classic) | New entry |
97 | Nicklaus Club - Monterey | New entry |
98 | Olympic Club (Cliffs) | New entry |
99 | Schaffer's Mill Club | New entry |
100 | Orinda | New entry |
Click the link to see full details of our 2016 California Best in State rankings
Oregon

We’ve expanded our chart for the Beaver State by 50% to create a Top 30 and the top four positions are all occupied by courses from the iconic Bandon Dunes Resort. Tom Doak’s Pacific Dunes layout holds onto the number 1 position and the architect’s second design at this venue, Old Macdonald, climbs one place to the runner-up spot at number 2. All four 18-hole layouts at this popular golf destination are firmly ensconced in our US Top 100 table so it’s really hard to argue against anybody who claims Bandon is the best golf resort in the country.
Two hundred and seventy miles further northeast of Bandon, the Pronghorn Club at Bend offers its residential members two terrific tracks. The rather unimaginatively named Fazio (designed by Tom Fazio in 2006) edges up two places to number 5 in the state listings and its older sibling, the Nicklaus (laid out by Jack Nicklaus in 2004), moves up one position to number 8. Another private facility, Portland Golf Club, enters the Top 10 at number 10 and some might be aware of the historical importance of this course, having hosted the first Ryder Cup after World War II in 1947.
Rank/ | Course | Move |
1 | Bandon Dunes (Pacific Dunes) | No change |
2 | Bandon Dunes (Old Macdonald) | Up 1 |
3 | Bandon Dunes (Bandon Dunes) | Down 1 |
4 | Bandon Dunes (Bandon Trails) | No change |
5 | Pronghorn (Fazio) | Up 2 |
6 | Eugene | Down 1 |
7 | Pumpkin Ridge (Witch Hollow) | Down 1 |
8 | Pronghorn (Nicklaus) | Up 1 |
9 | Crosswater | Down 1 |
10 | Portland | Up 1 |
11 | Tetherow | Down 1 |
12 | Waverley | Up 4 |
13 | Pumpkin Ridge (Ghost Creek) | Up 1 |
14 | Columbia Edgewater (Macan) | Down 1 |
15 | Broken Top | No change |
16 | Aspen Lakes | New entry |
17 | Juniper | New entry |
18 | Running Y Ranch | Down 6 |
19 | Bandon Crossings | Down 1 |
20 | Sandpines | New entry |
21 | Black Butte Ranch (Glaze Meadow) | New entry |
22 | Oregon | New entry |
23 | Brasada Ranch | New entry |
24 | Black Butte Ranch (Big Meadow) | New entry |
25 | Salishan | Down 8 |
26 | Eagle Point | Down 6 |
27 | Reserve Vineyards (South) | Down 8 |
28 | Tokatee | New entry |
29 | Astoria | New entry |
30 | Reserve Vineyards (North) | New entry |
Click the link to see full details of our 2016 Oregon Best in State rankings
Washington

We’ve added another five courses to our Washington listings, where Chambers Bay remains the Evergreen State’s number 1 track, despite tumbling down the US national chart that we published four months ago. The course was widely criticised during last year’s US Open for the performance of its putting surfaces but, despite conditioning issues, it’s still regarded by many commentators as one of Robert Trent Jones Jnr’s better designs.
New at number 2, we have David McLay Kidd’s Gamble Sands, which first opened for play in 2014. Set out on top of a sandy mesa within a huge 1,000-acre property, the course lies – in the words of its architect – in a ”once in a lifetime site every golf designer dreams of, rolling sand dunes overlooking a large body of water… no homes, no other development around, just golf on sand, golf as it was truly meant to be.”
Rank/ | Course | Move |
1 | Chambers Bay | No change |
2 | Gamble Sands | New entry |
3 | Sahalee (South/North) | Down 1 |
4 | Aldarra | Down 1 |
5 | Wine Valley | No change |
6 | Tumble Creek | Down 2 |
7 | Seattle | Up 2 |
8 | Salish Cliffs | Up 2 |
9 | Palouse Ridge | Down 3 |
10 | Royal Oaks | Down 2 |
11 | TPC Snoqualmie Ridge | Down 4 |
12 | Fircrest | Up 2 |
13 | Gold Mountain (Olympic) | Down 1 |
14 | Loomis Trail | Up 2 |
15 | Desert Canyon | Down 2 |
16 | Semiahmoo | Down 1 |
17 | Suncadia (Prospector) | Up 2 |
18 | Canterwood | Down 7 |
19 | Port Ludlow (Tide & Timber) | Down 1 |
20 | Trophy Lake | Down 3 |
21 | Indian Canyon | New entry |
22 | Tacoma | Up 3 |
23 | Washington National | Down 3 |
24 | Creek at Qualchan | New entry |
25 | McCormick Woods | New entry |
26 | Inglewood | Down 5 |
27 | Apple Tree | New entry |
28 | Plateau | Down 6 |
29 | Suncadia (Rope Rider) | New entry |
30 | Indian Summer | Down 7 |
Click the link to see full details of our 2016 Washington Best in State rankings
Hawaii

There are now 30 courses in our standings for the Aloha State and another David McLay Kidd design, Nanea, retains the number 1 slot. Paul Rudovsky played this ultra-exclusive track on the Big Island last March. Paul (aka Rudo) is closing in on playing every course that has ever appeared on a World Top 100 ranking list: “This is a very very private club. It is simply exquisite, and fun to play, but it also very much values its privacy, and I shall respect that… What you might not expect is the difficulty associated with reading its greens, which are heavily influenced by the slope from Mauna Kea down to the Pacific Ocean. The course is one of the very few that is both challenging and fun to play. If you get the opportunity, do not let it pass.”
Positions 2, 3 and 4 in the new Top 30 all remain as they were then, at number 5 (up two spots), we have the 1993 Jack Nicklaus design at Manele on Lanai Island which a reviewer last year described as “maybe the most visually stunning course you will ever play… almost every hole has spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean… this is my idea of Paradise.”
A little further down the chart, two of our ten new entries arrive inside the Top 10: Kukui’ula at number 8 is a tremendous Tom Weiskopf layout on the island of Kauai that debuted in 2010 and Kohanaiki at number 9 is a remarkable Rees Jones design – routed around Ahu rock shrines and hundreds of anchialine pools – which was finally unveiled in 2013, five years after its scheduled opening date.
Rank/ | Course | Move |
1 | Nanea | No change |
2 | Kapalua (Plantation) | No change |
3 | Princeville (Prince) | No change |
4 | Mauna Kea | No change |
5 | Manele | Up 2 |
6 | Kuki'o | No change |
7 | Hokuli'a | Down 2 |
8 | Kukui'ula | New entry |
9 | Kohanaiki | New entry |
10 | Hualalai (Ke’olu) | Down 2 |
11 | Waialae | Down 1 |
12 | Poipu Bay | Down 1 |
13 | Hoakalei | New entry |
14 | King Kamehameha | New entry |
15 | Turtle Bay (Palmer) | No change |
16 | Hualalai (Hualalai) | Down 4 |
17 | Princeville (Makai) | Down 8 |
18 | Wailea (Gold) | Down 5 |
19 | Koele | Down 5 |
20 | Wailea (Emerald) | No change |
21 | Mauna Lani (North) | Down 3 |
22 | Ko'olau | Down 6 |
23 | Kauai Lagoons (Kiele) | Down 6 |
24 | Mauna Lani (South) | Down 5 |
25 | Waikoloa Beach (King's) | New entry |
26 | Kapalua (Bay) | New entry |
27 | Ko Olina | New entry |
28 | Ka‘anapali (Royal Ka‘anapali) | New entry |
29 | Puakea | New entry |
30 | Mid Pacific | New entry |
Click the link to see full details of our 2016 Hawaii Best in State rankings
Alaska

The Last Frontier State is the only one in the United States where we list fewer than ten courses. Our number 1 is still Bill Newcomb’s thirty-year-old Anchorage course, located just outside the state’s most populous city. With the Robert Trent Jones Jnr course at Eagleglen closing two years ago and dropping out of our state rankings, we have a new entry at number 4, Settlers Bay, to take its place in our new Top 5 chart.
Rank/ | Course | Move |
1 | Anchorage | No change |
2 | Moose Run (Creek) | Up 1 |
3 | Chena Bend | Up 1 |
4 | Settlers Bay | New entry |
5 | Palmer | No change |
Click the link to see full details of our 2016 Alaska Best in State rankings
We always like to hear what you think about our re-ranking process so please let us know your opinion of our five newly updated US Best in State charts. What course(s) have we missed or is there one (or more) that really shouldn’t be listed? Perhaps there’s one riding too high or languishing too low in the standings? Whatever your impressions are, please click the “Respond to this article” link at the top or at the bottom of this page.
Jim McCann
Editor
Top 100 Golf Courses