Top 100 has launched its podcast series hosted by our own James Henderson called Top 100 Clubhouse. James' unique approach often explores the people behind the places we love to visit and play.
What Are The Top 100 Clubhouse Podcasts About?
Top 100 Clubhouse is the ultimate podcast for golf enthusiasts! Join us as we delve deep into the minds of fascinating individuals from every corner of the golfing world. From players to course designers, caddies to golf historians, we'll leave no stone unturned in our quest to share unique insights and experiences with the Top100 Community.
Together we'll explore the stunning courses and breathtaking landscapes, enjoying the unforgettable stories that bring the game of golf to life.
How Do I Listen To The Latest Top 100 Clubhouse Podcast?
You can download and listen on the following links. Listen now, wherever you download your podcast!
Top 100 members can share their views on who should join the next Top 100 Clubhouse podcast show. If you have an idea who you would like to hear, why not drop our Top 100 Clubhouse host James Henderson an email at: james@top100golfcourses.com
Episode 62: Ru McDonald, Cruden Bay and Scottish Golf
In this week's pod, Ru McDonald (Formerly DP World Tour Social Media Manager) joins Jasper to discuss his home club of Cruden Bay, his new golf holiday rental business, and golf in Scotland more broadly.
Episode 61: DJ Piehowski
In this episode, No Laying Up's DJ Piehowski joins the podcast to discuss his journey in the golf industry. He then gives us his thoughts on the latest goings on around the golfing world (TGL, PGA Tour/LIV unification, The distance debate etc), and his favourite courses from the last few years of travel.
Episode 60: 2025 PGA Show
In the last few weeks, James & Jasper headed to Orlando to explore the PGA Show. In this episode, they discuss their thoughts on the experience, and some broader themes in the golf industry.
Episode 59: The Valley Course at Royal Portrush
In this episode, Jasper sits down with Gary McNeill (head pro at Royal Portrush) to discuss the changes on the Valley Course and what it will be like when it reopens next year.
Episode 58: Brett Hochstein - Building a Career in Golf Course Design
In this episode, Jasper is joined by golf course designer Brett Hochstein. He discusses how his career got off to a rocky start during the 2008 Financial Crash and how he used that time to develop skills in greenkeeping and course management. He also discusses his recent input at various golden-age courses, including Pasatiempo.
Episode 57: Golf in New Zealand
In this episode, Jasper joins James to discuss his recent trip to New Zealand and the golf scene on the North Island. He discusses Te Arai, Tara Iti & Waverley, among others.
Episode 56: The Most Golf Courses Play In A Year?
In this podcast, Jasper is joined by Josh Simpson (AKA The Ginger Golfer) to discuss his 2025 attempt to break the Guinness World Record for most golf courses played in a year.
Episode 55: Walton Heath Golf Club
James & Jasper got the chance to visit the beautiful Walton Heath, in Surrey, and recorded a brief 15 minute chat in their historic clubhouse.
Episode 53: Royal Burgess Golf Club - The Oldest in the World
James chats to two members of Royal Burgess (Willie Finlayson & Dr Douglas Stuart) about the history of this great golf club.
Episode 52: USA Rankings Update
In this episode, Jasper & James discuss our latest Top 100 USA list, and the big runners and riders. They also discuss the future of golf course architecture, and some industry trends to look out for in 2025 and beyond.
Episode 51: Lockhart Travel Club
In this week's podcast, James welcomes David Davis (CEO Of Top 100 Golf Courses) to the podcast, to talk about The Lockhart Travel Club. It is a sister company of Top 100, and provides members with the opportunity to play world class golf all around the world, and meet like minded golfers.
Episode 50: Year in Review
In this episode, James & Jasper reflect on their golf course highlights of 2024, and look ahead to Top100's 2025 plans.
Episode 49: Forward Golf - The Next Evolution in Club Fitting
In this episode, Jasper is joined by Chris Birch, who is the first person in the UK to adopt the Foreward Golf model of club fitting. They discuss what the method involves, and why it can be more effective than traditional, manufacturer led club fitting.
Episode 47: Sunningdale New with Adrian Pepper
In this first episode with Adrian Pepper, he gives an introduction into why he has decided to write a book on the history of the New Course, for it's centenary.
Episode 46: CA & NY Rankings
In this episode, James & Jasper discuss the recent release of new Top 100 lists in California and New York. They go through some of the social media response to the lists, and outline some of the work that goes into creating them.
Episode 45: Evan Olauson - Maintaining Golf Greywolf
This week, Evan Olauson joins the podcast to discuss how he is able to maintain Greywolf Golf Course in the Rocky Mountains through the long Canadian winter.
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Episode 44: Brian Schneider - Building Old Barnwell
In this episode, golf course architect Brian Schneider joins James & Jasper to discuss the building and development of Old Barnwell. He also discusses his background in golf, and his work on recreating The Lido.
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Episode 43: The President's Cup Of Golf Course Architecture
In this episode, James & Jasper take charge the US and international Teams respectively, and are charged with choosing a golf course from each player's home country/state. Who would win in a President's Cup Of Golf Courses?
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Episode 42: Beau Welling - Working with Tiger Woods
In this episode of The Top100 Clubhouse, James is joined by golf course architect Beau Welling to discuss his illustrious career, his relationship with Tiger Woods, and his involvement in the PGA Tour's TGL project which is due to begin next January.
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Episode 41: Robin Sieger - Silent Mind Golf
In this episode of The Clubhouse, James is joined by Robin Sieger, and they discuss the psychological side of playing golf. They also chat about some of Robin's favourite courses, and his golf-related world record!
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Episodes 39 & 40: John Low - Golf Course Architectrure's Forgotten Man
In this episode of The Top 100 Clubhouse, James and Jasper are joined by Golf Historian Bob Crosby, to discuss the life and legacy of John Low. He was an influential figure in shaping the direction of golf course architecture, and yet he is little known today.
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Episode 38: Christine Fraser - A Fresh Perspective on Golf Course Architecture
In this episode, James and Jasper are joined by Christine Fraser to discuss her unique perspective on golf course architecture. She began her career with Martin Hawtree in the South East of England and now runs her own company where she looks to use golf course architecture to drive meaningful change in communities.
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Episode 37: Jasper Miners - Introducing the Editor of Top 100 Golf Courses
In this episode, James is joined by the newest member of the Top100 team, Jasper Miners (AKA @Evalu18Golf), to discuss the world of golf course architecture, and what is coming next for Top100. Listen in, and let us know in the comments what you would like to see next from Top100 Golf Courses.
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Episode 36: Wilma Erskine OBE - Bringing The Open to Royal Portrush
In this episode James Henderson is joined by Wilma Erskine OBE, BEM. Wilma was the manager at Royal Portrush Golf Club for 35 years, and played a key role in bringing the Open Championship back to Northern Ireland in 2019. Wilma shares some fascinating insights into golf club management and explains how Royal Portrush has progressed from the dark days of the Troubles, into one of the highest-ranked courses in the world. We hope you enjoy!
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Episode 35: Part 4 - Northern Irish Golf Road Trip: Royal County Down
In the final episode from our NI Golf Road Trip, James chats to the legendary Kevan Whitson; The head professional at Royal County Down Golf Club. They talk about Kevan's route to the game, the club's history and what makes the course so special. Check out the accompanying videos on our YouTube channel. Search 'Top 100 Golf Courses' on YouTube.
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Episode 34: Part 3 - Northern Irish Golf Road Trip: Portstewart Golf Club
In the third episode of our new series, the Top100 Golf Courses team visit Portstewart Golf Club. James Henderson chats with General Manager, David MacLaren.Make sure to watch video reviews of each course on our YouTube channel, and keep an eye out for the rest of our Northern Irish Golf Road Trip series!
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Episode 33: Part 2 - Northern Irish Golf Road Trip: Castlerock Golf Club
In the second episode of our new series, the Top100 Golf Courses team visit Castlerock Golf Club. James Henderson chats with Caddy Master Gordon Patterson, and Head Pro Robert Irvine. Make sure to watch video reviews of each course on our YouTube channel, and keep an eye out for the rest of our Northern Irish Golf Road Trip series!
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Episode 32: Part 1 - Northern Irish Golf Road Trip: Royal Portrush
In the first episode of our new series, the Top100 Golf Courses team visit the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club. This venue will play host to the 2025 Open Championship, and in this episode, James Henderson chats with Gary McNeill (head pro at Royal Portrush) about the preparation required to host such a prestigious tournament. Make sure to watch video reviews of each course on our YouTube channel, and keep an eye out for the rest of our Northern Irish Golf Road Trip series!
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Episode 31: Why is Augusta National 12th in our World Rankings?
A special episode to discuss why Augusta National is ranked 12th in our Top100golfcourses.com World Rankings!
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Episode 30: Matt Adamski - General Manager at Sweetens Cove
In this episode James Henderson is joined by Matt Adamski, who is the GM at Sweetens Cove in Tennessee, USA. He talks about how he got the job, and how the interview experience was in stark contrast to all of his prior experience in the golf industry. He talks about the merchandise offering from 'the shed', the course itself, and what makes the Sweetens experience so special.
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Episode 29: Tyler Rae - Golf Course Architect & Donald Ross Expert
In this episode, James is joined by renowned golf course architect Tyler Rae. Tyler has worked on many high profile restoration projects, and also works on original courses. In this episode he talks through the challenges and joys of working in this industry, and expounds on what makes golf so special to him.
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Episode 28: Ryan Fox
We welcome Ryan Fox to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Ryan a pro golfer currently ranked 41st in the world and 1st in New Zealand.
He talks about how the All Blacks rugby team, most notably his legendary father Grant, have impacted his golfing career. We discuss his experience playing on the PGA Tour of Australasia, the Asian Tour and the European Tour, as well as New Zealand's rise to becoming a leading golf destination.
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Episode 27: Colin Burns - Managing Winged Foot
In the first new episode of 2024 James is joined by Colin Burns, the former GM at Winged Foot Golf Club. They have a wide ranging discussion about managing a prestigious golf club, hosting a US Open during Covid and Colin's favourite golf courses.
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Episodes 24-26: 2023 Year-End Review - Parts 1-3
This week on Top 100 Clubhouse James Henderson, Simon Holt and David Davis get together to carry out a review of the 2023 golfing year! They chat about the amazing courses they have visited in the past 12 months, and discuss the places you should be adding to your golfing itinerary in 2024!
Episode 23: Josh Ralston - Saudi Arabian Involvement In Golf
In this week's episode of The Clubhouse James is joined by Josh Ralston (a professor at Edinburgh University). They discuss the ongoing LIV/PGA Tour negotiations, and why Saudi Arabia decided to get involved in golf in the first place. They also talk through Josh's favourite courses from around the world on the back end.
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Episode 22: Allesandra Kutz - Being A Female Club Fitter & Playing England's Top100
In this episode of The Clubhouse, James is joined by Allesandra Kutz. Allesandra played high-level golf at college but then fell out of love with the game. Recently, she got the bug again and is now trying to crack England's Top100 Golf Courses and document her journey.
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Episode 21: Kyle Cruickshank - Course Manager at The North Berwick Golf Club
This week we welcome Kyle Cruickshank to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Kyle's a fascinating individual who's worked all over the world from Royal Melbourne to Muirfield and is now the course manager at the fantastic North Berwick.
We discuss his career journey so far, the current renovations taking place at North Berwick, and his Top 5 Favourite Courses.
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Episode 20: Jim Rohrstaff - Te Arai Links
In this episode of The Clubhouse, our CEO (Simon Holt) is in New Zealand for a golf trip. He checks in with Jim Rohrstaff, the managing director at Te Arai links, to chat about the incredible visitor experience, their favourite holes and much more.
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Episode 19: Nordic Special - Frode Hov (Lofoten Links) & Per G. Nyman (Växjö Golf Club)
In this episode of 'Top100 Clubhouse' James is joined by Frode Hov, the driving force behind the sensational Lofoten Links in Norway. They discuss what makes Lofoten such a special place, and why it's a must-visit for any golf course lover!
Next, James chats to Swedish pro golfer Per G. Nyman about his time competing on the European Tour and Challenge Tour, and how he then made the move from pro golf to golf course management, he's currently managing Växjö Golf Club in Sweden.
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Episode 18: David McLay Kidd - Designing The Castle Course & Dealing With Controversy
In this episode of 'The Clubhouse' James is joined by a Scottish golf architecture legend; David McLay Kidd. The Glasgow-born Kidd founded DMK Golf Design in 2000, and ultimately went on to design incredible (but sometimes divisive) courses such as Bandon Dunes, St. Andrews (Castle) & Gamble Sands in Washington State.
In this interview, James talks to him about his life in golf, and how he approaches/thinks about course design.
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Episode 17 - Matt Ward - Journalist at 100 Major Championships & 12 Ryder Cup's
This week we welcome golf journalist Matt Ward to the Clubhouse.
Matt is the top reviewer on top100golfcourses.com, he's played over 2000 golf courses, and written 831 reviews!
As a journalist, Matt has attended 100 Majors and 12 Ryder Cup's, and has interviewed countless high-profile golfers.
In this wide-ranging interview, Matt discusses his prestigious career, the game's all-time great players, and sheds light on what makes a top golf course.
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Episode 16: Patrick Koenig - Breaking World Records With The RGV Golf Tour
This week, legendary golf photographer Patrick Koenig joins us in the Clubhouse. We discuss his current endeavour on the RGV golf tour, where he has broken the world record for most 18-hole rounds of golf played in a year. He also discusses some of his favourite courses and locations from years of travel as a photographer.
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Episode 15: John Caven - St. George's Golf and Country Club
This week we welcome John Caven to the Clubhouse. John is the General Manager at St. George's Golf and Country Club in Ontario, Canada. He previously worked at the exclusive Loch Lomond Golf Club and has a lot to say about life in the golf industry and what it takes to host professional events in the current climate.
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Episode 14: David Davis: International Golf Course Rater & Co-Founder of The Lockhart Travel Club
This week we welcome David Davis to the Clubhouse. David is a Partner at Top100golfcourses.com and Co-Founder of The Lockhart Travel Club. The 43rd person to finish playing the World Top 100 (November 2018). A true golf travel and golf course architecture enthusiast who has been a golf course panelist and international course rater for over 15 years. A father of 3 kids and a lifetime expat, originally from Oregon, having now lived overseas (in The Netherlands) for the better part of 30 years.
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Episode 13: Kurtis Bowman - Augusta National & La Haciena
This week we welcome golf course architect Kurtis Bowman to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Kurtis talks to us about his new design at La Hacienda in Spain; he also details the reasons for his sabbatical from golf and his subsequent return to the industry.
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Episode 12: Javier Reviriego - CEO at Real Club Valderrama
This week we welcome Javier Reviriego to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Javier is currently the CEO at Real Club Valderrama, one of the world's Top 100 courses. He has a highly impressive CV having previously been head pro at Real Club de Golf Sotogrande, and general manager at both Fuerteventura, and Finca Cortesin, which hosted the Solheim Cup this year.
We talk about his career journey, the importance of running a sustainable golf course, and the decision to host LIV golf at Valderrama.
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Episode 11: Chandler Withington - Life as a Golf Artist
Chandler has worked as the assistant pro at Seminole, the number one assistant at Merion, and was head pro at Hazeltine National during the Ryder Cup 2016. We discuss what it takes to win a Ryder Cup, his good friend Davis Love, and his new career as a licensed artist for the PGA, the USGA and the R&A.
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Episode 10: Martin Ebert
Martin Ebert is one half of the legendary design duo 'Mackenzie & Ebert'. In this episode, we discuss his involvement in world-class layouts such as Hirono, Royal Liverpool, Royal Portrush and Turnberry. He is open about the challenges and joys of working on such renowned courses, and talks about the controversy surrounding the new 17th hole at Hoylake (Royal Liverpool).
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Episode 9: Bob Ford - Seminole & Oakmont
We caught up with the legendary Bob Ford during our week at the Walker Cup. He told us about his experiences as a club pro at Oakmont and Seminole and talked about the importance of merchandising in golf.
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Episode 8: Joshua Pettit - Founder of the Alister MacKenzie Institute
This week we welcome Joshua Pettit to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Josh is an architect with a focus on the work of Dr. Alister MacKenzie. He's the founder and curator of the MacKenzie Institute and editor of the 'MacKenzie Reader: Writing on Golf Architecture and More'. Join us to discover more about one of golf's legendary architects.
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Episode 7: Jim McCann & European Top 100 Special
We get to know Jim, hear about the sand course he helped build in Libya and learn about the methods we use to create our Top 100 lists, including a breakdown of the brand-new European Top 100 Rankings.
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Episode 6: David Scott - General Manager of Dumbarnie Links
Simon Holt chats to David Scott, the General Manager of Dumbarnie Links in Leven, Scotland. They discuss David's golfing journey, the devastating impact caused by the nematode parasite, the value of using a golf tour operator when playing in the UK, the course architecture at Dumbarnie, and the significance of golf course rankings.
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Episode 5: Iain Forrester - Dutch Golf & the European Hickory Scene
In this episode, Iain Forrester, Head Pro at Hoenshuis Country Club in the Netherlands, talks us through the golf scene in the low country and tells us about the growth of the hickory golf scene around Europe. We discuss the greatest courses in Holland, and whether The Netherlands has a legitimate claim to being the true home of golf.
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Episode 4: Zac Blair - Building The Tree Farm
In this episode, we welcome Zac Blair to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Zac shares some of his experience on the PGA Tour, highlighting his preference for playing exceptional golf courses rather than engaging in practice rounds.
We discuss his venture to establish The Buck Club, and learn about his significant project to build The Tree Farm, a brand new course in South Carolina, developed in collaboration with Kye Goalby and Tom Doak.
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Episode 3: Nairn Golf Club - From 1887 to Present
This week on Top 100 Clubhouse we talk to the captain of Nairn Golf Club, Ali Asher, and the Nairn archivist, Hugh Sutherland. We sit down in Nairn's fantastic archive room and discuss the history of the club and the room, and also why the R&A really enjoy hosting tournaments there.
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Episode 2: Stuart McColm - General Manager of Cabot Highlands
This week we welcome Javier Reviriego to the Top 100 Clubhouse. Javier is In Episode 2, our host James Henderson chats to Stuart McColm, the General Manager of Cabot Highlands near Inverness. They discuss how Stuart began his journey in golf, and how he came to be involved in the development of world-class courses like Kingsbarns and Castle Stuart. They also discuss the new course being developed at Cabot Highlands.
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Episode 1: Simon Holt
Welcome to Top 100 Clubhouse! In Episode 1, our host James Henderson chats to Simon Holt. They discuss how Simon came to be involved with Top 100, the future direction of the business, and the best courses he's had the chance to play! Have a listen and get involved in the Top 100 Community!
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