Top 100 Golf Courses updates its ranking chart for Chile
We extend our Chilean standings by initiating a new Top 10
Top 100 Golf Courses began the latest review of its Central and South American listings last month with the release of a new Top 30 chart for Argentina. We continue the reappraisal process for that part of the world with a fresh look at the top tracks in Chile. Last time around, we established a Chilean Top 5 and we’ve now doubled the size of our chart in this edition, producing a new Top 10.
The big news is that the well-respected course at Club de Golf Los Leones, where members have played their golf since the club moved to its present location near the centre of Santiago in 1934, is no longer our national number 1. A recent fairway bunker upgrade program has not received universal approval and this may well be a contributing factor in the course’s fall from grace.
Los Leones is now completely surrounded on all sides by urban development, though it remains something of a green oasis in the northeast quarter of the capital, hosting many important tournaments down the years, including the prestigious Eisenhower Trophy World Amateur Team Championships in 1998 which was won by a Great Britain & Ireland team that included Luke Donald.
Alas, it has now slipped one position to number two, overtaken by a new development situated a thousand kilometres to the south at Frutillar, in the Los Lagos Region. Conceived by businessman Jaime Said, Patagonia Virgin is a new entry, coming in at number 1 and this ambitious project is set to put the sparsely populated region of Patagonia firmly on the South American golfing map.
It’s an upmarket residential complex set out on the western shores of Lake Llanquihue, encompassing housing, hotels, shopping and a scintillating new 18-hole golf course from Nicklaus Design, one of the Golden Bear’s rare South American layouts. Expect to hear more about this place as word gets out about just how good the golf content is.
The next new entry in our extended chart is La Serena at number 3. This course is the only Oceanside layout in the country, though only the final two holes actually touch the Pacific shoreline. Set within another residential development, the course is a little greener than might be desired of a proper links layout but that’s a minor quibble about a fine new millennium golf track.
Three other courses make their first appearance in our new Chilean chart: 10-hole Magallanes (at number 6) is the second most southerly course in the world, 9-hole Valle Escondido (at number 7) uses two different pin positions on every hole for the front and back nines and Mapocho (at number 10) is Chile’s first public access course, located 17 kilometres to the west of downtown Santiago.
To view further details of the Top 10 Golf Courses for Chile click the link.
We’re always keen to find out your reaction when we update our national rankings so let us know what you think about our new Top 10 for this South American country. Is there a course we’ve missed or have we included one that really shouldn’t be there? Whatever your thoughts are, please click the “Respond to this article” link at the top or at the bottom of this page if you’d like to give us your opinion.
Jim McCann
Editor
Top 100 Golf Courses
