John Sabino

Silloth is an English version of Cruden Bay and quite a discovery!You know Silloth is going to be different right from the get go. The first fairway has crazy natural undulations among the dunes and the approach on the first green is blind with a long pole sticking up so you have an aiming point.&nbsp; The first green at Silloth is a "Dell," green. The 2nd, a par four of only 315 yards, plays from an elevated tee and the green is also of the Dell variety. The course is routed among sand dunes topped with gorse.The third hole is a dogleg left with a wildly undulating fairway--you won't find many flat lies on the course--set between two lines of dunes. You can start to get a sense of why I called Silloth England's Cruden Bay, because of its abundance of blind shots and because of its routing among the dunes. The unconventional course is rough and tumble with a sense of spirit that is rare to find in golf.There is another aiming pole off the tee for the blind approach to the 4th green. It is at this point that you either fall in love with the golf course or hate it. I like blind shots since they introduce an element of surprise, but some people hate them. Two of my playing companion friends disliked it and it felt like there were too many blind shots, particularly because there is so much gorse to contend with. They aren't opposed to blind shots per se, but it is the combination of the abundance of blind shots with the penal nature of the gorse that they thought was unfair. In my mind you have to put yourself back in time. After all, the course was built in 1892 when blind shots were common. While many of the world's best courses have blind shots, the combination of an abundance of blind shots with the gorse does make Silloth particularly challenging. It didn't bother me, in fact, I found the unconventional nature of it exhilarating.In addition to a blind tee shot on the 4th, the unsuspecting golfer has no clue as to what is to come on this bunkerless hole. Hit the green and there are no worries. Miss the green and you will face a challenge unlike almost any other in the world of golf: very deep grass hazards immediately adjacent to the narrow oblong green on both sides. The 7th hole plays 415 yards up a rising, humpy fairway and sports another blind shot to a Dell green set in the dunes.The back nine is a slight letdown after the excitement of the start. The front nine has five holes with blind shots (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 7th) and the back only has one (11th), in addition the back has less gorse and less severe dunes. It also plays more inland and further away from the Firth. The finishing hole at Silloth is a card wrecking par 4 that we played into the wind, making it a real tester.Go play Silloth!

The first four holes at Panmure lull you into a sense that the course doesn't have much to it. Three par fours and a par five all running in the same direction, none particularly taxing, especially if played down wind like the conditions on the day I played them, the opposite of what is normally blowing. The course starts to get interesting at the par three 5th which has a punch bowl green. The sixth begins the first of seven holes at the end of the property that, unlike the outward four and the incoming six, play at all different directions on the compass. Six is the most well known hole and features a blind tee shot and potentially a blind second shot depending upon where your tee shot lands. It was a favorite of Ben Hogan's. The eighth is another hole with a blind tee shot and it is a great 361 risk-reward par four that plays to a well protected green.Panmure has eleven holes that have out of bounds and with the wind blowing, as it normally is, the course is no pushover.Many golfers, myself included up until this point, don't give a lot of consideration to adding Panmure to a golf trip to Scotland. With a rich variety of choices of within an hour of St. Andrews it is understandable that Panmure gets overlooked. If it does get mentioned it is as the course that Hogan used to warm up on in 1953. It's too bad that Panmure gets overlooked because it is a great and interesting golf course and I enjoyed my visit there immensely. In addition, there are few places that treat guests better and whose plush, museum-like sprawling clubhouse is historic and comfortable. Panmure deserves more respect.

I played Huntercombe in September 2022 after a severe drought. The tee boxes and greens were in excellent condition but the fairways were in poor condition due to no irrigation system. As an old-school, low key club with a small clubhouse and traditional rules I can see how Huntercombe would stick with this approach, which has served them well over the decades. I looked past the conditioning and appreciated the historic nature of the course. The two most obvious things are Huntercombe are: 1) very challenging greens. Willie Park was an excellent putter so it is not surprising that Huntercombe, in many respects his baby as he bought the property and tried to develop it into real estate, has difficult greens. One green that especially stands out is the #1 handicap 8th hole, which is one of the zaniest and hard greens I have ever played. I liked the greens on the course, many of which are two tiered. 2) There are almost no sand bunkers on the course. Instead the course uses grass bunkers ("Pots," as they call them), some of which are very deep and present a good challenge.My favorite hole was the short risk-reward par four seventeen which has an uplifted green and some very difficult grass bunkers if you don't hit the ball perfectly off the tee.I enjoyed my day at Huntercombe and love courses that are low key in nature. For those interested in golf history, architecture and how the game evolved, Huntercombe is a must visit. Oxfordshire and the Chiltern Hills surrounding the course make it a lovely place to visit. It is a very exclusive English club. I look forward to returning one day when the course is in more lush conditions so I can more fully appreciate it.

A lovely course in the heathland area of Surrey. Standout holes include the uphill, difficult par 3 seventh set on the apex of a hill. The tee shot on the par five eighth offers beautiful vistas over a landscape filled with purple heather. But the best hole is the last, which has a forced carry off the tee and a fairway that bends right to left and slopes down a broad hill. This leaves the golfer a downhill lie to a narrow green protected by a very wide and deep gully/grass bunker that is a creative feature. There are no sand traps on the hole and none are needed. It is a cracking golf hole.Hankley is a classic club with an understated clubhouse, welcoming membership and one of the most dog friendly courses I have ever played. Worth a visit.

Dumbarnie is a great new addition to the already rich Scottish golf landscape. The course offers stunning views, more true risk-reward shots and holes then most courses, including several potentially driveable holes. The course is user friendly with wide fairways to accompany the abundant water views.The 8th represents Dumbarnie more than any other hole and personifies Clark's title of "an artist among golf course designers." The hole is of short to mid iron length and the green is narrow and well bunkered. Jack Nicklaus isn't a fan of elevated fairways or greens and it seems neither is Clark, most tee shots and shots to the par threes play downhill.The 17th a striking risk-reward par four and my favorite on the course. The hole is bisected by a centuries old historic farmers wall. The hole bends sharply to the right and the green is elevated. There is a safe choice left to a fairway, and there is a heroic option to try to get near or drive the green by going over the wall. It works really well and is as beautiful as it is strategic.Dumbarnie takes its place alongside Castle Stuart and Kingsbarns as one of the great courses to be built in Scotland over the last 30 years in this new golden age of golf architecture. The place is bewitching.

Chechessee is a Lowcountry gem set in an idyllic, low key setting. Coore and Crenshaw's work at Chechessee is a master class in how to design a golf course on flat land. You always hear about how an architect got perfect land to build a golf course, and how they have never seen a better property, etc. A good test of an architects skills is how they design a course without all the natural contours. What they have done is a world-class routing which makes it one of the most gentle and enjoyable walks in the game. The walks from tee to green are short and the course weaves among the tall pine, oak and palm trees with ease. They also work in panoramic views of the actual Chechessee Creek on the 7th and 12th holes and they are beautiful, fun holes.The club also has a really good vibe. There are a lot a "national" members who do not live locally and thus there are lodges and cabins to stay in. There are also a smattering of houses on the course, but almost all the real estate, including the elegant clubhouse, are hidden from view. The design of the whole property is consistent with Lowcountry architecture.Like all of Coore and Crenshaw's designs there are wide fairways and this course is no exception, the landing areas are generous. The challenge is in and around the greens. Almost all the greens are narrow and are designed to be played from the fairway. There is a big penalty for missing left or right. Short is always the best play when approaching greens at Chechessee. Golfers must bring a deft touch to the course because hitting short chip and pitch shots to narrow greens is not easy. This is especially true on the par threes, which are an excellent bunch. What they have in common is that missing left or right lands you in jagged bunkers, so trying to hit a high, soft sand shot to a shallow, narrow green is difficult. Golfers should also practice hitting long lag putts in lieu of chipping on some of the greens where they miss.The course is relatively short at 6,641 from the back tees, although it is a par of 70. Short does not equal easy, particularly if your chipping and putting is not spot on. The course is especially well suited for match play.The club also has a very good caddie program is walking is encouraged. The course is maintained to a very high standard. All in all playing Chechessee is a great day's golf.

Oldfield Golf Club is tucked behind a security gate in an affluent community in the Bluffton area and thus doesn’t get as much exposure as some of the other courses in the Hilton Head area. The course is spectacularly maintained with true and fast greens. One of the defining features of the course is that almost all the greens are skinny (many at an angle to the fairway) making holding them a challenge. The greens also have very subtle breaks, which puts a premium on green reading skills. The course is quite idyllic, set in a beautiful lowcountry setting along the river. It is no wonder the club’s logo features a live oak tree since they are a dominant feature of the environment, most dripping with Spanish moss, adding such a charming effect.When Greg Norman designed the course he left some of the oak trees overhanging and blocking out greens and approach shots if you don’t position yourself accurately. In the same way that nearby Harbour Town is a shot makers course, so is Oldfield. The fairways can typically be hit unless you are wildly off line, but the approaches require precision. The back nine has a particularly challenging set of par threes that play over water: the 13th and 16th, and they play as the #8 and #6 handicap holes respectively, a validation of their difficult.The par four 12th is interesting, with a long, forced carry over water off the tee. If you make the heroic shot you are rewarded with a short wedge to the green. Alternatively, you can lay up to the left with a shot of roughly 150-160 yards, although you still face a relatively difficult shot to a hard to hit green. The best hole on the course is the par five 18th, which is a double dogleg, a design you rarely see used by golf architects, and Norman did a really good job with it. The day I played it was into a stiff wind and hitting the long narrow green on the finishing hole, even with a short iron proved challenging. It is a really good golf hole. The club puts a premium on making sure the course is maintained to a high standard and it shows from tee to green. Oldfield is charming; some of the holes play near their horse/equestrian center and it has beautiful views of the Okatee river and the lowcountry marshes. A nice play to play golf with a laid-back authentic southern vibe.

The mark of a great golf course architect is how they can design a great course on a flat piece of property. Most certainly it is easier to design an interesting and varied course with hilly terrain and landforms that move about. The land at Westhampton Country Club is flat and sandy, although there are water features that come into play.Westhampton, located in the town by the same name on Eastern Long Island has one of the better starting holes in the world of golf. It is Merionesque. You tee off in a little enclosed area bounded by the clubhouse on the left side and behind you and with a tall hedge on the right. It is a cozy little alcove that is both fun to start your round with and shelters you from the wind, creating a false sense of where to aim. As a course located near the seaside wind is always a factor at Westhampton.The course plays 6,548 from the tips and has a gentle start with par fours of 300 and 322 yards. There are only two par fives. The real challenges are the collection of long par fours: there are five that play longer than 434 yards, with the longest (the 10th) playing 471. The third hole is a one-of-a-kind example which is a combination Eden/Punchbowl hole playing 130 yards.One of the more interesting holes is the short par four 13th hole, which plays only 321 yards on a flat piece of land. To make the hole challenging Raynor put in a very large, make that a massive, mound in front of the green. It is roughly 75 feet long and 25 feet high and covered in grass. Behind the green is a smaller mound. This creates a neat little hole where any tee shot played to the right side of the fairway leaves a completely blind shot to the green. Only tee shots hit to the left third of the fairway give a peak at the green. It’s brilliant.The other design feature Raynor employed to make the flat course challenging is the use of diagonal cross bunkers. Many of the holes have them and they are strategically placed to come into play on any mishit shot. Two of the more difficult holes are the 8th and 9th, which play into the prevailing wind. They are par fours of 434 and 451 respectively so you need to hit crisp and straight shots and avoid the difficult bunkers to have any chance of par.The Redan and Biarritz holes are particularly good examples of these prototype holes. The seventh hole, the Redan, plays a healthy 211 yards and the bunkers left and right are deep. No, make that very deep. The green on the Biarritz, the 17th, is 60 sixty yards back to front(!) with the requisite deep swale in the middle.I get it that Long Island has stiff competition when it comes to rating and ranking golf courses. There are few places that have better golf collectively. Even with that, though, I don’t understand how such a brilliant Raynor course doesn’t rank alongside Piping Rock and the Creek as a much higher rated course as it is a really good routing and a fun day’s golf.

A public golf course in The Bronx, what’s not to like? I liked the whole course, but liked the back nine better, I thought it was the easier of the two. The course has a lot going on being set in a dense urban environment. For example, the 11th hole has apartment buildings in the back framing the hole in the distance. In the middle-distance the fescue provides a backdrop, and in the immediate distance there is a plethora of bunkers. It is a short par 4 of only 302 yards from the blue tees, so obviously designer Jack Nicklaus wanted to make it more challenging the more of the hole you try to bite off. I found it difficult to pick and commit to a target with so much distracting the eye. My favorite hole was the 12th, a par three of 166 yards from the back and 139 from the blue tees. The 12th green is surrounded by shaved collection areas on three sides (right, left and back) and is protected by a jagged-shaped bunker in front that conceals the front of the putting surface, which is slanted, oddly shaped, oblong, and at a right angle to the golfer. I liked the finishing stretch (16-17-18) and think they are the best consecutive holes on the course. Sixteen is a demanding 437-yard par four that requires a precision shot to a well protected green, with great views in every direction of the water and the large suspension bridges that connect the Bronx to the other Boroughs. All the par threes on the course were particularly well framed by the mounding and the fescue, especially the 17th. The 18th is a 500-yard par 5 playing along the tidal river. I thought the course's greens were fair: there are not too many undulations in them, the breaks are more subtle, but still challenging. I only missed one fairway all day, speaking to their width, because I usually hit less. My other observation, which the caddies confirmed, is that the course plays longer than the card. Approaches to the greens are almost always one club longer than you think. I'm no physics or solid waste expert, but the suspicion is that it has to do with playing atop a capped landfill. Either that or the greens are slightly elevated and I didn't take that into account.

As far as golf neighborhoods go, the Hamptons is as good as it gets. Thus, sometimes very good courses get overlooked because comparisons to their neighbors like Shinnecock, Maidstone and the National Golf Links is pretty tough. Case in point, the Bridge, which sits inland, near the town of Sag Harbor. Although not directly on the water, the course is blessed with being built on a high piece of ground and the course routing takes advantage of the terrain. Because of the elevation, you also get views of the beautiful blue waters of Noyack Bay and Little Peconic Bay while playing. The fact that the course was built on an old race track gets a lot of attention, as does the modern clubhouse. Overlooked in all that press is the fact that the golf course is very good. I haven’t played too many Rees Jones original designs (he does a lot of renovations), but based on what I’ve seen at the Bridge, he knows his stuff. In particular, he seems to have a knack for locating green sights in natural positions such as hollows, on the sides of hills, or in elevated positions, which makes for a delightful round of golf because it is both esthetically pleasing and fun. The Bridge is an overlooked place to tee it up.

A beautiful Donald Ross course that sometimes gets overlooked due to its proximity to Merion. It has one of the greatest opening holes, with a tee shot from an elevated tee down into a valley and then up again to an elevated green. The par threes all play downhill, which I like. The 5th, although short, is particularly well bunkered. The 7th is a memorable uphill par four dogleg with a table top green that is cut into the side of a hill and is well bunkered. The 11th is a very challenging par four that seems to keep rising up the hill with an elevated green that is quite challenging. One of Ross’s best routings, with continual change in direction. Every time I play Aronimink I am more impressed. The course is very well maintained and the greens run true and are fast.

I’m not the biggest fan of the Stadium course. Absolutely, it makes for dramatic TV to see professionals hit into the water on the 17th, but does one made-for-TV tricky hole make a good golf course? No. For me there is too much water for the average handicap golfer. The Bermuda grass is also too high and difficult to hit out of. And the round is VERY expensive relative to the quality of the course. It has Pebble Beach prices without the views. One of the reasons I didn't particularly like the course was that I found the front nine and a couple of holes on the back to be a bit bland and uninteresting. If a course is going to rank high in the world rankings it shouldn't have a preponderance of weak holes. Exhibit A is the second hole, a par-five which could be a hole on any course in Florida. It is not a particularly distinctive hole, sitting on flat ground. It is understood among tour professionals that one the toughest finishes on tour is the closing three holes at the Stadium Course, summed up in three words: water, water, everywhere. From the 16th tee in, you either hit a shot with precision or lose a ball. A watery grave awaits any shot that is not on its intended line. The approach to the 16th green is guarded along the right side by water with a firm green that can kick balls into the water. Thus, begins the nightmare for any golfer with a hitch in his or her swing. David Feherty calls the stretch of 16-17-18 the 'schizophrenic ward' of the golf course, and he is right. If you want the novelty of saying you’ve played the 17th, go for it, otherwise there are better public alternatives in the state (Streamsong and World Woods to name two). Or if you are a very good low handicap golfer and want an extreme challenge, go for it.

The Rodney Dangerfield of Florida golf, this is a course that doesn’t get enough respect because it is public and a bit off the beaten path. Designed by Tom Fazio, the course really does remind you of playing Pine Valley due to the wide fairways and sandy terrain. Avoiding the large sandy waste areas is the key to scoring well (difficult to do, as there are many of them). The fourth is a very good long par four and the short par four 15th was one of my favorites, a sub 350-yard hole that offers the golfer a choice of two fairways off the tee with a classic reward for taking on the more demanding fairway. The greens were in great shape when I played and the price (less than $100) relative to the quality of the golf you get is one of the best in the U.S. When in Florida I would rather play the World Woods Pine Barrens course than I would the made-for-TV-too-difficult TPC Sawgrass.

Is it wrong to have more wine lockers (500) than actual lockers (300) for members? Not at all, especially if you’re located in the heart of Sonoma County. The course weaves its way through beautiful rolling terrain and Nicklaus took advantage of it, often putting his well bunkered green sites into the sides of hills, the par five 2nd being a classic example and my favorite. The greens are fast (on a typical day they roll eleven on the Stimp meter) and the caddie program is one of the best and adds to your enjoyment. Make sure you build in extra time to tour the large, rambling clubhouse which fits into its surroundings like a glove. Playing Mayacama is a special day and it is one of my favorite Nicklaus designs because it is not overly demanding like some of his courses.

The course starts with one of the most dramatic first tees in the game. It is perched on top of a hill overlooking U.C.L.A. and the Westwood section of Los Angeles. Set in the canyon below is a short 491 yard par five that is a great starting hole and in keeping with George Thomas's design philosophy of a relatively easy start. The course has a different character than Thomas’ other designs in the L.A. area. Riviera is basically laid out in one large canyon, while L.A.C.C. is routed over rolling and open terrain. Bel-Air is routed through four different canyons and weaves its way in and out of them masterfully. In addition to the first hole, I particularly liked the sixth and seventh holes. The seventh is a par four of 391 yards and runs parallel to the sixth but plays down into a canyon. The hole uses the slopes of the hillsides to great effect. The tenth is the most memorable on the course, a demanding par three of 200 yards over a ravine. The club’s iconic white suspension bridge adds to the grandeur of the place. I can't think of a weak stretch of holes on the course and the finish is particularly strong. Both Bobby Jones and Ben Hogan called the seventeenth one of their favorite par fours. The hole doglegs right and slopes right, and the sloping fairway sends balls not perfectly hit into the rough. Missing the green on your second shot yields a terrible penalty. Bel-Air has an ambiance and feel to it that makes it Zen golfing at its best.

Unlike other courses in Florida, Calusa Pines has hilly terrain and lacks water on most holes, which in my book are two positives. Playing the course feels more like you are in the Carolina pines than you are in Southwest Florida. The par threes were memorable, especially the short third hole. The 7th is technically a par 3 and a half hole, playing 250 yards, but it is a beauty. The course is among the best maintained I have ever played. Small membership, tough to get on, but worth the effort if you can.

A different style of course, Royal North Devon is rough-hewn and is not in the least bit polished. Therein lies its charm. Playing at Royal North Devon is the antithesis of sitting in a golf cart for a five hour round waiting for the group ahead of you to line up their fourth putt. This is golf at its simplest and purest. For a variety of reasons, not the least of which is the common land, the course is a bit rough around the edges. There are also no yardage markers, but only simple grey rocks to mark off 150 yards. The greenskeeper here clearly doesn't have Augusta envy like many courses in the U.S. This is a course where you play the ball where it lies, commune with nature and go back to the game's roots. If golf is a metaphor for life, then Royal North Devon is its best example: it's not all neat and tidy; rub of the green as it's called. Royal North Devon also features a lot of blind tee shots. There are aiming poles on quite a few holes, especially on the back nine, which plays away from the water and features an abundance of marshland grass. These grasses are called 'Great Sea Rushes' and you want to steer clear of them since they eat golf balls. The thirteenth hole is a 442-yard par five named "Lundy." It is a unique hole in several regards. First, it is short for a par five. Second, it is really a sheep pasture masquerading as a fairway, and third, the green is diabolical. How do you make a very short par five a difficult hole? Put in an inverted saucer green, make it circular and only 25 feet in diameter. I am embarrassed to say that I four putted the darn thing after being 10 feet off the green in two. This is golf from the old school, and although it probably won’t appeal to everyone, it is a special place to enjoy the game and its history.

I know Machrihanish often gets accolades for the best opening hole in golf, but it’s pretty tough to beat the opening hole at St. Enodoc, a par five of 528 yards, where you tee off into a wildly undulating fairway with a big set of sand dunes guarding the right side of the hole. Sounds okay so far, but once you hit your second (blind) shot over the striped pole and walk up the hill to see the green, it is a jaw dropper. You can see the massive rocky landforms in this part of Cornwall tumbling down to the beautiful blue sea. Around the hills are the gorgeous English countryside, perfectly manicured, and where the land meets the sea, there are a series of perfect wide sand beaches. A stunning opener! The course then weaves through beautiful sheep-dotted countryside playing up, down and around rolling hills. The signature hole is the 6th, a par four of 428 yards with a blind drive. It is said to contain the biggest sand bunker in Europe, and I'm not arguing the point. If you can avoid the bunker, you still have a blind shot to a punchbowl style green set in a little alcove area. It is a very, very good golf hole. The golf course is a unique one and has a collection of standout holes (one, two, four, six and ten) that give the course a cult following among those learned in golf course architecture. The course combines dramatic water views with beautiful dunes linksland right through the finish. The course is better than some of the courses in the top 100 I have played and it's a bit of a wonder to me why the course doesn't get more accolades (outside of those on this website).

Oak Hill is a classic club and a classic course, however, over time it has been diluted and changed from its original Donald Ross design. Nevertheless, the course retains good “bones” and some fabulous holes. The 5th is a memorable, and difficult, par four with a tee shot that plays through a chute of trees and with a green fronted by a little creek. The seventh is a world class hole and is aptly named “Creek’s Elbow.” The challenge starts with a VERY narrow fairway to hit off the tee, and you have to avoid a creek on the right and a line of trees on the left. As if it weren’t challenging enough, the green is tiny. The strategic nature of the hole comes in because if you aim left and manage to hit the sliver of fairway you have an easier and shorter shot to the green. Laying back to avoid the stream leaves a long shot to the small green. It demands that the golfer think through what they are about to do and execute it with precision. The 600 yard (!) 13th hole even gives the pros fits; a par five that almost no one can reach in two. It has a creek running down the right-hand side and it crosses the fairway in the middle of the hole. The course is named Oak Hill for a reason, and the 13th sums it up nicely. As if 600 yards isn’t long enough, it also plays up hill in a meaningful way. And the club’s signature oak trees frame the green. The club recently began to restore the course back to Ross’s original intent, so hopefully it will be returned to its full former glory soon. For now, it remains a stern test of golf with an elegant clubhouse and atmosphere to match its rich history.

I’m not the biggest fan of the Lower course at Baltusrol. Personally, I find it suffers from repetition, ie, many similar par fours with tight tree lines and similar bunkering. As a resident of New Jersey my fellow in-state golfers will say I should know better and should rate it higher, but it just doesn’t excite me. I find many of Tillinghast’s other courses (San Francisco, Somerset Hills, Bethpage, Quaker Ridge, Baltimore) to be more varied and fun to play. Yes, it’s nice to play where there is so much history and where the PGA and USGA host events, but I would personally rather play the Upper course if going to Baltusrol.

Forsgate is a below the radar course in the style of Macdonald-Raynor with really good prototype holes. This shouldn’t be surprising since the course was designed by one of their protégés, Charles Banks. The par three holes really shine at Forsgate. The most outstanding hole on the course is the 17th, a prototype Biarritz hole with a massive swale through the middle of the green. The 3rd is a demanding Eden style hole that plays from an elevated tee over a large gully to a big, tough, elevated green. The Redan 7th is no pushover and the 12th has a large putting surface with large raised contours in the middle in the shape of a giant horseshoe, ensuring that balls on the putting surface don’t guarantee a par. My favorite hole is the “Long” hole, one of the best renditions I have ever played, it is a difficult par five at 600 yards, which typically plays into the wind with a fairway that slopes down a hill from right to left the entire way and to a green that is elevated with sharp falloffs. There are a couple holes that are good but not great, such as the first, fourth, and sixteenth that keep the course from being rated higher. In a state chocked full of abundant choices for the golfer, the Banks course at Forsgate sometimes gets overlooked, but it is a classic course that I highly recommend.

I must admit I missed the boat on Addington. I am a big admirer of Tom Doak and he writes gushingly about the Addington. I found that the course went beyond being quirky and crossed over into being weird. The grass is very high, apparently cut only a couple of times a week. Some holes are too steep (like the first), some too narrow (like the fourth and fifteenth), and others don’t make sense from a golfing standpoint (like the blind 8th with a penal green). The holes over the ravines on the latter half of the course are good, but the place needs to be cleaned up and trees need be trimmed back to make it rank higher.

Crail is a special place to play golf and a prime example of how a short course can be confused with an easy course, especially if the wind is up. The views are breathtaking and the par is 69. The 447-yard fifth hole is a killer into the wind with its forced carry over the sea, and a visual stunner. Reminiscent of Prestwick and North Berwick, the 9th hole at Crail features a stone wall against the green. The members serve as caddies at Crail and are a delight. I suppose perfectionists could nit-pick that there are too many blind shots and four par 3s on the back nine, but come on, who are we to criticize Old Tom Morris? The course is a throw-back and a delightful place to play without pretense and reasonable greens fees.

Situated on a tight piece of land beginning in town and running along the ocean, Dunbar is a classic links. The card is quirky, beginning with back to back par fives and a third to finish the front nine. The back has no par fives. I found the back nine played harder and the fairways were more narrow. The course is sort-of an out and back layout although the first five holes cluster around the clubhouse and you play holes 6-10 out toward the end of the property and return back in the opposite wind direction for 11, 12, 14, 15, and 17 with a couple of relief holes going perpendicular to the water (thankfully, because playing too many consecutive holes in the wind stresses the golf swing). The flags were bending on the day I played so the 6,400 yards were more than long enough to provide a real challenge. In shades of North Berwick, there are walls running along several holes on the course, although mostly along the perimeter and they are taller than those at North Berwick. I liked the 6th hole, the number one handicap, named “Broxburn” after the wall which runs down the entire right hand side of the hole. High slices result in balls sailing over the wall never to be seen again. The 377 yard par 4 13th hole, named “Pot” was my favorite with a sunken bathtub style green. Dunbar is a classic links course with a lot of character.

The most vivid lasting memory of playing at Moray are the RAF jets that fly very low overhead as you play. An active air force base, Lossiemouth, is immediately adjacent, the planes scream by when they take off and you almost feel like you can hit a golf ball into them. Best to avoid Old Tom’s difficult pot bunkering, strategically placed around the course. The 18th is clearly the most memorable hole, playing up the hill back into the village and it is a beauty and among the best finishing holes I’ve ever played. Worth a visit.

There is so much good golf on Scotland’s West Coast that Western Gailes sometimes get lost in the crowd, which is a shame because it is such a classic links course, featuring pot bunkers, rippling fairways and a routing through the dunes. The fun begins on the second hole which plays from an elevated tee and the view that is presented to the golfer is one of a heather-strewn dogleg hole with hillocks and grassy banks. The third hole features a hidden putting surface on your approach shot. I really liked the 15th hole, a demanding par three that plays toward the water (I hit driver into the wind). The only drawback the course has is that as you make the turn and come back toward the clubhouse there are too many holes that play in the same direction, and with the wind blowing (and O.B. potentially coming into play) it can grind you down. The historic locker room is a real beauty with its dark woods and warm feel. Personally, I would rather play Western Gailes over nearby Troon if in the area.

Pitlochry is a demanding course to walk. Like at Gullane, the opening holes (3 in a row) play uphill, fatiguing all but the most fit golfer. The fifth hole was my favorite, a 347 yard hole that plays uphill with an elevated green tucked up on a hillock to the left of the fairway. The greens feature decent undulations that add to the challenge. The ninth is a testing hole with trees coming into play and sports long views of the surrounding countryside. The par 3 11th is also very cool, with an elevated and well bunkered green. The dramatic finishing hole plays straight down the hill and the golfer is virtually guaranteed an uneven lie and is asked to hit over a burn to the green, testing their ability to hit a crisp iron under difficult conditions. I played Pitlochry in what the weather report described as “heavy bursts” of rain so it played quite difficult. The back tees are 5,692 yards, but in my view it plays far longer due to the elevation changes.

Like its designer, Charles Blair Macdonald, the Mid Ocean Club is big and bold, built on a scale that most golf courses never achieve, the only two remotely close being Yale and Bethpage Black. Partially, I suppose this is because the course was built before the era of large earth moving equipment and Macdonald used the naturally hilly terrain to great advantage. The most memorable hole on the course is the 5th, the “Cape” hole, which plays from a high tee over water to a demanding green. A Macdonald invention that has been widely imitated in golf design ever since, the Cape Hole here is the best rendition in the world. What makes it so is that it plays from a very high tee and the fairway that you have to hit slants downhill from top to bottom the entire way. The trick, obviously, is to choose how much of the water you want to take on. Aiming left is a bold line and if you can carry your tee shot over the lake you have a much shorter shot to the green. The more timid player aims right and finds land instead of water but has a very challenging second shot on the 433-yard hole. It is classic. The 16th is a very demanding par 4, you have to hit your blind tee shot over what appears like a sheer wall of a hill, very steeply up just to reach the fairway. The short par 4 eighth plays to a sharply elevated green. The tenth hole, "Mercer Hill", has unforgiving terrain requiring skill hitting off Bermuda grass on an uneven fairway over a steep hill! The 238-yard Biarritz hole, the 13th, is a testing specimen of this variety with the requisite hollow in the middle of the large green. For those that can't get on the super-exclusive National Golf Links of America or Chicago Golf Club, playing Mid Ocean is a worthy substitute since the great man's genius shows through strongly. Unaccompanied guests can play at Mid Ocean if their round is arranged through select hotels on the island and is limited.

The patrician Swinley Forest Golf Club has long been a course I wanted to play but there is so much good golf around London that I was never able to fit it into an itinerary. The first hole is my favorite kind. It plays from an elevated tee down into a valley with a wide fairway, and when we played the hole it was down wind. It's good for the ego to start your round feeling like a stud. Like his routing at Pine Valley, Swinley features one of H. S. Colt’s trademarks, forced carries off the tee. Many holes do so, including the third, fifth, seventh, ninth and twelfth. Colt also was a fan of using cross-bunkering, which throws off the golfers’ depth perception. One of the holes that he used it on to great effect was the 7th, placed on the side of a hill that runs from left to right, creating a very effective hazard that makes the approach shot semi-blind or blind from an uneven lie! The whole course was in great shape when I played, with a special shout out to the purity of the greens, which were perfect. The overall environment at Swinley is magical, but beware, the seductive purple heather plants are ball eaters and the fairways tend to kick balls into them, never to be seen again. Putting aside the mystique of the club and the idyllic clubhouse situated on the top of a hill by the first tee and 18th green, the golf course taken on its own is one of the best. What a place to play golf.

In my opinion any debate about what the best golf course in England is should be a horse race between Sunningdale’s Old Course and St. George’s Hill. There is a reason George Crump selected H. S. Colt to work with him as he designed and built Pine Valley, the man is a design genius. St. George’s Hill has everything a great golf course should have: beauty, a varied routing, a strategic design with long and short holes, challenging greens and changes in elevation. What puts St. George’s Hill over the top compared to other courses in England are the massive hills he had to work with. The course starts off with a bang on the challenging par 4 382 yard hole that plays from an elevated tee down into a sweeping valley, to a green situated at the top of another hill. The third is a beautiful Redan style hole that fits perfectly into the landscape. The short 272-yard par 4 encompasses one of Colt’s design principles to perfection, which is, a short par 4 should have an elevated, well protected green. What should be an easy hole becomes anything but when you stand over your wedge shot and contemplate hitting such a small target. The course reaches its zenith at the par 3 eighth hole, one of the best one shot holes in the world. The setting is large, the green is large and the bunkers in front of the green are large. The visual beauty of standing on the tee is breathtaking. Colt also uses his signature cross-bunkering at St. George’s Hill, most notably on the 5th and 10th holes. They are set at an angle to the fairway and create complete deception because they are set far back from the greens, but they create an optical illusion and throw off the golfer’s perception. Darius Oliver ranks St. George’s Hill as the best course in England in his Planet Golf book. I might give a slight nod to Sunningdale, but it is a photo finish.

A historic nine-hole course set outside Cambridge, the course is inextricably linked to the university because their golf team plays there. H.S. Colt served as the first Captain of the Cambridge Golf team. Not everyone will appreciate Royal Worlington because the terrain is relatively flat and uninteresting, however, the course is a clinic in deception. Holes that should be relatively easy reach out and bite the golfer with difficult green complexes. In particular, precision is required to hit and hold the green surfaces. False fronts and swales protecting the putting surfaces ensure that the golfer will be hitting delicate wedge shots or putting from off the green all day. It is worth making the trek to Royal Worlington just to see the world famous and demanding fifth hole, one of only 154 yards with no bunkers. Many of the great writers (all Cambridge men) in the game have commented on the 5th hole. Herbert Warren Wind described the green as “exceedingly lean and falls away abruptly on both sides – on the right, to a stream, and, on the left, to a basin of thatch rough, twenty feet below the green, called Mug’s hole.” Henry Longhurst described it as “A diabolically narrow green sloping sharply away on both sides and the green itself like the dome of glass in a fairy tale.” Patric Dickinson describes the green as “pitching on a policemen’s helmet.” I can personally attest to the difficulty of the green having putted off of it! Bernard Darwin was accurate when he nicknamed the course the Sacred Nine. For those that appreciate golf history, the course is worth a visit. It is also fun to play the club’s preferred format of alternate shot. The Secretary and staff are very welcoming to visitors.

The historic Lundin Links has a rich heritage, originally designed by Old Tom Morris and revised by James Braid. The course does have two distinct feels to it. The original linksland holes along the water have greater character than the newer Braid holes which play up the side of the hill. The starting hole provides a stiff challenge at 420 yards with an elevated green. The course’s defining characteristics are: 1) hidden burns that snake throughout the course and catch balls of the unsuspecting golfer; 2) blind shots, especially blind tee shots; 3) small, staid, circular greens. I found the two par five holes to be quite demanding at 555 yards and 499 yards, both playing into the wind. My favorite hole is the short par 4 tenth at 352 yards. The green is set at an angle off to the left of the fairway and really isn’t visible until you reach it, being blocked by a combination of a high mound that sits within a circular bunker and a small hill with gorse on top of it. It creates the perfect defense for a short hole and makes it quite challenging to hit an accurate shot to the green. The most famous hole on the course is the 16th hole, named “Trows”. This hole was the inspiration for Charles Blair Macdonald when he designed the 17th hole at the National Golf Links of America in New York. It is only 311 yards with a burn to carry off the tee and a green situated behind a sand dune. Balls hit left off the tee are thus blind to the green. The finishing hole is a very good one, with a punchbowl style green set in a hollow. Lundin is a pleasant place to play for golfers who are touring around Scotland and staying in nearby St. Andrews. The staff are welcoming and the greens fees are reasonable.

Double Eagle is one of the most unique places I have played with its combination of optimum course conditioning, a noteworthy routing and exclusivity. There are not many members, and the course flies the below the radar. Our caddie told me that they usually have less than 10 groups playing per day. If there were 20 total golfers on the course when I played it was a lot. The 340-acre property is also enchanting and feels like a wildlife sanctuary with broad expanses of wild flowers throughout.The key design characteristics that stand out at Double Eagle are: 1) No two holes in the same direction; 2) The fact that your approach shots to greens often have to carry over a ravine or swale or natural plantings/flowers; 3) The greens are usually elevated and have closely shaved areas around them, and; 4) The fact that you have to think backward from the green to decide what kind of shot you have to hit. A lot of courses are said to be shot makers courses, but I found this to be one of the dominating factors to take into account while playing here. It did not seem to be a bomb and gouge layout because of the trouble in front of the greens. On more than a handful of holes you have to lay back and not hit with maximum power so that you position yourself with the correct club to the green, or so that you are not out of position on a dog-leg and block yourself out of the best approach.I found the course to have three distinct feels to it. The first eight holes are the most distinctive holes on the property and the ones I liked the most. This part of the property also has the most elevation change. Holes 9-14 play over a flatter part of the property, although they are still quite interesting. The final four holes bring water into play and represent a challenging finish.Like at Loch Lomond, Weiskopf and Morrish maintain the design philosophy of continually changing direction. The course plays along every point on the compass and no two holes go in the same direction, an underrated principal in golf course design. One of the courses that Weiskopf admires and that influences his design is Muirfield, which similarly, has great variation in hole directions.Especially notable holes are the short par four 7th which plays to a green set over a swale and the sometimes drivable 17th, also a short par four.Serious golf fanatics should put Double Eagle on their bucket list of courses to play.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The Boat of Garten hasn't been on my radar before (and I suspect is not on the radar of others for the same reason) because it is a wee course, as the Scots would say. It plays 5,648 yards from the tees that visitors are permitted to play from, with a par of 70. What a big mistake it was not playing before, this is a fabulous place to play golf. The course was immediately reminiscent of Walton Heath and Sunningdale: a beautiful heathland paradise, although the Boat also has a load of silver birch and Scottish broom as well. The "going back in time" feel while on the property is palpable. Because architect Braid kept the original hilly landforms unchanged the course features many blind shots. The par five fourth hole features a blind second shot and thus, the course has a lot of black and white striped poles to guide the golfer around. I know not everyone likes blind shots, although I do and find them fun and quirky. The thirteenth is a great hole, representing the only three shot hole on the back nine. Although only 469 yards, it plays uphill almost the entire way through a natural valley and gets progressively narrower from tee to green. It also has an unsettling forced carry off the tee. The top of the hill on the hole contains another directional black and white pole and the flag is not visible until you are less than 150 yards away. A further challenge is provided by the sloping nature of the hole, which cants from left to right from tee to green. The 15th hole is one of the best I have ever played and must be unique. There is a tip-off that something is up when you walk up the hill to the tee box and there is a lookout tower. At the top of the steps is a platform that allows you to look out over the hole to give you some sense of what you are about to play, which is a sub-300-yard par four with two blind shots. The idea behind the lookout is to allow the unsuspecting golfer to attempt to get a lay of the land. A brilliant idea, but even after looking out over the hole, it remained an enigma. The hole’s name is "Gully" and it contains two directional poles to help the unknowing golfer find their way. I hit driver off the tee, which was a mistake, it really only requires an iron off the tee so that you don’t land in the gully (which you can't see from the lookout tower). The green is of a punch bowl variety and fun. Personally, I can’t believe that the course doesn’t get more accolades, it is a seriously fun and yet still challenging place to play despite its lack of length.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Although the location and dunes at Trump Links Scotland are dramatic, the course badly misses the mark and has some serious design flaws that make it a less than enjoyable place to play golf. In particular, all but one hole is routed in a north-south direction. I played the course on a day when the wind was blowing across (from the west), meaning all but one hole was in a cross-wind. Playing seventeen holes in a cross-wind is not fun. Golf course architects surely know that the winds in Scotland are changeable? Why would you route so many holes parallel on the sea? It really makes no sense to me. Why route all the holes along the dunes, why not route some back and forth to play through the dunes, like at nearby Cruden Bay? I also found that the rough is far too thick. Any ball that does not hit the fairway is lost. The rough is so thick and overgrown that there is virtually no chance of finding a ball, leading to a less than fun day. It is roughly the equivalent of every fairway and green being surrounding by water, with a resulting small margin of error available to a golfer. The green contouring is also overdone. Based on my experiences playing in the British Isles a key part of the charm is being able to play bump and run shots. Almost all the greens here are elevated and have false fronts and fall away severely on most sides. Unless a shot is perfectly struck it repels off the green, as a result, the effective landing area is about one third the actual size of the green, making it unduly penal. Combine this with the thick rough and the combination becomes toxic. The character of the course is too Americanized and taking away bump and runs shots doesn’t feel right. On the positive side, the course conditions were fabulous, there are sometimes beautiful views, the grass is lush and the greens (if you can ever get on them) and in good condition and fast. Giving credit where it is due, the holes do have a variety in length. There is a nice combination of short, medium, and long par threes and fours. The staff was amenable and friendly and the clubhouse was surprisingly understated and tasteful. I predict that serious changes must be made to make the course playable for the recreational golfer including softening the green contours, widening the fairways and thinning the rough. John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Having recently completed play on Castle Stuart on a chilly October day I was very impressed with the course and believe it is among the best routed courses in the world along with Cypress Point, Pine Valley, Carnoustie, Sunningdale, and Royal Portrush. The architect, Gil Hanse, starts the routing out with three holes along the water, takes the golfer away from the water, brings you back again, takes you inland once more and finishes again back along it! The mark of a good architect and golf course is how the holes they design away from dramatic settings play. You could argue it is hard to design poor holes when you have great dunes and water views (as Castle Stuart has in abundance). Hanse takes maximum advantage of the land contours and a particularly noteworthy hole away from the water is the challenging dog-leg right par four thirteenth. The fourth hole is also a standout, a par three that is framed beautifully against the ancient actual Castle Stuart in the distance. I haven’t played many of his courses, but I do like Hanse's philosophy, which strikes the correct balance between being challenging, yet at the same time is fun for all skill levels. He gives a tiger line for those who want to be aggressive, but also leaves open less challenging lines for those without pinpoint accuracy. Hanse strikes the correct equilibrium and understands that greens can't be too tricked up in a wind-blown links environment; on the other hand, they are not pushovers either, with subtle contours and breaks. My two favorite holes are the par four 10th and the par three 11th which play along dramatic dunes land along Moray Firth. This is a must play golf course.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Bring your A game if you ever get the invite to the Boston Golf Club. The course demands brawn. The walk over the hilly terrain is a demanding one, and it is matched by the demands placed on the golfer to hit long and accurately. There are not many flat lies on the property. Memorable holes (?) include the par four twelfth with a green that is over the top. A course with relatively slow putting surfaces can have massive slants, breaks and undulations, but when the greens are as fast as they are here, a hole like twelve become a head scratcher. The 317-yard par four firth hole is also a potential card wrecker, even though it is very short. I have never had a sand wedge in my hand before and have the caddie tell me that I couldn’t go for the (blind) green, that is was wiser to lay up! The course shines with the beautiful par 4 14th hole which plays down a hill and gets progressively more narrow as it does so; visually stunning. The 15th is a par five reminiscent of Pine Valley’s Hell’s Half Acre hole and may in fact be better than the original. The understated and low-key nature of the club makes it a treat to visit.

John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

A below the radar design of Donald Ross that shines. The course features many blind shots starting from the first tee, which asks the golfer to hit his tee shot up a huge hill with no flag visible anywhere. The fourth, sixth and tenth also feature blind tee shots, and approaches to six, seven, eight and several more holes are also blind. Ross used multi-tiered greens in abundance and incorporated swales, hollows, dips and punchbowls into the putting services to great effect. The routing flows beautifully through the hilly property, with nary an uneven lie. Especially noteworthy is the stretch of holes beginning with the sixth and ending at the ninth which fit into the landscape perfectly. Although the last three of them are short (a par four of 292, a par four of 362 and par three of 146) because of the hills and the green designs they command total precision and respect. A course that you would be lucky to call your home and to play every day.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

It is easy for a course in Los Angeles to get overlooked given all the great golf in the vicinity, such as Los Angeles Country Club, Riviera and Bel-Air. I had a chance to play the Wilshire Country Club this month and it was an unexpected treat. The course doesn't get a lot of notoriety but it was a fabulous day's golf. The course is built on gently rolling terrain and is an easy walk. Of special note were holes near the clubhouse that have a big barranca (a dry river gorge) running through them. You have to hit approaches into narrow greens angling away from you when approach the pin. The 18th is an especially difficult one that plays at an unsettling angle both off the tee and into the green. I also really like the difficult par three fourth hole with a long narrow multi-tiered green. I played Wilshire on a sunny seventy degree day and the environment is enhanced by the "Hollywood" sign in the hills above you in the intermediate distance as you walk around the course. The greens were pure and our caddies were expert and helped guide us into the hole the entire round. There is plenty of shot variety and holes that play uphill and downhill into greens. I have never heard of the original architect Norman MacBeth before, and its too bad he doesn't have more courses to his credit, because he did good here at Wilshire!John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-World%C2%92s-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Hyannisport Club has world class views of the water and the surrounding tidal marshes looking out into Nantucket Sound. The course has a set of small, very fast greens. Many of the greens are quite narrow as well with bunkers on long side of the greens. More than once I found myself in a bunker, and if you don't hit the perfect high shot you will find yourself in a bunker on the other side of the green. The course begins with a relatively straight 448-yard par four, a gentle opener. This is followed by a 265-yard par four that is also relatively easy. The third features a dogleg left that plays at an angle off the tee to a fairway set over a tidal marsh. The fourth is a 410-yard dogleg that plays around the same body of water. The par threes on the course all feature a landing pad in front of the green that at first slopes away from your line of play and then slopes upward. This makes the approach shots to the green very tricky because if you land your shot just a bit short and it hits on the downslope then it will likely shoot across the green. Factor in the wind and it becomes even trickier. Particularly good par threes include the 195-yard eighth, which plays into a cross-wind coming off the Sound. The fifteenth, a 177-yarder and the seventeenth, a 141-yarder play directly into the prevailing wind. All three are good golf holes. Another hole of note is the 476-yard par five sixteenth which plays through a dramatic left to right sloping hill. Your tee shot is blind as is your second over the hill. Although you will likely have a very short iron into the green, it is also highly likely that you will have an uneven lie as the terrain slopes on the entire hole from left to right. The holes along the water and marsh reminded me quite a bit of Maidstone in East Hampton, and many of the approach shots play the same way they do on the holes that border the pond at Maidstone. Aside from a couple of holes on the front that play over marshes the course has no water hazards. The golf course is a great day out in an idyllic location. I personally got goosebumps walking where JFK used to play, making this a very memorable days golf.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The CuisinArt course in Anguilla is what I would call a typical resort course. There are breaktaking views of the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, Anguilla’s white sand beaches and of St. Martin in the distance. The course has wide fairways and the greens are fairly easy to hit. The real challenge is the seven holes where water comes into play. Course conditioning is very good and the greens are more challenging and faster than they look. The 2nd, 10th, and 11th are my favorite as they are close to the sea. Away from the water, the par five 5th is a great tree lined hole with an elevated green. You are very lucky to be anywhere on the island of Anguilla, it is such a secluded and amazing place and the beauty of the green fairways set against a perfect sky and ocean makes this an immensely enjoyable day out.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I enjoyed the Red Course, and prefer it marginally over the Blue Course. The Coore-Crenshaw design aesthetic just seems to suit my eye. The predominant impression coming away from Streamsong is the sand dunes, however, the Red Course also takes advantage of the savanna the course is on. One of the things that makes Cypress Point so special is that the course has six holes routed through the dunes, six holes routed through the trees and six holes routed along the water. Streamsong doesn't have any holes routed across the water obviously, but there is more variety that meets the eye, particularly the holes routed through the grassy plains part of the property that abuts the trees. These include the twelfth and seventeenth on the Red course. Number sixteen is a Biarritz style hole of between 160 and 208 yards that plays over the same lake as the seventh hole on the Blue course. I particularly enjoyed holes fifteen through seventeen, probably the best three-hole stretch on the entire Streamsong property. The Red is a fabulous golf course and is a fairly close approximation to the private Coore-Crenshaw course in Nebraska, Sand Hills. For those living on the U.S. East Coast, it is also easier to get to than the Bandon Resort and it has less wind!John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Florida is not the mental image that comes to mind when you see a picture of the golf course at Streamsong. 12 million yards of earth were moved to build the two courses and it took an otherwise flat terrain and created sand dunes and lots of elevation changes. The other natural benefit of Streamsong is that Florida was at one time under water, thus the soil is very sandy. Although there are trees at the perimeter of both courses, they do not come into play, both are wide open and bumping and running the ball are a delightfully consistent part of the golf here. The tee areas blend into the fairways and are not really distinctive tee boxes. This no doubt makes mowing and maintenance easy, and creates a lot of options on tee placement. Nowhere is this more in evidence than the fifth hole, which gives the player many options including putting off the tee. The hole is a downhill par three of between 102 and 150 yards depending on the tees you play and where the pin is. When we got to the tee someone in my group pointed out that you could actually putt the ball to the green given that the flag was front left and there was fairway all the way from tee to green. As I am always up for a stupid challenge I decided to tee off with a putter and ended up about a foot short of the green! My favorite hole on the Blue course is the par three seventh which is “the” picture hole everyone captures when playing Streamsong, and for good reason. It is such a picturesque hole of between 178 and 203 yards, and a delight to play over water into such a secluded area between the sand dunes. The other hole I really liked is number thirteen, similar to a hole at Pacific Dunes, a par four of between 279 and 312 yards that gets progressively more narrow as you get to the green, which is set up on a hill and is well bunkered. Some of the greens on the course are border line tricked up, like the twelfth, a par four, with its massive humps and slope. The course has a relatively easy start, but makes up for it with a very difficult finish, especially the 600-yard into the wind 17th hole.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Another spectacular effort from Coore & Crenshaw built in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. Wide fairways lull the unsuspecting golfer into thinking the course may not be a big test. Wait until you get to the greens. The first green sets the standard for the rest of the course; fast with lots of undulations. The fourth hole, a reverse Redan hole, is one of the most challenging on the course and one of the best renditions created on any course. The driveable par four eighth offers a chance of an eagle or an eight. On the par three up-hill eleventh hole you may not see your ball land, but it is an exhilarating shot. The difficult twelfth plays long and uphill, followed by the tricky thirteenth with its wild green. An under-appreciated course in a state blessed with a lot of good golf, Hidden Creek is a hidden gem and a spectacular and fun day’s golf.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Ocean Forest is located on the end of a barrier island where the Hampton River meets the Atlantic Ocean and the area is blessed with pine trees, sand dunes, oak trees, marshes, wetlands and a river estuary. The principles Rees Jones used to design the course are:1. Small greens. The average green size is 5,300 square feet. The notable exception is the par three 17th green, which has an 11,000 square foot green2. Greens with low profiles, in order to maintain playability in high winds3. Slopes around the greens which direct missed shots away from the holeTo quote Jones, "I learned from Brookline that you don't need extraordinary length if you have small greens. When the targets are smaller, the penalty for missing them is magnified because there is a greater likelihood that they will be missed." Jones' term for the green designs at Ocean Forest is 'straight back', which means that there are no greenside features to throw wayward shots back toward the hole or stop balls that have been played too long. The greatest dangers at Ocean Forest are behind the greens. What makes the course unique is that it is essentially a links course, but without one of the central features of a links course, which is the ability to bump and run shots up to the green. The way Jones designed the greens, you have to pitch the ball onto them, which requires you to hit the ball high, as opposed to bumping it up. The approaches to most greens are narrow, with bunkers on both sides, making it a demanding course, particularly if the wind is blowing. The 10th hole was my favorite on the course. Jones calls ten "the most thought provoking, risk-laden hole." The tee shot on this 545-yard par five demands a shot hit to a fairway which is set at an angle, over marsh grasses. It is a classic risk-reward shot. The further to the right you can successfully hit, the closer to the green you are. A shot hit short of the fairway is gone. There is a beautiful marsh along the entire right side of the hole. The green is treacherous, well protected by bunkers and has a lateral hazard on the right and to the rear. Ocean Forest has all the essential elements of greatness present, but there is just something I can't put my finger on that keeps me from becoming a big fan.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Peachtree only has 225 members and on the beautiful Spring day I played it we saw only two other group all day. The terrain is some of the hilliest I've played (although the Olympic Club Lake course is hillier). It is not an exaggeration to say that the only flat lies you are likely to get all day are on the tee boxes. Many of the approach shots are to elevated greens, thus the course plays longer than the card indicates. The course has among the best conditioned and fastest greens I have played. The course also has an ever-present creek that winds its way around the layout and is always ready to catch a wayward shot or to penalize those that should have hit three wood off the tee but through their hubris take the driver. Comparisons between Peachtree and Augusta are inevitable because Bobby had a hand in designing both; their respective topographies are very similar and Peachtree, like Augusta, was previously a nursery. Several of the vistas a Peachtree could be mistaken for those at Augusta. Peachtree is a decidedly low key affair, the clubhouse is understated, the grill room is understated and the membership is both low key and low profile. I am a fan of golf clubs like Peachtree.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The golf course starts on flat ground and the first four holes are relatively straight forward. The elevation on the course begins at the fifth hole and basically gets progressively hillier as you play on. The par five fifth hole plays as the #1 stroke index hole at Cherry Hills. The green is elevated, hard to hold and fronted by a swale. The 518-yard hole has interesting terrain and the fairway slopes right to left and the hole dog-legs to the right at the end. The course really begins to pick up steam on the ninth hole. The 434-yard par four ninth hole plays up a big hill back toward the clubhouse. From the landing area of your drive to the green, the hole slopes severely from left to right, following the natural contours of the land beautifully. The difficult green is perched on a slope on this dog-leg right hole. The 428-yard par four 10th hole is a mirror image of the ninth except it runs away from the clubhouse and slopes from right to left. They are an excellent pair of holes that use the hilly terrain very well. The par four sixteenth is a good risk-reward hole as well and typifies the back nine, which is much stronger than the front nine. The hole is 402 yards and is a slight dogleg right. Your approach shot plays over the burn/stream to a green set at an angle to the fairway.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Occupying one the highest pieces of land on Long Island, The Creek was built on a special 130 acres that were formerly the estate of Paul D. Cravath, a partner at the white-shoe law firm (at the time, the largest law firm in the world) that today exists as Cravath, Swaine & Moore. Similar to arriving at the National Golf Links and at Sebonack, both further east on Long Island, the arrival at The Creek is grand. You drive through a set of old brick gates guarding the entrance and through an impressive allée of linden trees. At the far end of the road you turn into a circular entry drive. The first building in the circle is the old Cravath estate horse stable, which has been converted into the locker room and pro shop. At the far end of the circle is the handsome classic clubhouse, built of Indiana limestone in the Georgian Greek Renaissance style. The golf course itself is a tale of three cities. Holes one through five occupy the flat, higher elevation part of the property and are the least interesting. Holes seven through fourteen occupy the flat beach/links part of the property, while holes six through eight and fifteen through eighteen are on a broad hill. Each of the three parts has a distinctive feel. The lower portion of the course is closer to Long Island Sound and is thus more impacted by the winds.The par three eleventh hole is a stern test of golf, particularly if the wind is blowing. Its 200-yards demand a precise tee shot to hit the island green that the golfer reaches and departs from via wooden bridges. Making it even more of a challenge, the memorable hole features an 80-yard long Biarritz-style green with a large swale running through it. Teeing it up on a fine summer day at The Creek is one of the game's great pleasures.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Piping Rock today retains the air of its founding days. Driving up to the Dutch Colonial clubhouse flanked by a stone wall gives the visitor a sense of being a country gentleman or lady. The entire scene is one of a leisurely enclave. Nearby the clubhouse are beautifully maintained grass tennis courts. Like the C.B. Macdonald-designed St. Louis Country Club, the visitor at Piping Rock is also drawn immediately to the prominence of the old polo field behind the clubhouse. Piping Rock is a fun course to play and has an interesting and varied routing. It is beautifully conditioned and offers challenging greens. The front nine at Piping Rock plays on the property's more open terrain, the back through a more wooded area. Darius Oliver mentions in Planet Golf USA that Piping Rock represents a significant course in architectural history because it was the first inland course Macdonald and Raynor built, immediately after the completion of the National Golf Links. Although he routed the course, Macdonald became irritated with the land he was given by the club and left most of the course's design and construction to Raynor. The course retains strong characters of Macdonald-Raynor designs including an especially good Redan hole. Another favorite is the 9th with its huge Biarritz-style green.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

When Deepdale was formed it had a small, exclusive membership and was built in Nassau County, relatively close to New York City. Its proximity to the city made it an ideal "alternative" course that allowed its elite members to play during the week without making the longer trek out to Suffolk County to play at Shinnecock Hills or The National Golf Links of America. Located on the Hempstead Plains, the terrain of the course is ideal for golf, with sandy soil and rolling hills. The golf course of today is in great condition; while tee to green the course is fair and imminently playable, I found the tilted greens to be especially tricky and challenging. This is the only course I have ever played where I was on a par three in regulation and walked off with a double-bogey (and a head of steam). A par of seventy, the course only has two par fives: one on each nine. I found the length of the holes to be good, a nice mix of long and short par fours, although the two par threes on the front play roughly the same distance as do the two on the back (at least from the middle tees). If Deepdale ever wanted to look for a new name for the club, it could appropriately be called "The Dog-Leg Left Golf Club." Charles Blair Macdonald was a famous slicer of the ball and when he designed courses, he is said to have favored designs with dog-leg right holes, which didn't penalize the slicer as much. Deepdale is the opposite. I don't know if Dick Wilson was a hooker of the ball, but he certainly appears to have liked dog-leg left par-4 holes. The first hole is a dogleg left par four, as is the third. The most acute examples are the seventh and eighth holes. The seventh is a 365-yard dogleg left par four. The eighth is a 415-yard par four. To give a sense of the severity of the dog-legs. The eighth green returns the golfer back to the seventh tee; thus, you play in a complete 360-degree loop in the space of two holes. The ninth hole is a dogleg left par four as well, finishing off a sequence of three back-to-back dog-leg left holes. Holes fourteen and fifteen are also back-to-back dogleg left par fours. Eighteen is a dogleg left, and, you guessed it, a par four. Not that there is anything wrong with a par-4 dogleg left hole, it just seems that the course has an over-abundance of them. I'm not criticizing, just observing. When I think about Merion, Pine Valley, and the National Golf Links just to name a few of my favorite courses, each has two or three dogleg left holes, so, for me it was clearly noticeable how many lefties there were at Deepdale. The other thing to explain in more detail is that the doglegs are not subtle, little benders to the left, they are almost all pretty sharp left turns. Deepdale's two more defining characteristics are its proximity to Manhattan and the exclusiveness of its members. Today it remains a club dominated by New York's movers and shakers. It is reputed to have more billionaire members than any other golf course in the United States. Looking at the handicap list hanging in the locker room, it was indeed a list of tycoons, media personalities, and financiers; the creme-de-la-creme of New York's media, fashion, and finance industries. No need to Google the names on the membership list, many are recognizable at first blush. The club also has its own helipad to make it more convenient for members who so desire to take a chopper out to chase around the little white ball. Considering the traffic and roadways in Nassau County and Queens, it is no wonder they would want to do so. The historic, rambling clubhouse itself is spectacular, as is the bar area, locker room, and outdoor patio.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Colonial starts out simply enough on flat ground. The first hole is a straight forward dogleg right par five of 555 yards, one of only two on the course. It becomes clear pretty quickly at Colonial that the greens are small. Along with Pebble Beach, Harbour Town and Inverness, they are among the smallest of all the courses I have played. The three-hole stretch three through five is known as the "Horrible Horseshoe." Horseshoe, because the third tee is right next to and left of the fifth green, and the three holes swing around in a U shape. Horrible, because they are not easy. The third is a 468-yard par four dogleg left with a slightly elevated green. The fourth is a tricky 220-yard par three, also with an elevated green. The fifth hole is one of the most renowned in the world. It gets endless accolades. Golf's 100 Toughest Holes includes it on its list. The 500 World's Greatest Golf Holes ranks the fifth among its top 100. Dan Jenkins, in his 1966 book The Best 18 Golf Holes in America, selected the fifth hole as well. It is a 459-yard par four (481 for the pros), dogleg right. As Jenkins describes it: "The drive must be almost perfect, a slight fade and 250 yards out, if you are going to reach it in two. But fade too much, and there is the Trinity waiting. You can bail out to the left but there is a line of trees and a ditch there." The Trinity he is referring to is the Trinity River, which snakes along the outside of the course. It's a hard hole for sure, but not that hard. I'm not exactly a scratch golfer and I parred the fifth. In fairness, the prevailing left to right wind wasn't blowing when we played; I imagine it's a different hole if the wind is up. The tenth was also one of my favorite holes. It is a nice 381-yard dogleg right par four. Your second shot is over a big swale to a well-protected green. Colonial is a narrow, shot makers course. You don't need to bomb the ball to score well here. What you need to do is hit around trees and be smart with club selection.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Sebonack is a golf course that both lives up to the potential of this unique site and the pedigree of its designers. Although it is a new course, having opened in 2006, I believe it instantly has one of the best starts in golf; rivaling Merion and Prestwick with opening holes that get the juices flowing. Like these two grande dames, the first hole at Sebonack is a very short par four, at 337 yards. Like at Merion, it is a dog-leg right and it is set so that as you walk toward the green, the bay starts to become visible in front of you. I personally like a short starting hole, which gives the opportunity to start your round with a birdie or par. Don't be fooled by the short yardage on the card into thinking it is a complete lay-up hole, however. The real fun starts when you take out the flat stick. The first green is wild and crazy with wicked undulations. Walking up to putt on the first green is like getting hit in the face with a wet dish rag. It hurts. Never-the-less, the green shocks you into the round and unmistakably lets you know that you are in for a unique round of golf. The second hole is the best on the course in my view, and one of the best in the world. It is the number one handicap hole and plays 414 yards with an uphill second shot. The prevailing wind is in your face, so it plays longer than the card. You have to hit your tee shot through two large American elms that frame the fairway about 100 yards off the tee box. The shot plays down a hill into a valley that is covered with sand and bunkers. It requires a well struck ball to find the middle of the fairway, but the hole has classic risk-reward characteristics that rewards a well-played shot hit between the bunkers with a favorable kick forward. The fifth hole is noteworthy as a short, down-hill par four with great risk-reward characteristics. It reminds me of the world-class seventeenth at The National. According to our host, this was a hole Nicklaus was responsible for and Jack feels it is similar to the 12th hole at The Old Course at St. Andrews. The hole is only 360 yards and plays downhill, with a pot bunker in the middle of the fairway, so you have to choose to either lay-up or go left or right and are duly penalized or rewarded. The routing at Sebonack is interesting. The whole property gently slopes downhill toward the bay. The first three holes play near the water, then the character of the course changes as you go in-land into a forested area. Several holes are then in a sandy/scrubby area. Once you get back to the green at the eleventh hole you are back near the water for two holes, then the course goes back in-land. There is a great vista that unfolds before you when you are finished playing the 17th hole. You walk through a clearing out onto a high bluff overlooking Peconic bay. The 18th plays immediately next to the bay on your left the entire way home.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The East course has recently reached the top 100 world rankings on its own merits and I can see why. It's a great collection of holes. The par three 13th on the East, 135 meters, which doesn't play in the composite courses is a spectacular little par three. It has the best protected green of the 36 holes at Royal Melbourne. The third hole on the East is a dogleg right down a sweeping hill and the fourth is an interesting uphill par three. The second on the East is a great par four that has a blind tee shot to a fairway that starts far left and comes back to the right. The composite course at Royal Melbourne was devised for tournaments in 1959 so that crowds would not have to cross Cheltenham Road. While it can be confusing playing the courses trying to figure out which holes are part of the composite, the easy rule of thumb is that if you are still on the side of Cheltenham Road near the clubhouse, you are on the composite. The holes from the East course (1,2,3,4, 17 and 18) that are part of the composite are a worthy bunch. John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Tokyo Golf Club is built on relatively flat land. It is characterized by its elevated greens, fairways that get progressively narrow as you get near the green, and extremely difficult rough. Because it gets so hot and humid in the summer Tokyo was designed with two sets of greens with different types of grass: one strain that is better in cooler weather and one set is better in warm weather. The course has a lackluster front nine but a much better back nine, particularly holes ten through fourteen. The 10th hole is a good example of how the fairway narrows and snakes its way toward the green. The narrowness of the layout puts a premium on a player’s ability to hit fairways and greens. I liked the 11th hole quite a bit. It is a short par four with a highly elevated green and beautiful "Alison" bunkering. The 17th green at Tokyo Golf Club is again a good example of the elevation found around the putting surfaces. This beautiful downhill par three places a premium on hitting the green. Tokyo Golf Club at times reminded me of the George Thomas designed Los Angeles Country Club North Course in both style and feel. The dual greens are an interesting twist and the club itself has a very exclusive and upper crust feel to it.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I have heard that the course was difficult to appreciate because its conditioning was not very good. I found the course to be in excellent shape when I played it. The course has an interesting routing that starts out in a pine forest with unique Arregle Piques trees. The first four holes play in the trees: then, beginning at the fifth hole you start to approach the Mediterranean and get the links feel of the course. Arana designed some interesting and challenging greens with many contours. The third is a world-class par five with a blind tee shot and a double dog-leg left that plays to a narrow green. The green has deep bunkers on both sides and two trees protecting the front of the green. The fairway slopes left to right. This hole is ranked as one of the 500 best in the world according to George Peper's book of the same title. The difficult green is oblong and protected by deep bunkers on both the left and right. It is a very good strategic hole with a narrow fairway from tee to green that requires precision the entire way. The eighth is a very good short par four that plays along the Mediterranean. There is a sand dune about twenty feet high to the right of the green. The fairway snakes along to the right and then to the left prior to getting to the multi-tiered green that is sighted between the big sand dune on the right and the sand dunes protecting the ocean on the left. El Saler is worth a visit, particularly because it is near the beautiful and fun city of Valencia, which is one of my favorites in Europe.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Some courses ease you into the round, and it takes a while for you to find the courses' charms. Not at Chantilly. It announces right away that it will be a great round of golf. The opening par five hole shows the strategic use of bunkers that are present throughout the course. The three bunkers on the right side make the only safe shot one that lands in the middle of the fairway, right of the clump of trees guarding the left side of the hole. The World Atlas of Golf describes looking down the fairway from the fifth tee as the golfing equivalent of looking down a gun barrel. It plays as the #1 handicap at Chantilly and is a tough hole through a tight chute of trees. I was very pleased with my par. Both the front and back nines at Chantilly have back-to-back par fives. The back nine is the clearly superior of the two, with the six stretch of holes twelve through seventeen being very good. The thirteenth hole was my second favorite on the course (after the 17th). It is a 400-meter dog-leg left that demands you hit your tee shot over two large cross-bunkers. Your second shot is then to an elevated and well-bunkered green. The par three 17th hole is my favorite and features shock and awe. It is a stunning par three that plays 199 meters from the back tees down into a tight tree-lined valley. Like at Morfontaine, the feeling on the course is one of complete solitude and isolation since it is located in a dense forest. Vive la France!John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Spyglass is really the tale of two courses. The intoxicating holes along the bay (1-5) are dramatic, wide open and exposed to the elements. The inland holes (6-18) are difficult, tree-lined and play on terrain that slopes uphill. The opening five holes at Spyglass are dramatic. I would be hard pressed to think of a golf course that has a better opening stretch of holes than Spyglass. The first hole, named Treasure Island, is a downhill sweeping par five that offers tantalizing glimpses of Monterey Bay through the trees as you stand on the tee. As you proceed down the hill, the hole sweeps to the left and the bay provides a wondrous backdrop for the green. The first five holes are truly invigorating, and if you play Spyglass, enjoy them, because the easy part of the course is now behind you. After the fifth hole, the course changes dramatically. The fifth and remaining holes play away from the bay, and there are no more views of the water. The rest of the course frankly feels more like Pinehurst than it does Pebble Beach. It winds its way through pine and cedar trees on the rolling terrain, leading to a difficult round of golf. When the AT&T Pebble Beach golf tournament is held each year it is played over three courses - Pebble Beach, Spyglass and nearby Poppy Hills. The pros complain about Spyglass generally, because it is such a stern test of golf. Holes six, eight and sixteen rank among the toughest on the tour each year.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The defining characteristics of Quaker Ridge are the trees, the out of bounds and the greens. The greens are very good, subtle and very fast; sixteen of them slope back to front. The course is in many ways a typical course found in Westchester County, which are all tree-lined. I mean this in no way to be a negative, because Quaker Ridge can hardly be described as a typical course. The other thing you notice about Quaker Ridge when you begin playing is that the angles you take coming into the greens are of paramount importance. This is the sign of a brilliantly designed and thoughtfully laid out course. The first eight holes circle the property in a counter-clockwise fashion, which is the mirror image of Chicago Golf, which circles in a clockwise fashion. The next six holes at Quaker Ridge circle back in a clockwise fashion, before play goes back toward the club house. I know that Royal Liverpool (Hoylake) is probably the most famous world-renowned course that has a lot of O.B. Having played both courses, I think Quaker Ridge is a much sterner test of trying to keep the ball in play. At Hoylake, the O.B. really doesn't come into play unless you are truly wild. At Quaker Ridge, it comes into play if you are only mildly off line. The best stretch of holes on the course are six through eleven.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The first thing that strikes you about Southern Hills is (duh?) the hills. While this part of Oklahoma is essentially flat country, the land the course was developed on is quite hilly. For anyone who has ever been to Augusta, the first thing that strikes you is that the course has much more elevation change than you can see on television or in pictures. I had the same feeling here; you really can't see the big elevation changes until you are there first hand. Some golf course designers believe in the philosophy of starting easy and getting progressively more difficult as the course goes along. Perry Maxwell apparently had the opposite philosophy, at least at Southern Hills. The course hammers you right out of the gate. The first three holes are handicap 3, 1 and 7, respectively. I would say that Maxwell deserves the high praise he has received as a designer. The course is very interesting. Almost every par four or five is a dogleg, sometimes severely so. He used the land to imaginatively route the course with great variety. As an example, the fine stretch of holes 10-12 are pretty typical of what you can expect. The tenth hole plays from an elevated tee box down a big hill. At the bottom of the hill the hole sharply doglegs to the right and plays to an uphill, well bunkered green. The 11th hole is a downhill par three, heavily bunkered and with a typically small green. The 12th hole plays slightly uphill on the tee shot and sharply downhill on the second and doglegs sharply to the left. This seemed to the essence of the layout: a variety of holes with interesting doglegs playing both up and downhill with small greens that have both overt and subtle breaks.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The postage stamp is a very noteworthy hole on a course that lacks many standout holes. I know I am in a minority in not loving Royal Troon but I found a bunch of the holes to be rather straightforward and uninteresting. The former editor of Golf Magazine, George Peper's description is more eloquent and concise than mine but in the same vein: "Six dull holes - six interesting holes - six dull holes." Relative to other courses that host the Open Championship or others in England I find Troon to be overrated.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

You immediately know that St. George's is going to be a great golf course when you stand on the tee and see the beautiful first hole winding its way through the rolling terrain. Stanley Thompson used the rolling terrain here very well when he routed the course. His par five holes in particular are very good, demanding holes. For a variety of reasons, St. George’s is a wonderful place to play golf including the meandering fairways, the great use of terrain, the difficult greens and the imaginative elevated bunkers. The course is built on terrain containing a cornucopia of hills, valleys, ridges, nobs, inclines, hollows and hillocks. As Tom Doak mentions in his Confidential Guide to Golf, Thompson routed many holes alongside or through valleys rather than over them. This lead to a world-class golf course. The greatest stretch of holes on the course are numbers twelve through fifteen, which are routed through the hilliest part of the course. The 12th hole has a green greatly elevated from the fairway off on the left side of the hole. The 14th is a picturesque hole with elevated bunkers above the green. True to his name, The Toronto Terror left us with many downhill sand shots above greens that slope away from you.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I was especially impressed with how Dye was able to vary the routing at the Honors Course to create an exceptional balance between easy and difficult holes, long par fours and short par fours, and a difficult course that is also playable for a mortal. Although the slope rating is 145, the course doesn't wear you out like an Oakmont or Bethpage Black. I like the two short par fours, which are great risk-reward holes. The par four 9th hole is only 355 yards long. You probably won't see your tee shot land, as the landing area is semi-blind. The second shot is a wedge to a green protected in front and on the left by water. Dye has said about the 9th at The Honors, "every course needs a #9 - one of my rare forced carries to a par four green". His execution of the hole here is very well done; the design is subtle and really penalizes a mis-hit shot. The other great risk-reward hole is #12, a 355-yard par four with a small fairway and a huge tree blocking the green on the right side. Being able to place the ball on the left side of the fairway is of paramount importance off the tee. Doing so, however, does not assure a birdie or par. Again, like #9, even though you are hitting in a very short iron, the green is narrow and well protected. As Dye correctly says about his pot bunker in front of the green, "This bunker can spell disaster for even the most accomplished player." I like The Honors Course best of all of Pete Dye’s work because it has a natural look and a sense of polish to it, without being forced, unlike many of his other courses.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

East Lake, like Los Angeles Country Club, is a city course hemmed in in its entirety by a perimeter fence. The course is built on gently rolling hills and with the exception of holes 4, 6, 8 and 17, the holes are routed east-west to play directly into the wind or down wind. After a gentle starter into the wind, the par three second hole plays down wind. Gently sloping hills and typical at East Lake as are shaved fall-off areas surrounding the green. The 551-yard par five ninth hole was my favorite on the course. It sweeps down the hill from a tee box at the top and you have to play your third shot over the lake to a very well protected green. The majestic clubhouse in the background adds to the grandeur of the hole. The front nine plays on the west side of the clubhouse and the back nine plays on the east side; and on the back, with the exception of the seventeenth, the holes run parallel to each other as you play up and down the hill. The back nine is the more interesting of the two. The "signature" hole at East Lake is the eighteenth, which is a par three finishing hole which plays 207 yards uphill into the prevailing wind. It is a real testing way to finish off a testing round. The clubhouse is shrine to Bobby Jones and is one of the best in the world.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Alex Russell, the designer of the golf course left the rumpled fairways as he found them and exercised restraint in his design choices. The result is a quirky links course with a dearth of bunkers and an abundance of table top greens. A true links course, Paraparaumu has the feel of a course in the British Isles, although the weather is decidedly better here. Similar to Royal Lytham & St. Annes, you never actually see the water while playing. In addition to sharing the topography of Lytham, the course also has an element of the quirkiness of Scotland's Cruden Bay thrown in. There are a half dozen blind or semi-blind shots, including the 1st tee shot, and holes with some interesting greens, including the 11th, which is a punchbowl. A collection of short par 4s, the 6th, 8th and 10th take full advantage of the dramatic natural land forms. They make up for their lack of length and bunkering by using the natural contours of the true links land, placing a premium on shot accuracy. Paraparaumu offers plenty of opportunity to be creative and bump and run the ball: a key consideration when playing in "windy Wellington." One of the defining characteristics of the course is its appropriate sense of scale, with a continual change in hole direction. The dunes are perfectly proportioned, and Russell routed the course among them with skill. The front nine is routed further from the sea, which is about 500 yards away at its closest point. The front nine is nearer the water, with all but two holes on the course designed to play in a cross-wind. In the same way that Whistling Straits is defined by its generous use of bunkers, Paraparaumu is defined by the absence of them. There are less than a dozen fairway bunkers on the entire course; and the 1st and 5th holes have none of any kind. The scarcity of bunkering is most pronounced on the par 3s. The two best, the 5th and 16th, have tabletop greens that fall off sharply on three sides. Anything less than the perfect shot will not hold them. As my host said in typical straightforward Kiwi fashion of the 155-yard 5th, "you are either on it, or you're not," meaning correctly, that there is a harsh penalty for missing. New Zealand native and Open Champion Bob Charles calls the 5th "equal to any short hole in the world." It is a brilliant place to play golf.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The Old Course at Walton Heath is a lovely heathland course. Like its more famous English course Royal Lytham, Walton Heath starts with a good par three and has a particularly good set of finishing holes. I found the par four fifth hole to be quite difficult, and its undulating green to be a real challenge. Like at Sunningdale, I love the topography and look of Walton Heath with the purple hues and trees along the perimeter of the course that don’t hem in the fairways. Walton Heath doesn’t have an over-abundance of greenside bunkers, but those that are present are well placed and tricky, of special note is the greenside bunker at the long par-four 10th hole. The club and members were very welcoming to me when I visited.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

What was the design philosophy at Trump National? Aside from the obvious mandate to build a course to host a major, it looks like the key factors were:1. Forced carry shots over water (to the greens) and over ravines (off the tee)2. Generally large, elevated greens3. A course from the penal, as opposed to strategic, school of design4. Very high and demanding roughThe twelfth hole was my favorite on the course, a 392-yard par four that plays sharply uphill. The tee shot, like many at Trump Bedminster, is over a ravine with a forced carry. The short par four seventeenth is one of only a few downhill shots to a green and one of the few risk-reward holes: it is 312 yards and offers many interesting ways to play the hole depending upon how aggressive you want to be both off the tee and with a watery approach. I think the back nine is the more difficult of the two, even though it is shorter in total yardage. Net-net, I think the course is unnecessarily hard. It's trying to prove that it is tough enough to host a major. The rough is just too hard for all but scratch level golfers. If the rough were cut and some of the water holes were filled in, it would be a better course. It would also be more consistent with the other great courses in New Jersey such as nearby Somerset Hills, Pine Valley and Baltusrol, all of which have normal rough and very little water hazards. It's just not in character for this part of the country. A singular focus on hosting a major championship has led to golf design reductio ad absurdum. Almost everything you see and touch at Trump Bedminster is branded Trump and some of the interior is a bit too glitzy.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The summary of the landscape at Cabo del Sol is: The desert meets the ocean. The summary of the golf course is: Jack Nicklaus-style forced carry shots and fast greens.The first tee shot of the day is typical of what you face all day at Cabo Del Sol: a forced carry over the desert. Often times, shots to the green at Cabo del Sol also require a forced carry over desert as well. The course starts away from the water on a desert plateau and then gradually plays downhill until it reaches the water at the par three sixth hole. The par three sixth is one of the prettiest of its kind anywhere in the world and for my money rivals Pebble Beach's seventh for scenic beauty. The dramatic par three sixth is followed by another par three, the seventh, which is a 137-yard hole that plays at a ninety-degree angle to the sixth and is parallel to the water. The sixth and seventh are the only holes along the water on the front nine. You don't return to the water until holes sixteen through eighteen, which finish along the sea. At this point, the course is routed back inland and plays up the plateau and then back down it again for the closing stretch of holes.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

To summarize Harbour Town: narrow fairways and small greens. The design, layout and routing are imaginative and good, even though the course is completely flat. You can't just get up and hit driver on every hole. It is designed to really make you think about the type and shape of the shot before hitting each one. The narrowness of the fairways and the over-hanging trees force you to have to hit a certain side of the fairway in order to have a decent shot at the small greens. In this regard, Harbour Town reminded me of Merion. Although the fairways in reality are not that narrow, they give the appearance of being so. This is because so many of the holes have overhanging trees that encroach over the fairways, making it a visually difficult golf course to drive the ball. Harbour Town represents the type of short, shot-makers course that seems to be out of vogue. It's nice to have world-class courses like this that are not all about length and brute force.The other thing I appreciate about Harbour Town as a student of golf history is that this is one of Pete Dye's earliest designs and one of the first he used railroad ties on. As essentially the first course of its genre built in the modern era, this makes it a historically important course. Jack Nicklaus was a co-designer, and it was the first course he was involved with from a design standpoint. Also, I like the Low country setting with all the live oak trees with their hanging Spanish moss. The course also has a very interesting combination of palmetto trees, pine trees, elm trees, pampas grasses and other native plants. My two favorite holes on the course were the 13th and the 16th, which showcase Dye's bunkering abilities. The 13th has a narrow landing area off the tee. It is critical to hit your drive to the right-hand side of the fairway to have a reasonable shot at this unique green. The green itself is 'Y' shaped, with an imposing railroad-tied bunker half-way around it.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

If I had to sum up Inverness in two words: small greens. Inverness has the smallest greens of any golf course I have ever played. Almost every green is a postage stamp green. Not only is each green very small, but the predominant design feature of the course is well guarded greens with narrow openings that require accurate approaches. Each green has either mounds on both sides or bunkers with high lips. It is a fairly easy driving course, with wide fairways. The trick at Inverness is getting on the greens in regulation. It requires very precise iron play.I liked the layout and routing at Inverness. I especially liked the 7th hole, which is the #1 handicap. You play your tee shot from an elevated tee. The ideal tee shot favors the right side of the fairway, but in shades of Carnoustie, you have to flirt with a burn that snakes subtly throughout the entire course. The second shot is straight uphill and really favors an approach from the right as opposed to left side of the fairway since a big sycamore tree sits at the top of a plateau protecting the green. As is customary in Ross's designs, Inverness has its fair share of holes with shaved areas around the small greens. It’s an old-style Donald Ross gem of a course.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I am not a fan of the out and back layout which Lytham is, but I thought the course was good. It actually reminded me more of The Old Course at St. Andrews than any other course. Flat, but with a lot of hidden bunkers, more than 200 to be precise. They are classic turf riveted links style bunkers, small, and mostly round and if you are in them they give you little chance but to hit out sideways or to advance the ball only a slight amount. Although not wowed by the course at first, I can see how the course would grow on you over time. I did like starting on a par three at Lytham, it is a testing long iron. I also thought the 18th was a good finishing hole with the clubhouse virtually up against the green. We played Lytham with a stiff wind (3+ clubs) so it was a real test of golf. The "signature" hole at Lytham is the 17th, where many championships have been decided. Adam Scott can certainly attest to this having bogeyed the hole in route to his epic loss at the open in 2012. Bobby Jones took the lead on this hole from Al Watrous en route to his championship. I stayed at the Dormie House and would recommend doing so.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The entry drive at Cape Kidnappers is dramatic, right up there with Sand Hills, Morfontaine, Yeamans Hall and Kauri Cliffs. Cape Kidnappers has been one of the most hyped courses built in the last twenty years. It begins with a good first hole, but overall I found the 2nd through 6th, 10th, 11th and 17th a bit underwhelming relative to expectations. The course has very wide fairways, and Tom Doak, the course designer, always leaves a bailout area and a more forgiving route to the green for less skilled players. This less skilled player, for one, appreciates this design philosophy. The other side of this design philosophy is that if you play aggressively and make a mistake, there is a big penalty. The big penalty at Cape Kidnappers is being in the high rough, which is almost certainly a lost ball. Despite the initial letdown of the front, I did like the variety of hole types. The course has some short par threes and some short par fours, which are nice because they take away the tedium of hitting hybrid clubs off the fairway all day long. Cape Kidnappers also puts a premium on putting, 'cause there ain't a flat green out there. I enjoyed the par three sixth hole, which reminded me a bit of the "Calamity" par three at Royal Portrush, but with the big drop-off on the left side of the hole instead of on the right. The hole plays over 200 yards and is a tester. It offers a preview of the immensity of the rocky gorges to come. The drop from the green to the water below is over 500 feet. Like Cypress Point, Kidnappers features back-to-back par fives. The sixteenth is a par five in the opposite direction from the fifteenth, this time playing downwind. The hole is only 500 yards from the tips. The fairway heaves quite a bit in different directions, and the green is elevated and funky. It is a very different hole than the fifteenth and has a wide fairway. Cape Kidnappers is in many respects ultimately like Pebble Beach. What makes Pebble Beach so great is a half dozen spectacular holes, which compensate for many holes that are good, but not great. Cape Kidnappers also has a collection of holes that are so superior in their own right that they make up for some average holes and make it a worthy course to be included among the best in the world.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I am a big fan of Coore and Crenshaw designs and Cuscowilla is among the reasons why. I just like their design aesthetic and philosophy. Make the course playable from tee to green; if you hit a decent shot and put most of the challenges near and on the greens so that even if you are not a long ball hitter you can enjoy the course without it being a push over. The opening hole is gentle starter but the green is angled so you have to get your flat stick working right out of the gate. The 2nd hole is a more demanding par five that is well trapped and tree lined. Like all their courses, being able to bump and run shots is a critical skill at Cuscowilla. The long par four 13th hole is a good illustration of this, it is one without bunkers but is anything but a pushover. Making the experience even better, the course is located at Reynolds Plantation, which is a world-class resort. In my view I would rather play Cuscowilla than other courses that rate higher in Georgia such as Peachtree and Ocean Forest. It is a gem of a course and a great day’s golf.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

In his book Bury me in a Pot Bunker, Pete Dye says, "When I began sketching ideas for The Golf Club, images of two golf courses built in the 1920s came to mind. Along with the Scottish courses and Pinehurst No. 2, the design features at Seminole and Camargo influenced many of the characteristics prevalent at The Golf Club." A key design element of Pete Dye golf courses is his use of railroad ties. Their use here was while Dye was just getting started as an architect and still experimenting. Dye used railroad ties on the third hole like a teenage girl uses text messaging. The par four tenth hole has an interesting design feature; it has a slightly raised green that prevents the golfer from hitting a bump and run shot to the hole. Many holes have raised greens; this one is only about a foot high and creates a grassy transition from the fairway to the green. There really isn't a bad hole on the course, but the stretch of holes from twelve through sixteen are the most brilliant. The 369-yard par four thirteenth is a world-class hole that doglegs to the left off the tee. Dye made extensive use of sawed off telephone poles in the bunker right of the green. As with many great short par fours, it is a classic risk-reward hole where the further to the left you hit the ball the more you will be rewarded, but it also brings the flowery hazard to the right into play. Like Garden City Mens Club, Pine Valley and Augusta National, the Golf Club is an all-male club. I came away with a very favorable impression of The Golf Club, and I think that these lesser known courses by Pete Dye such as this and the Honors Course in Tennessee surpass his better known courses such as Whistling Straits or the TPC Stadium course. Also, I'm getting too old to be beaten up by a golf course. The Golf Club is challenging but is easily the type of course you can play every day and not tire of because it is a great walking course.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I played Portmarnock when the wind was up and got the full Irish golf experience. It is a pure links course set among the dunes with continual change in direction and holes of varied length and difficulty. The fourth hole played as a brute (the #1 stroke index hole) and I was unfortunately in one of the pot bunkers and it took me more than one stroke to get out. I found the finishing holes to be especially fun to play despite the challenging conditions. The greens are among the best conditioned in the British Isles, if not the world. I look forward to returning and playing with the wind down!John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The first unique thing you notice about the Seaside course are the distinctive red wicker baskets instead of hole flags, like those at Merion. Most of the green designs are like the first green, with slopes and shaved areas that repel shots hit short away from the green. Most of the greens are small. Many holes have a forced carry off the tee. The fourth hole is 421 yards on the card, but is one of the severest dog-legs in all of golf. The hole makes an acute left turn at 300 yards to a green situated on the other side of the marsh at a ninety-degree angle from where you are standing on the tee. The fourth hole was originally named "It Is" which was short for "It is unlucky if played carelessly." Perfectly named. When Bobby Jones played the course, the current front nine played as the back nine on a different composite course. Jones said, "Second nine is one of the very best I have ever seen." Who am I to disagree with Bobby?John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The Australian and five-time British Open Champion Peter Thomson is a big fan of Kingston Heath’s third hole, which is an 269 meter yard par four. He says, "holes of this length are not built any more - a pity. This one is a gem. In this day and age it can be driven, although the possibility must be ten or more to one against. For this reason, the penalties for missing the target should be more severe, this enhancing the challenge." Planet Golf also feels that the best hole of all at Kingston Heath is the drivable but dangerous third because the shallow green is angled to accept only the most precise pitch shots. Thomson is also a big fan of the fifth hole, a 173-meter par three. “The threes here at Kingston Heath are very much the heart of the course, and this one is the first of three beauties. The original natural bumps and hollows have been preserved blessedly." The bunkers at Kingston Heath are penal since the sand is shallow and many have high lips and a green that slopes away from your shot. Tom Doak compares Kingston Heath to Merion in that it is a strategic design on a tight piece of land and has a similar great use of only about 125 acres. Combined with the intricate bunkering, it makes a compelling golf course. I whole heartedly agree.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Friar's Head was built by the team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, and it has all their signature design features including the natural blown-out bunkers and wildly undulating greens. The Friar’s Head scorecard has no yardages, no hole handicap rankings and no hole names. The lack of hole handicapping is apparently due to the shifting winds; hole difficulty depends upon the direction of the wind. Keeping with the natural feel of Friar's Head, no cart paths, no rakes anywhere (like Pine Valley) and no frills. There is no slope rating on the card either. I had to look up the Friar's Head slope rating from the Metropolitan Golf Association's website in order to post my humbling score. The slope and course rating are 74.1/144 from the back by the way. Also consistent with the Coore/Crenshaw design philosophy, there is usually a driveable par four on every course. At Friar's Head, the fifth hole is a short par four (280-290 yards if I remembered from the caddie correctly), with artfully placed, and difficult bunkers in the fairway in front of the green for those that dare go for it and miss. The tenth hole starts off the back nine with a jolt. It is a very interesting par three that plays about 200 yards to a green that is semi-blind with a couple of very large sand dunes guarding the front. It took a great deal of imagination to design this hole. It would not be immediately intuitive that a hole would fit in this narrow corridor. The Long Island Sound is behind you when you are on the tee, and the wind is very tricky on this particular part of the course. This is exacerbated by the alley effect that is created between the rows of trees on either side of the green. It was also a brilliant decision to leave the over-sized sand dune on the left side, in front of the green. The hole is all carry. Being just a few yards short leaves you in serious trouble, as I can personally attest to. Do I hear seven, anyone? I thought that the back nine was clearly superior to the front nine. I thought the front, which is on the flatter terrain away from the water, was not as interesting. I absolutely hate to say anything negative about Coore or Crenshaw, since they are such gentlemen, and I love their overall design philosophy, but the front didn't grab me.The best stretch of holes on the course are numbers fourteen through seventeen. This brilliant succession of holes includes the par five uphill 14th, the downhill, signature par four 15th, the blind tee shot, par four 16th, followed by the postage-stamp, par three 17th.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I found the Olympic Lake course to be very difficult to play for a non-scratch player. The trees are grown in very tight, it is built on the side of a mountain and the greens are too fast. It is hard to get an even lie more or less anywhere on the property. In addition, to properly play the course you have to be able to hit a draw and a fade at will. What makes this especially difficult is that most of the lies you will have require you to work the ball the opposite of the way the terrain dictates. That is, if you have a cut lie it requires you to hit a draw shot and vice versa. One of the prominent design features of Olympic is the 'Reverse Camber' which is an architectural term for fairways that slope in one direction while the golfer aims at a green that turns the opposite way. A Reverse Camber is not a unique architectural feature at Olympic, other courses have similar designs. What makes Olympic especially difficult is that there is nowhere to play safe or to bail out, unlike on most other designs. It simply forces you to have to try to hit a shot that all but the most accomplished golfer cannot hit. On the bright side, Olympic Club only has one fairway bunker. In this regard it is the antithesis of Whistling Straits with its close to 1,000 bunkers. The thing is, Olympic doesn't need any fairway bunkers. The combination of hemmed in fairways, small greens and uneven lies is enough to easily rank it among the most difficult courses in the world along with Oakmont, Bethpage Black and Royal County Down (with the wind up!). The routing of Olympic is essentially sideways on the hillside. It does not play up and down the hill, but rather you find yourself walking sideways on hilly terrain throughout your round.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

One of the defining features of the North Berwick West Links are the stone walls that are throughout the course. In several instances you have to hit your shots over the stone walls. On the 13th hole, a stone wall protects the green. If you hit your shot to the right (wrong?) spot on this hole you will have to either chip or putt off the green through an opening in the stone wall. It is a lot of fun. The sixth hole is also a very good one. It is a short par four where more likely than not you will be hitting your second shot from a downhill lie, over a small burn to a green that slopes down to the burn. The 16th hole, close to The Marine Hotel, which looms over the course from a promontory nearby, has one of the most interesting greens you will ever encounter. The green is bisected by a gully which creates two distinct tiers that are separated from one another. If your ball is on the wrong side of the gully, you will have a miniature-golf style putt. Think it's silly? It's not, it's a blast. Horace Hutchinson captured the essence of North Berwick and it still rings true today - "It is an exceptionally good school in which to learn the art of approaching." Clearly, at 6,420 yards, driving is not of paramount importance, but hitting good and often creative approach shots is. North Berwick, like Prestwick, does have some weak holes, most notably the first and finishing holes. Its detractors will tell you that it is not a good test of golf. No doubt, these detractors have never played the course when the wind is up, which is the real defense of links courses. There are few places in the world to play like North Berwick that are magical and will inspire you to keep going out again and again to play.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Wade Hampton sits at 3,650 feet in elevation. The course begins on the highest point on the property with a 534-yard par five that plays down into a big valley. The course is essentially built into the mountain and has a lot of elevation change. The major characteristics of the course are its brilliant use of the elevation, its lushness and the creative routing through the large and omnipresent trees. The par threes at Wade Hampton, as with most Fazio courses, are all very good. The sixth hole is a good example. It plays 152 yards downhill. In a very interesting design feature, the water in front of the green flows over a large granite slab that slopes down the hill. I came up short and my ball bounced off the rock onto the green. Apparently, there has been a hole in one recorded on this hole from a ricochet off the rock. The 172-yard par three eleventh is another downhill beauty that uses the trees and bunkers to perfectly frame this verdant hole.At least twelve holes at Wade Hampton play from an elevated tee box and the thirteenth is the most dramatic of them all. The 406-yard hole plays from an elevated tee and the second shot is also down a hill to the green. The eighteenth is a really good short par five finishing hole that gets progressively narrower from tee to green. Down its entire left hand side there is a stream and the fairway slopes right to left. It is equally as magnificent viewed from either the tee or the green. The intoxicating clubhouse provides a welcome distraction as you approach the green. It has a series of cascading porches, verandas and patios and exudes understated Southern elegance. The boys put some serious money into this exclusive mountain hideaway.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Many courses have been built in the desert and are great golf courses. They use the natural features of the land, have fairways only where necessary and create mostly a 'target' golf environment. What makes Shadow Creek so unique is that they built a non-desert course in the desert. If someone brought you to Shadow Creek blind-folded and you had to guess where you were you could easily guess the Pacific Northwest or the Carolina Pines. The course is surrounded by a big black wrought iron fence in a 360-acre area. The clubhouse is a decidedly understated affair, and Shadow Creek is not about glitz. You are given a golf cart and assigned a caddy. Since the temperature is normally around 100 degrees, a golf cart is a good idea. The course is beautifully laid out and challenging. The mountains in the background create a dramatic backdrop. There are pheasants running loose throughout the course and they are a nice touch, if a bit surreal. The back nine has some really nice holes and water is artfully worked into the design. The creek that runs along the fifteenth is quite serene. My advice is to play Shadow Creek while it still exits. Building this type of course in the middle of the desert is madness making it most unlikely that the course will be able to celebrate its centenary in 2089.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Many holes in the world are right near or above the water. What makes Casa de Campo unique is that Pete Dye designed holes where you are right at sea level. At Pebble Beach or Turnberry for example, you are up above the water. As you stand on a couple of holes along the sea, water is crashing immediately behind you, to the side of you and ahead of you directly on the same level you are standing. I liked the seventh hole the best. It is a 188-yard par three with both the tee and green set in the water. The course routing makes maximum use of the location; the first four are inland, five through eight are along the water. After playing along the water, holes 9-14 go back inland and are decent if not great holes. You again hug the ocean on holes 15 through 17 and 18 is an uphill hole away from the water. I would say that Dye has done a good job with an imaginative routing and some really great water holes. The course does have features typical of a Pete Dye design such as waste bunkers and elevated greens.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I liked Durban Country Club as a golf course, although it does not have 18 strong holes. It has a particularly strong start, especially the first five holes that are narrow, hilly holes that play in the bush. The middle holes, 9-15 are average at best, but the course has a strong finish with the last three holes. The front nine are near the Indian Ocean and thus are more impacted by the wind. The course is not directly on the ocean; there is a busy and loud highway that runs between the course and the ocean. On the first day I played there were many windsurfers and parasailers out on the water enjoying the strong wind, which usually isn't a good sign for golf, but it turned out ok. The back nine is away from the water and not as impacted by the wind. The massive Durban Stadium towers over a couple of holes on the back nine. One of the defining characteristics of Durban Country Club are the massive undulations in the fairways, especially the 5th, 8th and 17th. The course was built on sand dunes and they are large and interesting. At Durban, you don't have trouble in the traditional sense we find it in the U.S. or British Isles. Off many of the fairways is thick sub-tropical vegetation. This bush is pretty much unplayable if your ball goes in it. The par five third hole is one of the best in the world I have had the privilege to play. It has a high elevated tee with a view of the Indian Ocean. You hit down a narrow valley surrounded on both sides by thick bush. When you are down in the fairway you can't hear any external noise, including the ocean or the highway. The 17th fairway has the craziest undulations of any course I have ever played.Durban is a unique experience in the game and worth the long trip to play it.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

One of the features that you find throughout the course are the glacial rock formations that holes are routed through and around, such as the par five 11th hole, aptly called Himalayas. You hit your tee shot on this hole from a high, elevated tee to a crevice in the rock canyon on the left side of the fairway. Midway between the bottom of the canyon and the elevated green is a creek that runs through the bottom of the hole. Not the type of hole you see every day and one that really uses the geography present to maximum advantage. The terrain for the 18 holes is quite hilly and used to good effect, although it is not a terribly difficult course to walk. I know I am beating a drum on this topic, but I am again struck by how the world's great golf courses contain so many blind shots, which I really like. The #1 handicap hole, the third, is another case in point with a blind second shot to the green. The course also has a Redan hole, the short 12th, although it is a non-traditional version of the Redan. The hole plays from an elevated tee sharply down hill and is only 130 yards. Although it's not a typical Redan hole, I thought it was very good and guarded by a plethora of bunkers in the front. The greens at The Country Club are all small. Along with Inverness and Pebble Beach, among the smallest in championship golf. Another unique feature of the course is the small chocolate-drop style mounds that are present around some of the greens. They force you to play from an uneven lie as a penalty for a missed green. If you get a chance to play, I recommend wandering around the buildings around the oval driveway before or after your round. They are all old and impressive.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Playing at the Honourable Company is one of the great experiences in golf. The storied history of the club and their adherence to rules and traditions make it a club every golfer who loves the game should experience once in their life. Wear your jacket and tie, play the alternate shot format they suggest and have the lunch in the members dining room. There are few experiences as good in golf. The golf course itself doesn’t bowl me over. Compared to other links courses, it seems flatter with most of the holes having less character. I liked the par fourth dog-leg 8th hole, which Jack Nicklaus called his favorite par four in the world. The uphill par three 13th is also very good. Stay at the Greywalls Hotel if you can, very cool.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Both Johnny Miller and Ernie Els call the first hole the hardest opening hole in championship golf and it's hard to disagree. Along the right-hand side is O.B. the entire length of the hole. If you don't hit the ball far enough on your tee shot, you have a blind downhill shot to the green. The green slopes right to left and back to front and is lightning quick. Many golf course architects believe in a moderately easy hole to open with and then the course gets progressively more difficult. The father and son designers of the course, the Fownes', did not share this philosophy. Their design philosophy of, "A shot poorly played should be a shot irrevocably lost", was executed with precision when they designed Oakmont. There is no letup from the first tee to the eighteenth green. Every hole at Oakmont is hard and the greens are all as fast as any course in the world. Oakmont is essentially in U.S. Open condition all the time and it proves a difficult test of golf. I just don’t have the shot to play a 288-yard par three. I love the history of the club and the historic clubhouse. Oakmont is worth visiting, just bring you’re A+ game. It is the hardest golf course I have ever played.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Legendary. Historic. Welcoming. A classic golf course. World renowned history. Hoylake is one of my favorite places to play in England. The one knock you hear about Royal Liverpool is that it has too many holes that have out of bounds and in particular too many with internal out of bounds, known locally as 'cops' which allegedly makes for bad golf. There are ten holes that have an O.B. My view is that the 'rule' among golf's cognoscenti that too many O.B.'s makes a bad course is complete rubbish and Royal Liverpool proves it. Even for a non-scratch golfer, such as myself, I didn't find that the O.B. came into play that often. When it does, it is very strategically placed and you are duly penalized for hitting a poor shot. I particularly enjoyed the 9th Punch Bowl par four and the par three 11th Alps hole. Far and sure!John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I personally don’t rank the Old Course at St. Andrews as high as many people do. The seventeenth, the Road Hole, is one of the best in the world without a doubt. It is a classic risk/reward hole on both the first and second shots. Take an aggressive line over the hotel and have it pay off, and you will be rewarded. Mis-hit it and you will pay the penalty sharply. The Valley of Sin on the eighteenth provides a unique challenge, still not equaled on any other course. Pictures tend to flatten out hollows and hills on golf courses; it is more severe in person than it looks in pictures or on TV.Despite all the golf history I have read and all the great and learned people who love the course, I still can't warm to it. It still appears mostly flat and uninteresting to me except the last four or five holes. For certain, the course is over-rated as the #5 ranked in the world. It is fine to play once to have the experience but I find on subsequent visits I find the course less interesting. I would rather play nearby Kingsbarns, Crail or Carnoustie if in the area, rather than the Old Course again. The tees are too close to the greens and you have to watch flying golf balls everywhere you turn especially when near the holes around the Eden Estuary (9th-12th) where the holes crisscross. The rounds at the Old Course are usually very slow as well, given all the play it gets. John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

One of the signatures of Pacific Dunes are the rippling fairways, which Tom Doak says are the original contours of the land. It was a strong decision on his part to leave them the way they are. Another feature of Pacific Dunes is that a lot of the approach shots play to elevated greens. The par four 4th hole is a spectacular hole that plays along the Pacific Ocean. If you find yourself at Pacific Dunes with a slice (as a right hander) the likelihood is a lost ball at the 4th, probably more than one, since the ocean hugs the hole the entire way to the green. Not that it matters. The dreamy view is so spectacular that it is difficult to concentrate on the golf. The hole is set along a high bluff with land that tumbles down to the broad beach along the rugged Pacific Coast. This is simply one of the best golf holes you will play anywhere in the world on one of the best golf courses in the world. The par three eleventh is another favorite hole. Since Pacific Dunes was one of Doak's early courses I tend to like it more than some of his more recent designs. He has increasingly gone crazy on the greens with too many breaks, humps, hollows, and tricks. His early works like Pacific Dunes are challenging without being over the top.The 17th hole at Pacific Dunes is a "Redan" replica, and one of the hardest holes on the Bandon resort, if not in the continental United States. The effective landing area to place a good shot is about 10-15 square feet. Too far left leaves you in penal and steep bunkers. Too far right leaves you in hidden bunkers. Too long leaves an impossible chip. Adding to the perverse pleasure is the predominant wind which blows left to right, asking the golfer, if they are brave enough, to take dead aim at the penal bunkers, so that your ball will blow into the best position. Play Pacific Dunes in the morning when the winds are lower.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

I rate it overall as one of the best golf courses in England, and a better links course than both Royal Lytham and Royal Birkdale. I have never been a fan of the out and back layout and Sandwich is not one; it provides a superior routing of holes. There are no parallel holes and a constant change in hole direction, which is very important when the wind is up, which it often is. The day I played at Royal St. George's, the wind was up. The temperature was roughly 50 degrees and the wind was blowing at a sustained 25 mph with higher gusts. I found three holes at Royal St. George's to be particularly good. The par five 14th hole, "Suez Canal" has out of bounds down the entire right side and a burn/swale in play off the tee. You can't just wail at your second shot, since short of the green there are bunkers on the left side of the fairway and the fairway narrows to about 25 yards. Yet, if you can thread the needle and land in that area you will likely be rewarded with a birdie; otherwise you will pay the price. The fairway bunkers 80 yards short of the green will penalize you if you try to get the ball to the green. Even this close to the hole, you have to just get the ball out as your first priority. It is a hole you really have to use your head to play well. The #1 handicap hole, the eighth, is a dogleg right and has a very interesting and challenging green complex that is artfully bunkered. Your second shot to the green plays downhill and usually downwind. Very tricky. The fourth hole, Sahara, has an enormously large bunker on the right side of the hole. You hit from an elevated tee to a fairway that is wildly undulating and the green is even wilder. If you hit long past the green you are in the backyard of a local resident. Definitely a unique hole.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Cabot Links was designed by Canadian Rod Whitman, whose design philosophy is "strategic design coupled with great contour." His mentors were Bill Coore and Pete Dye, so he learned from some of the best. Among standout holes the sixth hole is a tricky, very short par four. Although only 307 yards, you have to drive the ball between a marshy area on the right side of the fairway and scrub on the left hand side. It really shouldn't be that hard a shot, but there is a big chocolate drop mound down the left side of the fairway in the driving area that makes the fairway seem considerably smaller. The green is long and narrow and set over another chocolate drop which is situated right in front of the green. The day we played, the pin was positioned right behind the chocolate drop, making it very difficult to hold the ball anywhere near the pin. The hole plays into the prevailing wind coming off the Gulf, making approach shots even trickier. The hole reminded me of two short holes at Cruden Bay: its third and eighth holes. They are reminiscent because of the dunes landscape and their quirkiness. As you would expect on a true links course, Cabot offers plenty of opportunities for bump and run shots that can either make you look like a brilliant golfer if you pull them off, or can make you look like a complete fool if you don't. I experienced both at Cabot, and I must say it is exhilarating to hit a long punch shot and watch it bounce along the humps and hollows and bound its way close to the hole. It is not so rewarding to stuff your wedge into the side of a hill and advance the ball five feet!The eleventh green is a challenging one with almost no flat spots on it. The hole was my favorite on the course. What separates a good golf course from a great one? The quality of the holes that are not natural locations for a golf hole. In other words, designing holes near the ocean or dramatic landscapes is no doubt a lot easier than designing inland holes, especially on a site like this. What makes Cabot so special is the quality of the holes both near the water and those away from it. Well done.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Robert Trent Jones' design philosophy of "hard par, easy bogey" works well at Valderrama, although in the end it is quite a difficult course. The defining characteristic of the course, as you soon find out, is the over 2,000 old cork oak trees that are everywhere. Valderrama excels on its short par four holes such as the eighth (296 meters), tenth (333 meters) and thirteenth (341 meters). Each requires you to hit to the appropriate side of the fairway in order to have a clean approach to the small, elevated, well-bunkered greens. The tenth hole is a 333 meter sweeping dog-leg par four that requires your tee shot to land on the left side of the fairway to avoid the big cork tree that guards the hole on the right. There is a pond right of the fairway and shots on the right side of the fairway tend to run down the severe slope and feed into the water. In this regard, I found Valderrama to be similar to Merion, in that you have to be in the correct position on each fairway or your approach shot is much more difficult. I am not suggesting the two have a similar visual feel, simply that the way you have to approach playing each course is similar, with precision in putting a shot where you want to being of paramount importance. Valderrama doesn't offer a let-up throughout the round and certainly not on the eighteenth hole. The cork trees are a constant presence on the course right up until the end. The eighteenth is a 397-meter dog-leg left. If you can cut the corner and hit over the cork trees on the left you will have a shorter shot to the green. The hole offers a safe option playing to the right, but your remaining shot to the green will be much longer. A pull off the tee is deadly since the rough and waste area left of the trees penalize such a shot. I liked Valderrama a lot. It is one of the best conditioned courses I have played and I was blessed with a charming and experienced caddy (Vincente) who helped me by suggesting shot shapes and types throughout the round. I would describe the course as a cross between Augusta (its conditioning, bunker style and the terrain) and Harbour Town (the overhanging trees and narrow fairways). Rather than finding the trees to be a gimmick, I thought it was a good design characteristic. I had to punch five irons and hybrid clubs, had to hit wedges over tress and attempt to use all clubs to start the ball low, land on the green and then stop. Or I had to try to hit a big hook or slice, mostly without success. It can certainly be frustrating to hit a fairway and not have a clear second shot; but the decision to hit over, under or around a tree is part of Valderrama's charm.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The course has a uniqueness to it similar to that of Morfontaine in France or Pine Valley in the United States, with a great routing and unique holes. As with these two great courses, most holes are isolated from the others by dense trees. The par threes at Hirono are especially strong. The course is also one of the best conditioned I have ever seen. The greens and fairways are in meticulous condition and even the trees throughout the course are manicured from top to bottom like a Japanese garden. It also has all the key elements present in the courses of C. H. Alison: strategic bunkering, small elevated greens, double dog-legs and forced carries over ravines.Most of the greens at Hirono are elevated. The trouble at Hirono is off the tee and around the greens. The course is built on relatively flat terrain and most of the lies you get in the fairway are level. Alison's design is very effective in creating illusions and incorrect depth perceptions. The twelfth hole is the #1 handicap hole at Hirono and it is a double dog-leg par five that plays 596 yards with O.B. along the left side. It is a good hole, but there are two even better holes on the back nine as you come in toward the clubhouse: 14 and 15. In fact, the stretch of holes from 12 through 15 is one of the finest in the world. Figuring out how to putt on Korai greens takes some getting used to. Golf in Japan is underrated relative to the rest of the world and Hirono is difficult to get invited to play, but worth the long travel if you can swing it.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

The scorecard at Prairie Dunes says the course is a Perry Maxwell Masterpiece and I would have to fully agree. Ben Crenshaw, the designer of Sand Hills has said of Prairie Dunes, "this is golf on the first order." Jack Nicklaus called it the Pine Valley of the West. I was lucky to play Prairie Dunes on a nice day and with a two-club wind, which is enough for you to get a good feel for how the course should play, without being overbearing. The greens almost all have at least two tiers so placement of your ball on the correct spot on the green is of paramount importance. I can see the similarities in the two Perry Maxwell designs - lots of sharp doglegs and intelligent use of the terrain, particularly the uphill shots required into the greens. In almost no instance on the course is your shot to the green a level approach. Maxwell also took a minimalist approach to fairway bunkers which works out very well since the rough is quite penal and you don't need additional hazards. Two holes in particular are truly world class - the 8th hole, which is the #1 handicap hole is a 430-yard dogleg right that plays uphill all the way. The feature that makes it unique are the massive ripples in the fairway that look like waves coming in from the ocean. The 12th hole is a 390-yard par four where you hit your tee shot from an elevated tee to a fairway below. The strategy of the hole comes from two large cottonwood trees that are on either side of the fairway about 75 yards from the hole. These force you to either lay well back off the tee and then hit a high shot over them to the green or more typically to have to hit a low trajectory shot to a well-protected and difficult green.Although it is a difficult to get to course, it is easily worth the journey and rewarding to visit.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Dell Leigh wrote the following about Dornoch in 1925 and it is still true today, "The very journey thither is a pilgrimage of pleasure of the kind which remains crystal clear in the memory long after the return to the drab side of life. And the very fact that one cannot say in bald words that the links are definitely this, that or the other thing instils into the mind a predominant feeling - the desire vehemently expressed, to play over them again, and then once more." There are few places—Royal County Down comes to mind also—as beautiful to play when the yellow gorse is in bloom, and, although hard to travel to, it is a treat. The out-and-back layout plays along a broad raised beach and it is hard to point out a hole that is not beautiful, challenging and fun to play.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Pinehurst is the spiritual home of golf in the United States, and everyone should play the Donald Ross gem of No. 2 and stay at one of the three in-town properties: the Carolina Hotel, the Holly Inn, or the Pine Crest Inn; it is one of the top golf courses in the world, and walking the fairways at dawn or dusk with the smell of pine in the air and the sound of church bells ringing softly in the village is magical. I am a big fan of the two opening holes which play away from the clubhouse and set the tone for the day with the inverted greens. It is amazing how much more difficult it makes your approach show when you know if you don’t hit a perfect shot it will bounce off. The fifth hole is particularly difficult and dangerous, especially left of the green. I have not played Pinehurst #2 since Coore and Crenshaw have made revisions to it and look forward to doing so.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Lahinch is the antithesis of an American-style parkland course, wide open with sweeping views and hummocks with blind shots and sand dunes galore. The blind par three “Dell” hole is a favorite with a green set among a host of sand dunes. I have played Lahinch three times, with rain coming down each time; would love to actually play it with the sun shining one day. Lahinch is a quirky, old-school place to enjoy the game. The fourth, fifth and eighteenth fairways literally crisscross. Talk about hazards in front of the green? How about the fourth hole named "Klondyke". It has a fifty-foot sand dune in front of the green, making it a blind approach on a 400+ yard hole! The narrow fairway snakes through the dunes. Lahinch is pure links golf and a fun golf course to play.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Why is The Valley Club such a highly rated course and agreeable place to tee it up? In two words: Alister MacKenzie. The Valley Club was designed in 1929 by Alister MacKenzie and Robert Hunter. 1929 was at the height of MacKenzie's output, having completed Augusta National the same year and Cypress Point the year prior.One of the defining characteristics of The Valley Club are the signature MacKenzie greens. In addition to the subtle breaks and the mountain/ocean effect, the greens are also small. Like at another MacKenzie course, Crystal Downs, I found putting here difficult. The other key feature of The Valley Club are the MacKenzie-designed bunkers, which he works into the course with his 'camouflage' effect very skillfully. Many are optical illusions. Often, what looks to be a greenside bunker is actually set back from the green. At 225 members, The Valley Club doesn't get a lot of play and is difficult to wangle an invitation to.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

If you ever have the opportunity to play Naruo Golf Club I suggest you do some training beforehand. Perhaps run a marathon, enter an Ironman competition or train for the Olympics. You need to be fit to play Naruo. The course is built on terrain that is quite hilly and is one of the most difficult courses I have ever walked. As with all private courses in Japan, there are caddies and you walk the course. How difficult is Naruo to walk? So difficult that they have built in a traction system around all eighteen holes so that the caddies don't have to push the carts up and down the hilly terrain. The mechanized system works with some sort of magnets under the ground and the caddie controls it by remote control. The property at Naruo reminded me of Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles because it is a relatively small piece of landlocked hilly property. The course is not only narrow, but also has a lot of uneven lies. I personally rank it as one of the hardest courses in the world along with Bethpage, Oakmont and Carnoustie. Playing Naruo requires you to embrace the Japanese phrasenanakorobi yaoki which translates to 'perseverance is better than defeat'. The Japanese occasionally adapt a close variation of an English word to describe something. I wouldn't at all be surprised if Naruo were a bastardization of the English word 'narrow'. The course has tiny greens, most are elevated and as is typical on an Alison designed course, well bunkered. After you finish the front nine there is a little mechanized golf cart that brings you up a steep incline back to the clubhouse to have lunch. The cart seats four and is so absurdly slow that you could clearly walk up a lot faster, but at this point, most people are hurting, so it is a nice transition to lunch. The 10th hole is the hardest par four I have ever played. It makes the Road Hole at St. Andrews look like a birdie opportunity. It plays 470 yards and it is best to hit a very long drive here since you want your second shot to be as short as possible. The forced carry is over 'Death Valley', a 170 to 200-yard carry over a chasm that has a thirty-foot drop. If you are unlucky enough to have your ball go down into the valley of death, you can't even remotely see where the flag or hole is located. Be sure to stop at the tea house on the 15th hole for a rest.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>

Entering the clubhouse at Garden City is like entering a museum. You enter and the locker room is to the right hand side through two saloon-style swinging doors. The old low-slung open metal green lockers are the originals, as is almost everything. There is a large moose head mounted high up in the arching ceiling at the far end of the room. The main part of the clubhouse is one of the more genuinely warm and cozy rooms I've been in. In this regard, Garden City is more like a traditional English or Scottish club. If you were filming a period movie about a golf club at the turn of the century, you'd use the inside of the clubhouse at Garden City without changing a thing. There is no indication in the room that you are still not in 1899. The place is right out of central casting, with green leather chairs and sofas, a fireplace and dark wood. The course itself is a natural style layout on flat terrain. The first hole is short (302 from the tips) and quirky with a semi-blind tee shot. The second hole is a great par three of about 150 yards. It features a green set at a diagonal with a "bottomless pit" of sand set in front. It is not a long hole, but plays much tougher than it looks. What you see is what you get at Garden City. The course is all right there in front of you. Avoid the penal fescue and you will have an enjoyable day. Many of the approach shots to the greens are either flat or slightly up hill. The greens themselves are subtly contoured away from you or slope downhill. One of the secrets to playing Garden City is figuring out how to hit your approach shots to the greens so they don't roll off. A Scotsman would be right at home, bumping shots onto the green as well.John Sabino is the author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Play-Worlds-Most-Exclusive-Clubs/dp/1634507991/" target="_blank">How to Play the World’s Most Exclusive Golf Clubs</a>