Courses and Travel

Rustic Canyon Golf Course, California (recommended by Geoff Shackelford)

Chris Santella

This essay profiles Rustic Canyon Golf Course in Ventura County, California. Though a municipal course with very reasonable green fees, the course encapsulates many of the classic notions of golf course design -- the result, in part, of golf architecture journalist Geoff Shackelford's efforts on the boards as a co-course designer.

Arabian Ranches, United Arab Emirates

Chris Santella

This essay profiles the Arabian Ranches Golf Course in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and the evolution of golf in Dubai. The course was recommended and described by British Open champion Ian Baker-Finch.

Old Head Golf Links, Ireland

Chris Santella

The Old Head of Kinsale is a startling peninsula that extends some two miles out into the Celtic Sea from... Read more »

Approaching the Green: Golf Courses Designed for birdies—and other fauna and flora

Jeff Wallach

Grass isn’t the only thing that’s green about golf courses these days.  The industry has undertaken tremendous efforts to develop... Read more »

Hidden Golf Gem of the Month: September

Larry Olmsted

The question I get asked the most by avid golfers is some variation of “what’s a great course I don’t know about already.”

Golf Spelled Backwards is Fun: The Old Course in Reverse

Larry Olmsted

When you play the Old Course in Reverse, you do not simply play the holes in backwards order. You play from the first tee to the 17th green, using the 18th fairway along the way. Then you play from the 18th tee to the 16th green, down 17. It is crazy.

The Best Course You Never Heard Of

Larry Olmsted

What’s the top golf course in the Caribbean? The answer is a surprise to most golfers.

Bunker Mentality

Jeff Wallach

In which we describe locations where golfers don’t want to end up on the beach As if one type wasn’t... Read more »

Island Greens

Jeff Wallach

Rumor has it that no man is an island, although a fellow named Gilligan made a career out of living... Read more »

Animal Magnetism

Jeff Wallach

Golf is full of animals—and not just the ones you notice ducking for cover in the shrubbery when they see... Read more »

Rock and Roll Will Never Die (But May Need a Knee Replacement)

John Strawn

Golf’s Secret Garden

Jeff Wallach

Not far from Area 51 in the Nevada desert lurks a secret as well-protected as any alien spacecraft and no... Read more »

St. Andrews, Scotland: Still Life With Golf

Jeff Wallach

When visiting the Louvre, in Paris, for the first time, it was all I could do to keep from sprinting... Read more »

Spinning Records: Being Best, Being First, or Just Being?

Jeff Wallach

It’s not every day that a fourteen handicap sets a course record, but on a trip to Portugal’s warm, sunny... Read more »

Ship-shape Golf Cruises Give New Meaning to “Carrying Water”

Jeff Wallach

One of the great dilemmas of golf travel is how to take on a collection of sometimes widely dispersed golf... Read more »