I’ve been golf correspondent for nearly 25 years – here are my top ten courses, from Augusta to Donald Trump’s Turnberry
AUGUSTA, Pebble Beach, Pinehurst, Valderrama, and every course on the Open rota – as The Sun’s golf correspondent for nearly 25 years I’ve been lucky enough to play them all.
I’ve also hacked my way around countless other courses throughout Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America, as well as Australia and New Zealand. All in the cause of research and broadening my golfing education, of course!
So it’s no surprise when friends ask me to name my favourite ten courses – although the list itself may throw up a few surprises.
And here they are.
Not necessarily the ten most famous or highly-rated courses I’ve played, but the ten that I’d go back to like a shot – no pun intended!
In reverse order, naturally….
10) Federal (Canberra, Australia)
I was made a temporary member of this gem of a course when I was covering the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia, and I could not get enough of it. On my days off, naturally…
The most memorable hole is the par three fifth, around 170 yards from the white tees to an elevated green.
Brilliantly bunkered and a lightning quick putting surface, which is typical of all the greens here.
Several holes run alongside the Red Hill nature reserve, and kangaroos frequently kick down the fences to shelter under the trees on the golf course.
Until you’ve had a kangaroo snort in the background when you miss a short putt, you haven’t lived!
The Gang-gang cockatoos – Australia’s national emblem – also thrive in this area, and they usually let you know what they think of it too.
9) Carnoustie (Scotland)
Deserves its reputation as the hardest course in the universe – although on a windy day, Troon is a close second – so why would this appeal to someone whose handicap has never dipped below double figures?
I was off 18 when I first played ‘Carnasty’ just before the 1999 Open.
The pre-tournament talk suggested it would play tougher than ever because of the ankle deep rough, and my sports editor wanted to see how a hacker would handle it.
I had a photographer with me to capture all the ‘fun’ moments, and for a while it all went to plan.
I shot 55 for the front nine and hit (at least) a couple of balls onto the railway lines. Two more double bogeys arrived after I made the turn.
But then something inexplicable happened – three birdies in a row from the 12th, still the only time I have ever rattled off a hat-trick.
That can make you fall in love with any course.
Even though I was soon back on the bogey train, 42 on the back nine meant I even broke a hundred!
8) Emirates (Dubai)
The original and still easily the best course in Dubai – or any other part of the United Arab Emirates, even though there are plenty more good ones, notably Dubai Creek, Yas Island and Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
When the Emirates first staged the Desert Classic in 1989, a year after it opened, it was like visiting an oasis.
The only building for miles around was the Hard Rock cafe, which soon gave way to a New York-style skyline.
But the Emirates was always much more than just a grassy curio in the desert.
There isn’t a bad hole on the course, and making a birdie on the iconic par five 18th is a rare thrill – really rare in my case.
The par four eighth offers the best view of the staggering array of skyscrapers, and is where everyone rightly reaches for the cameras. It is also one of the toughest holes on the course.
The uphill approach shot can be a real killer.
7) Tralee (Ireland)
Ireland has more than its fair share of great links courses, and I’ve been fortunate enough to play quite a few of them.
But none of them calls me back like this one.
The three holes on the front nine that have the best views of the 12th century tower – which sits at the back of the par three third – could be transplanted to any course on the planet, and still stand out.
Arnold Palmer designed the course in the 1980s, and said he had “quite a bit of help from God”. It is hard to believe the course only opened forty years ago. It looks like it has been there forever.
Tralee is nowhere near as famous as its close neighbour, Ballybunion. But when that course hosted the Irish Open in 2000, four of us turned down the chance to play there on the Monday, because we’d booked a return visit to Tralee. Enough said.
6) Wentworth East (Surrey, England)
Yes, the West course is the big brother here, hosting the most famous names in golf every year for the BMW PGA Championship. But they’re welcome to it.
At just over 6,200 yards from the white tees, the East is much shorter than the one next door, and a lot more playable for medium and high handicappers.
And a multi-million facelift to mark its 100th anniversary this year can only enhance the experience.
The East is a par 68 – there is only one par five, the ninth – but five of the par fours are over 400 yards.
So it is challenging enough to keep you on your toes, without beating you up the way the West can, if you haven’t got your very best stuff.
Practically every hole is a memorable one, especially the 325 yards 12th.
It usually plays a fair bit shorter than the scorecard suggests, from an elevated tee. If the ground is firm you don’t have to be the longest hitter to get close to the green, or even sneak one on!
5) Turnberry (Scotland)
This was always one of the best links anywhere on the planet , and thankfully fears that Donald Trump might ruin the course after forking out £60million to buy it ten years ago proved way off the mark.
In fact, it has been the total opposite. Changes to nine, ten and eleven – particularly changing nine from a decent enough par four to a spectacular par three, measuring anything from 248 yards to a hundred yards or so less – have been a huge success.
Seven and eight are also about to undergo a revamp. And having had a sneak preview of what is in store, I’m in no doubt they will also be changes for the better.
Say what you like about Trump – and I’ve said plenty – but he is not averse to throwing money at his courses.
When the Open eventually returns to Turnberry and raises its profile back where it was in the days when Watson and Nicklaus had the ‘Duel in the Sun’ – probably when it no longer has the Trump name attached to it – there will be stampede to play here.
4) Palmetto (South Carolina)
The name may not be familiar to golfers who associate the Carolinas with Myrtle Beach and scores of similar ‘vacation’ courses.
But this glorious slice of American golfing history outshines them all.
Palmetto is the second oldest 18 hole golf club in the States, behind Chicago, and it really is like taking a step back in time.
Even if you didn’t hit a shot, sitting on the old rocking chairs in front of the 120 year old white clubhouse would be worth the visit.
The course itself is almost as pretty, but it has teeth as well. Most of the greens are multi-tiered and there are some fiendish bunkers dotted around the course.
And hitting the narrow green on the par three sixth is always a cause for celebration.
The course is located in Aiken – about thirty minutes from Augusta – and the town itself is another picture perfect piece of history.
The annual visit to the Masters without a round at Palmetto just wouldn’t be the same for any self-respecting golf writer.
3) Royal Portrush (Northern Ireland)
Another course that was absolutely fabulous even before changes were made so it could host the Open in 2019 – and which just got even better when the two new holes were added.
I was lucky enough to play the course within days of the re-opening after the new seventh and eight holes were unveiled, and even luckier to walk off the par five seventh with a birdie on my card.
The secretary at the time assured me it was the first birdie recorded there. I wonder how many other golfers they told that to, but I took it anyway!
And my playing partner birdied the eighth – sadly, I double-bogeyed it. Reality kicking in….
The Open is of course going back to Portrush in 2025, and members of the Association of Golf Writers are invited to play each Open venue a couple of months ahead of the championship.
Next year’s date was marked in my diary a long time ago.
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2) Augusta National (Georgia, US)
COURSE GUIDE TO ALL 18 HOLES AT AUGUSTA
One of the perks of being a golf writer is that you can enter the draw to play the course on the Monday after the Masters – although less than 30 names are chosen from around 600 eager applicants.
Once your name is drawn out, you cannot re-enter the draw for ten years, avoiding the possibility of the same lucky beggars getting the golden ticket year after year.
My name came out in 2002 AND 2014 – so I’m eligible to re-enter!
And yes, it is every bit as pristine as it looks on TV , while it also helps that we play from the members’ tees. That brings the yardage down from 7,435 for the pros to a more manageable 6,365.
I mentioned to my caddie, Tall Paul – a 6ft 8in bagman who you don’t argue with – that I felt a bit of a fraud playing that far forward.
He pointed out the defence of the course is the greens, which are just as slick on the Monday, and the final round flag positions are retained. So scores of 95 and 92 are not to be sneezed at.
1) Royal Birkdale (Merseyside, England)
Putting Birkdale at the top of my list usually gets the same response – ‘how come, when you’ve played Augusta? Twice!’
Well, if I was told I only had one round left to me, and I could play anywhere I wanted to, this would be it.
For me, Birkdale is not only easily the best course on the Open rota, but also the fairest.
No funky bounces or funny lies, just a classic come-and-get-me-if-you’re-good-enough layout that punishes bad shots, but always rewards good ones.
We all come across courses that seem to fit our eye, and raise our game a notch because of it. Birkdale always does that to me.
I’ve played it at least a dozen times, and without wanting to tempt fate I’ve always played close to my handicap. Or better.
On a course littered with great holes, the par three 12th – across a big dip to a well-bunkered green – tops the list.
The Open is back at Birkdale in 2026.
I’m already looking forward to the media day for that one.
Bubbling under: Muirfield, Royal Lytham, Wallasey (Merseyside), Sawgrass, Pinehurst, Royal Melbourne, Fairhaven, and Fleetwood (both Fylde Coast) among others.
But NOT St Andrews.
I love the history and the sense of tradition, but I am not a fan of six hour rounds on shared greens. And I’m not alone in that…