Golf USA. Top 100 courses in the world

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Year: 2023

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Y O U R L I F E , W E L L P L AY E D

N O V . – D E C . 2 0 2 3 / G O L F. C O M

TOP 100
COURSES WORLD
2023

IN
THE

Top 40
Golf Gifts
The Last Putting
Lesson You’ll
Ever Need

No. 76
Point Hardy GC
Cap Estate, Saint Lucia

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QV I +WTTMK\WZ¼[ ;MZQM[ WN NW]Z VM_ UIZY]M[ KZMI\ML \W PWVWZ ;KW\TIVL¼[ NIUW][
_PQ[Sa ZMOQWV[ ,M_IZ¼[ ,W]JTM ,W]JTM AMIZ 7TL _PQKP PWVWZ[ \PM ;XMa[QLM
ZMOQWV]VLMZOWM[W]Z]VQY]M[\IOMIOMQVOXZWKM[[QVKT]LQVOÅVQ[PQVOQV7TWZW[W
[PMZZa KI[S[ \PI\ WVKM PMTL )]T\UWZM [QVOTM UIT\ _PQ[Sa <PM ZM[]T\ Q[ I XZWÅTM
ZQKP _Q\P VW\M[ WN KQVVIUWV PWVMa IVL ^IVQTTI _Q\P I ÅVQ[P \PI\ JWZLMZ[ WV
LMKILMV\ )XXZWXZQI\MTa MVW]OP M^MZa UT JW\\TM WN \PQ[ ZIZM TQUQ\MLMLQ\QWV
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Top of the World

G O L F. C O M
NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2023 / VOLUME 65, ISSUE 8
2023

2024

Our raters trekked far
and wide and deliberated
long and hard to deliver
you the latest iteration of
GOLF’s Top 100 Courses
in the World list. It’s the
definitive global ranking
sure to spark debate
and inspiration in equal
measure. Now it’s time
for you to get packing!

62
Better Putting
Guaranteed.
Top 100 Teachers Joe
Hallett and Joe Plecker
have landed upon a
data-driven technique
that will have your ball
visiting the bottom of
the cup more often.

68
Whip-smart!

ICYMI: Ryder Cup Drama Never Disappoints

Up Close with Sahith Theegala / Dylan Dethier

Stuff Golfers Should Know: Make Overseas Buddy Trips a Reality

Money Game: Tour Pros Turned Entrepreneurs

COVER: POINT HARDY GC, ON THE ISLAND OF ST. LUCIA, IS A NEW SEASIDE BEAUTY THAT DESERVEDLY DEBUTS AT NO. 76 ON OUR TOP 100
WORLD LIST (P. 46). ABOVE: THE AILSA COURSE AT TRUMP TURNBERRY REMAINS THE STUNNER IT’S ALWAYS BEEN, HOLDING FAST AT NO. 18.

6 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Cover: Shawn Michael Marcellin; This page: Gary Lisbon

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NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2023 / VOLUME 65, ISSUE 8

CLUBHOUSE

74
GEAR

91
LESSONS

74
The Ultimate Gift Guide
From training aids to apparel to accessories, our
editors offer expert recommendations that will satisfy
every golfer on your holiday shopping list. (Psst. We
won’t tell if you get a little something for yourself.)

34
Access Adventure
Once you tackle the seven
courses at Reynolds Lake
Oconee in Greensboro,
Ga., it’s time to head to
their Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds for some
world-class clay shooting.

37
Sand Shame
Everyone knows when
your ball lands in the
bunker you’re not allowed
to rake it—or are you?

92
Let’s Get this
Straight
Top 100 Teacher Krista
Dunton has a great drill
for minimizing trailarm bend on important
pitches. What you’ll find is
the secret to consistently
crisp short-game shots.

98
Last Off
Rob Gronkowski has legit
work to do on his golf
game—if he wants Tom
Brady to call his number.

8 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Clockwise from top left: Courtesy Reynolds Lake Oconee; Jeffrey Westbrook (2); Christopher Lane; Rob Gronkowski; Jeffrey Westbrook; Getty Images/iStockphoto

THE

STANDARD

IN GOLF COURSE DESIGN

Panther National, Florida - Opening Nov. 2023

Nicklaus Design at Royal Auckland & Grange GC, New Zealand

Nicklaus Heritage Design at Jack’s Bay, Bahamas

G O L F.C O M
C H A I R M A N / P U B L I S H E R H OWA R D M I LST E I N
C EO JAS O N A D E L
Chief Operating Officer ROB DECHIARO
Chief Financial Officer CANDICE ADAMS
E D I TO R I A L
Editor-in-Chief DAVID DENUNZIO
Executive Editor JOHN MCALLEY
Managing Editor JOHN LEDESMA
Managing Editor JONATHAN WALL
(Equipment)
Senior Writer JOSH SENS
Architecture Editor RAN MORRISSETT
Social Media Editor ADAM CHRISTENSEN
Contributing Writers
MICHAEL CORCORAN, EVAN ROTHMAN
Contributing Production Editor
AIMEE E. BARTOL
Analytics Editor MARK BROADIE
Contributing Copy Editor MARGARET MAY
Contributing Instructors
THE TOP 100 TEACHERS IN AMERICA
A R T + P H OTO
Design WORKS WELL WITH OTHERS
DESIGN GROUP: JESSICA MUSUMECI,
NANCY JO IACOI, KEVIN GRIMSTEAD
Contributing Photo Editor
NANCY WEISMAN
G O L F.C O M
Executive Editor ALAN BASTABLE
Managing Editor JOSHUA BERHOW
Senior Writers DYLAN DETHIER, SEAN ZAK
Senior Editors RYAN BARATH (Equipment)
NICK DIMENGO (Game Improvement),
NICK PIASTOWSKI
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A DV E R T I S I N G SA L E S
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CONSUMER INSIGHT
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G O L F M AG A Z I N E I S A PA R T
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CUSTOMER SERVICE Visit GOLF.COM/CUSTOMERSERVICE / Call (800) 876-7726 / E-mail GFMCUSTSERV@CDSFULFILLMENT.COM
Write GOLF MAGAZINE, P.O. BOX 3200, HARLAN, IA 51593-0046 Twitter Golf_Com / Instagram Golf_Com / Snapchat Golf_Com / Facebook.Com/Golf
GOLF MAGAZINE (ISSN-1056-5493) is published monthly, except for four combined issues: Jan/Feb, Jul/Aug, Sep/Oct and Nov/Dec. All rights reserved. Editorial and Advertising offices: 6 E. 43 St., New York, NY 10017. Contents may not be reprinted
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10 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

From
Fromthe
theEditor
Editor

Can I Get a “Wow”?
who are unlike any others.
No, not the players with a shooter’s chance of winning a PGA Tour event
No. 20
Tara Iti
every week. Nor the fans at these competitions whose behind-the-ropes
TE ARAI, NEW ZEALAND
outbursts (see “Mashed potatoes!” and “It’s in the hole!”) infiltrate the
TV broadcasts of such. I mean special—GOLF’s panel of course raters.
Talk about a charmed life. These players travel the globe all months
of the year in search of course designs new and old, always with an eye
toward greatness (if not a good score on a track that most of us would kill
just to set foot on). And they do it on their own dime! Their reward? A life
most golfers would only dream of—if they could afford it.
Our reward? Turn to page 46 for GOLF’s latest iteration of our
Top 100 Courses in the World list, a ranking established 30-plus years ago
(when I still carried a 2-iron in my bag). Get your envy in check and you’ll
notice that there’s more to this biennial ranking than initially meets the eye.
Sure, it showers accolades—and a number, 1 through 100—on some of the most inspiring destinations in the game. But it also measures and advances the way most of us think about course design.
With each successive ranking we learn a little bit more about golf ’s roots and, most importantly,
where it’s going. For much of GOLF’s run in the rankings arena, Golden Age parkland courses and
UK links ruled the roost. And that was just fine.
Recently, however, developments have sprung up on stunning patches of real estate heretofore
unthinkable as “courseland,” if only for the reason that it was too damn remote or precious. Six of
the eight new entries on this year’s list sit waterside, from the tropical cliffs of
Saint Lucia (Point Hardy GC, our cover subject) to Lofoten in Norway, which
offers the Norwegian Sea, the Northern Lights and the Arctic Circle for those
bold and lucky enough to trek that far east (and north). Old-school Maidstone
(left) and new-school Tara Iti (above) further prove my point, which is to say
“good bones” could once cut it on our list. Today, you need the bones plus the
“wow.” It all makes for one helluva thrilling—and changing—landscape. I can’t
wait to start packing.

From top: Matthew Salacuse; Jacob Sjöman; LC Lambrecht

THERE ARE 119 PEOPLE IN THE GOLF WORLD

No. 50

Maidstone
EAST HAMPTON, N.Y.

David DeNunzio Editor-in-Chief

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A Cup of
Their Own
WORLD CHAMPIONS CUP
DECEMBER 7 TO 10, 2023
THE CONCESSION GOLF CLUB
BRADENTON, FLA.
CAPTAINS:
ERNIE ELS (INTERNATIONAL)
JIM FURYK (USA)
DARREN CLARKE (EUROPE)
TELEVISION:
ABC & ESPN (TIMES TBD)

16 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

It’s kind of like the Ryder Cup. It’s
kind of like the Presidents Cup. It’s as
if the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup
were rolled into one and stacked with
pros who once played in both of those
events. It’s the World Champions Cup,
coming to The Concession Golf Club in
Bradenton, Fla., December 7 to 10.
Like the Ryder Cup (U.S. versus
Europe) and the Presidents Cup
(U.S. versus International), the World
Champions Cup is a team event, but
here the Americans will take on the
Europeans and Internationals all at
once. You’ll know the rosters. The sixman teams will be made up of PGA
Tour Champions players, and they’ll be
led by playing captains Jim Furyk (U.S.),
Darren Clarke (Europe) and Ernie Els
(International).
The format is unique. On Thursday
and Friday, across Concession’s back
nine, play will be in sixsomes (two
players per side). Games will be betterball in the morning and modified
alternate shot in the afternoon, and

points will be awarded based on scores.
On Saturday, they’ll play a pro-am. On
the final day, the pros will play singles in
the morning and afternoon, using the
same scoring from Thursday and Friday.
The participants emphasize that this
will not simply be an exhibition.
Cup Chairman Peter Jacobsen
sums it up this way: “I know that, as a
professional athlete, the competitive
fire never leaves you—otherwise these
guys wouldn’t be out here,” he says.
“So I expect the World Champions Cup
to feature some amazing individual
battles and guys really playing hard to
represent their teams well.”
Furyk agrees there will be fireworks.
“The players in this event are Hall of
Famers and great players; they are all
hypercompetitive and none of them
likes to lose,” he says. “I believe this
event can be friendly but also very
highly competitive.”
Captain Clarke is confident Team
Europe will fare well. “I’m eager to
represent Team Europe and get our

From left: David Cannon/Getty Images; Andrew Redington/Getty Images; Russell Kirk/Golflinksphotography.com (2); Nick Wilson/Allsport/Getty Images

Champions Tour

name on the cup as the first winners
of this great new event,” he says.
“The four Ryder Cup victories that
I was part of as a player for Europe
were some of the biggest highlights
of my career. I expect us to assemble
a roster that will make us awfully
difficult to beat.”
The Big Easy is fired up for the
opportunity to face familiar foes.
“There is just something different
about putting on a uniform and playing
for something more than yourself,”
Els says. “I still remember the nerves
I had playing in the Presidents Cup for
the first time in 1996, and, of course,
I have amazing memories of our victory
at Royal Melbourne in 1998 and the
incredible bonds I formed with my
teammates during that tournament.
Even though that was 25 years ago,
I still have vivid memories of specific
matches from that tournament and
know that the rivalries will carry over
into the World Champions Cup.”
Let the games begin. —Nick Piastowski

Opposite: Clarke (left) gets emotional at the 2006 Ryder Cup; Furyk (right) celebrates
an American victory in 2008. Above: Concession Golf Club is a fitting venue to host these
champions; Els is pumped at the 1998 Presidents Cup.

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Spotlight

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In Case You Missed It...

of business—straight-up wins for
Hovland and McIlroy, a tie for Rahm—
in their singles matches.
“Campioni, campioni, olé, olé, olé,”
McIlroy chanted, emerging from the
Marco Simone clubhouse in shades and
using the Italian word for champion
after the Euros’ 16½–11½ victory was
officially official.
The subsequent trophy ceremony
was as intoxicating and loose as the
Americans’ on-course performance
was sober and tight. As each European
team member thrust the glittering Cup
into the air—starting with hero/captain
Luke Donald and reaching its peak of
lunatic ecstasy with Shane Lowry (see
previous page)—thousands of Euro
fans in the gallery roared.
“I don’t care what side you’re on,”
Dan Hicks said on NBC’s live broadcast.
“That is fun to watch.”
Arguably, no one had more of a blast
than Hovland. In one photo op, the
European squad’s lone bachelor basked
in the adoring glow of his teammates’
and captains’ wives and girlfriends
(right). The 44th Ryder Cup was over.
And the thoughts of many were already
on 2025 and New York’s Bethpage
Black, where Team U.S.A. will swat away
talk of Euro dominance with a blunt
“Fuhgeddaboudit.” But, in that moment,
it wasn’t one date on Viktor’s mind—
more like 16 of them. —James Colgan

22 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Brendan Moran/Sportsfile/Getty Images

“I don’t care what
side you’re on,”
announcer Dan Hicks
said on NBC’s live
broadcast of the
Euros’ exuberant
2023 Ryder Cup
celebration. “That is
fun to watch.”

Christian Petersen/Getty Images

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customisation for a single-sided print will disappear automatically. This offer is valid through 15th December 2023.

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G O L F. C O M / S M A R T G O L F S TA R T S H E R E / N O V E M B E R - D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 3

Up Close with
Dylan Dethier

Sahith
Theegala
In September, at
Silverado, he
captured his first
Tour win. A month
later, on the brink
of turning 26, his
next chess move
was... chillin’.

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

OCTOBER 5, FROM HIS
COUCH IN HOUSTON, OVER
FACETIME AFTER DINNER

Dylan Dethier: It’s been only
a few weeks since you broke
through at the Fortinet. How
does life feel different, knowing you’re now a Tour winner?
Sahith Theegala: That’s a
good question. I’d never
really let myself get to the
point of thinking about winning, and I definitely hadn’t
thought about how I’d feel
after winning. [A furry head
appears on screen.] Sorry. My
dog wants attention. I really
don’t feel any different at
all. Maybe when I tee it up
in the next event, I’ll feel
something. Like, Damn,
that’s awesome. I’m a PGA
Tour winner, and nobody can
ever take that away from

Clubhouse

me. But in terms of the day-to-day
process, the practice and relationships,
it all feels the same. I wouldn’t even
say there was, like, a weight lifted,
because, weirdly enough, I didn’t
really ever feel pressure to win. I think
I did a good job just maintaining my
attitude of trying to get the best from
my game and see where that takes me.
DD: Was it easy to keep that positive attitude or difficult, given that you’ve won at
every other level of the game?
ST: I have won at every level, and I’ve
drawn confidence from that. I know
I’ve won in strong fields in junior golf,
college golf, mini-tours. Obviously, the
PGA Tour is a lot harder, but the best
college golfers end up being the best
guys on Tour as well. So keeping that
in mind and knowing that good golf is
good golf no matter where you are, if
I just put myself in contention enough
it feels like an odds game from there.
DD: Who were some of the college players
you looked at and said, “That is the guy”?
ST: There were some guys I didn’t get
to play with. Like, my teammates [at
Pepperdine] competed against Jon
Rahm, and they were like, “Dude, this
guy is not real.” In my college years,
there was Collin [Morikawa], Cam
Young, Sam Burns—so many guys it’s
ridiculous. But two really stood out.
One was Viktor Hovland. In my junior
year, I played with him at the Prestige
at PGA West. I don’t know if he was a
freshman or sophomore, but I was like,
This guy’s for sure the best I’ve ever played
with. I remember asking him, “Are you
going to turn pro?” And he was like,
“Nah, man. I’m not even close. I suck
compared to the pro level.” The very
next hole is a 190-yard par 3 with water
short and right, and he hits a high, soft
cut to three feet. I stripe one to 45 feet,
pin-high left on the fringe, and I was
so happy with it. And I just thought,
This guy’s unbelievable. Then, my senior
year, I got to play a final round with
Ludvig [Aberg]. I didn’t know anything

26 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

“I remember asking Viktor Hovland,
‘Are you going to turn pro?’ And he
was like, ‘Nah, I’m not even close.’
[Then] he hits a high cut to three feet.”
Muralidhar (right) and
Karuna Theegala share
their son’s Fortinet win.
The pride? Palpable.

about him, some freshman from Texas
Tech I’d never heard of. And it was like,
This guy is a robot. A straight-up robot.
After I played with him, I went to Instagram and screen-recorded his swing
and was like, Man, I should swing like
this. I still have the video on my phone.
So, yeah, it was funny to see the two of
them kicking a-- at this year’s Ryder
Cup. They’re gonna be two of the best
players in the world. Viktor already is.
DD: Did you watch much of the Cup?
ST: Honestly, it was the least I’ve ever
watched a Ryder Cup. But this is the
first time I’ve been on Tour for the
Ryder Cup, and, even though I wasn’t
really that close to being in the discussion [to make the U.S. team], it definitely hurt. So I didn’t stay up like
I usually would for a European Ryder

Cup. It sucked seeing the U.S. down so
quickly. It took all the air out of it.
DD: Is that motivating, watching after
being on the outside of that discussion?
ST: Yeah, it’s definitely motivating.
I feel like I’m just really competitive in
whatever I do. Not really being in the
discussion—that’s extra motivation.
DD: What will your offseason look like?
How do your days look when you’re not
prepping for tournament golf?
ST: Funny enough, this is my first real
offseason. Right out of college [in
2020], I was just playing mini-tours
every week. Then, in 2021, I was in
the Korn Ferry finals, leading straight
to the Tour. Last year, I played every
event I got in. So, yeah, this offseason
has been really nice so far. Just catching up with family, hanging out with

ON THE NUMBERS
There’s data behind every swing. We crunch it so you don’t have to.

$33,112,235
Total earnings for Viktor Hovland, including official, unofficial
and FedEx Cup bonus pool money from the 2022-23 season.

326.3
AV E R A G E
DRIVING
D I S TA N C E
FOR RORY

PGA TOUR

Rank in Strokes Gained
Off-the-Tee for
Ludvig Aberg on the
PGA Tour between his
pro debut at the RBC
Canadian Open and the
Tour Championship.

RECORD.

(SOURCE: JUSTIN RAY)

M CI L R OY
DURING THE
2022-23
FEDEX CUP
SEASON,
A NEW

Year of the Comeback
SEVERAL BIG NAMES CONQUERED LONG WINLESS
DROUGHTS IN 2022-23. HERE ARE THE FIVE LONGEST
STREAKS BROKEN LAST SEASON.

3,000

2,835
2,413

DAYS WITHOUT A WIN

Left: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images; Right, from top: Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images; Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

friends, putting the sticks away for,
y’know, a week at a time. I do get in the
gym a little more, which is nice. But,
yeah, I’m on the couch a lot. I’m taking
it pretty chill this fall.
DD: When you’re home in Houston, do
you have a crew to play golf with?
ST: When I lived in California, I used
to play alone quite a bit, just because
I love 4 or 5 p.m. twilight nines. But here
we have such a good group of guys:
three old teammates from Pepperdine
and seven or eight other guys that play
mini-tours, Korn Ferry. There’s some
Tour guys around that are cool, too, but
I mostly stick with my crew—guys that
take my money a decent amount.
DD: Does that keep you humble, losing to
guys playing mini-tours?
ST: That’s the thing. Everyone just
expects me to beat up on these guys,
but if I don’t shoot six, seven, eight
under a round, I lose money. They’re
super hungry and they’re very good.
The talent in golf is so crazy right now
that it’s a fine line.
DD: Have you been goal-setting for the
new season?
ST: To be honest, I haven’t thought that
far ahead. My goal was to just get into
all the majors again, and I’m hoping
I’ve checked that off. But mostly I’m
not worried about the results as much
as just feeling like I’m making good
progress and staying healthy, then see
where I go from there.
DD: What’s one nongolf thing that’s been
occupying brain space? NBA preseason?
I’ve read you’re into chess theory.
ST: I’ve played fantasy football for
nine years, and this is the first time
I only have two leagues. For a while
I thought three was a sweet spot, but,
really, it’s two, and one of them has to
be a big-time buy-in. So this year I’ve
been rejuvenated by fantasy football.
And, yeah, chess theory is always on
my mind. Openings are the worst part
of my game, so I’ve been trying to find
the same six to eight moves to start.
I just want to get into the action. I think
that’s where I’m the best.

2,268
1,834
1,610

Rickie Fowler
Rocket
Mortgage
Classic
0

Jason Day
AT&T Byron
Nelson

Brian Harman
The Open
Championship

Emiliano Grillo
Charles Schwab
Challenge

Chris Kirk
Honda
Classic

PLAYER / TOURNAMENT WON

RESEARCH BY JACK HIRSH

Mornings on the links.
չĸŅŁłłŁņłŁŇĻĸŊĴŇĸŅт
ŉĸŁļŁ1ņĴŅłňŁķŇĻĸŇĴĵĿĸт
THAT’S THE RHYTHM OF REYNOLDS.

*Rates and availability are subject to change and excludes holidays. Club credit for promotional purposes only. Real estate and other amenities are owned by Oconee Land Development Company LLC and/or other subsidiaries and affiliates of MetLife, Inc. (collectively, "OLDC" or “Sponsor”) and by unrelated third parties. Rey
Oconee. RLOP also represents buyers and sellers of properties in Reynolds Lake Oconee which OLDC does not own ("Resale Properties"). OLDC is not involved in the marketing or sale of Resale Properties. This is not intended to be an offer to sell nor a solicitation of offers to buy OLDC-owned real estate in Reynolds Lake Oco
solicitation of offers to buy applies only to Resale Properties. Access and rights to recreational amenities may be subject to fees, membership dues, or other limitations. Information provided is believed accurate as of the date printed but may be subject to change from time to time. The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee is

For OLDC properties, obtain the Property Report required by Federal law and read it before signing anything. No Federal agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property. Void where prohibited by law. WARNING: THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF REAL ES
has been filed with the Iowa Real Estate Commission and a copy of such statement is available from OLDC upon request. OLDC properties have been registered with the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salesmen at 1000 Washington
Financial Protection at 1700 G Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20552. Certain OLDC properties are registered with the Department of Law of the State of New York. THE COMPLETE OFFERING TERMS ARE IN AN OFFERING PLAN AVAILABLE FROM SPONSOR. FILE NO. H1
principals are not incorporated in, located in, or resident in the state of New York. No offering is being made in or directed to any person or entity in the state of New York or to New York residents by or on behalf of the developer/offeror or anyone acting with the deve
residents of the state of New York, shall take place until all registration and filing requirements under the Martin Act and the Attorney General’s regulations are complied with, a written exemption is obtained pursuant to an application is granted pursuant to and in accord

ynolds Lake Oconee Properties, LLC ("RLOP") is the exclusive listing agent for OLDC-owned properties in Reynolds Lake
onee by residents of HI, ID, OR, or any other jurisdiction where prohibited by law. As to such states, any offer to sell or
s a private commercial enterprise and use of the facilities is subject to the applicable fees and policies of the operator.

STATE HAS NOT INSPECTED, EXAMINED, OR DISQUALIFIED THIS OFFERING. An offering statement
on Street, Suite 710, Boston, Massachusetts 02118-6100 and the Bureau of Consumer
14-0001. Notice to New York Residents: The developer of Reynolds Lake Oconee and its
eloper/offeror’s knowledge. No such offering, or purchase or sale of real estate by or to
dance with Cooperative Policy Statements #1 or #7, or a “No-Action” request is granted.

Reynolds Lake Oconee has a unique cadence all its own. The waterfront
golf community is home to six championship courses, TaylorMade club
fitting and instruction at the legendary Kingdom, and Members from
across the country. Just east of Atlanta, Reynolds boasts an inspiring
mix of clubs and restaurants, and one of the only lakefront Ritz-Carlton ®
resorts in the world. Here, pastimes become passions, and neighbors
quickly become lifelong friends.

BOOK YOUR LIFESTYLE VISIT to experience our community
firsthand. Stays include golf, boat rental and a private real estate
tour, with preferred rates in a cottage or at The Ritz-Carlton®,
ņŇĴŅŇļŁ'ĴŇҼ*+,ѩŁļ'ĻŇс
REYNOLDSLAKEOCONEE.COM/GOLFMAG • (855) 656.7357

Be Here Now

We’ll Take Manhattan
With T-Squared Social, Tiger and Timberlake tee up a winner
IS THERE A REGION in the United States with a better

golf scene than the surrounds of New York City? From
Shinnecock to Bethpage to Sleepy Hollow and beyond, golf
in the Empire State is unmatched. Now, thanks to a collaboration between Tiger Woods and Justin Timberlake, New
York—and the Big Apple in particular—can slip one more
feather in its cap.
T-Squared Social, an indoor golf experience and upscale
sports bar, had its opening day in the heart of Manhattan on
September 20. For golf fanatics, it couldn’t have come at a
better time. Every NYC hacker knows the heavy lift of lugging their clubs on the train and spending a day getting to and
from a stellar suburban course. With Tiger and JT’s upscale,
high-tech fun house situated just a wedge shot from Grand
Central Station, that’s no longer an issue.

30 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

The space—22,000 square feet—spans an entire city block,
between East 42nd and 43rd streets, and it’s a golf lover’s
dream. There are four state-of-the-art hitting bays outfitted
with Full Swing simulators, loads of memorabilia from Tiger
and JT and the biggest indoor television—200 inches—in all
of Manhattan. Even for nongolfers, T-Squared (which is partially owned by 8AM Golf, whose holdings include GOLF
magazine) offers ample diversions and deliciousness: four
duckpin bowling lanes; a bank of luminous, programmable
dartboards; a full-service kitchen; and a bar featuring cocktails from renowned mixologist Rael Petit.
“Justin and I thought it would be cool to create a place that
combines our favorite things,” Woods says.
The G.O.A.T.s delivered on that and then some.
—Zephyr Melton

Peter Dressel; Timberlake: John Russo/Contour by Getty Images; Woods: Kwaku Alston/Contour RA

Clubhouse

“T-Squared Social is a beautiful
space that transcends the
typical sports-bar experience,”
says partner Justin Timberlake.

Clockwise from far left: T-Squared’s hitting bays double
as football and soccer simulators; its duckpin lanes are
strikingly sleek; automatic scoring is just one feature
of the glowing dartboards; JT and Tiger, owners with a
shared playful vision; the twosome’s matching staff bags;
and the bar, featuring three of T2’s 38 flatscreens.

Clubhouse

Set the shaft
parallel to the
dotted line at
address and hold
the face open as
you move into your
release. The goal
isn’t to hit the
ball but rather to
splash the sand
under it onto the
green. The ball will
follow suit.

Worth a Shot

Follow the
Arrow
This easy setup trick is your guide to
thought-free bunker shots

I’VE SEEN REC PLAYERS attempt

bunker shots in all sorts of
ways—most of them wrong. It’s a unique
situation that calls for a unique setup.
Try this. In a practice bunker, draw a
line in the sand perpendicular to your
target line (dotted, above). Set the ball
on this line. Now draw two lines veering
out from the first, creating an arrow as

32 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

shown above. Set your feet along these
two lines—“flared,” so to speak, which
will help you better open your hips
through impact and give you the correct “squatting” feel at address. As you
get into your address, hover the clubhead
behind the ball with the shaft parallel to
the dotted line. That’s right—no need
to lean the shaft back or toward the tar-

get or unduly open the face. As you start
your swing, forget the ball. Your goal is to
enter the bunker slightly behind the dotted line and hold the face open (just keep
your lead wrist quiet through impact) so
you splash sand under the ball at the target. Simple? Yes. Effective? Just try it.
Shawn Koch is director of instruction at
Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, Ga.

Christoper Lane

By Top 100 Teacher to Watch Shawn Koch

Clubhouse

Access

The Whole
Shebang
The Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds
at Reynolds Lake Oconee is
an idyllic post-round playground

34 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Credit here tktktk

AFTER YOU’VE EXPERIENCED all six (soon to be seven)
golf courses at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro,
Ga., you may be ready for a shot of a different variety. And
there’s no better place to find one than the Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds, an 800-acre facility where you can hike, fish,
kayak, canoe, go off-roading—and shoot to your heart’s content.
The Sporting Grounds’ crown jewel is a 20-station sportingclays course situated along a mile-long trail circuit. The course
was designed in 2017 by the facility’s director Justin Jones,
a man whose lineage in shooting sports runs deep. Jones’
grandfather and father captained the British Olympic trapshooting teams, and his family farm in Wales is home to the
leading trap-shooting grounds in Great Britain. Jones himself
is an international shooting champion, and the Sandy Creek
Sporting Grounds he designed is intended to bring British tradition and authenticity to the heart of Georgia.
“I designed [the shooting course] very much like a golf
course,” Jones says. “We have par 3s, par 4s, par 5s in terms
of difficulty on each hole or each station. Different distances,
just like on the golf course. Every month, we move around the
machines—the traps that actually launch the clays—just like
moving the pin on a green.”
Interested visitors will be happy to know that shooting
experience is not required. Jones estimates that 70 percent
of his guests are first-time shooters. Each group of guests is
accompanied by a certified guide, and the course can be configured to launch clay targets at a variety of speeds, trajectories, angles, elevations and distances to accommodate every
level of shooter. According to Jones, golfers may be surprised
to find they have a natural predisposition for success, thanks
to the hand-eye coordination required. In fact, a day on the
Grounds may even improve your golf game.
“I had a golfer come out, and he was struggling with the
shooting,” Jones says. “He had a dominant left eye. I closed
his left eye for him, and he started hitting everything right in
the middle. So then he started doing the same for his putting,
which has improved dramatically too.”
Yep. It sounds to us like a course well worth taking.
—Jessica Marksbury

1. The lakeside
boathouse serves as
a launching point for
fans of fishing, canoeing and kayaking.
On the hill behind
it sits the historic
Sandy Creek Barn,
which was built in
Pennsylvania in the
early 1800s and relocated to Reynolds
in 2007. Today, it’s
used as an event
space, welcome center and outfitters
shop for Sporting
Grounds visitors.
2. The facility’s
director, Justin
Jones, is a British
import—and armed
with vast knowledge of a variety of
shooting sports.
3. In a controlled
but rough-andtumble environment, guests can
enjoy an off-road
driving course that
follows the native
contours and topography of the land.

Courtesy Reynolds Lake Oconee

4. Reynolds’ ultimate
field of play? Its
golf, including the
spectacular par-4
18th on Rees Jones’
Oconee course.

3
6

Clubhouse

YOUR BURNING SHORT-GAME
QUESTIONS—ANSWERED

Hey, Chef! I want more
of that “crispy” backspin
so I can stay aggressive
on wedge shots. What’s
the best way to pull it
back like the pros?

Short Game Chef

Knock ’Em Stiff!
By Tour Short-Game Coach Parker McLachlin
THE IMPORTANT THINGS TO FOCUS ON when trying to knock those tricky 50-

to 125-yard wedge shots close are 1) the way you manage the length of your
backswing, 2) how you deliver speed to the ball and 3) what you’re doing to ensure
clean contact in the club’s center. If you’re like most weekend players I teach, you get in
trouble by making a backswing that’s too long. This more than likely will cause you to
slow down through impact. A shorter backswing, on the other hand, instills a sense of
freedom to accelerate through the shot, which immediately takes care of items 1 and 2.
Where good contact is concerned, take a page from Hall of Famer Gary Player’s
instruction book and try his “walk-through” finish: Step toward the target with your
back foot as you swing past impact. This gets more pressure on your front side—a
key for pure and consistent strikes. It’ll also create a lower, Tour-esque trajectory
and shots that hit, then stop on a dime (if not spin back).
Learn more from McLachlin at shortgamechef.com.

36 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

As you learned in the lesson at left,
speed and spin go hand in hand. It’s
the reason it’s easier to get the ball
to stop (or even pull back) from 80
yards than it is from 10, since the
swing speed is faster in the former.
The real key to generating more
spin, however, is shifting as much
pressure as possible to your front
side during your downswing. This
is why I offer up the Gary Player
“walk-through” drill as a great way
to exaggerate getting pressure
moving toward the target. Your
reward: a lower, more controllable
ballflight, more compression and a
ton of extra spin. Also, don’t forget
that you need a good lie, clean
grooves and a high-performance
ball to really get it to “dance” on
the greens.
Scan this code
for $70 off the
yearly subscription price of
Parker McLachlin’s online video
lessons (shortgamechef.com).

From left: Ryan Noll; Bradley Meinz; Right: Getty Images/iStockphoto

—Martin S., via e-mail

Ask The Rules Guy

Your ball is in a bunker
with footprints on

your line of play, made by
a guy in the group ahead.
Can you call him back
to rake his tracks before
you play your next shot?
—Bruce Kristinson, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada

A: Bruce, since you’re Canadian,
we’re sure this request would be
made politely… but it would certainly be trouble for you and likely
for Bigfoot too. Rule 1.3 prevents
you from having another player do
something that would be a penalty were you to do it yourself—in
this case, breach Rule 8.1, which
restricts a player from improving
the “conditions affecting your
stroke.” Also, Rule 8.3 prevents this
other (slovenly) player from deliberately doing the same. While he
could conceivably be off the hook
if part of his reason for belatedly
raking the trap was to care for the
course, it’s best to let sleeping dogs
lie. Play your shot as is. No doubt
you’ll remember to rake the bunker!

Hear Ye, Hear Ye!
Browse our library
of rulings and outof-this-world decisions
at golf.com/rules

Q: In a senior event, a competitor hit his
ball into the woods and, being prudent,
played a provisional to the green. He then
found his original ball and played two
shots with it to reach the green, where he
picked up his provisional… then realized
that the “original” ball wasn’t his.
He returned his provisional ball to
its last spot, deeming that he’d accidentally lifted it, and finished the
hole, taking a two-stroke penalty
for playing a wrong ball and a onestroke penalty for lifting the provisional without marking it. Some
suggested that once he picked up his
provisional, it was out of play and
couldn’t be returned to play, so he
needed to play a new ball from the
tee. Is this true?
—Richard Young, Dunrobin,
Ontario, Canada

A: “Some” suggestions should
be ignored because some people know not of what they speak.
Conversely, if there is a group
There are no second chances to fix your first impression.
of people who can be counted
A: It sounds right to Rules Guy. Specific
upon to be prudent, surely it is seniors.
trees can be protected by Local Rule by
When it comes to Rules knowledge,
Q: I was playing in our member-member
making them no-play zones, but such
silver foxes are often the gold standard.
tournament and hit a wayward shot. My
treatment is typically reserved for young,
Indeed, in this case, your competitor proball came to rest behind a memorial tree,
growing trees. If the committee didn’t
ceeded correctly according to Clarificawhich was directly between my ball and
make the memorial tree a no-play zone,
tion 18.3c(2)/4—assuming he also took
the green. I asked for free relief, reasoning
then under the Definition of Obstructhe stroke-and-distance penalty for the
that, as a memorial, the tree wasn’t part
tion the memorial plaque itself is the only
provisional becoming the ball in play.
of the course design. I was denied and told
immovable obstruction and abnormal
GOT A QUESTION ABOUT THE RULES?
I could only have gotten free relief from the
course condition that free relief would
ASK THE RULES GUY!
SEND YOUR QUERIES, CONFUSIONS AND
adjacent memorial stone. Was that right?
allow for. Rules Guy also needn’t tell you
COMMENTS TO RULESGUY@GOLF.COM. WE
PROMISE HE WON’T THROW THE BOOK AT YOU.
—Tim Muldoon, Buffalo, N.Y.
never to, er, take relief on a memorial tree.

Clubhouse

Cincoro Club
2 oz Cincoro
Reposado
club soda to the top
orange squeeze
orange wedge
for garnish

Rounds

Smooth
Operator
In life, as in the booming
tequila industry, taste has
its price. In this case, it
also has the G.O.A.T.

stuff you get in a mixed drink at
a bar—that’ll get the job done just fine.
Then there’s good tequila, labeled with
words like 100 percent agave, that goes
down more gently and burns a little less.
And then there’s great tequila. It
is sourced from only the best ingredients—like, say, Weber blue agave
from both the highland and lowland
regions of Jalisco, Mexico. It is crafted
in only the most exacting of formulas,
distilled separately, then blended carefully. And it has only the richest, most
subtle complexion of flavors—providing notes of butterscotch, baking spices
and toasted oak.
This type of tequila has a name—Cincoro—and in a golf world undergoing a
tequila renaissance, Cincoro is elbowing its way into a spot in the pantheon.
We know it has the firepower to
do so. Cincoro counts celebrities like
NBA legend Michael Jordan (pictured),
Lakers owner Jeanie Buss, Bucks owner
Wes Edens and Celtics owners Wyc
Grousbeck and Emilia Fazzalari among
its principal investors.
That high-rolling group of tequila aficionados is behind Cincoro’s quintet
of luxury offerings (Blanco, Reposado,
Anejo, Gold and Extra Anejo; starting at
$99) and has become the brand’s chief
promoters and taste testers.
On warm weather days, there are
ways to enjoy Cincoro without sipping solely on tequila or drowning out
its more subtle flavors with sugar. The

38 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

best of which is a cocktail affectionately
known as the Cincoro Club, a refreshing twist on the classic that is already a
hit at 19th holes from New York to Cabo
San Lucas (see recipe above).
The orange squeeze and club soda
provide a dash of fruity refreshment balanced out by the Reposado’s more sultry
flavors. The final product is a best-ofall-worlds cocktail perfect for any day
on the links... so long as the tequila is
nothing short of great. —James Colgan

Above: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh;
Jordan: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images/Michael
Jordan Celebrity Invitational

THERE IS TEQUILA—the kind of

UNDERAGE SALE PROHIBITED

The bEst
Paths can’t
be fouNd
on A map.
Go ROgue.

Clubhouse

Gimme

Only the
Shadow
Knows

Scan here to
find out more
and buy your
own Shadow at
ogio.com.

THE WAY OGIO FIGURES IT, a golf bag should be

MAKE: OGIO
MODEL: SHADOW
PRICE: $380

40 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

more than utilitarian—it should make a statement. Golfers who carry the OGIO Shadow ($380;
ogio.com) are telling the world that, sure, functionality
is important, but there’s no substitute for impeccable
style. The Shadow’s contemporary tech—including
carbon-fiber legs—is eye-catching too. Among its nine
pockets is one, for accessories, that is magnetic; one,
for your glove, that is easy access; and one, for your
beverage, that will be your best friend. Premium materials, an aerated hip pad and stitched handles add to
the luxury. A stand bag that stands for sophistication
and intelligent design? Yes, please. —John Ledesma

Left: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh; Right: Kevin Diss Photography

As its name suggests,
you’ll want OGIO’s latest—
and greatest—stand bag
right at your side

More Stuff
You Should
Know
There’s nothing
quite like links
golf hard along
the sea. But it’s
far from the
only golf worth

playing overseas. Courses
like Woking,
Sunningdale
(left) and Walton
Heath represent
a tiny sampling
of the wondrous
inland layouts
that you’d miss if
you clung only to
the coast.

18 and rush back to the office. You
prolong the enjoyment by retiring
to the clubhouse for a pop or two
in the festive company of your
playing partners. It’s not unheard
of to invite your caddies too.

Stuff Golfers Should Know

Be Buddies
Abroad
Seven reasons why you need to book a
bond-creating boondoggle overseas now
IN CASE THE IMAGES from our Top 100 Courses in the

World ranking (p. 46) aren’t enough to inspire you,
here are seven other reasons to start planning a trip across
the pond with your golf buddies.
1. The Accessibility
The Old Course ranks No. 3 on GOLF’s roster of Top 100
Courses in the World. (That’s higher than the likes of Augusta,
Shinnecock, Merion and Oakmont, if you’re keeping score at
home.) Tough tee time, sure, but it’s open to the public. And
that’s the thing. Unlike in the U.S., where many championship venues are intensely private, nearly all the best spots in
the UK and Ireland are places that will, you know, let you on.
2. The Hidden Gems
Yes, it’s a tired term, but it applies especially overseas. Swing
through any sleepy little town and you’re apt to come across a
killer little course. Odds are it will be friendly, frequented by
locals and largely overlooked by the tour-bus crowd.
3. The Post-Round Camaraderie
In this part of the world, it isn’t standard practice to putt out on

4. Those Caddies
Maybe you know the one about
the American in Scotland who hits a breakfast ball and then
asks his caddie if there’s a local term for “mulligan.” “There
is, sir,” says the looper. “We call that ‘three.’ ” Accurate or
not, the story points to a truth: A great many of the caddies
are characters with a cracking sense of humor. Their counsel and companionship are as central to the experience as the
knockdown shot.
5. The Challenge
“Nigh wind, nigh golf,” the saying goes. This is the game played
in the elements, with weather as unpredictable as your putting. Anyone who gripes about it simply doesn’t get it. Embrace
the experience, along with the quirky bounces you’re guaranteed to get.
6. The Pubs
The best parts about this game are the places it takes you and
the people you meet. The memories you make over pub grub
and pints will be every bit as vivid as your recollections of the
courses you play.
7. The Packages
With a phone call or a few clicks, you can find a trusted travel
company that will handle every detail for you, including all
that driving on the wrong side of the road. —Josh Sens

Stuff Golfers Should Know is a GOLF.com series in which
we reveal all kinds of useful golf (and life!) wisdom sure
to make you the smartest, savviest and most prepared player
in your foursome.

Clubhouse

SPICY
SURPRISE
The house-made
piri piri glaze will
definitely get
your attention.

Eats

Chicken,
But
Elevated
IF YOU’RE LOOKING for a festive alternative to a traditional turkey or ham this holiday season, consider
the Cornish hen.
Smaller, less cumbersome and easier to cook than its larger
feathered brethren, a single Cornish hen can feed two people—and add a dose of elegance to the plate too.
Just ask Malcolm Campbell, who has presided over the menu
at the picturesque Cabot Cape Breton resort as the Panorama
Restaurant’s executive chef for the last five years.
Guests at Cabot Cape Breton, which is stunningly situated
on Nova Scotia’s rugged Atlantic coastline and was recently
honored as one of GOLF’s Top 100 Resorts, tend to gravitate
toward steak or seafood. But a taste of Campbell’s Cornish
hen may change their minds.
Campbell serves his iteration with creamed polenta

42 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

(included for its ability to hold and retain the dish’s many
flavors), grilled Broccolini and radicchio and a caper albufera
sauce, which is enriched with a mix of foie gras, chicken stock
and a little cream and butter. The hen’s legs are confit in duck
fat, glazed with house-made piri piri sauce and then barbecued to order.
Though the ingredients and prep may sound exotic, there’s
a comfort-food quality to the Cornish hen that Campbell
loves—and a touch of the unexpected from the piri piri, which
includes a blend of shishito, poblano and bird’s eye peppers.
“That sauce preparation really helps elevate the dish a little bit more,” Campbell says.
So, the next time you find yourself dining cliffside at Cabot,
give the seafood a break and the humble hen a try. With Campbell at the helm, you won’t be disappointed. —Jessica Marksbury

Courtesy Cabot Cape Breton

At Cabot Cape Breton,
the Cornish hen
is a decadent delight

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SHARE OF SWEET
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Clubhouse

Money Game

A True Entrepreneur
Ryan Moore helps keep the Tour’s enterprising spirit alive and kicking

RYAN MOORE HAS ALWAYS DONE things his way. Con-

sider his quirky full swing, a mash-up of Jim Furyk’s
and Fred Couples’. It became familiar to golf fans back in 2004,
when Moore became the fourth player to win the NCAA Individual Championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same year,
following Jack Nicklaus, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods.
Also in ’04, he won the U.S. Amateur Public Links for the second time, as well as the prestigious Western Amateur and the
Sahalee Players Championship, underlining perhaps the greatest season for an amateur since Bobby Jones’ 1930 Grand Slam.
Five PGA Tour wins and $33 million in earnings since turning professional in 2005 have established Moore, now 40 and
a resident of Las Vegas, as a pro’s pro. But what marks him
as distinct these days is no longer his swing or his ability to
make cuts, cash checks and keep his card. It’s his side hustle.
For some Americans, a side hustle is a necessity. For others,
it’s a hobby, something to scratch the entrepreneurial itch, to
keep in touch with a hardscrabble upbringing, to be creative,
to meet people, what have you. Mini-tour golfers generally fall

Justin Rosé
The game will drive
one to drink—might
as well drink a Touradjacent wine! Here
are a few of the best.

Kerr Cellars
LPGA major
champion Cristie
Kerr is also a
level 1 sommelier.
kerrcellars.com

44 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

David Frost Wine
Tour Champions
vet Frost first hit
golf balls on his
father’s vineyard
in South Africa.
frostwines.com

in the former category, top-tier pros like Moore in the latter.
Tour pros have a long history of side hustles. In the early
days, when prize money was rarely sufficient to live on, the
Tour itself was essentially a side hustle—many players had
day jobs or seasonal gigs as head professionals or insurance
salesmen. That changed with the advent of the modern
PGA Tour, thanks largely to Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. The King and the Golden Bear (along with the agent
they shared for a time, Mark McCormack of IMG, before
Nicklaus ventured out on his own) also pioneered the role of
golfer-businessman. Golf clubs, golf courses, iced tea and lemonade—their names were on lots of stuff and still are today.
Their impact remains strong, too, as players famous and semifamous swim in their wake.
These side hustles likewise fall broadly into two buckets: endorsements and entrepreneurial endeavors. Putting
one’s name on a bottle of wine is one thing; owning vineyards,
working with a vintner to pick the grape varietals, setting up
employee health-care plans and so on is quite another. Given

Ernie Els Wines
Proceeds
benefit the
Els for Autism
charity.
ernieels.com/
wines

Meomi
The official
wine of the
PGA Tour.
meomi.com

Greg Norman
Estates The
unofficial wine
of the LIV tour.
shark.com/
company/gregnorman-estates

Left top: Eakin Howard/Getty Images; Right: Courtesy TRUE Linkswear

By Evan Rothman

the demands on their time, it’s no surprise that many Tour
pros lean heavily on endorsements—but not all.
The business portfolio of Bubba Watson, for example, is
as varied as his shotmaking arsenal. It includes a candy shop
(Bubba’s Sweet Spot), a car dealership (Sandy & Bubba’s Milton Chevrolet), part ownership of a double-A minor league
baseball club (the Pensacola Blue Wahoos), an apartment
complex and a driving range—all set in and around his home
base in the Florida Panhandle.
Two of golf ’s biggest names, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy,
bring an altruistic element to at least some of their business ventures, as their investments in what some call “the
alt-golf space” shows. This includes their partnering on the
forthcoming TGL Golf League, where teams will play virtual
golf in front of live crowds, and their dueling high-end mini
golf/entertainment/dining concepts: Popstroke and Puttery.
“Regarding TGL, it’s just another way for people to consume golf—a little more dynamic, very much technologyinfused, trying to appeal to that younger demographic that
doesn’t have five hours to watch a round of golf,” McIlroy
says. “What we’re trying to do with Puttery, what Tiger’s trying to do with Popstroke as well, it’s all about trying to give
people a less intimidating introduction to golf.
“At the end of the day that’s what we’re trying to do, to get
more people into the game of golf,” he says. “It’s great to have
Puttery make business sense, but if it gets more people to play
golf that’s the end goal.”
Ryan Moore is scratching a different itch. In 2009, Ryan and his younger
brother, Jason, helped cofound TRUE,
a golf footwear company emphasizing
walking players and modern designs,
in their native Tacoma, Wash. (They
secured full ownership in 2017.) Jason
was always the business-minded one.
Take, for example, the driving range
that their father owned back when they
were boys.
“I would spend most of my day out
on the range pounding balls,” Ryan
recalls, “and my little brother would set
up a stand in front of the range where
he sold refurbished golf balls.”
Jason and Ryan have always been
more ham-and-egg than Cain and Abel;
younger brother eventually became
caddie to older brother on Tour and
never had to worry about getting his
fair share for the week. And when Jason

decided it was time to pursue his TRUE calling, Ryan was
right there with him, at least to the extent possible as a fulltime player.
“As of right now, I don’t have any daily responsibilities
with the business,” says Ryan. “I have a few phone calls per
week to go over new product and business development ideas.
I sit on our board and enjoy our quarterly meetings where
we review progress and go over next steps and strategy. I like
to think I’m a good sounding board for the company.”
In golf terms, the business has been driving long and
straight recently. An $11.25 million capital infusion from
private equity firm KarpReilly in 2021 helped expand TRUE’s
reach and product line. Bottoms, including pants and joggers, were launched last year; outerwear and polos debuted
this year, with apparel expected soon to comprise 20 percent
of sales if the strong early reception continues.
While Ryan underscores that president and CEO Jason
is the one calling the shots—“My brother is the real driving
force; he’s the reason TRUE has become the great brand
that it is”—Ryan’s attitude toward golf and business clearly
underpins the TRUE spirit. Talking about the brand, he could
easily be talking about his unique swing.
“I’m never satisfied to just do what has always been done,”
says Ryan. “I like to ask why and think through if it could
possibly be better another way. Not being afraid to try new
things and to keep exploring and learning overlaps nicely
between golf and business.”

Jason (left) and Ryan Moore give the feel test to
fabric samples in their TRUE workshop.

THE

TOP

100
COURSES
IN THE

WORLD
2023-24
O U R S TA B L E O F 1 0 0 - P LU S C O U R S E
R AT E R S S C O U R E D T H E G L O B E
T H E PA S T T W O Y E A R S , A N D W H AT
D I D T H E Y F I N D ? G R E AT N E S S A N D
I N S P I R AT I O N I N S O M E O F T H E
MOST UNEXPECTED PLACES.
THE ARCTIC CIRCLE? CHECK . AN
A M E R I C A N W E S T C AT T L E R A N C H ?
CHECK . SO SADDLE UP FOR
A T O U R O F T H E W O R L D’ S B E S T.
BY RAN MORRIS SET T
ARCHITECTURE EDITOR

No. 76 / Point Hardy Golf Club
Cap Estate, St. Lucia

TOP 100 COURSES IN THE WORLD 2023-24
COURSE NAME, LOCATION,
ARCHITECT, YEAR

2023-24
RANK

Pine Valley PINE VALLEY, NJ

AVERAGE
SCORE

2023-24
RANK

94.78

COURSE NAME, LOCATION,
ARCHITECT, YEAR

Prairie Dunes HUTCHINSON, KS

Cypress Point PEBBLE BEACH, CA

91.94

St. Andrews (Old Course)

89.94

ST. ANDREWS, SCOTLAND

Shinnecock Hills

85.66

SOUTHAMPTON, NY WILLIAM FLYNN, 1931

National Golf Links of America

85.60

Royal County Down NEWCASTLE,
N. IRELAND OLD TOM MORRIS, 1889

84.75

Royal Melbourne (West)

82.57

BLACK ROCK, AUSTRALIA

Augusta National AUGUSTA, GA

79.34

ALISTER MACKENZIE, BOBBY JONES, 1933

Royal Dornoch DORNOCH, SCOTLAND

77.46

OLD TOM MORRIS, 1886/JOHN SUTHERLAND,
1890-1930/GEORGE DUNCAN, 1949

Sand Hills MULLEN, NE

Muirfield EAST LOTHIAN, SCOTLAND

Merion (East) ARDMORE, PA

77.28

Pebble Beach PEBBLE BEACH, CA

4
-

Fishers Island FISHERS ISLAND, NY

Royal Portrush (Dunluce)

75.93
73.33

Chicago WHEATON, IL

Trump Turnberry (Ailsa)

70.71

2
1

Los Angeles (North) LOS ANGELES,

Tara Iti TE ARAI, NEW ZEALAND

Pinehurst (No. 2) PINEHURST, NC

Kingston Heath CHELTENHAM,

69.36

68.58

San Francisco SAN FRANCISCO, CA

57.78

The Country Club
(Clyde/Squirrel) BROOKLINE, MA

57.26

Carnoustie (Championship)

56.83

Morfontaine MORTEFONTAINE,

56.13

Royal Birkdale

55.79

Somerset Hills BERNARDSVILLE, NJ

53.96

Southern Hills TULSA, OK

52.31

PERRY MAXWELL, 1936

68.16

66.30

California Club of
San Francisco SOUTH SAN

52.26

FRANCISCO, CA A.V. MACAN, 1926/ALISTER
MACKENZIE, 1928/KYLE PHILLIPS, 2007

67.29

Swinley Forest SOUTH ASCOT,
ENGLAND H.S. COLT, 1910

52.12

Shoreacres LAKE BLUFF, IL

51.10

SETH RAYNOR, 1921

Friar’s Head BAITING HOLLOW, NY

65.87

Garden City GARDEN CITY, NY

50.93

DEVEREUX EMMET, 1899/WALTER TRAVIS, 1906

Ballybunion (Old) BALLYBUNION,

65.77

IRELAND P. MURPHY, 1893/TOM SIMPSON, 1936

57.84

A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1918

BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2003

Lahinch (Old) LAHINCH, IRELAND

GEORGE LOW JR., 1889/FRED HAWTREE, 1932

68.81

ALISTER MACKENZIE, 1926

59.68

SOUTHPORT, ENGLAND

AUSTRALIA DAN SOUTAR, 1925/

Barnbougle Dunes BRIDPORT,

FRANCE TOM SIMPSON, 1927

DONALD ROSS, 1907-1935

60.74

1842/OLD TOM MORRIS, 1872/JAMES BRAID, 1926

70.66

TOM DOAK, 2015

Seminole JUNO BEACH, FL

A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1918

CA GEORGE C. THOMAS JR., 1927

61.35

OLD TOM MORRIS, 1893/ALISTER MACKENZIE,
1927/MARTIN HAWTREE, 2003

1909/MACKENZIE ROSS, 1946/MARTIN EBERT, 2016

Crystal Downs FRANKFORT, MI

CARNOUSTIE, SCOTLAND A. ROBERTSON,

TURNBERRY, SCOTLAND WILLIE FERNIE,

61.52

DONALD ROSS, 1929

C.B. MACDONALD, 1895/SETH RAYNOR, 1923

62.51

ALISTER MACKENZIE, PERRY MAXWELL, 1932

H.S. COLT, 1932/MARTIN EBERT, 2015

Pacific Dunes BANDON, OR

TCC MEMBERS, WILLIE CAMPBELL, 1899

PORTRUSH, N. IRELAND

62.56

H.S. COLT, 1922/FRANK PENNICK, 1970S

SETH RAYNOR, 1926

62.78

Hirono MIKI-CHI, JAPAN C.H. ALISON, 1932

Royal St. George’s SANDWICH,
ENGLAND W. LAIDLAW PURVES, 1887/

JACK NEVILLE, DOUGLAS GRANT, 1919

North Berwick (West)

TOM DOAK, 2001

76.85

HUGH WILSON, 1912

63.22

AUSTRALIA TOM DOAK, MIKE CLAYTON, 2004

OLD TOM MORRIS, 1891/H.S. COLT, 1925

BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 1995

80.32

HENRY AND WILLIAM FOWNES, 1903-1950

Winged Foot (West)

NORTH BERWICK, SCOTLAND

ALISTER MACKENZIE, 1926

Oakmont OAKMONT, PA

63.64

UNKNOWN, 1832/C.K. HUTCHISON, 1932

Riviera PACIFIC PALISADES, CA

MAMARONECK, NY A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1923

SOUTHAMPTON, NY C.B. MACDONALD, 1911

63.68

GEORGE C. THOMAS JR., BILLY BELL SR., 1927

NATURE, 1400S/OLD TOM MORRIS, 1865

Oakland Hills (South)
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MI DONALD ROSS, 1917

ALISTER MACKENZIE, 1928

64.10

PERRY MAXWELL, 1937/PRESS MAXWELL, 1957

GEORGE CRUMP, H.S. COLT, 1918

AVERAGE
SCORE

Sunningdale (Old) SUNNINGDALE,
ENGLAND WILLIE PARK JR., 1901/H.S. COLT, 1922

St. Patrick’s Links ROSAPENNA,

50.90

IRELAND TOM DOAK, 2021

64.69

Maidstone EAST HAMPTON, NY
JOHN PARK, WILLIE PARK JR., 1922

50.63

COURSE NAME, LOCATION,
ARCHITECT, YEAR

2023-24
RANK

Ballyneal HOLYOKE, CO TOM DOAK, 2006

Cabot Cliffs
INVERNESS, NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA

COURSE NAME, LOCATION,
ARCHITECT, YEAR

AVERAGE
SCORE

2023-24
RANK

50.50

New

50.44

Kawana (Fuji) ITO-SHI, JAPAN

50.29

C.H. ALISON, KINYA FUJITA, 1936

10
4

49.85

Cape Kidnappers TE AWANGA,

49.72

Cruden Bay CRUDEN BAY, SCOTLAND

49.68

Camargo CINCINNATI, OH

49.38

Woodhall Spa (Hotchkin)

48.96

48.95

Bethpage (Black) FARMINGDALE,
NY A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1935

48.70

Inverness INVERNESS, OH

48.19

New

Kiawah Island (Ocean) KIAWAH

48.18

Prestwick PRESTWICK, SCOTLAND

47.31

New South Wales LA PEROUSE,

46.96

Ardfin ISLE OF JURA, SCOTLAND

46.66

Royal Troon (Old) TROON,

46.62

New

Baltusrol (Lower) SPRINGFIELD, NJ

46.35

The Lido ROME, WI TOM DOAK, 2023

Oak Hill (East) PITTSFORD, NY

46.08

DONALD ROSS, 1921/ANDREW GREEN, 2020

Sleepy Hollow SCARBOROUGH, NY

46.05

Previous page: Shawn Michael Marcellin

C.B. MACDONALD, SETH RAYNOR, 1913/
A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1929/GIL HANSE, 2017

17
6

New

St. George’s Hill (A & B)
Rye (Old) CAMBER, ENGLAND

91
92
93

9
2
14

New

45.65
45.37

Kingsbarns ST. ANDREWS,

42.36

Nine Bridges JEJU ISLAND, SOUTH

42.14

Lofoten GIMSØYSAND, NORWAY

42.03

Castle Stuart INVERNESS,
SCOTLAND GIL HANSE, MARK PARSINEN, 2009

41.96

Bandon Trails BANDON, OR

41.86

Rock Creek Cattle Company
Royal Lytham & St. Annes

Casa de Campo (Teeth of the Dog)
LA ROMANA, D.R. PETE DYE, 1971

Whistling Straits (Straits)

41.75

Royal Melbourne (East) BLACK

41.47

Royal Liverpool HOYLAKE, ENGLAND

41.42

Bandon Dunes BANDON, OR

40.92

Shanqin Bay HAINAN, CHINA

40.85

Victoria CHELTENHAM, AUSTRALIA

40.77

New

Machrihanish (Championship)

40.74

CAMPBELTOWN, SCOTLAND
OLD TOM MORRIS, 1879/J.H. TAYLOR, 1914/
GUY CAMPBELL, 1940S

45.09

Muirfield Village DUBLIN, OH

40.47

JACK NICKLAUS, 1974-2020

44.83

Yeamans Hall HANAHAN, SC

40.28

SETH RAYNOR, 1925

GEORGE LOW JR., 1897

42.50

ALISTER MACKENZIE, 1927/OGILVY CLAYTON
COCKING & MEAD, 2019

LYTHAM ST. ANNES, ENGLAND

Te Arai (South) TOMARATA, NEW

BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2012

DEER LODGE, MT TOM DOAK, 2008

42.63

DAVID MCLAY KIDD, 1999

H.S. COLT, 1895/TOM SIMPSON, HERBERT
TIPPET, GUY CAMPBELL, 1907

Old Town Club WINSTON-SALEM, NC

GEORGE MORRIS, 1869/H.S. COLT, 1924/ FRED
HAWTREE, 1960S/DONALD STEEL, 2000

WEYBRIDGE, ENGLAND H.S. COLT, 1913

46.33

(C.B. MACDONALD REINCARNATION)

42.77

ROCK, AUSTRALIA ALEX RUSSELL, 1932

A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1922

Les Bordes (New)

SHEBOYGAN, WI PETE DYE, 1998

SCOTLAND WILLIE FERNIE, 1887

42.94

BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2005
BOB HARRISON, 2017

Peachtree ATLANTA, GA

JEREMY TURNER, 1998-2015

AUSTRALIA ALISTER MACKENZIE, 1926/
ERIC APPERLY, 1947

43.08

KOREA RON FREAM, DAVID DALE, 2001

OLD TOM MORRIS, 1851/CHARLES HUNTER,
1882/JAMES BRAID, HAROLD HILTON, 1922

Ohoopee Match Club COBBTOWN,

SCOTLAND KYLE PHILLIPS, 1999

ISLAND, SC PETE DYE, 1991

43.43

ZEALAND BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2022

DONALD ROSS, 1919/ANDREW GREEN, 2017

Winged Foot (East)

PERRY MAXWELL, 1939

MUNGO PARK, 1894/GEORGE COBURN, 1896

43.84

GIL HANSE, JIM WAGNER, 2021

Portmarnock (Old) PORTMARNOCK,
IRELAND W.C. PICKERMAN, GEORGE ROSS,

Cabot Links INVERNESS, NOVA

SAINT-LAURENT-NOUAN, FRANCE

1905/H.S. COLT, 1912/S.V. HOTCHKIN, 1926

43.85

ROBERT TRENT JONES SR., BOBBY JONES, 1947

WOODHALL SPA, ENGLAND HARRY VARDON,

Royal Hague WASSENAAR,
THE NETHERLANDS

GA GIL HANSE, JIM WAGNER, 2018

SETH RAYNOR, 1926

43.90

MAMARONECK, NY A.W. TILLINGHAST, 1923

OLD TOM MORRIS, 1899/TOM SIMPSON, 1926

Myopia Hunt Club

SCOTIA, CANADA ROD WHITMAN, 2012

NEW ZEALAND TOM DOAK, 2004

44.44

J.S.F. MORRISON, C.H. ALISON, 1938

Sunningdale (New)
SUNNINGDALE, ENGLAND H.S. COLT, 1922

Point Hardy Golf Club CAP ESTATE,
ST. LUCIA BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2023
SOUTH HAMILTON, MA H.C. LEEDS, 1898

BILL COORE, BEN CRENSHAW, 2016

AVERAGE
SCORE

44.74

100

New

Royal Cinque Ports DEAL, ENGLAND

40.09

HENRY HUNTER, JAMES BRAID, 1919/
GUY CAMPBELL, HENRY COTTON, 1946

GOLF published its first
World Top 100 in 1985.
What has changed since?
Not the world—it remains
round and 57.5 million
square miles of terra firma.
But our approach to the
land—and the developers
of the world’s golf courses—
have changed dramatically.
50 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

At least at the very high end, which is what the
World Top 100 constitutes. More than half of the
courses from GOLF’s 1985 ranking don’t appear in
this 2023 edition. Of those 52 courses that fell out,
half were built between 1955 and 1985. On today’s
list, only Casa de Campo (No. 75) and Muirfield
Village (No. 98) were designed in that window.
The changes began in the 1990s, when Sand
Hills (No. 11) and then Bandon Dunes (No. 94)
burst onto the scene in the U.S. The destinationgolf movement was underway, and it gathered
steam when Barnbougle Dunes (No. 36), laid
across rumpled dunes on the Tasman Sea, and
Cape Kidnappers (No. 55), on cliffs that rise nearly
500 feet above the South Pacific, vaulted onto our
2005 world rankings. The “build it and they will
come” destination model was here to stay.
And look at what those Southern Hemisphere
gems have inspired! Following in the giant footsteps of Julian Robertson, the entrepreneur behind
Kidnappers, American financier Ric Kayne added
New Zealand’s Tara Iti (No. 20) and Te Arai
(South) (No. 85) to the World Top 100 menu. It
doesn’t stop there—word is that the just-opened

Clockwise from left: Gary Lisbon; Evan Schiller Photography; Gary Lisbon; Illustration by Joe McKendry

No. 88 / Lofoten Gimsøysand, Norway

North Course at Te Arai might be the equal of the
first two. Talk about an embarrassment of riches!
Today, coastal courses comprise nearly half of
this ranking, which shouldn’t be a surprise. These
settings almost guarantee two linchpins of great
golf: sandy soil and wind. Indeed, the sport started
in earnest along the North Sea in the 1800s, eventually turning inland in the early 1900s to be closer
to where most people lived. Now we’ve come full
circle, as world travel is affordable and accessible enough that more and more courses are being
built in exotic locations. Welcome for the first
time to our list, St. Lucia and Norway.
The Spice of Life? Variety.
The old days, when most courses were defined
as either parkland, heathland or links, are gone.
How, for example, do you classify Gil Hanse’s
Ohoopee Match Club (No. 81)? This inland gem
in rural Georgia isn’t parkland, it’s... scrubland.
What exactly is Ardfin (No. 65), on Scotland’s
Isle of Jura? It isn’t a links, nor is it cliff top. How
about Montana’s vast and rugged Rock Creek

R AT E R ’ S
TA K E

Noel
Freeman
AGE: 52/HCP: 5

L A FAY E T T E ,
C A L I F.

Golf in the UK—the
ultimate education
in architecture and
food for the soul

No. 73 / Rock
Creek Cattle Club
Deer Lodge, MT

No. 85 / Te Arai
(South)
Tomarata,
New Zealand

“My career has
afforded me the opportunity to travel
the globe, and in
1999 I met golf
architect Russell
Talley in London.
Over time, Russell
and I played 75
rounds together
on Great Britain’s
heathlands and
links, and I learned
from him the
nuances of how
golf courses are
designed. A personal
favorite has long
been Royal Cinque
Ports (Deal) on the
English Channel
coast, where the
thrill of projecting
a ball over subtle
hummocks, hollows
and dells speaks
directly to the soul
and engenders
enormous joy.
Micro-contours, as
opposed to massive
landforms, make
for the best golf.
In time, I came to
appreciate the
random nature
of where balls
trickle to in links
golf. That’s why I
have never tired of
playing Deal, even
after 100 rounds.
I also get a similar
rush at Machrihanish, on the Mull of
Kintyre in Scotland.
Two decades ago,
Russell taught me
that great golf
courses mix a bit of
quirk with strategy
dictated by nature.
How right he was.”

R AT E R ’ S
TA K E

Rodolfo
Barreto
AGE: 44/HCP: 3.3

S ÃO PA U L O ,
BRAZIL

Golf in California,
from the outside
looking in
“Bernard Darwin
once wrote that
some courses
are the perfect
meeting of land
and sea. As a young
golfer growing up
in Rio de Janeiro,
my version of that
perfection was the
recently renovated
Gavea Golf CC, with
part of the course
playing through
a tropical forest
overlooking the sea.
Later, I enrolled at
Stanford and played
on the golf team.
While living in Palo
Alto, I explored up
and down the West
Coast, playing the
best courses from
the Golden Age as
well as the recent
renaissance. And
in some ways, it
reminded me of
my native Brazil.
São Paulo GC and
Santapazienza enjoy
similar hilly terrain
to that of the
precious California
Golf Club at San
Francisco and LACC.
Still, the West
Coast’s variety and
abundant great golf
are unmatched, and,
even better, courses
like Pebble Beach,
Pasatiempo and the
Bandon complex are
open to everyone.
Memorable holes,
‘wow’ moments,
clever strategy and
routings that take
advantage of the
natural elements—
the West Coast has
it all!”

Once cleared of its trees, the featureless parcel
near Sand Valley Resort became the perfect canvas
on which to paint The Lido of old.
No. 68
The Lido
Rome, WI

52 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Illustration by Joe McKendry; Left: Courtesy Sand Valley; Right: Gary Lisbon

Cattle Company (No. 73)? You get my point—as
architects work in a wider range of environments,
pigeonholing courses is increasingly impossible.
If you wanted to play all 100 courses on our
world list, you’d need to visit 14 countries (p. 57),
and that’s counting England, Scotland, Wales
and Northern Ireland as one—the UK. Of this
year’s eight new entries, only The Lido (No. 68)
is situated in the States. Historically, an average of 54 U.S. courses make the list. This year,
that number dips to 49. Still, the best of American golf remains difficult to beat, holding down
10 of the list’s top 15 spots and 29 of the top 50.
Prairie golf in America remains as strong
as ever, with Sand Hills, Chicago Golf Club
(No. 17), Prairie Dunes (No. 26) and Ballyneal
(No. 51) all within or near the top half of the ranking. And another, Nebraska’s Caprock Ranch,
just missed making the list.
The relationship between parkland golf and
the World Top 100 is a little more nuanced. On
the 2005 list, over 40 courses were parkland in
nature. Today, that number is just over 20, with
the delta predominantly having been surrendered

to coastal courses. Regardless, courtesy of phenomenal restorations this century, the best parkland courses—stateside or elsewhere—are pretty
darn invincible.
Thank goodness, too, because most of us live
inland. Without a doubt, stellar putting surfaces
are at the heart of parkland golf ’s enduring allure.
Just think about the best of the best of that genre.
They’re household names for a variety of reasons, but the common denominator of Augusta
National (No. 9), Merion (No. 13), Oakland Hills
(No. 27) and Winged Foot (West) (No. 29) is their
superlative greens.

No. 97
Machrihanish
(Championship)
Campbeltown,
Scotland

2023

2024

Rolling With It
The one major knock on parkland golf is that its
fairways are rarely (as a Scottish friend likes to
say) “rumpy-bumpy.” The emergence of Te Arai
(South), Machrihanish (No. 97) and Royal
Cinque Ports (No. 100) highlights the importance of swales and unpredictable micro-contours
to our 119-person panel, and the need for fiddly
swing adjustments brought on by such undulating, rumpled and roly-poly fairways.

The king of all such fairways is, of course, The
Old Course at St. Andrews (No. 3). Today’s
architects do a much better job of incorporating nature’s random movements within their
fairways than their peers did back in the day.
Indeed, drink in the drone image of The Lido’s
1st, 2nd, 10th and 11th fairways (p. 52). Talk about
lumps! That kind of dynamic land movement
helps explain why the course makes the highest debut of all the top 100 newbies.
An Encore for the Ages
Despite our waxing on about the predominance of
coastal golf, The Lido unfurls in rural, heartland
Wisconsin. Even more interestingly, its architects,
C.B. Macdonald and his protégé Seth Raynor,
died eight-plus decades before the course’s 2023
completion. How can that be?
Mike Keiser, the pioneering entrepreneur
behind Bandon Dunes, long harbored a fascination with Macdonald’s lost Lido course, which
opened in 1917 along the Atlantic on the south
shore of Long Island but was plowed over 26
years later. Macdonald expert George Bahto
even drew up a plan for Keiser to re-create The
Lido on oceanfront land that eventually became
Bandon’s Old Macdonald course. While Keiser
never quite found the right parcel to pursue his
dream, his sons Michael and Chris did, though
in an unexpected spot: a large, flat tract of land
adjacent to their Sand Valley Resort. Cleared
of its trees, the featureless parcel became the
perfect canvas on which to paint The Lido of old.
Key to the effort was Peter Flores. He opensourced hundreds of vintage photos of the original course and fed them into a software program
to model The Lido as meticulously as possible.
Michael and Chris Keiser then hired Tom Doak to
build the course from Flores’ computer rendering.
Ultimately, the data was fed into GPS-equipped
dozers that shaped the course with startling
precision. Refinements were carried out in the
field, but the end result is an amazingly accurate
reincarnation of the original Lido.
Most of the great template holes are here, from
the Alps at No. 10 to the wicked Redan at No. 16.
Other fabled holes are present, including my favorite, the 15th. The green is straight ahead, some
405 yards from the tee, and walled off along its
right by two deep bunkers. A string of centerline bunkers punctuate the fairway. Look 75 yards
left of the flag and note some bunkers seemingly

54 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

No. 58
Woodhall Spa
(Hotchkin)
Woodhall Spa,
England

No. 95
Shanqin Bay
Hainan, China

2023

2024

No. 96
Victoria
Cheltenham,
Australia

out of play. Well, aim for them. An approach from
the far left side of the fairway opens up the green to
perfection. The hole is named Strategy, and, by all
means, a caddie is vital to discovering all the possible playing angles—and how they change with
the wind—when playing this epic design.
The Wow Factor Refined
Point Hardy Golf Club, aka Cabot St. Lucia, joins
the ranking at No. 76. If a picture is worth a thousand words, the one of Point Hardy on this issue’s
cover speaks volumes. Still, nothing prepares you

R AT E R ’ S
TA K E

Paul
Arnould
AGE: 33/HCP: +1

EVIAN,
FRANCE

Gary Lisbon; Illustration by Joe McKendry

Forward thinking
in the States—by
preserving golf’s
magnificent past
“America is a land of
great golf diversity.
In August, I was fortunate to play some
sand-based jewels
in remote Wisconsin, including The
Lido, several classic
parkland courses,
including Oakland
Hills, and to enjoy
the open expanse of
Chicago Golf Club. In
all cases, I observed
a desire for purity as
well as an appreciation for classic features. The tree population might harbor
regrets, but I admire
how Americans have
prioritized fast and
firm playing conditions at their inland
courses. The time,
money and attention
to detail invested by
American clubs to
respect and restore
their heritage is
amazing, even a bit
daunting. Chicago
GC was so impressive as, in part, it
demonstrates that
greatness doesn’t
come from fancy
artifacts but rather
with perfectly executed architecture
mastery. I have no
doubt that some
of the greats who
have worked in this
country, including
C.B. Macdonald and
Donald Ross, would
be thrilled with how
their courses are
presented and how
their works more
than stand up to the
modern golf ball.”

No. 53
Kawana (Fuji)
Ito-Shi, Japan

56 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

2023

2024

TOP 100 COURSES BY COUNTRY
Australia
Canada
China
Dominican Republic
France
Ireland
Japan
New Zealand
Norway
South Korea
St. Lucia
The Netherlands
UK
United States

6
2
1
1
2
4
2
3
1
1
1
1
26
49

R AT E R ’ S
TA K E

Michael
Blackham
AGE: 42/HCP: +1

No. 83
Les Bordes (New)
Saint-Laurent-Nouan,
France

H O L L A D AY,
U TA H

Don’t miss out on
the UK’s beguiling
heathland courses

No. 84
Old Town Club
Winston-Salem, NC

for the sensation that you feel standing on the
island 15th tee and staring at the diagonal carry
over a 100-foot cliff to a rolling fairway, with a view
of the 16th green in the distance across an inlet.
This new Coore & Crenshaw marvel, which
joins the Cabot family of stunning coastal courses,
features half its greens along the Atlantic—and
sets the tongue wagging. Still, to make the World
Top 100, a course has to be strong from top to bottom, and Point Hardy’s interior holes fascinate.
No. 2 edges uphill along an interior bluff. The leftto-right wind off the ocean pushes you right, but
the best angle/view of the green is afforded along
the left, closer to the bluff. It’s a game of cat and
mouse between architect and player—just how
much risk do you want to take? Easy to see why

58 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

it’s one of Bill Coore’s favorite holes. I consider
the 448-yard, par-4 18th—which calls for a second
shot over a sandy cove—to be Coore & Crenshaw’s
finest finishing hole, and that’s saying a lot.
Otherworldly Awesomeness
Norway’s Lofoten Links (No. 88), which graced
GOLF’s cover in 2019, finally received the minimum number of votes it needed to be eligible for
Top 100 inclusion. Its visionary owner, Frode Hov,
and British architect Jeremy Turner have done a
wonderful job transforming their initial six-hole
course in 1998 to today’s stunner. I headed there in
late May and, all things considered, experienced
perhaps the single most exhilarating day I’ve ever
had on a golf course.

Previous page: Courtesy Kawana; This page: Illustration by Joe
McKendry; Clockwise from top left: Courtesy Les Bordes; Nick
Wall; Andy Johnson/The Fried Egg

“Too many golfers
skip heathland golf
to focus on links golf,
yet this genre of golf
is what inspired venerable Pine Valley.
The sandy-rolling
topography allows
for a vast variety
of shots, while the
heather, pines,
bunkers and native
grasses bring an
endless contrast of
color and shades.
Sunningdale Old and
New, Swinley Forest
and St. George’s
Hill are the tip of
the iceberg, but the
depth of heathland
golf in the UK is vast
and includes Woking,
West Sussex and
Hollinwell. It’s
baffling that such
courses are ignored
by the itinerant golfer, but lucky for me!
Speaking of travel,
I journeyed from
England to Norway
this year to play
Lofoten Links. It
isn’t around the corner from anywhere,
but I was richly
rewarded for the
effort, and the
three-hour drive
from Evenes to the
course is nearly as
awe-inspiring as
the course itself.
Lofoten is ineffable;
no words do justice
to playing golf inside
the Arctic Circle.
Jeremy Turner and
Frode Hov should be
applauded for the
smart and fun golf
course they
designed. Just go!”

Next page: Gary Lisbon

The old days are gone. As architects work in a wider
range of environments, pigeonholing courses as, say,
parkland or heathland is increasingly impossible.

The setting—whether you are observing the
2,500-foot snow-covered peaks as you putt out on
13 or the choppy Norwegian sea as you stroll down
the 16th fairway—forces you to reach for a thesaurus to describe the allure of golf played inside the
Arctic Circle. Look at the tee ball requirement at
the 420-yard 14th on page 50: Hitting a power fade
at Hoven Mountain and watching the ball bend
right with the fairway before it disappears over
the tundra is a perfect match of golf to setting.
Imagine stuffing your approach close on No. 18
at 2:45 a.m. in the Land of the Midnight Sun. We
were told to come back in late August for the
Northern Lights, when the course really shines.
Good grief. If ever you’re going to reconnect with
nature, it’s here. Falsterbo GC, in south Sweden,

was once in our Top 100. Otherwise, the next
nearest world-class course to Lofoten is Royal
Dornoch (No. 10), over 900 miles away.
Speaking of closeness, after greenskeeper
Jerry Mulvihill bedded down Lofoten for the 2022
winter, he went to St. Lucia to help his friend and
fellow greenskeeper Damon Di Giorgio with the
grow-in at Point Hardy. The “band of brothers”
camaraderie found within greenskeeping is one
of the really special aspects of that profession.

No. 55
Cape Kidnappers
Te Awanga,
New Zealand

2023

2024

The Venerable... and the Modern Age
I’ve yet to speak about the top 10 courses. Why?
Because they hardly ever change. Yet again, Pine
Valley maintains a comfortable lead at No. 1. In
fact, there was zero movement in the top nine

What’s so phenomenal about golf today? It introduces
you to the full spectrum of wonders found in nature.

spots. Royal Dornoch, Muirfield and Sand Hills
jostled for spots 10 through 12, with Sand Hills
just barely slipping out of the top 10, meaning
no course built after 1950 cracks that top tier.
Twenty-nine “modern” courses—those built
after 1946—occupy Nos. 11 through 100. On those
29, there’s no escaping Pete Dye’s impact. The
late, legendary architect is directly responsible
for three courses: Casa de Campo, The Ocean
Course at Kiawah (No. 62) and Whistling
Straits (No. 91). But designers who worked for
and learned from Dye—including Coore, Doak
and Rod Whitman—tack a whooping 16 courses
onto that tally. The “Dye Tree” shapes these contemporary treasures.
Where Credit Is Due
More than just architects deserve recognition. These 100 courses represent some of the
world’s highest standards of greenskeeping. Stephen Rabideau at Winged Foot, Craig Smith at
Chicago GC, Jon Wall at Shanqin Bay (No. 95)
and their crews provide playing surfaces that
allow those designs to sparkle.
And let’s not forget the developers. After all,
neither architects nor greenskeepers procure the
land or determine what restrictions are placed on it
(housing, etc.). It’s the developer who takes the formidable up-front capital risk for land acquisition,
course construction and infrastructure. Securing
permits and sourcing equipment to remote locations isn’t as glamorous as you may think.
Indeed, how courses come to be has changed
significantly from the 1800s, when locals would
get together to create a private club, then contact
the best player they knew to lay out a course. Those
days have mostly been replaced by visionary entrepreneurs willing to lay out gobs of money for the
sake of eventually attracting a loyal customer base.
Just in the past few years, we have lost several
such pioneers who brought us incredibly compelling golf, men like Mark Parsinen (Kingsbarns,
No. 86; Castle Stuart, No. 89), Herb Kohler

60 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

(Whistling Straits) and Julian Robertson (Cape
Kidnappers).
We are witnessing a changing of the guard.
Trailblazer Mike Keiser enjoys an unmatched
record of creating world-class experiences for
the recreational golfer. How lucky are we to see
his sons Michael, 42, and Chris, 35, carry on that
legacy with The Lido, their first entrant to this list?
The pair have several more exciting projects set to
open over the next few years.
Ben Cowan-Dewar, 44, is already tied to four
courses on this list (Point Hardy, Castle Stuart,
Cabot Cliffs, No. 52 and Cabot Links, No. 79) and
has three other high-profile projects well underway in the Canadian Rockies, Florida and the Scottish Highlands. What can Ric Kayne possibly do for
an encore after his Kiwi successes? Might Frode
Hov follow on from Lofoten and build another
course in his enchanting home country? Going
forward, look to these entrepreneurs to play a key
role in the growth of the game.
The Great Equalizer
Few courses can compete with the natural beauty
of places like Kawana (No. 53), with its views of
Mt. Fuji (p. 56) to the northwest, and Ardfin, in
the Inner Hebrides. Both move up nine spots
in this ranking. Yet, course architecture is the
great equalizer—and it’s what makes our ranking more than a beauty contest. Plenty of courses
built over muted landforms hold great favor with
our panelists, including Muirfield, Chicago GC,
Pinehurst No. 2 (No. 21), Garden City (No. 48),
Baltusrol (Lower) (No. 67), Les Bordes (New)
(No. 83) and Yeamans Hall (No. 99). Superb
golf architecture is the common thread that runs
through these seven incredibly diverse tracks.
That’s what’s so phenomenal about golf today.
It introduces you to the full spectrum of wonders
found in nature—from the audacious to the elemental to the sublime. The biggest challenge is
deciding where to play next. The fantastic thing?
There are no wrong decisions.

No. 78
Royal Hague
Wassenaar,
The Netherlands

Scan the code
above to download
the full 2023–24
Top 100 Courses
in the World list.

The better-than-average
Joes—Hallett and
Plecker—are known
to lurk around putting
greens in search of
answers to questions
that bother them.

THE LONG &
THE SHORT OF IT
PROVEN DATA
REVEALS
THAT IF
YOU PUTT
LIKE THIS...

By Joe Hallett
and Joe Plecker

Photographs by Christopher Lane

GOLF TOP 100
TEACHER S

...YOU’LL
RARELY
MISS!

Over our careers, we’ve seen golfers suffer from
pushes, pulls, too-long and too-short putts, to say
nothing of (yikes!) the yips. Almost all of these
well-intentioned players miss while trying to accelerate through
impact. Lucky for them (and you), we have a solution, one
developed years ago and verified using today’s technology.
It dates back to me, Joe Hallett, meeting Art Olfs early in my
teaching career. Olfs was a mathematician and engineer who
was fascinated with—of all things—putting strokes. He found
that a good putter’s follow-through was much shorter than
their backstroke. Using hand-written equations and charts,
he proved that these players didn’t accelerate through impact
as most golfers think but, rather, moved the putterhead at a
constant rate of speed so it could simply collide with the ball.
As Olfs’ data set grew, I, Joe Plecker, began measuring
dynamics in players with the yips and found the same results,
the most important being that good putters vary backstroke
length to control distance. Moreover, they let the putter “fall”
into the ball, resulting in less face twisting and centered strikes.
The equation Olfs found—and that we have tried to disprove—
is that the optimum stroke employs a 60:40 ratio for all putts.
Turn the page to learn how it works!

Taking Olfs’ cues and
research performed
using the SAM PuttLab
(see right), we found that
over-accelerating the
putterhead from the end of
the backstroke to impact
dramatically and negatively
affects control, face
rotation (twist) and total
forward stroke size. The
goal, as the data proves,
is to swing it more like a
pendulum, moving the
putter back and through
the same distance with zero
speed manipulation—a pure
50:50 stroke (i.e., equal on
both sides of the bottom of
its arc). In reality, however,
it’s more like 60:40,
because the ball eventually
gets in the way. This minor
collision indeed impedes the
natural flow of your stroke,
limiting, albeit slightly,
the length of your followthrough. And since the ball
“knows” only what happens
at impact, the length it
travels is almost entirely
decided by how far you take
the putter back.

NO! Golfers who rapidly accelerate in the forward stroke experience errors in speed control and
putterface twisting—and can develop the yips. A shaky acceleration profile is what forces these
players to change putters and mechanics on a whim. Don’t let it be you!

IMPACT

YES! Notice the flatter and less shaky acceleration profile that comes from using a 60:40
stroke. Also, the lack of any real putterface rotation. This has smooooth written all over it.

IMPACT

2
THE 60:40 RECIPE
Now that you understand the science, put it to the test!
Place a mark on the green where you normally position the
ball in your putting stance. Make your everyday stroke. Have
a friend mark where your backstroke ended with a tee and
set a second tee on the target side of the mark at roughly
two-thirds that distance. (For example, if your backstroke
traveled 12 inches, set the second tee eight inches in front of
the mark.) Replace the mark with a ball. Now putt, stopping
your backstroke at the first tee and then letting your putter
“fall” into the ball. Keep putting. Over time, you’ll notice that
your stroke automatically stops at the second tee. More
important, your putts roll out the same distance. Feel free
to cheat the drill setup with the Putting Stick (tpkgolf.com),
which marks several 60:40 combos for you.

64 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Christopher Lane; Illustraions by Ben Mounsey-Wood

1
STROKE
SCIENCE

WHIPPY PUTTER
DRIVER
WEDGE
SHOVEL

3
HOW TO
GET THE
60:40 FEEL

If you adhere to the
60:40 rule and always
let your putter fall
to the ball instead of
accelerating it, you can
putt with anything.
Here, Joe Plecker has
grouped putts with an
old putter, a driver, a
wedge—even a shovel!
On practice strokes,
use your eyes to dial in
the correct backstroke
length (the “60”).

Hit the practice green
with a new box of balls.
Choose a straight target,
set up your 60:40 stroke
guides as in the test at left
and start rolling putts.
Your goal: Group as many
putts together as you can.
(Hint: Once you’re able
to consistently make the
same 60:40 stroke size,
your putts will begin to
gather nicely.) Coming up
short? Easy. Make a longer
backstroke but keep the
same 60:40 ratio. Do the
opposite if you’re rolling
it too far. In either case,
always let the putter fall
to the ball. The method
works so well you can
putt with a whippy putter,
driver, wedge or a shovel!

4
TRUST
THE
PHYSICS
(AND THE
TEES)

Scan the code
above to learn
more about the
60:40 putting
technique from
Joe Hallett and
Joe Plecker.

START LIKE THIS

Before any round, warm
up on the practice green
with the tee drill to get a
feel for how far the ball is
rolling using your 60:40
stroke. When you get your
touch just right, you’re
ready to go low.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

You’ve heard every putting
tip in the game, yet you
still miss. Focusing on the
dynamics of your 60:40
putting stroke will solve
many issues currently
plaguing your putting,
such as squaring the face,
hitting the sweet spot
and owning your distance
control.
TRY A HEAVY PUTTER!

If you find it difficult
to swing your current
putter like a pendulum,
try a heavier model or add
weight to the putterhead.
This helps free up your new
swinging stroke. Also, a
softer grip never hurts on
the greens.
OBEY YOUR STANCE

66 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

60%

40%

Christopher Lane

Use your setup as a
personal framework to
manage all putt lengths.
Short, medium, long and
extra-long putts are
as easy as controlling
the length of your
backstroke—a single
variable—in relation to your
feet. With a little practice,
you’ll be money from all
points around the cup.

Marty Jertson would, in Ted Lasso lingo, be considered a “goldfish”:
a resilient guy who turned some bum luck into a brilliant career. Just ask the
believers at PING, who’ve watched the club designer blossom.

THE
MAN WHO
KNEW
SO MUCH
By Jonathan Wall / Photographs by Matt Martian Williams

Right: Jertson, photographed at PING HQ in Phoenix on September 26, 2023, sits below a portrait of company founder Karsten Solheim.
The men share more than just a love of golf. Innovation was Solheim’s genius, and Jertson draws inspiration from that.

68 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

MARTY JERTSON
HAD A THEORY HE
WANTED
TO CHASE.
Before pros started recording clubhead speeds in excess of
140 mph, PING’s current vice president of fitting and performance pondered the upper limits of clubhead speed for a golfer.
How fast could someone swing it?
Through research and observation, Jertson noticed there
was a difference between how fast golfers were willing to
swing in speed-training sessions, when impacting the ball
wasn’t part of the equation, versus a normal cut where they
were mentally prepared for a clubface-to-ball collision. Call
it a “cognitive governor.”
Armed with a relatively new motion capture system,
Jertson went to work 3D-printing a club that required endless amounts of plastic, Bondo self-adhesive, sanding and
fashioning of reflective markers in order to bring it to life.

70 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

One of Jertson’s colleagues, PING’s director of golf science,
Erik Henrikson, recalls that the project took a week to get to
the point where the homemade club could launch a small
Wiffle ball.
Excited to see if insights could be gleaned from the test,
Jertson put the club in motion—and watched as it exploded
on impact into more pieces than anyone could count.
“It was a week of work for one shot,” Henrikson recalls.
“Marty was snapping the thing together and putting in all
this effort—and then it’s done. I think the test, even with the
humorous ending, stoked his curiosity even further. Marty’s
always been that way. He’s constantly trying to uncover if
there’s a different path we should be considering.”
Jertson, 43, willingly admits the initial club was a failure. But the test helped spawn numerous successful speedtraining breakthroughs, including the innovative Stack
System, which he cocreated a few years ago with biomechanist Dr. Sasho MacKenzie. It powered Matthew Fitzpatrick
to his win at the 2022 U.S. Open.
“I think that’s all we do: fail and learn,” Jertson says, during
a brief moment of respite in between meetings at PING’s Phoenix headquarters. “For a lot of successful people, failure can
be a catalyst for great ideas. Failure generally opens the door
to five or 10 more questions you don’t know the answer to,
which keeps you curious and engaged.”
For Jertson, failure has indeed opened doors and taken his
career in the industry and his golf game to new heights. But
it didn’t happen overnight.
Prior to joining PING in 2003, Jertson was a promising
All-American at the Colorado School of Mines, a kid who was
a standard-bearer at the Phoenix Open as a youngster and
who aspired to play professional golf for a living. A career in
golf club development wasn’t even on his radar.
The research university, he says, “was big in oil and gas
exploration. I figured I’d do that, automotive or aerospace
with my engineering degree. But first, I really wanted to see
if I could make it on tour.”
Jertson spent 2002, his first year out of college, plying his
trade on mini-tours, trying to scratch together enough coin to

Left: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

Opposite: Jertson at the 2019 PGA Championship at Bethpage Black, where he finished 82nd, the best showing of his six appearances in the majors.
Above: At the Proving Grounds range, Jertson compares and shares pointers on the new Co-Pilot fitter tool with PING master fitter James Lee III.

support himself. But nothing seemed to click. The more pressure he heaped on himself, the more things didn’t go his way.
It officially came to a head later in the year, when he missed
the first stage of PGA Tour Q-School.
“All the prep, and you get through Q-School or you don’t,”
he says. “It’s a binary thing—and it’s still kinda like that. Once
Q-School was over, I remember driving back home, trying to
make some life decisions.”
Though Jertson didn’t realize it at the time, the Q-School
setback was a blessing in disguise. While he contemplated his
next move, a mini-tour friend connected him with an acquaintance at PING, and his life trajectory immediately changed.
Jertson came on as a part-time employee, initially in the
manufacturing and engineering department, and worked on
setting up the assembly line for each part of the G2 driver, a
job that eventually set him on a path to club design.
“I’m a golf junkie like everybody else out there,” he says,
“and for the first time I remember thinking I could marry
those two things together: my engineering degree and my
addiction to golf. I think the lesson is that there’s luck along
the way, and I probably got lucky just meeting the right people at the right time—and getting in the door at PING.”

TAKE A PEEK
AT THE CLUBS IN
YOUR GOLF BAG
and you’ll notice there’s no mention of the designers who
brought them to life, which is a shame. Club designers remain
the unsung heroes in the equipment space, a coterie of brilliant
minds who somehow find a means to turn cutting-edge concepts into game-changing creations for pros and amateurs alike.
Over the last two decades at PING, Jertson, with childlike
curiosity and a never-ending drive to innovate, has become
one of the most influential and respected designers in the
industry. His résumé boasts more than 125 patents and countless club designs, including development work on the original “turbulators” (an aerodynamic-enhancing feature on the
crown), introduced on the company’s G30 driver and PING’s
first foray into the world of adjustable drivers with Anser.
There’s no question Jertson eats, sleeps and breathes club
design—but it doesn’t define him. The self-described “bio-

hacker” constantly seeks new ways to improve his health and
well-being, with the help of an ultra-strict routine that fuels
him through the workday. With pockets of free time at a premium, Jertson starts each day in his Phoenix home with a walk
on a treadmill desk so he can catch up on emails and breeze
through administrative tasks before his two sons awaken and
throw his morning into a state of flux.
There’s no time for breakfast, just a cup of coffee. Lunch
has been the same thing for the last 10 years: a salad he usually
consumes between meetings. Predictability keeps him sane.

requires golfers to play the same ball model during competition.)
“I did a triple take,” he recalls. “I’ve always wanted to switch
balls during the round, so my brain just started going crazy.
There’s definitely a reason to switch balls on different holes.”
Using the work he’s done on Ballnamic, PING’s web-based
ball-fitting algorithm, Jertson was able to confirm that certain
balls flew five to seven yards farther than other models—and
that was just hitting irons.
“In the testing we’ve done, some balls go a little farther and
others a little shorter on iron strikes, which could be used to your

“I’m a golf junkie like everybody else out there, and for the first
time I remember thinking I could marry those two things together:

The impact Jertson (left) and his work have had on golfers extends beyond PING superstars like Viktor Hovland and Tony Finau and the weekend
warriors who wield the clubs he’s designed. The Stack System he co-pioneered pushed Matt Fitzpatrick over the top at the 2022 U.S. Open.

“But even with these efficiencies in place,” Jertson says,
“I sometimes finish the day and it’s like, Holy moly, what just
happened? I’ll go into one meeting and have a creative session
about some far-out ideas, and then the next session is very
tactical about the tools we’re doing with our fitters. A lot of
times, I’m toggling back and forth. I’ve had to train that skill
to compartmentalize, to be very focused wherever I am.”
The hyper-focus is a necessity for a guy who, these days,
wears myriad hats at PING. It’s also made it easier for Jertson
to find time to keep his game sharp on the course as a “semiretired” Class A PGA professional who continues to get better—and longer off the tee. With the help of the Stack System he
helped create, Jertson has qualified for five PGA Championships,
the 2020 U.S. Open and numerous PGA Tour events. That’s in
addition to the Southwest PGA events he’s won along the way.
What makes his success on the course so fascinating is how
he sometimes uses the tournaments as a proving ground for
theories he’s working on in the office. The latest example came
this year, during U.S. Open local qualifying, when Jertson was
informed that the “one-ball rule” was not in effect. (The rule

72 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

advantage on par 3s,” he says. “One of the challenges for me as
a working player is that I’m not good at the tweener yardages.”
To see if the idea had merit, Jertson played a tournament
with different balls designed to provide performance benefits
in specific conditions. He played a ball that flew aerodynamically lower and went less offline into the wind and another
that launched higher and spun more on downwind shots.
He also assumed, based on the course setup, that he’d be
closer to the green with his approaches, so he added a third
ball that spun more on wedge shots. If you’re keeping track
at home, that’s three different balls for one tournament. Jertson wound up winning the event and is now considering putting into play as many as five different balls, depending on the
course and conditions.
Even with Jertson’s impressive track record on the golf
course, practice sessions don’t happen nearly as often as he
would like. Blame that on the expansion of his role at PING,
which now extends well beyond golf club design into the
arenas of Artificial Intelligence, data, coding and widgets.
These days, Jertson is not only trying to make PING’s clubs

From left: Matt Martian Williams; David Cannon/Getty Images; Warren Little/Getty Images; Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images

my engineering degree and my addiction to golf.”

better, he’s also trying, through the PING Academy, to keep
the company’s extensive network of fitters up to date on the
latest PING research and insights. There’s also iPING, an
advanced algorithm designed to guide putter fittings; a new
fitter tool called AFS 3D that’s simplifying the club-fitting process; and a partnership with Arccos where data findings from
amateur golfers are used to shape future product development.
Jertson oversees one other arrow in PING’s quiver. Called
Co-Pilot, it has the potential to completely change the way
the equipment manufacturer conducts fittings. Powered by
a platform similar to Ballnamic, the fitting tool set spits out
suggestions on everything from set composition, club suggestions and adjustments that can be made to squeeze every
last ounce of distance out of a PING driver. Co-Pilot has also
been used to help pros adjust their setup for PGA Tour events
at higher elevations, where changes are likely needed.
Yes, Jertson’s list of responsibilities is extensive. Yet somehow he’s found time to take on more forward-facing duties
as the cohost of PING’s
Scan this code to pick
Proving Grounds podup one of Jertson’s
most invaluable
cast and to mentor sevinventions: the Stack
eral PING engineers
swing speed trainer
(at fairwayjockey.com).
along the way. Men-

Jertson Drops Some Science

toring is a role Jertson has embraced during his two decades
with the company, and a new crop of designers has flourished
under his tutelage. “This team of engineers and designers is
special,” he says. “Cory Bacon, Travis Milleman, Ryan Stokke—
the list of names could go on and on. I’ve felt lucky to work
with them under our apprenticeship model. I almost feel like
the students have surpassed their teacher.”
It’s high praise from Jertson, but in PING HQ the feeling is
mutual. Bacon, who recently took the lead on his first driver
project (the G430), played golf at Colorado School of Mines
and in 2011 was offered an internship at PING that turned
into a job one year later. He’s blazed his own trail during his
10-plus years with the company, but he freely admits Jertson
played a crucial role in his development.
“He’s the one who has mentored me through my entire career
here,” Bacon says. “He helped me get my internship, suggested
that they hire me when I graduated and basically tutored me
for the first four years. I owe a lot to Marty. Having the ability
to lean on him, to ask about how he did things when he was in
my role, helped a ton throughout the development of the G430.
He’s always willing to lend a hand, which I greatly appreciate.”
Jertson might not be a household name like PING staffers
Viktor Hovland or Tony Finau, but he’s just as important to
the future of PING Golf. With Jertson on its team, the equipment manufacturer is well positioned to do big things.
Now, if only the guy could find time to get in a few more
range sessions.

ASK MARTY ABOUT ANYTHING AND HE’LL HAVE
GAME-CHANGING TIPS. HERE ARE SIX.

1. “An easy way to hit it
farther with your driver is
to curve it less. A straighter
ballflight off the tee will
increase your total distance.
Maximize your efficiency
and stop bleeding distance
by hitting your driver as the
crow flies.”
2. “In most scenarios, with
a driver fitting, prioritize
distance over accuracy at
a ratio of 2:1. If you gain 20
yards with a longer driver,
for example, the left-right
dispersion can grow by up
to 10 yards, and it will still be
better for scoring (from a
Strokes Gained perspective).
We see too many shorthitting golfers over-prioritize
hitting more fairways.”

3. “How you utilize your
3-wood is highly dependent
on your clubhead speed. If
you hit your driver 250-plus
yards, you’re likely to hit your
3-wood more off the tee
than off the ground. Keep
this in mind as you get fit for
a 3-wood. Longer players
should prioritize tee-shot
performance, while golfers
who hit their driver less
than 250 yards should focus
their lowest lofted fairway
wood as a club to hit off the
ground. This is why PING
makes an LST for faster
players and the SFT for the
everyday golfer.”
4. “You may not realize it,
but you hit your mid-irons
about 50 percent of the time
off the tee. So you should

be practicing your 6-, 7and 8-irons off the tee and
evaluating them off a tee—
not just off the ground—
during the fitting process.
Considering all lies, about
one-third of your mid- and
short irons will be from the
fairway, one-third from
the rough and one-third on
par 3s off the tee.”
5. “The spin rate of a golf
ball doesn’t tell the whole
story. We’ve seen very highspin balls achieve a low peak
height, and we’ve seen lowspin balls achieve a high
peak height—influenced
by aerodynamics, dimples
and inertial differences. We
developed Ballnamic, our
ball-fitting app, to enable
you to simulate outdoor

flight from initial shortrange (indoor) launch
conditions.”
6. “With putting, outside of
basic length, loft and lie, the
two most crucial aspects
to match to your stroke
are your face rotation (how
much you twist the shaft
around the handle) and your
tempo (ratio of backswing
time to forward swing time),
neither of which you can
see with the naked eye. The
more you rotate the face,
the more of a toe-down
(strong arc) putt you should
use. Don’t shoot for a Tour
average tempo. Instead,
match your putterhead
weight to your natural
cadence.”

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74 GOLF.COM / M o n t h 2 0 2 0

Scan here to
explore all the
options Hazy
Sticks has
to offer and buy
your own
set at Fairway
Jockey.

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023

To learn more about
and purchase the
items in this gift
guide, visit Our Picks
(golf.com/ourpicks)
or follow the
codes throughout
these pages to
Fairway Jockey
(fairwayjockey.com).

This code will
take you to
Fairway Jockey,
where you can
buy your own
Hypervolt Pro 2.

Training Aids

Previous page and left: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh

Hazy Sticks
$72
(previous spread)
This is the most dynamic
training aid you can stick
in your bag... Get it? But
honestly, you will not find
a pro who doesn’t carry
alignment sticks. Notice
next time you’re watching golf on TV, when the
players are warming up or
practicing on the range,
they’re all using alignment
sticks. They’ve become
ubiquitous.
Alignment sticks can
be used for proper stance
and setup, to trace takeaway paths and to help fix
backswing and downswing
flaws. The uses are endless,
and Hazy makes the highest quality sticks you’ll find.
They’re constructed of 100
percent genuine hickory
wood with nickel endcaps
and are available in tons of
fun colors. You can choose
a premade design or you
can customize the sticks
in six different styles and
in a range of more than 30
colors. You can even add
engraved text in any font.
Hyperice Hypervolt
Pro 2
$329
Did your last workout leave
you sore? Great, we love to
hear you’re making gains,
and now you can know what

it feels like to recover like
the pros. Hyperice is the
Official Recovery System
of the PGA Tour, the NFL
and the NBA. Seriously,
these massagers are the
real deal. Rory McIlroy,
Patrick Mahomes and
Christian McCaffrey use
the device not only for their
sports but also in their daily lives. Get the same powerful percussion massage
therapy as the pros right
in the palm of your hand.
With five variable speeds
and a new digital dial, the
Hypervolt 2 Pro helps you
recover faster so you can
get back to doing more of
what you love. No matter
where you’re making gains,
this Hyperice device helps
you target the sore and
tight areas for a seamless
recovery.
Raindrop
$50
With nearly 20 feet of
retractable cable, the
Raindrop allows you to
take the guesswork out
of green-reading. This convenient training aid is designed to help you find your
start line and allows you to
build extreme confidence
with your putter.
Putt King Pro Green
$900
Bring the practice green
with you any time, any
where. With high-quality

materials and a non-skid
foam base, you can dial in
your flatstick from wherever you might be—giving you
an edge once golf season
kicks into high gear.
Rukket Sports Haack
Pro
$190
No time to beat balls at the
driving range or sneak in a
round at your home track?
Create the feeling of your
favorite course with this
high-quality practice net.
Now you can work on your
ball striking and swing
mechanics right in your
own backyard.
Short Game Gains
Putting Mirror
$50
The Short Game Gains
Putting Mirror is designed
to help you master consistency. Confidently stand

over your ball knowing that
your setup, stroke and
start line are all aligned
properly, allowing you
to put your best stroke
forward. With instant
feedback after each shot,
not only will this putting
mirror dissect any problem,
but it will provide you with
the answers to becoming
an absolute sniper on the
greens. While this putting
aid can’t guarantee lower
strokes with the flatstick,
before long you’ll see a
decrease in putts each
round. Those bogey putts
will become par opportunities, and you’ll be leaving
your playing partners in the
dust. You can spend years
trying to cure your slice
without progress. But with
the Short Game Gains Putting Mirror, you’ll get quick
results, saving strokes any
time you’re on the green.

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023
ter configuration and is the
same putter Lucas Glover
used to win back-to-back
weeks on the PGA Tour.
Cleveland Frontline Elite
RHO Slant
$299
The Frontline Elite series of
putters feature a tungsten
SOFT insert to push the
center of gravity as close
to the face as possible and
help reduce gear effect on
putts missed away from
the sweet spot. The RHO
model comes in two hosel
options to help golfers
find the best fit for their
putting stroke style—either
straight back or slight arc.

Bags

Putters
TaylorMade TP
Reserve
$400
The TP Reserve line of
putters, including the M33
above, features classic
shape profiles milled from
303 stainless steel. The designs also include machined
grooves for a crisp impact
sound and feel along with
precision weighting to
increase MOI and perfectly
balance the putterhead
based on length.
PING G Le3
$300
PING’s new G Le3 line
for women includes four
classic putter models to
better deliver performance
on the greens. The putters
use an optimized two-piece
Pebax elastomer insert
with PLD-inspired shallow
grooves and a firmer back
to ensure the optimal combination of feel, forgiveness and distance control.

Odyssey TriHot 5K
$400
The Odyssey Tri-Hot 5K
putters (One, Two, Three,
Double Wide and Triple
Wide) utilize a multi-material construction including
high-density tungsten heel
and toe weights for more
forgiveness and to make it
easier to square the face
at impact for a truer roll
toward the target.
Scotty Cameron Phantom
X 5.5
$450
The Phantom X line from
Scotty Cameron, including
the 5.5, is designed to deliver the best combination
of alignment, feel, for-

78 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

giveness and precision for
golfers who prefer a mallet
shape and a crisp feel at
impact. The lightweight
aircraft-grade aluminum
sole helps save weight and
boost the MOI without
having to increase the
head size.

$295
This golf bag may have the
word Sunday in the name,
but, make no mistake, the
Vessel Sunday III Stand
is equipped to meet the
everyday needs of the
modern walking golfer.
Weighing in at 4.55 lbs,
this double-strapped bag,
which is easily converted to
a single strap, has plenty of
room with five pockets and
is ideal for the player who
carries every day.

L.A.B. Golf MEZZ.1 MAX
$469
L.A.B. Golf putters and
their lie angle–balancing
technology are designed
to produce zero torque
through the putting stroke,
meaning the putterface
stays square to the arc and
through impact more easily. The MEZZ.1 MAX comes
in a standard and long put-

Sun Mountain Kube
$270
Ever struggle with what
to do with your travel bag
when you’re not using it
or putting it in your rental
car while on vacation? Sun
Mountain has solved the
puzzle with the Kube, a
travel cover that folds up
into the size of a small
suitcase when not in use.

Putter, stand bag: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh

Vessel Sunday III
Stand

There’s more
on the Vessel
bag and a chance
to buy one when
you follow
this code to
Fairway Jockey.

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023
Miura MacKenzie Original
Walker Bag
$850
Minimalism has returned
with a vengeance in today’s
golf bags, and this MiuraMacKenzie collaboration
captures the trend perfectly. The gorgeous design
is constructed with sage
waxed canvas from one of
the oldest fabric finishers
in the country.

This code
will take you
to Fairway
Jockey, where
you can buy the
Jones Ranger
for yourself.

Accessories
Jones Ranger Shag
Bag Cooler Pouch
$55
When it comes to cool
golf gifts that anyone
would love, it’s natural to
gravitate toward proven
crowd-pleasers: coolers
and shag bags. Everyone
could use at least one of
those. But if you’re strug-

gling with which product
to prioritize, Jones Sports
Co. has solved the problem
by masterfully combining
the best of both items
into a single showstopper:
the Ranger. As a longtime
bestseller, this versatile
bag has serious staying
power and is destined to
become the lucky recipient’s most trusted companion for years to come.

There’s space for six dozen
golf balls or six beverages,
and all are kept nice and
tidy with an insulated liner
and drawstring closure.
It even comes with Jones’
signature circle base to
help keep the bag upright.
With a few extra weeks of
production time, you can
personalize your Ranger
with custom embroidery in
nine earthy shades.

Shag bag, Dewars: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh

Dewar’s Double
Double 37-Year-Old
Blended Scotch Whisky
$1,799
The care and craftsmanship that goes into every
bottle of Dewar’s limitededition Double Double
makes it a truly remarkable
gift. This particular iteration is Dewar’s first-ever
blended malt, as well as the
first of the brand’s Collector’s Series, which honors
the whisky regions of Scotland. The Double Double
has undergone a four-step
aging process before being
finished in oloroso sherry
casks that once held
Aultmore single malt—an
homage to the Scottish
Speyside region. And how
does it taste? You’ll enjoy
hints of cinnamon, vanilla
and heather honey, as well
as flavors of peach, orange
peel and brown sugar.
The gift set includes two
exquisite Baccarat
Massena tumblers.
Palm Golf Co. Get Lucky
Towel
$30
As the saying goes, it’s
better to be lucky than
good. Palm Golf is here to
tell you there’s nothing
wrong with mixing a little
bit of both. Not that a
towel—even one featuring
four-leaf clovers—is going
to magically improve your
golf game, but there’s
something about cleaning
your ball with this one that
just feels right.
LivPur Hydrate
$30–155
Depleting yourself of
water and electrolytes on
the golf course is a serious problem. LivPur is the
ultimate rapid rehydration solution designed to
replenish your body with
the essential nutrients,
vitamins, electrolytes and
amino acids you need. Just
ask investors/users Zach
Johnson, Jordan Spieth,
Justin Thomas and the
Korda sisters.

High Camp Custom
Torch Flask
$124
The 6-oz Torch Flask from
High Camp comes with
an integrated magnetic
shooter glass and a custom
engraved design option for
personalization. Available
in three timeless colors,
you can store either hot
or cold beverages in it
since the walls are double
insulated. Whatever you
fill it with, the High Camp
will retain its temp for your
entire round.

OGIO Pace Pro Max Travel
Duffel Pack 45L
$170
If you travel for golf or
any other reason, this is
the bag you need. OGIO
has created the ultimate
backpack-style duffel that
provides enough space
for everything you might
want to bring along (while
still fitting in the overhead
bin). The Pace Pro Max is
smartly designed by people
who know what features
travelers want. You’ll be
happy you’re carrying one.

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023

E-Z-GO Freedom RXV
starting at $10,299
There are carts for transporting you around the
golf course. Then there are
modern buggies designed
to transport you to another
level. The Freedom RXV is
the latter. With its streamlined dashboard and front
end, combined with its
sweeping modular canopy,
the RXV looks unlike any
other cart on the fairway
or around the neighborhood. Customization options are endless. It’s luxury
and efficiency on wheels.

were fashionable too.
Golfers of all sartorial
persuasions can now cover
their hand in style. Palm
Golf Co.’s designs run the
gamut from tropical prints
to camouflage to American
stars and stripes. And if
classic white is your jam,
they have that too. You’ll be
the envy of your foursome.

Sunday Golf Big Frosty
$35
Sunday Golf’s super-convenient cooler is your new
best friend. The streamlined design and coated
polyester construction fits
up to six cans and includes
sleeves for ice packs. Three
grab handles make transport a breeze.

Hudson Sutler Montauk
Cooler Bag
$145
Customizable and available
in seven colors, this cooler
makes a great gift. Made
with a life-raft-type waterproof liner, this baby is
tough. Eighteen beers? Six
bottles of wine? No worry,
the Montauk can handle it.

Palm Golf Gloves
$26
There are only so many
ways for golfers to showcase a flash of personality
when it comes to their
gear: a custom headcover, perhaps, or maybe
some initials stamped on
a wedge. For a long time,
the humble glove remained
a piece of equipment that
was decidedly boring. Not
anymore, thanks to Palm
Golf Co., whose founders
launched the brand with
the mission of making
high-quality gloves that

82 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Gloves, sweaters: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh

FORE! Cards
$25
Before each hole, one
golfer draws from the deck
of FORE! Cards to determine how that hole will be
played. For example, if they
draw a “Box Pick” card,
each player has to hit from
a different tee box. It’s oncourse fun; a friendly way
to shuffle things up.

Apparel
Renwick Women’s
“GOLF” Sweater
$138
The famous GOLF-branded sweater is a timeless
classic created by the
Renwick sisters. Updated
in a more modern fit, this
cotton-acrylic crewneck
sweater can be styled in
a considerable number
of ways on and off the
course. Easily pairable,
you can slip this over just
about anything. While it
may not be easy to choose
which color to buy, you
can be sure every color in
the GOLF sweater line will
match with tons of other
pieces and styles in your
closet.
Greyson Mirage skirt
$138
Constructed from luxurious Italian fabric, this
skirt gracefully shifts with
every movement. The print
is a detailed, unique and
beautiful nature scene,
which can be paired with
what’s already in your
wardrobe. You can sport
this wearable piece of
art to run errands while
looking incredibly chic. It
can be worn with a polo
or any other top in shades
of white, baby blue, navy,
tan or even burgundy, if
you like to get fancy with
color pairing. There’s a ton
of fun to be had with this
print. This Greyson skirt is
a stunner.

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023
These are perfect for
making the seamless
switch from the office to
the course after a long
workday. Not to mention, they’ll still look good
enough to wear out
afterward too.
RLX Golf WaterRepellent Packable
Quilted Jacket
$328
Constructed with lightweight water-repellent
ripstop and recycled
polyester, this jacket’s
quilted look is perfectly on
trend. Strategically placed
stretch at the underarms
ensures a comfy fit, and
it becomes a mock neck
when fully zipped. It even
includes slots for hand
warmers in its two front
waist pockets. Perhaps
most impressively, the
jacket is so lightweight it
can be packed into its chest
pocket, which also features
a carrying loop.

Puma Ignite Elevate
Disc Spikeless
$130
Elevate your style along
with your game while you
enjoy effortless comfort
and spikeless traction like
you’ve never experienced
before. Dial in your game
and your perfect shoe fit
with the disc shoelace
system, which allows you to
quickly and easily tighten
your shoes to perfectly hug
your feet. These are lightweight but incredibly stable
to help you grip the ground
from all angles. Available
in eight different colors,
these Pumas look as good
as they perform.

84 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

TravisMathew Heater
Grand Prize Polo
$100
Like Jon Rahm, you’ll look
like you’re fresh from
stepping off the manicured
fairways of Augusta
National, having just finished your last round at the
Masters. This sporty polo
delivers style and comfort
on and off the course, and
you can purchase it in four
stylish colors.
Rhone Commuter
Pants
$138
Made from Flex-Knit
fabric, these are not your
average stiff dress pants.

TRUE Linkswear True Lux
Hybrid
$195
You’ll find everything you
want in a modern, athleisure-style golf shoe in the
TRUE Lux Hybrid. Created
by Tour player Ryan Moore
and his brother, Jason, it
features a waterproof knit
upper, eye-catching leather
saddle and six attractive
color options. Tech specs
include an Achilles heel pad
and TPU heel stabilizer.

Shoes, jackets, speakers: Jeffrey Westbrook; Styling: Miako Katoh

Scan here to
visit the Our
Picks landing
page to learn
more about the
Ignite Elevate.

Tech
Precision Pro Duo
GPS Speaker
$100
What could be more
convenient than a 2-in-1
device that also pairs
with a helpful app on your
phone? Designed just for
golfers, the Precision GPS
rangefinder is also an excellent little speaker that
allows you to hear premium audible shot distance
readings while enjoying
your tunes. It reads slope
adjustment along with personal layups. It’s waterresistant and super compact, so you can easily clip
it onto your bag. Check
the app if you’d like to see
a bird’s-eye view of the
hole and a written reading
of your distance. You can
also personalize with 11
grills—carbon fiber, golfing
skeletons, the American
flag, a floral scene or even
a smoking John Daly!

GolfLogix
$40–60
GolfLogix is like having a
personalized caddie and
game-improvement coach
right in your pocket. Use
the app to dial in your
yardage and help determine your club choices.
Track your average club
distances and enjoy 3D hole
flyovers. And there’s more:
Pair the app with Green
Books to determine landing
zones, breaks and putt
lines. Game changer!
Flightscope Mevo+
$2,200
Want accurate data about
your golf swing and ballflight but don’t want to
break the bank? Look no
further than the Flightscope Mevo+. This launch
monitor doesn’t rely on
special balls to capture
vital data like spin rate and
launch angle; it uses normal
balls. And it costs a fraction of a pro-grade unit.

Bushnell Tour V6 Shift
Laser Rangefinder
$400
It’s common now to include
a rangefinder as part
of your preshot routine.
Clearly, accurate yardage info is critical for club
choice and accuracy. With
the help of the Bushnell
Tour V6 Shift Laser Rangefinder, you’ll receive a
precise reading before ever
reaching in your bag, giving
you the peace of mind to
focus on a solid swing and
play loosely.

So when you’re standing
on the tee box of a par 3
with some headwind,
rather than struggle with
your club choice, take advantage of the Bushnell’s
Tour-trusted Slope formula, which provides compensated distances around the
course any time you want
it. And with the state-ofthe-art Pinseeker—which
causes the device to
vibrate once you’re locked
onto the flagstick—you’ll
get the validation you need
to hit the right shot.

Credit here tktktk

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023

86 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Simulators
Nothing against fresh air
and sunshine, but there’s
an argument that golf simulators are better than the
golf courses they simulate.
For starters, no starters.
Tee time? It’s your freakin’
house! Plus, bathroom
breaks in a bathroom rather than traipsing into the
woods, unless that’s your
thing.
Uneekor
SimKit EYE XO2
$21,099
After 15 years of overseas success built upon its
reputation for engineering excellence, Uneekor is
making inroads stateside
with cutting-edge simulation technology and strong

value. Its uber-spacious
21-foot-by-28-foot hitting
area easily accommodates
righties and lefties. The
SimKit EYE XO2’s compatibility with third-party
software means players
can tackle thousands of
courses worldwide for endless variety, and three highspeed cameras and infrared
technology provide precision and accuracy comparable to the industry’s best
launch monitors. Its Trouble
Mat mimics the challenges
of rough and bunkers, adding another layer of realism.
As upgrades, Swing Optix
cameras can capture a
full-swing replay, a popular
feature with instructors
and hardcore players, and,
for a truly bespoke experience, you can even design

a sim to your own exact
specifications.
Space needed:
10'L x 13'W x 9'10"H
Gear: EYE XO2 launch
monitor, custom enclosure,
VIEW and Refine+ software, Uneekor 4-foot-by10-foot hitting mat with
replaceable hitting insert,
Trouble Mat, professional
landing turf to minimize
ball bounce-back, premium LCD projector, 15-foot
HDMI cable. Gaming PC
sold separately.
Full Swing
Pro 2.0 Simulator
Starting at $54,900; $1,250
annual subscription for
access to more than
50 courses and practice
areas

BEST OF EVERYTHING 2023
randomize practice and use
the Wedge Matrix to dial in
those scoring clubs.
Space needed:
5'4"L x 10'W x 10'H
Gear: SkyTrak+ launch
monitor, protective case,
Play Now Golf sim enclosure, pair of side nets,
5-foot-by-5-foot hitting
mat, putting grass, Optoma projector, HDMI cable,
ball tray software annual
subscription (from $129
to $249).

Pros like Woods, Rahm,
Spieth, Cantlay and
Schauffele have the Pro
2.0 in their pads for one
essential reason—real
ballflight with no delay,
as the ball instantly
transitions from the real
world to the virtual world
exactly where it hits the
screen, showing ballflight
precisely as it would be
on course. That’s down
to Tri-Tracking Technology, which uses three
points of measurement
before the ball has even
hit the screen. As the
PGA Tour’s official simulator, Full Swing provides
exclusive course offerings, plus over 30 nongolf
experiences from football to zombie dodgeball.
Space needed:
20'L x 12'6"W x 10'H
(multiple sizes available)
Gear: The technology

includes an overhead highspeed camera and four
HyperClear cameras for
tracking, a cinema-quality
projector, a custom-built
supercomputer and a
touchscreen control monitor. The booth consists
of a solid wood enclosure
and platform, industrialgrade carpet, premium hitting mat, energy-absorbing
diffuser screen and baffling
and cabinet for electronics.
Full Swing handles sizing
and provides a dedicated
project management team
through installation. It’s
fully turnkey, with no need
to hire contractors.
SkyTrak
SkyTrak+ Pro
$6,995
The Pro’s new Doppler
radar system provides outsize and very precise club
data bang for the buck,
including clubhead speed,

88 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

smash factor, club path
and face angle, thanks to
proprietary machine-learning algorithms. Its upgraded shot-optimizer interface lets players view and
analyze club and ball data
versus optimal launch conditions and the world’s best
players. An improved photometric camera system
gives highly accurate and
reliable ball-tracking data
as well as improved outdoor performance on mats
when you take the launch
monitor component to the
range. Plus, you get access
to more than 100,000
courses, including World
Top 100 tracks like St.
Andrews, Pinehurst No. 2
and Bandon Dunes. Throw
in the game-improvement
package and not only can
you practice on the range
but also perform a skills
assessment, map your
distances with each club,

Foresight Sports
Albatross Sim-ina-Box Package
$33,995
The Foresight Sports
Albatross is a full-size,
oh-so-realistic, smooth and
true golf simulation that’s
easily assembled. (For the
truly not-handy, Foresight
will install the Albatross
for $2,750.) You can play 25
world-class courses like the
Old Course at St. Andrews
and Pebble Beach, alone or
with other users worldwide;
practice on the range or
on specific holes; and save
detailed club and ball data
to the Cloud for later review. In Fairgrounds mode,
enjoy classic games like
bowling, darts and SkeeBall, reimagined for golfers
of all levels (and great for
kids). For soccer players,
use the Albatross in Skill
Drill mode to practice skills
like passing and penalty
kicks with the same type of
dynamic tracking, data and
accuracy as golf.
Space needed:
16'L x 13'W x 10'H
Gear: GCHawk launch
monitor with Club Analysis
add-on; full simulator setup (including frame, impact
screen, premium projector,
turf strip, Fiberbuilt hitting mat, computer cart);
high-powered gamingoptimized desktop computer preloaded with FSX Play
golf simulation software,
FSX Pro and Fairgrounds
software.

T H I N K / P L AY / L I V E : T H E E N L I G H T E N E D G A M E

Lessons
in

PURE YOUR IRONS

LINE UP FOR
POWER STRIKES
By G OLF T op 100 Teach e r t o Wat ch
Vinny Dir off
FAT AND THIN SHOTS erode your confidence, to say nothing of your scores.
Here’s a fix: Using foot spray (see below)
or even the sharp end of a tee, draw a line
on the practice range grass. Set your ball
on the line. Address it with the center of
your chest open (i.e., pointed slightly
in front of the ball). Now swing. Your
goal is to make a divot in front of the
line (left). Do that and all your strikes
will be on the money.
Vinny Diroff is lead instructor at The
Landings GC in Savannah, Ga.

Christopher Lane

As you practice,
work toward
getting the low
point of your
swing to happen
just in front of
the ball. That’s
what we call a
crush.

LE S SON S: NOVEM B ER- DECEM B ER 202 3

Try any way
possible to groove
a pitch swing in
which your trail
arm stays straight.
It’s the secret to
extra-crisp shortgame shots.

BACK TO BASICS

Give Pitches the Straight Arm
Weekend players are constantly
searching for magic-bullet fixes for
their swing. These are often hard to
find, but here’s a good one: Keep your
trail arm straight when hitting pitch
shots. It works so well that I keep a
length of plastic tubing in my bag of
tricks to help students learn the move
almost immediately.
An extended trail arm creates
the wide and shallow bottom in your
motion that you need to catch the
ball cleanly. When your trail arm
bends and your wrists hinge quickly,
you create the opposite: a very steep
and narrow bottom to your swing
that brings the fat and thin shots
into play. You can get away with steep
and narrow on most full swings. On
pitches, a wider bottom is much
more forgiving.

92 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

Even in the absence of a piece of
tubing at the ready, practice your
pitch shots while using as little trailarm bend as possible—just a touch
of bend (above, top right) should do.
What you’ll find is that keeping your
trail arm straighter allows you to
deliver the club to the ball with your
arms, hands and clubhead forming
a straight line at impact (middle).
This leads to the wide and shallow
swing bottom you’re looking for. Your
reward? Contact and spin consistency
so your pitches land and come to rest
as you expect them to.
Try it. If you can mimic the pictures
on this page, you’re well on your way
to perfect pitches.
Krista Dunton is director of
instruction at Berkeley Hall in
Bluffton, S.C.

Left: Christopher Lane; Right: Stephen Denton

By GOLF To p 10 0 Te ac h e r K r ista Du nton

T H I N K / P L AY / L I V E

ESCAPE THE SAND
Place a tee under
the ball when you
practice bunker
shots to develop a
consistent splash.
Your goal: Cut the
tee in half. This will
train you to enter
and exit the sand
the same distance
on either side of
the ball.

A “Super” Shot
By G OLF T op 100 Teach e r
Jeff War ne

“Enter the sand behind the ball.”
While not terrible advice, most rec
players take it too literally and focus
their attention on—or even stare
at—only an area behind the ball and
forget that the area underneath and
past the ball is just as important.
The result? The club bottoms out
too early, resulting in either a fat
shot or, worse yet, a bladed one
the sails the green.
The correct way to develop consistency and distance control from
a greenside bunker is to carve out a
“splash” of sand that begins and exits
in equal amounts on both sides of
the ball. To get a feel for it, try my
“Superman X-ray vision” shot.
Tee a ball in the sand until it sits
nicely on top of the bunker’s surface.
Set up like normal, then hit the shot
with your attention focused on cutting the tee in half. The secret: Look
through the ball to the tee underneath as you swing. By doing so, you’ll
naturally enter the sand behind the
ball, go under it and exit just after it,
resulting in a predictable, consistent
splash. The length of this splash will
vary depending on swing speed, the
bounce on your wedge, attack angle
and sand texture. Regardless, the
important part is the symmetry of the
entry and exit. It’s a bird! It’s a plane!
It’s a super save!
Jeff Warne is director of golf at The
Bridge in Bridgehampton, N.Y.

LE S SON S: NOVEM B ER- DECEM B ER 202 3

Tape a tee to
any club shaft
to learn how to
swing back and
through without
fear of slicing.
(Spoiler: Keep
the tee pointed
at your body.)

RANGE WORK

USE A TEE TO GROOVE A SLICE-FREE TAKEAWAY
By G OLF Top 100 T eacher Tim Cooke
YOU SLICE. So do a lot of rec players. The

fix is easier than you think.
There are two problems normally
associated with a left-to-right ballflight
(for a righty). Usually, it’s a too flat takeaway followed by a weak lifting of the
arms, then a “slappy” delivery with the
clubface pointing to the right of your
intended aim. A tee can cure both.
Tape one to the shaft of any club with
the tee parallel to the leading edge (inset,

94 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

above). As you start back, refrain from
“whipping” the club inside so that the
tee points toward the sky or even behind
you. Check at halfway back that the tee is
still pointing at your body. That’s a great
start. Now, instead of lifting your arms,
continue to rotate your upper body to get
the club all the way to the top.
As you make your way down (slowmotion swings would help here), unwind
while keeping the tee pointed at your

body or even slightly ahead of your face
(above right). This ensures that you’re
not holding the clubface open. Get the
tee right and the face will square up for
a power-rich centered strike with the
face pointing at your target. Works for
irons, hybrids, driver—heck, every club
in your bag.
Tim Cooke is the director of instruction
at the Sea Pines Resort on Hilton Head
Island, S.C.

T H I N K / P L AY / L I V E

P L A Y S M A R T : M AT C H YO U R S W I N G T O YO U R T U R N
Want to increase
driver distance?
Find your pivot.
Get into your
golf stance with
your driver held
across your thighs.
Now rotate as if in
a mock backswing
as shown. If the

toe points at your
rear foot, you’re
a rear poster, like
Gary Woodland.
Focus on getting
at least 75 percent
of your weight to
your trail side on the
backswing and use
lateral shift to get

to impact. If the toe
points at the middle
of your stance,
you’re a center
poster, like Tiger
Woods. Your goal:
Use rotation as your
main power source
both going back and
through. If the toe

points at your front
foot, like Bryson
DeChambeau, you’re
a front poster.
Your best bet is to
use vertical forces
(i.e., pushing off the
ground) to match
your natural load.
—Tina Tombs

GET UP AND DOWN

Lofty Chips Made Easy
By G OLF Top 1 00 Te a ch e r
Car ol P r e isin ger

You don’t need a lot of hand or wrist
action to pull off most chip shots, but
some short-game situations scream
for it. Like with the lie I’m facing here:
short-sided in the rough with a bunker
between the ball and an elevated pin.
Only a ton of loft—courtesy the right
amount of hinge—will do.

Christopher Lane; Illustrations by Ben Mounsey-Wood

SOLUTION: To practice adding loft
to your run-of-the-mill chip shot,
grab a scorecard, fold it in half and
place it behind the ball, A-frame style
as shown. Now chip. If you use your
normal technique, your club is sure
to catch the scorecard either on the
way back or as you swing into impact.
To avoid the card, add some wrist
hinge as soon as you start back and
time its release so that you miss the
card coming through. Increasing your
angle of attack like this is the secret
to getting the ball up in the air quickly,
capable of carrying anything between
you and your shot at an incredible save.
Carol Preisinger is the lead instructor
at The Landings in Savannah, Ga.

LE S SON S: NOVEM B ER- DECEM B ER 202 3

SNAPSHOT

LINN GRANT
By GOLF Top 100 Teacher Brady Riggs
BEN HOGAN ONCE SAID Mickey Wright

GRANT’S LPGA STATS
Driving distance

2023*
267.5 yds (18th)

Greens in regulation

73.2% (4th)
70.3 (6th)

Scoring average
Rolex Women’s World Golf Rank

15th

*Through Solheim Cup

96 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

1. PUSH!
Stay off your heels by
pushing away from
the ground through
the balls of your feet.
Think of jumping
from a standing position. You wouldn’t
get off the ground
from your heels.

2. GET “WHIPPY”
Dragging the club
through impact kills
clubhead speed and
produces a glancing
blow. Copy Grant’s
change of direction
and sequence to
produce a whiplike
action in the club.

3. JUMP!
Through impact,
launch upward like an
Olympic ski jumper.
Squeeze your glutes
and post up through
the ground into a long
left leg. This gives you
something to whip
the club against.

4. HIT THE BRAKES
Deceleration leads
to acceleration!
Slamming the upper
part of your front
arm back against
your torso helps you
throw the brakes on
the handle so the
clubhead can fly by.

Left: Andrew Redington/Getty Images; Right: Stephen Denton

had the finest swing he had ever seen.
Had he seen LPGA star Linn Grant, he
might have changed his mind. Her swing
from face-on is eerily reminiscent of the
Hawk’s own.
Grant’s similarities to Hogan start
with a sharp rotation of the hips in the
backswing and lead to one of Hogan’s
main principles of starting the downswing with the lower body. This transition in the swing is incredibly athletic
as her body begins to move toward the
target while her arms and club are still
going up. This dynamic change in direction initiates the Hogan-esque whiplike
action through impact.
Grant is exceptional at utilizing
Ground Reaction Force as she pushes
away from the turf using the balls of her
feet to extend both legs like a ski jumper
launching off the 90-meter hill. Rather
than pulling the club, her upper left arm
slams back against her torso to enhance
the whip at impact, maximizing clubhead speed. You should do the same.
Brady Riggs is the director of instruction at Hanson Dam GC in Pacoima,
Calif., and a senior instructor at PGA
West in La Quinta, Calif.

T H I N K / P L AY / L I V E

Statement of Ownership,
Management and Circulation

Tee the ball lower
and off your front
hip for a penetrating fairway finder.
Tee it high and off
your front shoulder—then tilt away
from the target—
to max out launch
and height.

1. Publication title: GOLF
2. Publication number: 577290
3. Filing date: October 1, 2023
4. Issue frequency: 4 single-month issues (Mar, Apr, May, Jun)
and 4 double issues (Jan/Feb, Jul/Aug, Sept/Oct, Nov/Dec)
5. Number of issues published annually: 8
6. Annual subscription price: $30.00
7. Complete mailing address of known office of publication:
6 East 43rd St, NY, NY 10017
8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general
business office of publisher: 6 East 43rd St, NY, NY 10017
9. Full name and complete mailing address of the publisher,
editor, managing editor: Publisher: Howard Milstein,
6 East 43rd St, NY, NY 10017. Editor and COO: David
DeNunzio, 6 East 43rd St, NY, NY 10017
10. Owner: Howard Milstein, EB Golf Media LLC, 6 East 43rd
St, NY, NY 10017
11. None
12. Not applicable
13. Publication title: GOLF
14. Issue date for circulation data below: Sept/Oct 2023
15. Extent and nature of circulation:
Average no. copies each issue during preceding 12 months
a. Total number of copies: 762,522
b. Paid circulation
1. Mailed outside-county paid subscriptions stated on PS
Form 3541: 466,085
2. Mailed in-county paid subscriptions stated on PS Form
3541: 0
3. Paid distribution outside the mails including sales through
dealers and carriers, street vendors, counter sales, and
other paid distribution outside USPS: 6,531
4. Paid distribution by other classes of mail through the
USPS: 0
c. Total paid distribution: 472,616
d. Free or nominal rate distribution
1. Free or nominal rate outside-county copies included on PS
Form 3541: 253,054
2. Free or nominal rate in-county copies included on PS Form
3541: 0
3. Free or nominal rate copies mailed at other classes
through the USPS: 0
4. Free or nominal rate distribution outside the mail: 14,742
e. Total free or nominal rate distribution: 267,796
f. Total distribution: 740,412
g. Copies not distributed: 22,110
h. Total: 762,522
i. Percent paid 63.8%
16. Electronic copies circulation
a. Paid electronic copies: 475,818
b. Total paid print copies + paid electronic copies: 948,434
c. Total print distribution + paid electronic copies: 1,216,230
d. Percent paid: 78.0%

POWER PLAY

How to Dial Up a Perfect Drive
By GOLF To p 10 0 Te ac h e r Jeff Smith

Tour players talk a lot about their
“stock” drive, which should clue you
into the fact that they have more
than one swing type in their arsenal.
Every player should have two basic
options: a lower, penetrating fairway
finder and another for which you
prioritize launch angle and shot
height to max out carry distance.
Despite the rocket science built
into your driver, pounding it high or
low depending on the situation is
anything but.
Start by adjusting the tee height.
To get more of a penetrating flight
(a lot of roll), tee it lower so that only
a quarter of the ball sits above the
top of the clubface after you sole
your driver. As you take your stance,
make sure to line up the ball with the
middle of your front hip (above).

This positions the ball at the low
point of your swing, automatically
fueling a more level swing through
impact. To really make it work, think
“low finish” instead of high as you
move into your release.
For a big-time high-flier (good
for when you have the wind at your
back), tee the ball way up so that at
least half of it sits above the crown.
Play the ball off your front shoulder
and, as you settle into your stance,
tilt your upper body away from the
target until the ball is actually outside
your shoulder. This will encourage you
to really hit up on the ball. Think “high
finish,” then watch that baby soar.
Jeff Smith is the director of
instruction at Eagle Springs GC in
Wolcott, Colo., and Bonita Bay Club
in Bonita Springs, Fla.

No. copies single issue published nearest to filing date
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b. Paid circulation
1. Mailed outside-county paid subscriptions stated on PS
Form 3541: 408,626
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3541: 0
3. Paid distribution outside the mails including sales through
dealers and carriers, street vendors, counter sales, and
other paid distribution outside USPS: 6,300
4. Paid distribution by other classes of mail through the
USPS: 0
c. Total paid distribution: 414,926
d. Free or nominal rate distribution
1. Free or nominal rate outside-county copies included on PS
Form 3541: 229,874
2. Free or nominal rate in-county copies included on PS Form
3541: 0
3. Free or nominal rate copies mailed at other classes
through the USPS: 0
4. Free or nominal rate distribution outside the mail: 14,741
e. Total free or nominal rate distribution: 244,615
f. Total distribution: 659,541
g. Copies not distributed: 7,632
h. Total: 667,173
i. Percent paid: 62.9%
16. Electronic copies circulation
a. Paid electronic copies: 491,000
b. Total paid print copies + paid electronic copies: 905,926
c. Total print distribution + paid electronic copies: 1,150,541
d. Percent paid: 78.7%
17. Publication of Statement of Ownership: Will be printed in
the Nov/Dec 2023 issue of this publication.
18. Signature and date: Kip Morgan, October 1, 2023
I certify that all information furnished on this form is true
and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false
or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to
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civil sanctions (including civil penalties).

Last Off

Rob Gronkowski
THE FOUR-TIME SUPER BOWL–WINNING TIGHT END IS A LOCK FOR THE HALL OF FAME.
HIS JOURNEY TO A DECENT GOLF GAME? THAT’LL TAKE A LITTLE MORE HUSTLE.

G: Hey Gronk, you’re a
thoughtful guy. Now that
you’ve started playing golf,
what do you think is the
main difference between
golf and football?
RG: Football is brawn
and timing—that’s pretty
much it. Golf takes more
mental preparation,
more practice. Every
little [body] movement
in golf can mean something. You can’t say that
about football.
G: You played college
football in sun-soaked
Arizona and now live in
golf-friendly Tampa Bay.
Do you wish you’d picked
up the game sooner?
RG: No, my man. Life is
all about choices. I think
I made the right choice
of football over golf. It
worked out pretty good
for me. But I want to get
better at golf. I’m working to get better. I can’t just show up and embarrass myself.
I have to practice and play, then maybe some of these
[celebrity golfers] will want to play with me.
G: As a sport, does golf need to loosen up?
RG: I think so. Like, today at Royal Blue in the Caribbean,
I pulled up in my cart, 50 Cent music was blasting on the
tee box, the vibes were flowing and I smashed my best
drive—300 yards. We need more of that.
G: Okay, so you’ve practiced and prepared. How many shots does
your buddy Tom Brady have to give you to make it a fair match?
RG: I think eight shots to make it fair—at least to start with.

98 GOLF.COM / N o v e m b e r - D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3

G: In your years with the
Patriots, did you see other
teammates get into golf?
RG: Not really. I know
Tom played a lot. Julian
[Edelman] didn’t. I don’t
think Danny [Amendola]
did. You know who could
have been a really good
golfer? Randy Moss.
I never saw him play, but
he looked like he had a
great body for golf.
G: Now that you’re into the
game, is there a course on
your bucket list?
RG: I really want to go to
Pebble Beach.
G: Why do you think golf is
so addictive?
RG: It’s competition, it’s
trash-talking with your
buddies and it’s drinking
and having a good time!
I’ve just got to practice
and get better, then I can
join those other guys.
[Charles] Barkley did it,
and, at times, I’ve seen his golf clubs go farther than his
golf ball. I know I can do it. Tampa Bay is a great place to
play, and I’m going to get better.
G: Do you have a teacher you’re working with on your game?
RG: I don’t. Do you think I need one?!
G: What’s it like to be almost as well known for your USAA
television commercials as you are for your football career?
RG: Hey, I might need USAA if I crash my cart on the
course. It could come in real handy.
G: That sounds pretty much like a USAA commercial.
RG: See? You’ve always got to be selling.

Tibrina Hobson/FilmMagic

By Art Stricklin