The (US) Resorts

There's almost 100 inches of snow on the ground in my front yard, and so naturally the only thing on my mind is...golf.

The new Golf Digest list(s) of "America's Greatest Courses" is out.  Obviously any one ranking of courses is going to be incomplete and imperfect, but this is the one that carries the most weight in the golf community.  For 2014-15, they have five different rankings: the Top 100, the "2nd 100" (i.e. numbers 101-200; why it's not the "top 200," I don't know), the Best in State, the Best in Canada, and the Top 100 Public.  The Top 100 itself is dominated by courses that are private (1-2-3 are Augusta National, Pine Valley, and Cypress Point, which are all famous both for their awesomeness and their exclusivity), and there isn't a public course until #7 (Pebble Beach).  You don't see another public until #18 (Pacific Dunes).  I've only played one course on the list: #43, Bethpage State Park (Black).

Ultimately it's the Top 100 Public list that I'm most interested in.  This year I happened to take note of the courses from the same property or resort that show up on the list -- probably because the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was on TV at the time, and they were playing on 3 of the top 100.  So this got me thinking: what are the best golf resorts in the country using the top 100 rankings as a metric of quality?

As best as I can tell, there are six resorts that have more than one course in the Top 100 Public ranking:

Pebble Beach: Pebble Beach Golf Links (1), Spyglass Hill G.C. (11), and The Links at Spanish Bay (49)
Bandon Dunes: Pacific Dunes (2), Bandon Dunes (7), Old Macdonald (12), and Bandon Trails (14)
Kohler/American Club Resort: Whistling Straits (Straits) (4), Blackwolf Run (River) (16), Whistling Straits (Irish) (47), and Blackwolf Run (Meadow Valleys) (72)
Pinehurst Resort: No. 2 (5), No. 4 (59), and No. 8 (80)
Streamsong Resort: Streamsong (Red) (18) and Streamsong (Blue) (24)
Turning Stone: Atunyote G.C. (52) and Kaluhyat G.C. (82)

Limiting ourselves to those criteria (more than one course in the Top 100 Public), then we can use the scores within the rankings to determine which is the most desirable resort to go to (from a strictly golf perspective).*  I looked at the numbers three ways: the average score across the courses at each resort (more uniformly high quality = better), the total score for each resort (more courses = more variety = better), and the top ranking course at each site (a standout "must-play" course = better).

*This doesn't quite tell the whole picture of these resorts, as we're only looking at the courses that are ranked in the top 100.  Pinehurst, for example, has 6 additional courses that may all be of high quality, but not quite good enough for the rankings.

I look at the those 3 characteristics as all being equal.  To compare the resorts, I took the z-score for each category and added those up to get a total score.  Here's how it breaks down:

PEBBLE BEACH			BANDON DUNES			KOHLER
COURSE	GD SCORE		COURSE	GD SCORE		COURSE	GD SCORE
Pebble Beach	67.6226		Pacific Dunes	65.1785		Straits	64.7478
Spyglass Hill	62.7138		Bandon Dunes	63.4556		River	61.0936
Spanish Bay	57.6485		Old Macdonald	62.4879		Irish	57.7387
			Bandon Trails	61.5480		Meadow Valley	56.5514
AVERAGE	62.6616		AVERAGE	63.1675		AVERAGE	60.032875
TOTAL	187.9849		TOTAL	252.6700		TOTAL	240.1315
TOT Z-SCORE	2.264		TOT Z-SCORE	2.914		TOT Z-SCORE	1.223

PINEHURST			STREAMSONG			TURNING STONE
COURSE	GD SCORE		COURSE	GD SCORE		COURSE	GD SCORE
No. 2	64.2727		Red	60.7601		Atunyote	57.5788
No. 4	57.1474		Blue	60.1842		Kaluhyat	56.0961
No. 8	56.1970
AVERAGE	59.2057		AVERAGE	60.4722		AVERAGE	56.83745
TOTAL	177.6171		TOTAL	120.9443		TOTAL	113.6749
TOT Z-SCORE	-0.335		TOT Z-SCORE	-1.746		TOT Z-SCORE	-4.321

In both the average and total ranking categories, Bandon comes out as the clear winner -- unsurprising, since all 4 of it's courses fall in the top 14 overall; that's strong enough to place first in the total ranking.  Pebble Beach carries the "top ranking course" category, but that isn't enough to overtake Bandon overall.  Kohler finishes 3rd; having a 4th course on the list helps out here, since the numbers are otherwise very similar to Pinehurst.  With just two courses each, Streamsong and Turning Stone can't quite keep up with the bigger names, though they still have very strong averages.

Naturally, when it comes to resort destinations there are other things to consider beyond just the golf. The setting at Pebble Beach -- including the accommodations and the other activities available -- could easily be argued as enough to push it back ahead of Bandon.  On the other hand, it's hard to ignore the cost:

Cost figures are based on peak season rates.

Here it's quite clear that Bandon has a huge advantage over Pebble; in fact it appears that Bandon and Streamsong are relative steals compared to the other resorts.  And this doesn't even take into account the cost of accomodations, which is nearly twice as much at Pebble as it is at any of the other sites (and hotel reservations are required to make a tee time).  Bottom line: at this point, if I could go anywhere, it's definitely Bandon.

Also not factored in here is the cost of a caddie, which may not be required at every course, but where available they are certainly recommended.  (As far as I can tell, caddies are not available at Pebble or Turning Stone.)  When you factor that in, something very interesting happens:

Amazingly, they all fall nearly exactly on the trendline of the aggregate data -- in short, it costs just about $6 per Golf Digest point to play golf at each of these resorts.  

Two lessons learned here: (1) You probably can't go wrong at any of these resorts, and (2) Golf Digest's "America's Greatest Courses" probably drives the cost of golf far more than we realize.

The Best Courses | The Membership

I know, it's been a while.

Let's just pretend that's not the case.  We'll get to the 2012 analysis and what's to come for 2013 soon.

Moving on.... Golf Digest has a new iPhone app for rating golf courses based on their "proprietary formula" that is used to determine their "Best Courses" lists.  The app is pretty terrible, filled with bugs and generally less fun than one would hope.

BUT (of course), I've been using that "proprietary formula" for a few years to rate the courses that I have played.  And after last summer's Scotland trip, I've got enough good ones in the database to put out a list of the 10 Best.

First, here are the categories Golf Digest uses (quoted from their website):

1. Shot Values
How well does the course pose risks and rewards and equally test length, accuracy and finesse?

2. Resistance to Scoring
How difficult, while still being fair, is the course for a scratch player from the back tees?

3. Design Variety
How varied are the golf course's holes in differing lengths, configurations, hazard placements, green shapes and green contours?

4. Memorability
How well do the design features (tees, fairways, greens, hazards, vegetation and terrain) provide individuality to each hole, yet a collective continuity to the entire 18?

5. Aesthetics
How well do the scenic values of the course (including landscaping, vegetation, water features and backdrops) add to the pleasure of a round?

6. Conditioning
How firm, fast and rolling were the fairways, and how firm yet receptive were the greens on the day you played the course?

7. Ambience
How well does the overall feel and atmosphere of the course reflect or uphold the traditional values of the game?

Read More http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-courses/2011-05/100-greatest-golf-courses-methodology#ixzz2Lh4BmpZh

Each category is given a score from 1-10, with 10 being absolutely perfect (in other words, grade tough).  Category #1 (which I interpret as "how fun/awesome is it to play the course") is counted twice, so the maximum score is 80.

With that in mind, here's my list, with the scores I'd assign them:

1. Turnberry Resort (Ailsa Course), Ayrshire, Scotland - 73.4 points.
2. St. Andrews Links (Old Course), St. Andrews, Scotland - 69.8 points.
3. Bethpage State Park (Black), Farmingdale, NY - 65.8 points.
4. TPC Boston, Norton, MA - 64 points.
5. Links at Lighthouse Sound, Bishopville, MD - 63 points.
6. Ballyowen, Hardyston, NJ - 62.7 points.
    Granite Links Golf Club (Milton-Quincy), Quincy, MA - 62.7 points.
8. The International (Oaks), Bolton, MA - 61.8 points.
9. Brae Burn C.C., Newton, MA - 61.6 points.
10. Turning Stone Resort (Atunyote), Verona, NY - 60.5 points.
      Red Tail Golf Course, Devens, MA - 60.5 points.

Honorable mentions: the other 2 courses at Turning Stone (Shenendoah 60 points; Kaluhyat 59.2 points), and Newport National in Middletown, RI (59.9 points).

My category leaders are:
Shot Values - St. Andrews (9.2)
Resistance to Scoring - Bethpage Black (10)
Design Variety - Turnberry (8.5)
Memorability - St. Andrews (10)
Aesthetics - Turnberry (9.9)
Conditioning - Turnberry (9.5)
Ambience - St. Andrews (10)

I look at that list and feel very fortunate.  4 of the courses have hosted major championships (Turnberry, St. Andrews, Bethpage, Brae Burn), 2 others have been the host to PGA Tour events (TPC Boston and Atunyote), and one was the site of a US Women's Public Links Championship (Red Tail).

The others?  Lighthouse Sound has been called the "Pebble Beach of the east" -- probably a stretch, but still gives you some clue to the natural beauty that surrounds it.  Ballyowen is a spectacular track, probably my favorite (US) course on the list.  The Oaks course at The International is the sister course to the multi-record-holding Pines course on the same property (longest hole, largest tee box, largest green).  And Granite Links is my new home.

Yes, that's right, I'm now a member of a club.

I'm not sure what that means for The Mission.  But I know I'm looking forward to playing a lot of rounds on the same course this year.  I know I now have access to a practice facility with a range, short game area, and multiple putting greens, and I can only hope that with that kind of practice that even par is not far away.