Ellerston Golf Club
New South Wales, Australia
The highest-ranked course not to crack the Top 100 is an
exclusive 2001 Greg Norman/Bob Harrison design located
about 200 miles from Sydney. Only four panelists have tested
the mostly open layout, which is
crisscrossed by Pages Creek.
Castle Stuart Golf Links
Inverness, Scotland
Ten years after his hit
with Kingsbarns (1999),
developer/designer
Mark Parsinen engaged
collaborating architect
Gil Hanse to build this
seaside Highlands layout.
The rumpled terrain and
stunning views drew
instant acclaim.
Bro Hof Slott GC (Stadium)
Bro, Sweden
This 2007 Robert Trent
Jones II design 25 miles
northwest of Stockholm
stretches nearly 8,000 yards.
Sprawling bunkers, lakes
(it sits atop a huge fjord),
and gallery areas make this
a potential Ryder Cup site.
Firestone CC (South)
Akron, Ohio
Another former member of the
Top 100, this PGA Tour site
embodies the hard-par, easy-bogey
mantra of its architect,
Robert Trent Jones Sr. Recent
panels found it lacking in variety,
but it has regained traction,
jumping to No. 102 in the U.S.
Wentworth GC (West)
Virginia Water, England
Once a mainstay in our
Top 100, this 1924 H.S.
Colt heathland classic near
London dropped off the
list due to conditioning
issues. However, the club
is regrassing fairways
and greens, and a limited
reopening is scheduled
for this month.
Gozzer Ranch Golf & Lake Club
Coeur d'Alene, Idaho
This 2007 Tom Fazio design
boasts staggering views
of pine-covered slopes,
10-story-high rock spires
and Lake Coeur d'Alene.
Fazio's typically artful
shaping and bunkering
completes a pretty picture.
Victoria National GC
Newburgh, Ind.
The 103rd-ranked course in
the U.S. in 2009 is a partly
wooded 1998 Tom Fazio
creation that sits atop a
reclaimed strip mine. Where
coal excavation left deep gashes,
spring-fed ponds took their place,
providing beauty and menace.
Bayonne Golf Club
Bayonne, N.J.
Developer Eric Bergstol
transformed a New Jersey
landfill straight out of The
Sopranos into a sandy, faux-
Irish links straight out of the
Dingle Peninsula. This private,
walking-only course is only
four miles from Manhattan.
Blair Atholl Golf Club
Johannesburg, South Africa
Gary Player built this
handsome, private behemoth
(it can play as long as 8,500
yards at an elevation of 5,750
feet) in his own backyard — literally. Blair Atholl has been
the Player family residence
for the past 25 years.
The Cliffs at High Carolina
Asheville, N.C.
Tiger Woods has two other
courses in the works — one in
Dubai, another in Mexico — but
High Carolina is his first U.S.
design. Slated to open next year,
the course is draped across a
mountain meadow in the heart
of Blue Ridge country. We
know Tiger can play, but can he
design? We're about to find out.
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