World Golf Courses Directory

It often feels like you need a special handshake to get into some golf courses. Clubs tend to be protective of their courses, much as a child guards his or her favorite toy. Provided you have a handicap and are clear on golf etiquette, there are just a few simple rules to smooth the way.

The majority of the courses listed in the book require visitors to contact the club in advance and be able to produce a handicap certificate on the day of play. That is normally sufficient. When approaching some of the more exclusive courses, it is recommended that you write a letter of introduction direct to the secretary or organize a letter of introduction from your own club secretary.

There are three categories. In the first categories are the golf courses rankings such as rankings of the Top 100 Courses, the 20 Most Difficult Courses, the Top 10 Heathland, Top 10 Parkland and Top 10 links Courses in Britain and Ireland. In the second categories are the star ratings for all golf courses, rated from five star to one star as follows:

***** Exceptional. The best.

**** Excellent. An outstanding day’s golf.

*** Very good.

** Good, but not great.

* Standard. Nothing special.

*** Free Golf Lessons ***

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To gain much insight into the historical development and spread of golf. We can trace the game from its early roots in Scotland, beginning with the Honorable Society of Edinburgh Golfers and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, to Westward Ho! and Royal Liverpool in England. As went the British Empire, so went Scottish and English army officers and administrators spreading the game to the four corners of the earth. The introduction of golf in the United States in the 1890s came in part through the Scottish influence but also to a surprising extent via France, where American captains of industry and wealthy expatriates discovered the game on their visits to the French resorts of Biarritz, Pau, and Etretat.

Here, give us a chance to explore the often overlooked creativity and skill of the world’s foremost golf course architects. We can sample the work of the best architects past and present and view the characteristics that define their greatest achievements. Here are examples of the work of the early Scottish and English masters: Willie Park, Jr., Harry Colt, Charles Alison, and Tom Simpson. The golden era of design in America is represented by the many courses designed by the likes of Charles Blair Macdonald, Seth Raynor, Donald Ross, Alister MacKenzie, A.W.Tillinghast, William Flynn, and George Thomas. In Canada, the genius of Stanley Thompson is on display.

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