Golf Blogs - ShanksALot | |
1/8/2006
What Makes A Great Golf Course?
New England is home to some of the finest private golf courses and public golf courses in the country.
If you view the biennial GolfOnline 2005 list of the top 100 U.S. courses, you'll find seven courses
from New England: The Country Club (Brookline, MA - #21); Myopia Hunt (South Hamilton, MA - #70);
Kittansett (Marion, MA - #72); The Course At Yale (New Haven, CT - #77); Newport Country Club (Newport, RI - #81);
Wannamoisett Country Club (Rumford, RI - #94); Salem Country Club (Peabody, MA - #99).
A review of the top 100 courses from GolfDigest shows a few similarities and more than a few differences from the list at GolfOnline. For instance, The Country Club of Brookline shows up at #19 and the Kittansett appears at #60, however surprisingly, no other courses from New England make the GolfDigest list.
In putting the top 100 list together, GolfOnline used ratings compiled from a variety of golf course experts including Ryder Cup players, golf course architects (no, they couldn't vote for their own course), top amateurs and others. They used a weighted rating system so that if you had played the golf course recently it had more weight than if you had played it 5 years ago. The courses were rated on things such as playability, design, condition, tradition etc.
GolfDigest's rating system used ratings from a panel of 800 low handicap players and includes categories such as shot values, asthetics, conditioning and walkability. After comparing the two lists I couldn't help but wonder which factor is the most important in determining greatness in a public golf course? Is course design more important than course aesthetics? Should public golf courses be rated on the same list as private golf courses? What other New England golf course do you feel belongs on these lists? Help Golf Course Central rate the top courses in New England by searching for your favorite course and submitting your rating today.
A review of the top 100 courses from GolfDigest shows a few similarities and more than a few differences from the list at GolfOnline. For instance, The Country Club of Brookline shows up at #19 and the Kittansett appears at #60, however surprisingly, no other courses from New England make the GolfDigest list.
In putting the top 100 list together, GolfOnline used ratings compiled from a variety of golf course experts including Ryder Cup players, golf course architects (no, they couldn't vote for their own course), top amateurs and others. They used a weighted rating system so that if you had played the golf course recently it had more weight than if you had played it 5 years ago. The courses were rated on things such as playability, design, condition, tradition etc.
GolfDigest's rating system used ratings from a panel of 800 low handicap players and includes categories such as shot values, asthetics, conditioning and walkability. After comparing the two lists I couldn't help but wonder which factor is the most important in determining greatness in a public golf course? Is course design more important than course aesthetics? Should public golf courses be rated on the same list as private golf courses? What other New England golf course do you feel belongs on these lists? Help Golf Course Central rate the top courses in New England by searching for your favorite course and submitting your rating today.
10/1/2005
To Natural Golf Or Not To Natural Golf
Lately my swing has been so bad that I have considered trying something radical.
Natural Golf is a method of golf that teaches
a unique approach to the golf swing and promises better accuracy and results for players
of all levels of ability. For me, having only played a handful of times this year and with
some serious inconsistency in my swing, I am looking for something that will be easy for
me to learn and practice. If I am only going to be able to play a few times a year, I want to
enjoy those rounds and not spend the day looking for my ball in the woods. I am also looking for
a good golf instructor in the central Massachusetts area.
Finding a golf instructor in Central Mass that teaches Natural Golf seems to be more difficult.
I have found some Natural Golf schools in the area but I am looking for individual instruction.
I also chose this year to play a new course, Cyprian
Keyes. Cyprian Keyes is a beautiful golf course in Boylston, Massachusetts. It is also probably
not the right course for someone who is struggling with an inconsistent golf swing. As the New England
golf season winds down and the holiday season approaches, my Christmas wish list may include some golf
instruction but I still haven't decided whether to try Natural Golf or to stick with my "Unnatural Golf" swing.