Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses You Can Play

Designed for the golfer whose motto is, "Have clubs, will travel," Top 100 first lures you in with its enticing introductions to the best resort, municipal, semi-private, and daily-fee tracks around the country. Then, once it has you salivating, it helps plan your getaway. Say you feel like trying to tame Sugarloaf, the demanding 18 carved from the Maine woods by Robert Trent Jones Jr.; Golf Magazine's experts deem it the ace of the nation's wilderness courses. Top 100 sends you off with hints to help you navigate the layout; suggests area accommodations, restaurants, and other courses nearby; and, in case you have a few moments between tee times, where to find other activities like fishing, biking, rafting, museums, and even a rail excursion.

"It's a wonderful time to be alive if you're an ardent golfer with the wherewithal to take your game on the road and put your skills to the test around the nation," writes author Brian McCallen. To that end, Top 100 does pretty much everything but carry your bag. --Jeff Silverman

Product Description
Pebble Beach, Sea Island, Pinehurst, Mauna Kea: many of America's most fabled golf courses are open to visitors. This indispensable, superbly illustrated guide by veteran golf journalist Brian McCallen shows exactly what to expect at each of the top 100 U.S. courses, and offers savvy advice on nearby dining and lodging.

Lovingly photographed, colorfully and painstakingly written and filled with every side piece of necessary information, this volume could really be titled, "All you need to know about American Public Golf."

No detail is omitted and every aspect of travel and vacation life (save airfare) is analyzed, from dining to sightseeing to lodging. Begger and king, cactus lover or flower power-ite can select a journey uniquely suited to their lifestyle, either by taking the book on the trip with them or curling up with it by the fire for those winter golf dreams.

No stone is left unturned and even golf shopping is explored, from the giant superstores of Myrtle Beach to the outlets in Scottsdale. Only Alaska escapes this volumes eye.

True conessieurs will cherish the detailed descriptions of all the great courses, from Troon North to Bethpage Black and Pebble Beach to Sawgrass, but also revel in the charm of the lesser known but equally enchanting tracks such as Pumpkin Ridge (Ghost Creek), Barton Creek, New Seabury (Blue), Ventana Canyon, Coeur D'Alene, and Bandon Dunes.

This is the standard by which all others golf travel books will be judged!


Guide to the Golfer's Meccas   December 11, 1999
 20 out of 20 found this review helpful

With breathtaking photographs and detailed descriptions of the best holes, I was able to relive the courses I have been lucky enough to play and plan for those that I haven't. The guide walks you through courses state-by-state, with pictures, ratings and descriptions of all. I was impressed that the editors chose to include some courses that didn't quite make the top 100, and even refrenced expansion plans at some of the country's great resorts.

Furthermore, dining, entertainment, lodging and shopping highlights are presented so that you may plan for your entire getaway.

Based on the accurate representation of the courses that I have played, I trust the editors recommendations to visit the other courses listed. An A-Plus for vivid descriptions and dazzling photography that makes me yearn for warmer weather.