Sixteen in New York. Twelve in California. Five in Oregon. Five in Florida. Right and left, and up and down, GOLF’s list of the Top 100 courses in the U.S. for 2020/2021 covers the country.
In all, 30 states are represented. New York is first, with 16 courses in the Top 100. California is second, with 12, and New Jersey is third, with eight.
The list’s top two courses bookend the continental U.S., too. The top-ranked course, Pine Valley, is in New Jersey, while the No. 2 course, Cypress Point, is in California.
Following New Jersey on the state list are Massachusetts (6), Florida (5), Ohio (5), Oregon (5), South Carolina (5), Wisconsin (5), North Carolina (4), Georgia (3), Michigan (3), Pennsylvania (3), Illinois (2), Colorado (2), Nebraska (2), Hawaii (1), Idaho (1), Kansas (1), Maryland (1), Minnesota (1), Missouri (1), Montana (1), Nevada (1), Oklahoma (1), Rhode Island (1), Tennessee (1), Texas (1), Washington (1) and West Virginia (1).
Our Top 100 Courses in the U.S. broken down by state
(With overall rank, course name, city, state, architect and year opened)
New York (16)
3. Shinnecock Hills
Southampton, N.Y.
Toomey & Flynn, 1931
4. National Golf Links Of America
Southampton, N.Y.
C.B. Macdonald, 1911
9. Fishers Island
Fishers Island, N.Y.
Seth Raynor, 1926
13. Friar’s Head
Baiting Hollow, N.Y.
Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw, 2003
15. Winged Foot (West)
Mamaroneck, N.Y.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1923
25. Garden City
Garden City, N.Y.
Devereux Emmet, 1899/Walter Travis, 1906
29. Maidstone
East Hampton, N.Y.
John Park/Willie Park Jr., 1922
30. Bethpage (Black)
Farmingdale, N.Y.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1935
36. Sleepy Hollow
Scarborough, N.Y.
C.B. Macdonald/Seth Raynor, 1913/A.W. Tillinghast, 1929/Gil Hanse, 2017
39. Quaker Ridge
Scarsdale, N.Y.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1926
40. Oak Hill (East)
Pittsford, N.Y.
Donald Ross, 1921/Andrew Green, 2020
46. Winged Foot (East)
Mamaroneck, N.Y.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1923
56. Piping Rock
Locust Valley, N.Y.
C.B. Macdonald, 1911
62. The Creek
Locust Valley, N.Y.
C.B. Macdonald/Seth Raynor, 1923
86. Glens Falls
Queensbury, N.Y.
Donald Ross, 1920
97. Sebonack
Southampton, N.Y.
Jack Nicklaus/Tom Doak, 2006
California (12)
2. Cypress Point
Pebble Beach, Calif.
Alister Mackenzie, 1928
10. Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach, Calif.
Jack Neville/Douglas Grant, 1919
12. Los Angeles (North)
Los Angeles
George C. Thomas Jr., 1921
17. Riviera
Pacific Palisades, Calif.
George C. Thomas Jr./Billy Bell Sr., 1926
21. San Francisco
San Francisco, Calif.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1918
27. California Club Of San Francisco
So. San Francisco, Calif.
A.V. Macan, 1926/Alister Mackenzie, 1928/Kyle Phillips, 2007
54. Olympic (Lake)
Daly City, Calif.
Sam Whiting, 1924
55. Valley Club Of Montecito
Montecito, Calif.
Alister Mackenzie/Robert Hunter, 1929
59. Pasatiempo
Santa Cruz, Calif.
Alister Mackenzie, 1929
67. Monterey Peninsula (Shore)
Pebble Beach, Calif.
Bob Baldock, 1962/Mike Strantz, 2004
68. Bel-Air
Los Angeles
George C. Thomas Jr./William F. Bell, 1926
85. Monterey Peninsula (Dunes)
Pebble Beach, Calif.
Seth Raynor, 1924/Tom Fazio/Jackson Kahn, 2015
New Jersey (8)
1. Pine Valley
Pine Valley, N.J.
George Crump/H.S. Colt, 1918
23. Somerset Hills
Bernardsville, N.J.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1918
57. Plainfield
Plainfield, N.J.
Donald Ross, 1916
69. Baltusrol (Lower)
Springfield, N.J.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1922
74. Ridgewood (W/E)
Paramus, N.J.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1929
83. Hollywood
Deal, N.J.
Walter Travis, 1915
90. Mountain Ridge
West Caldwell, N.J.
Donald Ross, 1929
99. Baltusrol (Upper)
Springfield, N.J.
A.W. Tillinghast, 1922
Massachusetts (6)
22. The Country Club (Clyde/Squirrel)
Brookline, Mass.
TCC Members/Willie Campbell, 1899
43. Myopia Hunt Club
So. Hamilton, Mass.
H.C. Leeds, 1898
