By Steve Keating
(Reuters) – If, as Mark Twain observed, a round of golf is truly “a good walk spoiled” then these are the top 100 courses in the United States where you want to ruin your day, according to GolfPass.
The list of the Top 100 Walking Courses includes many of the names found on any ranking of top U.S. courses, led by number one Pebble Beach.
Yet it also features some lesser know layouts like Charleston Municipal Golf Course in South Carolina at number 24 and Forest Dunes (The Loop) in Michigan at 25.
Golf has enjoyed a post-pandemic boom with the sport adding more than one million golfers in the last three years, according to data from the National Golf Foundation.
Many of the newcomers have turned away from golf’s comforts, such as carts, preferring to get in a bit of exercise.
“The pandemic introduced the game to a new generation of younger golfers who are very health-conscious and would rather walk than ride in a cart,” said GolfPass managing editor Jason Scott Deegan, explaining the reasons for the list.
“One of the most unique impacts has been that walking while playing has become more popular than ever.
“In the early days of the pandemic, most golfers either couldn’t use carts or didn’t want to.
“Many rediscovered the joys of walking. They bought new push carts and carry bags and have kept on walking.”
To compile the list GolfPass analysed the walking data from thousands of reviews of more than 3,000 courses.
All courses had to be accessible to the public, with other criteria considered including the quality of the course, how conducive it is to walking.
Many of the top 10 venues are familiar to golfers having hosted majors as well as PGA and LPGA Tour events.
Following top ranked Pebble Beach are Oregon’s Pacific Dunes and Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, host of the last Ryder Cup in 2021.
Another Ryder Cup venue, The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island came in at number four followed by Brandon Dunes at five and Pinehurst No. 2, the host of three U.S. Opens.
Rounding out the top 10 are Pasatiempo Golf Club, Mammoth Dunes at Sand Valley, Bethpage Black and Harbour Town Golf Links.
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto. Editing by Toby Davis)
