The point of any list or any subjective rankings of, well, anything is to cause a little debate. You could try and rank the top 100 days of sunshine in the desert and someone would have a negative opinion or suggest that sunshine isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.
So it is with my list of the top 100 holes of golf in the desert (which you can view at http://top100golf.mydesert.com). I knew that any listing of any holes would cause comments, and I was not disappointed in the response.
No. 17 at the TPC Stadium Course at PGA West. This dramatic par-3 is second on my list of the top 100 holes in the desert (Desert Sun file photo)
For instance, there is this Twitter comment from @JasOntheGem about what even I admit is the most controversial hole on the list, the very difficult 505-yard par-4 15th hole at SilverRock Resort in La Quinta,which I put in the middle of the list at No. 50: “Left dead. Short dead. Layup sliver. Over bunker dead. No bailout. Double.” I’m not sure if that means he agrees or disagrees about the hole being on the list, but he does have a strong opinion.
There was also this tweet from @Mashie29: “My favorite hole in the Desert. #16 Dunes Course La Quinta Resort.” I assume that means he likes that I put that gem of a hole at No. 10 on the list.
A Facebook comments from John Lund of Victoria, Canada read: “Good job Larry. I found your published list both fun and interesting. I like it that you separated out the Private and Public courses on the web page. So many courses to play; so little time.” Thanks, and we wanted very much to have both private and public courses as a true representation of desert golf.
But another Facebook comments from Larry Quiring added a bit of a twist: “Nice work Larry…but no SilverRock #17…really?” Actually, with only two holes per course, SilverRock was at its limit with the seventh and the 15th, 17th was left out. And truthfully, I think there are other holes I would rank higher than 17, despite its drama of a par-3 over water.
John McCarthy’s Facebook comment was interesting. He questions why I would put any of the private courses in the desert on the list since most golfers can’t play those holes. An interesting point, but in compiling lists of the best courses or holes in the country, you would surely put Augusta National and Pebble Beach on the lists, even though most people will never play those courses. But we are familiar enough with the courses through television to know the holes and the courses are great. I felt the same way about the private courses here. The holes and the courses are great, even if most people can’t play them. I wanted to give people at least a glimpse at some of the holes.
I talked to one man on the phone who said he loved the project, even though his computer had yet to let him see the 100 videos of the ranked holes. Interesting point, since the videos really are the project. The Nov. 18 stories in The Desert Sun were designed to be companion pieces to the videos.
E-mail brought several interesting comments. For instance, there was Robert Hall of Illinois, who wrote, “Your video on 100 best golf holes is outstanding. I was so impressed that I forwarded it the 24 club in Illinois (Itasca Country Club) and they decided they would make their annual January Golf Tour to the desert. They play for 18 days at 18 different courses. This will be their first trip to the desert. They have gone to the San Diego area a few times in the past. They are a drinking, eating night clubbing group of 24 successful business men. Your video did the trick. Good job!!” Fabulous, and where to I collect my finder’s fee.
Tom Adkins e-mailed to congratulations us on the project, but disagreed with some of the philosophy behind the list. He wonders why I had so many tough holes on the Top 100, though I tried hard to have both tough, beautiful, quirky and historic holes on the list. “I have played many of the holes you describe. They are the primary reason 1mm players gave up golf last year according to USGA information. Perhaps you have heard of the tee forward program. I am an 8HC at age 73 and find many of these tracks not much fun. Toscona is one of the worst courses in the valley. It is unplayable for anyone over a 5HC.” He adds that most retired golfers aren’t getting any longer, and suggest I talked to Barney Adams about his Tee It Forward program. Of course, I’ve done like three interviews with Barney for The Desert Sun on the Tee It Forward program over the last two years. And As for Toscana, they are the only course in the desert (at least that I know of) that has built a completely new set of 18 tees for its South Course specifically for the Tee It Forward player.
So it’s been interesting reading everything people have tweeted, e-mailed and commented on Facebook in the last week. And you can still get me messages at larry.bohannan@thedesert sun.com or at my Twitter account, @mydesertgolf.