HOW COURSES ARE RANKED
CONDITIONING 20 POINTS
How would you rate the quality of tees, fairways, bunkers and greens, plus general presentation? A great course is maintained in great playing shape, giv- en the weather conditions it must deal with. How well does the course challenge low-handicaps while providing enjoyable options for high-handicaps through the use of shorter lengths, alternative routes, varied placement of hazards, PLAYABILITY 20 POINTS and accessible portions of greens? A great course never frustrates any golfer. How well do the scenic val- ues of the course (including landscaping, vegetation, water features and back- drops) add to the pleasure of a round? The focus should be on scenic values within the course, not outside the course. AESTHETICS 15 POINTS DESIGN VARIETY 15 POINTS How varied are the golf course’s holes in differing lengths (long, medium and short par 3s, 4s and 5s), configurations (straight holes, doglegs left and right), hazard placements, green shapes and green contours? The more variety a design provides, the more it tests the complete game of a player.
NO 3 IN AESTHETICS The Links at Fancourt 15th hole.
Best in Aesthetics 1 Leopard Creek 13.8 2 East London 13.5 3 The Links at Fancourt 13.4 4 Blair Atholl 13.4 5 Elements 13.3 6 Pezula 13.2 7 Champagne Sports 13.2 8 Umdoni Park 13.2 9 Arabella 13.1 10 Prince’s Grant 13.1 Best in Design Variety 1 The Links at Fancourt 13.3 2 St Francis Links 13.2 3 Glendower 13.0 4 Pearl Valley 12.6 5 East London 12.4 6 Leopard Creek 12.4 7 George 12.2 8 Houghton 12.2 9 Royal East 12.0 10 Sishen 12.0 Best in Memorability 1 Glendower 12.6 2 East London 12.6 3 Leopard Creek 12.6 4 St Francis Links 12.6 5 Humewood 12.5 6 The Links at Fancourt 12.4 7 Blair Atholl 12.4 8 East London 12.3 9 Fancourt Montagu 12.2 10 Arabella 12.6
Best in Shot Values 1 Pearl Valley 12.5 2 Glendower 12.5 3 Pinnacle Point 12.5 4 St Francis Links 12.4 5 Leopard Creek 12.3 6 The Links at Fancourt 12.1 7 Fancourt Montagu 12.0 8 Gary Player 12.3
continuity to the entire 18? Is a consistent level of quality a course’s strength, or is it let down by several poor holes? If a common thread unites 18 individual holes into a seam- less course then it deserves a high score. How well do the holes pro- vide a variety of risks and rewards, and test accuracy, length and finesse without overemphasising any one skill over the other two? A great course poses different strategies from hole to hole and requires a good player to have all the shots. A course that mixes up risks (water, bunkers, depth percep- SHOT VALUES 15 POINTS tion, out-of-bounds) offers greater variety and deserves a high score. If a course has no short 3s, 4s or 5s then it overemphasises length. Too many undulating greens overemphasises the short game. Courses weak in Shot Values are those which are wide open and rarely test length, and those which de- mand pinpoint accuracy.
9 Arabella 12.0 10 Erinvale 12.0
Best in Playability 1 Royal Jhb East 16.0 2 Blair Atholl 16.0 3 Steyn City 15.9 4 Glendower 15.8 5 Humewood 15.8 6 Highland Gate 15.8 7 Arabella 15.8 8 CCJ Woodmead 15.7 9 Sishen 15.6 10 Kyalami 15.6
Best in Conditioning 1 The Links at Fancourt 16.7 2 Blair Atholl 16.3 3 Leopard Creek 16.3 4 Steyn City 16.2 5 Arabella 16.1 6 Fancourt Montagu 16.1 7 Sishen 16.0 8 Glendower 15.8 9 Pretoria CC 15.8 10 Royal Jhb East 15.8
MEMORABILITY & CONSISTENCY 15 POINTS
How well do the design fea- tures provide individuality to each hole yet a collective
70 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
MAY 2024
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