Golf Monthly Top 100

[fundy]

I find these lists rather frustrating when there isn’t much effort put into it.

To rate some of the heathland courses listed below as highly as they have indicates that they very much enjoy heathland golf. In fact, compared to Top 100 list they clearly look more favourably upon heathland golf and generally rank those courses higher.
However, they seem to love some heathland golf courses and totally disregard others - it’s inconsistent. I would be fascinated to understand why.

I can’t see how the 3 W’s can be spread so far apart, for example. Everyone you speak to has a different “favourite” - hard to say any one is significantly than another (20 places higher!)

I can’t see how you can love Liphook + Hankley and completely exclude Hindhead. Many find it difficult to split Liphook and Hindhead so if you’ve got one at #53, the other has to be quite close by…

Golf Monthly List:
30th Hankley Common
33rd Walton Heath Old
53rd Liphook
57th Walton Heath New
58th West Sussex
60th Worplesdon
68th Moortown
69th West Hill
81st Parkstone
83rd Woking
96th Broadstone

Top 100 Rankings: Arguably a lot of these are bunched closer together, indicating there’s not a lot between them all. It is acknowledgment that they are all rather similar.

31st West Sussex
39th Walton Heath Old
58th Hankley Common
67th Woking
73rd Worplesdon
75th Liphook
78th West Hill
87th Broadstone
88th Parkstone
89th Walton Heath New
91st Hindhead
98th Moortown

And I’m not overly impressed with top 100’s latest rankings either, where they moved Hindhead down 6 places in England (33rd -> 39th) despite not visiting over those 2 years (hmm) and ongoing course improvements.

Yes I’m bitter that I feel my club is constantly hard done by in the rankings. No it does not have any real consequence.

How do you come to that conclusion?

 

[IanM]

How do you come to that conclusion?

Thought he said his course was nt visited for two years and still went down in the rankings.

 

[fundy]

Thought he said his course was nt visited for two years and still went down in the rankings.

so that summises that theres not much effort put into compiling the Golf Monthly list because the other list didnt visit his home course in 2 years? Yeah ok then

 

[IanM]

I would have thought regular visits was a prerequisite? (And I don't mean weekly!)

How else do make an assessment?

But, generally, I don't think this a small undertaking

 

[fundy]

I would have thought regular visits was a prerequisite?

How else do make an assessment?

Of course regular visits are important. But using one club having not been visited by one of the lists for 2 years to come to the conclusion that "not a lot of effort has been put into the ratings" , especially when discussing another list, is frankly a load of bs

 

[Bdill93]

I would have thought regular visits was a prerequisite? (And I don't mean weekly!)

How else do make an assessment?

Literally cant!

However Id assume to make these lists as accurate as possible you would have to play 150+ courses in 12 months and then rank them. Then repeat process the following year - and again and again

Not sure who's funding that!

 

[IanM]

See my edit that crossed in the post!

 

[Orikoru]

Literally cant!

However Id assume to make these lists as accurate as possible you would have to play 150+ courses in 12 months and then rank them. Then repeat process the following year - and again and again

Not sure who's funding that!

There's probably more than one guy.

 

[Bdill93]

There's probably more than one guy.

Then it just makes it harder to compare!

 

[Imurg]

Having just my GM in the post, along with the Top 100 supplement I can confirm that there is a panel of 54 people who rate courses over the 2 year period..38 of which are readers.
Between them they have visited every course in the top 200......and there's no expenses paid either..

 

[D-S]

Having just my GM in the post, along with the Top 100 supplement I can confirm that there is a panel of 54 people who rate courses over the 2 year period..38 of which are readers.
Between them they have visited every course in the top 200......and there's no expenses paid either..

I assume they get courtesy of the course, so that is a pretty good incentive - also maybe the more expensive the course the better this incentive appears, which I would hate to think would influence any viewpoint.

Maybe an alternative view would be asking reviewers to pay with their own money and create them as to value?

 

[Bratty]

 

[Deleted member 25172]

I find these lists rather frustrating when there isn’t much effort put into it.

To rate some of the heathland courses listed below as highly as they have indicates that they very much enjoy heathland golf. In fact, compared to Top 100 list they clearly look more favourably upon heathland golf and generally rank those courses higher.
However, they seem to love some heathland golf courses and totally disregard others - it’s inconsistent. I would be fascinated to understand why.

I can’t see how the 3 W’s can be spread so far apart, for example. Everyone you speak to has a different “favourite” - hard to say any one is significantly than another (20 places higher!)

I can’t see how you can love Liphook + Hankley and completely exclude Hindhead. Many find it difficult to split Liphook and Hindhead so if you’ve got one at #53, the other has to be quite close by…

Golf Monthly List:
30th Hankley Common
33rd Walton Heath Old
53rd Liphook
57th Walton Heath New
58th West Sussex
60th Worplesdon
68th Moortown
69th West Hill
81st Parkstone
83rd Woking
96th Broadstone

Top 100 Rankings: Arguably a lot of these are bunched closer together, indicating there’s not a lot between them all. It is acknowledgment that they are all rather similar.

31st West Sussex
39th Walton Heath Old
58th Hankley Common
67th Woking
73rd Worplesdon
75th Liphook
78th West Hill
87th Broadstone
88th Parkstone
89th Walton Heath New
91st Hindhead
98th Moortown

And I’m not overly impressed with top 100’s latest rankings either, where they moved Hindhead down 6 places in England (33rd -> 39th) despite not visiting over those 2 years (hmm) and ongoing course improvements.

Yes I’m bitter that I feel my club is constantly hard done by in the rankings. No it does not have any real consequence.

If you’re a member at Hindhead then I’m more than happy to come and make an assessment on a guest rate. I can promise splendid reviews…

 

[Deleted member 15344]

I assume they get courtesy of the course, so that is a pretty good incentive - also maybe the more expensive the course the better this incentive appears, which I would hate to think would influence any viewpoint.

Maybe an alternative view would be asking reviewers to pay with their own money and create them as to value?

The reviewers go to courses in different methods , some get courtesy , some as a hidden visitor but none will base their review on them being given a freebie

I have played with a number of the reviewers and also played when they were reviewing a course

It’s all done to the same guidelines

View attachment 47151

played over 60 of those courses and never once paid that level of fee and playing some this year and not paying those fees

 

[Imurg]

I assume they get courtesy of the course, so that is a pretty good incentive - also maybe the more expensive the course the better this incentive appears, which I would hate to think would influence any viewpoint.

Maybe an alternative view would be asking reviewers to pay with their own money and create them as to value?

They do make "secret shopper" visits so they won't all be freebies

 

[Orikoru]

View attachment 47151

Got to love Castletown's 88% increase. They must have seen the last version of this list and thought "Oh my God! We're missing a trick here, what the hell have we been doing??"

Honestly some of them are insane. Who is paying £475 to play a round of golf? Is it exclusively fat white rich Americans up at Turnberry now?

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Got to love Castletown's 88% increase. They must have seen the last version of this list and thought "Oh my God! We're missing a trick here, what the hell have we been doing??"

Honestly some of them are insane. Who is paying £475 to play a round of golf? Is it exclusively fat white rich Americans up at Turnberry now?

Seriously

 

[D-S]

They do make "secret shopper" visits so they won't all be freebies

Yes but the reviewers as ‘secret shoppers’ will have the green fee reimbursed so it is, naturally, free to them.

 

[Deleted member 17920]

Yes but the reviewers as ‘secret shoppers’ will have the green fee reimbursed so it is, naturally, free to them.

Not for GM, for secret shoppers like 59 club yes they get it back.

 

[Deleted member 31467]

Yes but the reviewers as ‘secret shoppers’ will have the green fee reimbursed so it is, naturally, free to them.

A regular playing partner of mine is a course reviewer for one of the publications. When he does a 'secret shopper' review it is generally playing in an open, members guest or a society/corporate day so no, they don't get reimbursed.