In golf, the first hole sets the rhythm of the round and the 18th is meant to decide it, but on many great courses, neither is where the real story unfolds.

On Thursday, the hosts of Fore Play Podcast Plus and Fore Play Golf discussed why many great courses don’t place their best holes at No. 1 or No. 18, and the real reason.

"Americans, for the most part, kind of blew this. We’d take the most valuable land on site and put a clubhouse there. Whereas in Scotland and at old-school spots, they would take the least valuable land for the clubhouse so they could save the most valuable spots for the best golf holes. That’s where you’d start from.”

He continued by explaining that, at many links courses, the first and 18th holes are not meant to be the strongest on the property. They often serve as routes that move players toward the most important land. 

He pointed to Bandon Dunes as an example, noting that the opening par-4 moves away from the clubhouse and ocean, while the closing par-5 returns toward the clubhouse without standing apart from the holes along the coastline. 

He said the same idea applies at Cypress Point Club, where the clubhouse sits back among the trees rather than on the cliffs. 

There, the first hole plays over a road, and the 18th draws mixed reactions, but both primarily function to connect players to the most significant ground on the course.

The Cypress Point Club itself is often ranked among the best in the world, yet the final hole is frequently compared to the stretch that comes before it.

After the ocean holes at 15, 16, and 17, the 18th turns inland toward the trees and clubhouse, which has led some golfers to joke that Cypress Point is “the best 17-hole course in the world.”

The 18th is a short par-4 that plays around 340 yards. The tee shot requires players to hit over or through cypress trees to find a narrow fairway. 

The panel also discussed which courses stand out for the way they open a round, as the focus shifted from design philosophy to specific examples.

Which Course Has Golf’s Best Opening Hole

In discussing that question, the panel mentioned two courses that, in their view, might belong in the conversation, though even they weren’t fully certain.

“I really don’t know if you can find one. Opening holes are tough to rank. It might be Spyglass. I don’t know. Spyglass is up there. Sheep Ranch at Bandon is up there, too. That first hole is very reminiscent of Spyglass, a little dogleg left down toward the ocean.”

At Spyglass Hill Golf Course, the first hole is a 595-yard par-5 called “Treasure Island.” It starts within the trees before turning left and opening toward the Pacific. 

Players navigate a narrow tee shot, and many choose to lay up on the second because of the slope toward the green. The putting surface has two levels and is guarded by bunkers. 

On the other hand, Sheep Ranch at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort presents a different setting but a similar leftward movement off the tee.

Opened in 2020 and designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, the course was built without sand bunkers, relying instead on natural ground features. Every hole looks toward the Pacific, and the opener follows a dogleg-left line in that direction.

What course do you think has the best opening and closing holes? Tell us in the comments and follow Daily Club Golf for more updates!

Written by

Aditi Singh

Edited by

Oajaswini Prabhu