Archive | July, 2009

Wilshire’s Reclaimed Glory

Sometimes it takes a while for the identity of a place to reveal itself

You’d beexcused during the first few holes at Wilshire Country Club if you didn’t have a clear sense of the site. The course sits in a leafy envelope, with towering canary pines and eucalyptus trees insulating the fairways from the surrounding residences of Hancock Park. Even as late in the round as the ninth tee, the prelude to a rolling, up-and-over 437-yard par-4, you might have trouble discerning the proper line for your drive. Until, that is, you look up and see the distinctive “HOLLYWOOD” lettering on the distant hill and, to its right, the neon El Royale sign atop the legendary Spanish art deco apartment building – the former hotel that was a residence of many studio-era film stars. All of a sudden things become clear. The ideal aiming point is just between these two landmarks. And then you know where you are.

Welcome to one of Los Angeles’ historic golf courses. Wilshire Country Club wasn’t always so well ensconced. Upon its founding in 1919 as one of them town’s pioneer country clubs, Wilshire sat right out in the open, on a broad, un-treed tract far beyond the western edge of in-town development.
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Celebrated Living Magazine – Top Courses of the Year

#19 KINGSBARNS GOLF LINKS, SCOTLAND (TIE)
Not even a decade old, Kingsbarns is now considered an essential addition to a St Andrews-Carnoustie pilgrimage. 011-44-1334-460860, kingsbarns.com

#20 DUNDONALD LINKS , SCOTLAND
Like Kingsbarns, this course is designed by Kyle Phillips, whose authentic work in the Old World belies his New World roots. 011-44-1294-314000, dundonaldlinks.com

Celebrated Living Magazine, Summer 2009

PGA Sweden opens Links course

The PGA of Sweden has officially opened the ‘Links’ course at its new facility near Malmo, in the south of the country.

Suitably accompanied by heavy rain and high winds, the course was launched with the help of an Annika Sorenstam drive from a hastily-erected tee sheltered inside the impressive clubhouse.

Designed by Kyle Phillips, the course tumbles across a landscape that was previously flat agricultural land, a transformation reminiscent of his work at Kingsbarns in Scotland, albeit without the coastline location.
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