The Best Golfing in Washington State
Golf Digest has published its “Best in State” rankings for the 2021–2022 season. In Washington State, several of the top-rated courses received new rankings.
Chambers Bay Golf Course, a public-access course in University Place, moved up one position to take the top spot in the state. The 7,585-yard, par-72 ranks №22 on the list of America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses and №132 in the nation overall.
Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr. and Bruce Charlton in 2007, Chambers Bay has a unique vertical-links style to accommodate its location in an abandoned sand quarry outside Tacoma. Named America’s Best New Public Course in 2008, Chambers Bay quickly became the host of major events, such as the 2010 United States Amateur Championship and the 2015 US Open. Chambers Bay is a relatively difficult course, particularly when navigating the windswept greens and dry fescue turf fairways, which Robert Trent Jones Jr. has described as “hardwood floors.”
The Aldarra Golf Club course in Sammamish also jumped one spot to become the №2 course in Washington State. The course, ranked №140 in the United States, is a Tom Fazio design circa 2001. The 6,885-yard, par-71 course east of Seattle is the first Fazio course in the Pacific Northwest.
Formerly known as the Member’s Club at Aldarra, the Aldarra Golf Club has become famous for its final four holes. Collectively known as “The Gauntlet,” the sequence begins with a long par-3 that has a partially guarded green, a par 4 through wetlands, a par 4 with a green guarded by stacked sod bunkers, and finally, a long par 4 featuring a pair of forced carries over ravines.
The Sahalee Country Club South and North courses, also in Sammamish, fell from №1 in Washington State to No 3. Despite losing ground in the state, Ted Robinson’s 1969 design still ranks as the №146 course in the nation. Unlike modern courses that remove trees to improve vistas and introduce more sunlight, Sahalee has embraced its location among the Pacific Northwest’s famous cedars, spruces, firs, and pines. The course is known for its narrow fairways lined by these towering trees. Sahalee Country Club ranked as high as №48 in the nation in 1990.
Brewster’s Gamble Sands held strong as the №4 course in Washington State. In addition to ranking at №183 in the US, the course placed at №38 on America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses. The 2014 David McLay Kidd design won the Golf Digest Best New Course Award, thanks in part to the course’s enviable location overlooking the Columbia River Valley. Gamble Sands is regarded as a highly playable course with wide fairways, large greens, and no rough.
Most of the remaining top-10 courses maintained their positions, though Tumble Creek Club at Suncadia overtook Wine Valley Golf Club for the №6 spot, and Canterwood Golf and Country Club in Gig Harbor debuted at №10. Canterwood was one of five courses to make its first appearance on the Golf Digest list.
Originally published at http://www.behance.net on September 22, 2021.
