# What is the best golf course in the world?

> The world's greatest golf courses are as much works of art as they are athletic venues — rugged clifftop links carved by the sea, immaculately manicured parkland masterpieces, and exclusive gems known only to devoted pilgrims. Which course sits at the very top?

*By YPB Team · Published April 16, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-best-golf-course-in-the-world*

---

## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Augusta National Golf Club**
   Home of The Masters, Augusta National is the most iconic and meticulously maintained course in golf, famous for Amen Corner and its blooming azaleas.
2. **St Andrews Links (Old Course)**
   The birthplace of golf, St Andrews has been played for over 600 years and its iconic stone clubhouse and Swilcan Bridge are the sport's most sacred symbols.
3. **Pebble Beach Golf Links**
   Carved into the rugged California coastline, Pebble Beach offers some of the most breathtaking oceanside holes in the world and a storied Major championship history.
4. **Cypress Point Club**
   The ultra-exclusive Cypress Point on the Monterey Peninsula is widely considered the most beautiful golf course on earth, with dramatic cliffs and crashing Pacific surf.
5. **Pine Valley Golf Club**
   Consistently ranked the world's number one course, Pine Valley's brutally demanding layout in the New Jersey pinelands is a golfer's ultimate pilgrimage.
6. **Royal Melbourne Golf Club**
   Australia's finest course and the best in the Southern Hemisphere, Royal Melbourne's composite course is a masterpiece of strategic sand belt design.
7. **Shinnecock Hills Golf Club**
   One of America's oldest golf clubs, Shinnecock Hills on Long Island is a classic windswept links-style course that has hosted multiple US Opens.
8. **Merion Golf Club**
   A compact but brilliantly designed gem on Philadelphia's Main Line, Merion is famous for its iconic wicker basket flagsticks and legendary US Open moments.
9. **Oakmont Country Club**
   The most difficult course in American golf, Oakmont near Pittsburgh is notorious for its brutally fast greens and has hosted more US Opens than any other course.
10. **Whistling Straits**
   A dramatic links-style masterpiece on the shores of Lake Michigan in Wisconsin, built to resemble the rugged Irish coast and host of the 2021 Ryder Cup.
11. **Muirfield**
   Home of The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, Muirfield is a quintessential Scottish links that has hosted 16 Open Championships.
12. **Royal Portrush Golf Club**
   Set on the stunning Causeway Coast of Northern Ireland, Royal Portrush reclaimed its place among the world's elite when it hosted the 2019 Open Championship.
13. **TPC Sawgrass**
   Home of The Players Championship, TPC Sawgrass is famous worldwide for its terrifying island-green 17th hole, the most-photographed par-3 in golf.
14. **Ballybunion Golf Club**
   A rugged links masterpiece on Ireland's wild Atlantic coast, Ballybunion's Old Course is a rollercoaster of dunes and cliff-top holes beloved by purists.
15. **Turnberry (Ailsa Course)**
   Scotland's most dramatic links, Turnberry overlooks the Firth of Clyde with the iconic lighthouse backdrop and was the scene of Watson and Nicklaus's legendary Duel in the Sun.
16. **Royal Birkdale Golf Club**
   A classic English links on the Lancashire coast, renowned for its fair but demanding layout and some of the Open Championship's most dramatic finishes.
17. **Seminole Golf Club**
   Ben Hogan's favorite practice ground, this exclusive Florida gem designed by Donald Ross is considered the finest course in the American South.
18. **Harbour Town Golf Links**
   A beloved Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus design on Hilton Head Island, Harbour Town's iconic red-and-white lighthouse is a staple of the PGA Tour season.
19. **Bethpage Black**
   New York's ferocious public-access monster so difficult it posts a warning sign for average golfers — and has twice hosted the US Open.
20. **Erin Hills Golf Course**
   A vast and visually stunning Wisconsin links carved through glacial terrain, Erin Hills announced itself to the world as host of the 2017 US Open.
21. **Los Angeles Country Club (North Course)**
   One of America's most exclusive clubs hidden in plain sight on Wilshire Boulevard, LACC made a spectacular debut hosting the 2023 US Open.
22. **Royal County Down Golf Club**
   Set beneath the Mountains of Mourne on Ireland's stunning eastern coast, Royal County Down is regularly ranked among the top three courses in the world.

Tags: travel, sports, places, golf