Golf Digest just released its Top 100 Courses You Can Play list for 2007 and I was fascinated with the results (this is possibly because the ski areas cruelly extended their season and I have plenty of time on my hands).

The first thing I look for is to see which Maine courses made the list and both Sugarloaf and Belgrade Lakes did again. No surprise there. What makes their inclusion remarkable is not that the courses are worthy but that they are two of the cheapest on a list of courses that average over $250 a round. For those of you that are bummed that Belgrade Lakes will now set you back $150, take solace in that fact.

What was surprising is that Sunday River did not make it although it was named the 6th Best New course over $75. Think about that. With all the new courses now being built around the country commanding hefty greens fees, there are only 5 better than Sunday River? That's high praise and, if you've played there, very understandable. I'd love to see the other 5.

Maybe the most newsworthy thing about the list isn't who's on it - but who isn't. Only one other New England state has a single course on the list and that's a course in CT. No courses in MA, NH or VT. Zilch. Maine has 2 of the only 3 courses in all of New England.

Digging further into the state by state rankings, you'll notice something else unique about Maine. 4 of our top 5 rated courses are public and, to put that into perspective, the top 17 courses in MA are private. Both VT and NH are also heavily weighted toward private courses as well.

What does that mean? It means our courses are not only spectacular but accessible to the public. Out of our 140 odd courses, only about 10 are private and that is clearly an anomaly in New England. It means get out there and sample from the smorgasbord. Right after you shovel your driveway.

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