Press Release

For Immediate Release November 12, 2015

New regional structure produces changes in the Western Golf Alliance golf course rankings

"Where You Can Rip It" 2016 honors 100 public-access western golf courses

BOTHELL, Washington. Today, the Western Golf Alliance published its biennial ranking of golf courses. Designated as the "Where You Can Rip It" rankings, this effort identifies the best public access golf courses in the western United States.

As a result of a change in the club bylaws related to the regional structure, this year's rankings feature a significant change in the courses being honored. Especially the addition of the "Directors' Choice" region - a wildcard territory covering new areas of Utah, Idaho, Alberta, British Columbia, and Hawaii - allowed for consideratin of entirely new courses.

"Every year, we play and assess hundreds of courses during thousands of rounds played throughout North America," said Brian Gray, WGA president. "We exist to support and promote public-access golf, and our Rip It rankings are one of the ways we accomplish this mission."

This year, the Where You Can Rip It rankings have significantly changed. Beyond adding new western locations to consider, another signicant change was creating the "Sequoia Dunes" region that effectively combined the coastal regional between Bandon Dunes and Pebble Beach. As a result, other courses in northern California and Oregon could receive the distinction they deserve without competing head-to-head with these two world-class locations.

"By pitting these resort destinations head to head, we are able to properly rank courses against their peers and better advise other golfers about the best places to play golf," said Mark Taylor, chairman of the course ranking task force. "These changes enable us to provide real advice to golfers worldwide, and recognize outstanding courses throughout the west," continued Taylor.

In addition to the Sequoia Dunes region, the restructuring also changed the parameters of the regions in Oregon and Washington. This created a more equitable distribution of "great" courses, and again fostered competition for rankings between what most would consider "peer" golf courses. The exception is in the Directors' Choice region, where the Board of Directors had the opportunity to debate a collection of wildly diverse courses from Banff, to Kauai, to St George Utah, to just about everything in between.

In the past, the "Where You Can Rip It" golf course rankings have been quoted by The Golf Channel, and referenced on numerous industry websites including Worldgolf.com, Golfchannel.com, and Golf.com. The 2014 rankings we viewed by over one hundred thousand golfers during the past 24 months, and have been quoted in at least 18 industry news articles. Realitors have used the rankings to promote the quality of homes on or near ranked courses, and at least three golf courses cited the rankings in documents used to establish the financial value of their business.

"We are very confident that our rankings provide great insight that golfers will appreciate when deciding where to play" concluded Gray. "As part of our mission to promote the great game of golf, we hope this public service is well received by all."

The WGA updates the Where You Can Rip It rankings biennially. The 2016 rankings are available at this web site.

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About the Western Golf Alliance: The Western Golf Alliance is the premier golf organization in the United States. The WGA exists to further the greatness of this grand sport of golf through the improvement of golf play by its members, the promotion of golf rules, etiquette, and tradition, and the ability to gather together from time to time for golf events and tournaments. The regional organization spans five western states, and is organized into nine geographic regions. Further information is available at http://www.westerngolf.org/.

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