British Open 2022: Golfweek’s Best ranking of the rota of host courses
Each of the 10 layouts on the modern British Open course rota score highly in Golfweek’s Best ranking of top classic golf courses built before 1960 in Great Britain and Ireland, as would be expected. But that doesn’t mean they all are equals.
Check out the rankings of each course on the modern rota below. The hundreds of members of our course-ratings panel continually evaluate courses and rate them based on 10 criteria on a points basis of 1 through 10. They also file a single, overall rating on each course. Those overall ratings are averaged to produce these rankings, and they are included for each course below.
10. Royal Liverpool (Hoylake)
Royal Liverpool (Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 7.17
Location: Hoylake, England
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 31
Number of times hosting British Open: 12
Next time hosting British Open: 2023
9. Royal Troon (Old)
The Old Course at Royal Troon (David Cannon/Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 7.58
Location: Troon, Scotland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 23
Number of times hosting British Open: Nine
Next time hosting British Open: 2024
8. Royal Lytham & St. Annes
Royal Lytham & St. Annes (Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 7.67
Location: Lytham St. Annes, England
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 19
Number of times hosting British Open: 11
7. Carnoustie (Championship)
Carnoustie’s Championship Course (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 7.87
Location: Carnoustie, Scotland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 14
Number of times hosting British Open: Eight
6. Royal Birkdale
Royal Birkdale Golf Club (David Cannon/Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 7.96
Location: Southport, England
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 11
Number of times hosting British Open: 10
5. Royal St. George's
Royal St. George’s (Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 8.17
Location: Sandwich, England
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 9
Number of times hosting British Open: 14
4. Trump Turnberry (Ailsa)
Trump Turnberry’s Ailsa Course (David Cannon/Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 8.27
Location: Turnberry, Scotland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 8
Number of times hosting British Open: Four
3. Royal Portrush (Dunluce)
Royal Portrush’s Dunluce Course (David Cannon/R&A via Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 8.53
Location: Portrush, Northern Ireland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 5
Number of times hosting British Open: Two
Next time hosting British Open: 2025
2. Muirfield
Muirfield (David Cannon/Getty Images)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 8.63
Location: Gullane, Scotland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 4
Number of times hosting British Open: 16
1. Old Course at St. Andrews
The Old Course at St. Andrews (Steve Flynn-USA TODAY Sports)
Golfweek’s Best rating: 8.75
Location: St. Andrews, Scotland
Ranking on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses in GB&I: No. 2
Number of times hosting British Open: 29
Next time hosting British Open: 2022
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