Want To Be A Golf Course Rater? Join Our Top 100 Panel

Before the start of the new UK & Ireland course rankings process this Summer, we are looking to invite a small number of readers to join the assessment panel

Royal County Down 4th hole
Royal County Down has been number one in the Golf Monthly rankings since 2021/22
(Image credit: Kevin Murray)

Want To Be A Golf Course Rater? Join Our Top 100 Panel

NB - Applications Can Be Submitted From April 15th Until April 30th, 2025

The biennial Top 100 Golf Courses UK & Ireland as well as the Next 100 lists are compiled with the assistance of a team of around three dozen experienced, enthusiastic and knowledgeable readers. Most importantly, each panellist will have played many courses of differing styles and standards, and ideally, each has played a minimum of 20 courses in the existing Top 100. This is key because all of the courses are wonderful. It therefore becomes a matter of working out which are actually even better than the others!

Top 100 Assessment Form

The evaluation form used during the 2023/2024 Top 100 assessment period

(Image credit: Rob Smith)

All panellists should be based in the UK or Ireland, and be able to commit to visiting and reviewing a minimum of ten contender clubs (from our shortlist of approximately 140 courses) during the review period. For the next set of rankings for 2027/28, this window will run from the summer of 2025 to late autumn 2026. There are more details on how we rank golf courses in the Top 100 section of the website.

Top 100 Panel

Members of the assessment panel at Dumbarnie Links

(Image credit: Rob Smith)

All panellists are expected to arrange their own visits, beginning with a polite and friendly email to the club. They also pay for their own expenses such as travel, food and drink, and any associated accommodation. We believe that the integrity of the process relies on this. Each is supplied with a PDF 'letter of introduction' that explains they are an assessor for Golf Monthly.

In return, the majority of our contender clubs offer courtesy, although some do now charge a discounted reviewer's rate. Happily, we now find that most panellists also complete some of their reviews as a secret shopper; by playing in matches, society or corporate events, with friends who are members, or on golfing days out or trips further afield with friends. We very much welcome all such assessments. Another benefit is that great friendships are formed, and there is a biennial get-together which last time round was at Dumbarnie Links.

Golfers - GettyImages-2170940926

We are keen to include more women on the panel

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Although the group we have now is extremely strong, there is naturally a small turnover of personnel from time to time. In addition, it is healthy to seek fresh ideas and input. Golf Monthly's content and its audience is increasingly diverse, and we are keen to mirror this. We are therefore particularly interested in applications from women and younger golfers so long as they have the experience mentioned above. It is also worth noting that for the sake of impartiality, we do not allow golf industry professionals on the panel.

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More younger golfers would be welcome

(Image credit: Getty Images)

There will be just a handful of places on offer this time round, so if you are interested, then please email Rob Smith at r.smith896@btinternet.com between April 15th and April 30th, and he will send you more details about how to apply.

Rob Smith
Contributing Editor

Rob has been playing golf for over 45 years and been a contributing editor for Golf Monthly since 2012. He specialises in course reviews and travel, and has played over 1,250 courses in almost 50 countries. In 2021, he played all 21 courses in East Lothian in 13 days. Last year, his tally was 78, exactly half of them for the first time. One of Rob's primary roles is helping to prepare the Top 100 Courses of the UK&I, of which he has played all, as well as the Next 100 where he is missing two in Scotland and two in Ireland. He has been a member of Tandridge for over 30 years where his handicap hovers around 15. You can contact him at r.smith896@btinternet.com.

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