Where should you play golf next year? Golfweek's Best offers guidance

As the weather continues to cool off in the northern states and golf season slips into hibernation for so many players, it’s time to look ahead at brighter days. And, hopefully, a few golf trips. 

Whether you love less expensive daily fee courses or big and often expensive resorts, there’s no better place to begin your planning for the next golf season than Golfweek’s Best rankings of the top public-access courses in each state. Chances are, American golfers can find within that list new courses in their own states. And chances are even better the list will spark interest in new destinations, some with big names and some that most players have never heard of. 

Taking it a step beyond, this year Golfweek compared the top states for elite public-access and private courses. We took just the top five courses of each category in each state, averaged their ratings and compiled a ranking of states that might surprise some players. It’s proof that good golf stretches well beyond many people’s expectations. Yes, the warm-weather destinations that would be expected to appear on such a list did make a strong showing, but there are plenty of states with exceptionally strong golf courses that every player should sample. We’re looking at you, Wisconsin, Washington and Michigan.  

Check the links below for both the state-by-state ranking of public-access courses as well as the rankings of each state versus other states. They’re sure to get you fired up for next golf season.