"Some snob bloggers annoy me with their contempt for the work of certain architects when we all know that the worst design is still a beautiful place to play."

Several have emailed or even brought the June Golf Digest to my face to point to the above words and ask if Golf Digest editor Jerry Tarde was calling me out in his Golf Snob Index column.

I can confirm that Jerry admitted that he was targeting just one blogger, yours truly.

And he's correct that there is no such thing as a bad course when every links provides enjoyment, employment, a place for wildlife and a much better alternative to a parking lot.

However, there is a difference in my criticism, and before we head to Congressional and you feel the need to complain about my highlighting of the mediocre renovation work there, this is a good time to clarify.

When I'm critical of certain architects who like to bend Jerry's ear about criticism directed their way, it's certainly not personal but driven by the constant labels of "greatness" bequeathed to them. With lavish budgets and the "genius" word thrown about, I naturally take a closer look at their work and when I see tell-tale signs of mediocrity--rushed construction, strategy-free holes, more attention paid to cart path placement than bunker locations, excessive use of catch basins to substitute for creative drainage, etc.--I'm going to point it out. Is that elitist? I don't believe so when the topic is the work of "genius" and the label of "greatness" is thrown about.

Jerry said it best himself in the column:

"A bit of elitism is not necessarily a bad thing. After all, Pebble Beach is better than Dyker Beach. Elitism is about high standards, but the application gets us in trouble."

Here's a screen capture of the column if you are interested in computing your Golf Snob Index.