They are not always the biggest or best known, but the facilities comprising Golf World's 100 Best Golf Shops for 2009 share a knack for creativity in a tough economy. For the GC at Desert Mountain that means freshening displays with digital, environmentally friendly picture frames. For Carlsbad Golf Center it is a women's-only open house and demo day. For Haggin Oaks Golf Super Shop in Sacramento, Calif., (along with Carl's Golfland in Bloomfield Hills, Mich., the only shop to earn 100 Best honors all 24 years of the competition) the highlight is a golf-dreams initiative with 1,000 giveaways. In the 12 months prior to the contest deadline, our 100 top shops chalked up nearly $237 million in sales. That's a good year in any economy.

HOW THE WINNERS ARE CHOSEN
On- and off-course golf shops submit financial statements, photographs and an essay. Shops are judged on three criteria: (1) revenue per square foot/per round; (2) shop appearance/layout, using supplied photos; and (3) articulation of successful promotions and recent initiatives within the last year.

Off-Course
Carl's Golfland, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
Carl's Golfland -- St. John's, Plymouth, Mich.
Carlsbad Golf Center, Carlsbad, Calif.
Dale's Winning Edge Golf H'quarters. Knoxville, Tenn.
Edwin Watts Golf, Hanover, Mass.
Edwin Watts Golf, Naples, Fla.
Edwin Watts Golf, North Miami Beach, Fla.
Edwin Watts Golf Orlando Superstore, Orlando Fla.
Golfdom Tysons, McLean, Va.
The Kiawah Golf Shop, Kiawah Island, S.C.
Lumpy's Golf, Cathedral City, Calif.
Lumpy's Golf, La Quinta, Calif.
Miles of Golf, Ann Arbor, Mich.
PGA Tour Shop -- Dallas/Fort Worth, DFW Airport, Texas
PGA Tour Shop -- Detroit, Romulus, Mich.
PGA Tour Shop -- Ft. Myers, Ft. Myers, Fla.
PGA Tour Shop -- Jacksonville, Jacksonville. Fla.
PGA Tour Shop -- Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nev.
PGA Tour Shop -- Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wis.
PGA Tour Shop -- Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pa.
PGA Tour Shop -- Phoenix, Tempe, Ariz.
PGA Tour Shop -- Reno-Tahoe, Reno, Nev.
PGA Tour Shop -- San Francisco, San Francisco, Calif.
PGA Tour Shop -- West Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Fla.
RedTail Golf Center, Beaverton, Ore.

Private
The Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Fla.
Bearpath G&CC, Eden Prairie, Minn.
Castle Pines GC, Castle Rock, Colo.
Cherokee Town & CC, Atlanta, Ga.
Congressional CC, Bethesda, Md.
Desert Mountain, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Firestone CC, Akron, Ohio
Fresh Meadow CC, Lake Success, N.Y.
The GC of Georgia, Alpharetta, Ga.
Hidden Creek GC, Egg Harbor Township, N.J.
Inverness Club, Toledo, Ohio
Kalamazoo CC, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Medinah CC, Medinah, Ill.
Merion GC, Ardmore, Pa.
Muirfield Village GC, Dublin, Ohio
Olympia Fields CC, Olympia Fields, Ill.
The Peninsula G&CC, Millsboro, Del.
Philadelpia CC, Gladwyne, Pa.
Ritz-Carlton Members Club, Bradenton, Fla.
TPC Boston, Norton, Mass.
TPC Jasna Polana, Princeton, N.J.
TPC River Highlands, Cromwell, Conn.
TPC Sugarloaf, Duluth, Ga.
TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nev.
Wichita CC, Wichita, Kan.

Public
Bali Hai GC, Las Vegas, Nev.
Chambers Bay GC, University Place, Wash.
The GC at Newcastle, Newcastle, Wash.
Grayhawk GC, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Haggin Oaks Golf Super Shop, Sacramento, Calif.
International World Tour GL, Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Hillandale Golf Shop, Durham, N.C.
Kierland GC, Scottsdale, Ariz.
The Legacy GC, Henderson, Nev.
Maderas GC, Poway, Calif.
Pine Oaks GC, South Easton, Mass.
Poppy Hills GC, Pebble Beach, Calif.
Redstone GC, Humble, Texas
The Revere GC, Henderson, Nev.
Sandia GC, Albuquerque, N.M.
Talking Stick GC, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Torrey Pines Golf Shop, La Jolla, Calif.
TPC Deere Run, Silvis, Ill.
TPC Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nev.
TPC Scottsdale, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Troon North GC, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Trump National GC, Palos Verdes, Calif.
University Ridge GC, Madison, Wis.
We-Ko-Pa GC, Fort McDowell, Ariz.
Whirlwind GC, Chandler, Ariz.