I had a New CTR for 6 months in 2005-2006, I've had a few cars since and ended up in a Mk5. The CTR IMO is a harsh car that is great to thrash but not great to just get from a2b. The golf seems to be up for a thrashing but is equally at home cruising along the M-way quietly. Another thing is the quality and feel of the interior, I test drove a new shape CTR before the golf and having been in german cars since the last CTR I just couldnt go back to Japanese plastic, it just doesnt feel as nice.
Plus there seems to be no limit to the mods that you can do to it, so far I've not touched mine but i'm enjoying it as it is