Yes, there are places to escape Orlando's theme-park screams. Rest assured, luxury golf courses for the vacationer exist here, too. If you're willing to pay a premium for quiet, high-end accommodations and, of course, the best golf, Orlando has a handful of upscale options as good as anywhere in Florida.
Loews Ventana Canyon Resort is about as complete a golf resort as there is, David R. Holland writes. There are two Tom Fazio gems – the Mountain and Canyon courses – and they both come with striking Sonoran Desert backdrops, saguaros, slick greens and bold contours. Wildlife thrives here with coveys of quail, red-tailed hawks, bobcats, deer, rabbits, coyotes and roadrunners at an elevation of 3,013 feet.
There's nothing quite like springtime in the Carolinas, teeing it up on a coastal course where the saltwater fills the air. And while the Grand Strand doesn't have any bonafide "ocean" tracks, there are a collection of saltwater golf courses thanks to the Shallotte River, Waccamaw River and Intracoastal Waterway among others. Here are five of the best Myrtle Beach marsh courses.
No matter which of the three nines you play at Shipyard Golf Club, you'll enjoy them. Clipper and Brigantine are the bad cops, Galleon the nice, benevolent cop, so mix them up if you want, or go easy on yourself. It's a beautiful course, in great shape year round, thanks to the new greens, and an attentive staff. Try all three nines. You'll like all of them, for different reasons.
Dustin Johnson returns this week to the Pebble Beach Golf Links, Monterey Peninsula C.C. and Spyglass Hill Golf Course to defend his title at the AT&T Pebble Beach National. Spyglass Hill, a Robert Trent Jones Sr. design that opened in 1963, is named for classic novel "Treasure Island" because rumor has it that the author, Robert Louis Stevenson, used to gather ideas for his books in the area. With the first five holes running along sandy seaside dunes and the last 13 cut through a forest, Spyglass Hill Golf Course is considered one of the most difficult in the world from the back tees.
Spyglass Hill Golf Course - Resort in Pebble Beach
Perhaps no course fits better along the Grand Strand than Man O'War Golf Club, featuring a layout with so much water that golfers may believe they are playing on the beachfront, Josh Hoke writes. Water beckons from nine tees and in front of five greens. Still, the hazards provide fair tests, offering golfers in Myrtle Beach a set of challenges more mental than physical.
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Where can you party Super Bowl-style, lay some cash on the big game and play a few rounds of golf? Las Vegas, of course. Sin City provides perhaps a better destination than even Miami for Super Sunday 2010. Many hotels offer weekend promotions that include tee times at premier courses.
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Perhaps the most challenging of the three closed-to-the-public golf courses at PGA West, the Nicklaus Private Course features elevated tees, sunken fairways and unpredictable greens. And that's not to mention the spectacular views.
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Brandon Tucker's 2009 travel schedule was especially strong, with trips to Thailand, Costa Del Sol in Spain, Alberta's Canadian Rockies and Scotland's rich East Lothian region. Check out his 2009 travel awards, including the best course of which he'd never heard, the best day trip and, just maybe, the world's best club sandwich.
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Cougar Point Golf Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort "is a real winner and one Gary Player made sure would be a crowd pleaser among the many courses in the Charleston area," writes WorldGolf.com reader Elliot DeBear. "Cougar Point is a perfect resort course, challenging when played from the correct tees with beautifully laid out holes."
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Loews Ventana Canyon Resort is about as complete a golf resort as there is, David R. Holland writes. There are two Tom Fazio gems – the Mountain and Canyon courses – and they both come with striking Sonoran Desert backdrops, saguaros, slick greens and bold contours. Wildlife thrives here with coveys of quail, red-tailed hawks, bobcats, deer, rabbits, coyotes and roadrunners at an elevation of 3,013 feet.
... full article »