I had the good fortune of enjoying a wonderful golf course I’d never before seen on Georgia’s St. Simons Island not long ago. The Hampton Club was once home to Hampton Plantation, an 18th century, antebellum plantation where cotton, indigo and rice dominated. This Joe Lee-designed beauty doesn’t get the attention it should, considering the thousand-pound gorilla of Golden Isles golf is undoubtedly the Sea Island Golf Club, with their triumvirate of great resort courses—Retreat, Plantation, and most notably, Seaside. But the Hampton Club, located on the northern end of the island, and affiliated with the King and Prince Resort, ...

24 of the first 28 winners of the Players Championhip were also Major winners. From Jack Nicklaus in 1974, through Tiger Woods in 2001. These include a passel of current or future Hall-of-Famers named Floyd, Trevino, Norman, Price, Couples, Sutton and Love, among other luminaries. But that stellar roster of champions has slowed to a crawl in recent years—only two of the last six champs have hoisted Major hardware, though the resumes of several of these latter victors like Fred Funk and Adam Scott are impressive regardless. Not so Craig Perks, who followed Tiger to the winners circle at Sawgrass by ...