California's Half Moon Bay Golf Links has all the winning elements

HALF MOON BAY, Calif. – Golf facilities are really in the entertainment business. No matter how good a golf course is, it’s only one component of the experience. Find a golf resort that combines all the elements, and you’ve got a winner.

At Half Moon Bay, which is about half hour from San Francisco, they’ve got it all going on. Mother Nature provided the backdrop with the Pacific Ocean crashing against the cliffs that support the finishing holes for two pretty good golf courses. Architect Arthur Hills is responsible for Half Moon Bay’s Ocean Course, the site of last year’s Samsung World Championship on the LPGA Tour, and Arnold Palmer was behind the Old Course. Both courses, by the way, end up by the ocean and at the nine-year-old Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay, also perched above the sea.

The topper, though, is the service and the food. The folks at Half Moon Bay are extremely accommodating, and the service is impeccable. Inside the pro shop, there’s a humidor with the best cigars. The food at the turn and in Mullins Bar and Grill is more than good. (Try the carne asada tacos on Taco Tuesdays). And at the end of the day, you can relax by the fire pit, have a cocktail or two and watch the sun set over the Pacific.

It all falls in the line with high-end treatment at the host hotel, the Ritz-Carlton, which features luxury accommodations with ocean and golf course views, a world-class spa, an upscale wine-tasting room and two excellent restaurants that also overlook the ocean.

This is a place where you can bring your non-golfing spouse and probably not get any complaints, no matter how much golf you play. In fact, the Ritz-Carlton-Half Moon Bay is currently offering unlimited golf packages starting at $439 per night, not a bad deal considering the level of the experience.