GolfWRX Travel Experience

[tonyw84]

Another vote for Northern Michigan. Even if you take Arcadia and Bay Harbor off the table, there are TONS of small resorts up there that not a lot of people are aware of except the in-staters. Particularly the Gaylord area. They are very affordable, and make for an awesome weekend getaway.

Second choice would be a San Diego public course tour (must include Rams Hills), but that is my local bias.

[Mnalette]

I will throw a vote in the mix for Salt Lake City, UT and the surrounding areas of Utah County, Heber City, Midway, and Park City. We have some great courses. Soldier Hollow, Wasatch Mountain, Bountiful Ridge, Valley View...the list goes on an on. There are lots of great, cheap public golf courses. There are many private courses in the area with a variety of exclusivity. Let me know if you have questions or recommendations.

[CMCSGolf]

I don't really disagree with anything you said, but haven't you read these articles already? I also like to hear about how a course plays/feels/looks/etc from varied opinions, but the big name spots are completely saturated now. My point is that there is very little new to write about for a place like Kiawah because so many people have been there and shared their experiences. While writing for a broader audience can be valuable, retreading topics that have been written about a thousand times adds very little to the discourse.

[87vert]

Another vote for the Greenbrier and The Old White TPC. Also had a ton of fun at Kiawah for the non-Ocean courses.

[mallrat]

Could not 2nd this more. What are some hidden gems and places we wouldn’t think to go. Everyone goes to Scottsdale but what about Tucson or Scottsdale in June? What about Arkansas or Reno?

 

Just feel like everyone writes about the big destinations but what don’t we know about.

[jwnewbern]

Really digging the conversation and all the good ideas. Thanks everyone.

[jli2636]

I think the best would be a mixture of the 2. For instance the basis of the article would be Kiawah or Pinehurst or insert whatever destination here, then also talk about the hidden gems around those hit destination areas. Now this obviously doesn’t work everywhere, ie. Cabot, but finding the hidden gems in destination areas is what I would like. For that person that can afford one expensive round on a trip but to be able to do that needs to keep the remaining rounds of the trip on a tighter budget.

[vallygolf]

This is a great idea IMO. It is the best of both worlds. As an example (albeit imperfect). Lets say a slightly budget conscious east coast golfer gets an invite to play Riviera. Chance of a lifetime and willing to pony up the thousands it will cost to play there. They want to play more golf in LA which has a derth of good public tracks that are playable and affordable. Many would point to Pelican Hill as a good option for a few other rounds. Both courses are good to great and in "LA". This is where a story on a course like Rustic Canyon would be ideal. Actually closer to Riviera than Pelican HIll (by nearly an hour), a better layout for sure (less scenic, more secluded), and about 1/5th the cost (300ish vs 60ish). Find those places in golf and business destinations that deliver fantastic bang for the buck. NY/NJ, Chicago, Dallas, LA, are all frequent business destinations that are not IMO well vetted for really great non vacation public golf. As suggested as well do a piece on public golf that gets overlooked in destination places (Locals arent playing #2 #8 and #4 exclusively). Where do the locals love to play day in and day out.

[hammergolf]

I'm not sure if you are only limited to the US, but I would recommend Scotland or Ireland trips. I was in the golf business for over 25 years and was fortunate enough to have visited every place you mentioned last year. That being said, I went on a buddy's trip to Scotland in 2018 and it was by far the best experience I have had in my golf life. I feel so many people think the cost and logistics of traveling abroad are too much to overcome. However I was able to put together a plan that let us play 3 of the Open venues as well as several other incredible courses for the same cost as it would be to visit resorts here in the US. If you have any interest or questions feel free to message me.

[J_Birdie]

Northern Michigan and Texas Hill Country (San Antonio / Austin) are lesser written about but still very high quality.

[TK3]

Hi Johnny,

One place that I've enjoyed going to is FarmLinks GC in Sylacauga, AL. Even though the course is becoming more and more popular, it is still a well-kept secret and one of the best courses I have ever played.

Would love to hear your take on it.

A blessed 2020 to you & yours,

TK

[Phireside]

Gamble Sands is the same distance from Coeur d'Alene as it is from Seattle. I need to get to Coeur d'Alene one day.

[TinkerGolfMan]

Same here!

[PapaJohick]

Vegas, Texas, Utah,

[golfsnake]

English Heathland

Wales / Lesser know british links

Vietnam

Upstate NY (some of the RTJ stuff and others)

Frederick MD

[NiceParDavid]

I'm from Spokane and have traveled the Pacific NW for golf quite a bit. My two favorite NW destinations are Bend, OR and Kalispell, MT.

As someone posted earlier Bend, OR is awesome. So many courses with a nice range of price points. There's really too many courses to name so I'll just say at the mid price range I like Widgi Creek and at the higher end I like Tetherow. It's hard to go wrong when in Bend.

In the Kalispell area you have the North and South Whitefish courses, Northern Pines, Meadow Lake, and Eagle Bend (27 holes). Also as someone mentioned earlier, up north a bit close to the Canadian border is a course called the Wilderness Club. Really an exceptional course.

Coeur D'Alene is also great for the CDA Resort course and Circling Raven, and has a few private courses that are great if you can manage an invite.

 

 

[meliason_14]

What budget do you use?

[jwnewbern]

No budget at all. Thankfully, my wife and I have a lot of airline miles saved up. But I do this simply because I love doing it.

[jwnewbern]

I live in Texas so that should be easy. And I am working on a trip to Vegas for late March. Any particular courses you'd like to see?

[PapaJohick]

I would love to see reflection, arroyo, Bali, either of the tpc courses. Great golf out there. Just played wolf creek and arroyo about a week or so ago

[James the Hogan Fan]

Come to Finland, share what I consider to be some of the most beautiful courses in all of golf. These aren't those, they are just two of the ones I've happened to play.

Tarina Golf

Tapiola Golf

Come experience golf in a way so different from the US, where rounds average about 3:45, and the sun is up from 4am to 10:30pm in the summer. Most courses are parkland and carved through forests, but there are a couple links-style and more open types. If you want to boldly go where no US Golfer has ever gone before, come to Finland!

If nothing else, google: Kytäjä Golf, Tahko golf (old and new), Pickala, etc. Even if you limit yourself to the Helsinki, there are at least 20 courses within a 45 minute drive. Just don't come in winter, there won't be much to do!

[sirukuma]

I'm sure the two Cabot Links courses would be great to visit. How about combining these with a hop across to Prince Edward Island for a few days. I've heard there are some nice courses there and would like to hear first hand accounts.

[Skaffa77]

Actually think that would be a pretty good story. Start the trek to Valentine, NE to play The Prairie Club (semi-private, but open to the public links course), then travel down to Mullen, NE to play Dismal River and Sand Hills (both private) and then round it out in Gothenburg, NE to play Wildhorse (public course), the working man's prairie links course...write a story of the travels, comparisons of the courses, likes/dislikes, etc...

[Phireside]

wondering if this will be coming back. I really enjoyed the reads. 

[jwnewbern]

On 7/25/2021 at 9:14 PM, Phireside said:

wondering if this will be coming back. I really enjoyed the reads. 

We are back, buddy. Did a story on Casa De Campo last month. Hope you saw it!!

[Phireside]

3 hours ago, jwnewbern said:

We are back, buddy. Did a story on Casa De Campo last month. Hope you saw it!!

I did not. Will have a read tonight. 

 

What's next?

[me05501]

Check out the Stay and Play package at The McLemore:

 

https://www.themclemore.com/

 

Flying into Atlanta would probably make the most sense. You can connect on to Chattanooga or just rent a car in Atlanta. 

 

McLemore is probably about 30-40 minutes from Sweeten's Cove...

[jwnewbern]

Wow. The Mclemore looks incredible. I am absolutely adding that spot to my list. 

 

We are also strongly considering a trip to Big Cedar Lodge this fall. 

[dock4]

1. Cabot

2. Not as much to travel to but Robert Trent Jones trail specifically The Judge/Senator/Legislator

3. Big Cedar

4. Black Diamond Ranch

5. Could do Innisbrook and World Woods in the same trip.  They are a bit less than an hour apart.

[dock4]

If you do McLemore you need to try and get on the Honors while you are in the Chattanooga area