Washington - Atlanta courses to stay/play

[Rich_Den]

My wife and i are flying into Dulles (from Scotland) in October and driving down to stay with relatives in Atlanta.

We're looking for somewhere to stay for a couple of nights on each leg of the trip to play some golf.

We intend to drive down through the interior and drive back up nearer the coast

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

[Hosley]

Not sure of your price range but the first two that jump to mind for your trip down would be The Greenbrier in west virginia and Pinehurst. Closer to Atlanta you have Reynolds Plantation and Cuscowilla which are both on lake oconee.

On the way back up Kiawah or myrtle beach area. Have a great trip.

[mshills]

Cuscowilla would be a great choice, though it's somewhat outside of Atlanta along I-20 to the east, as is Reynolds Plantation. [u][b]Definitely[/b][/u] the class of golf courses in Atlanta and the surrounding area.

I'd also have a look at playing The General at Barnsley Gardens. They just replaced the greens and I've not played it since then. It's about an hour and a half to two hours north of Atlanta on I-75.

There are plenty of reasonably-priced public courses closer in to Atlanta, but none of them are really memorable. South of town there's Eagles Brook, Coweta Club, and Crystal Lake. On the east side (much closer in than Cuscowilla and Reynolds which are not really in Atlanta) is Stone Mountain -- 36 holes, not bad, gets a ton of play. I don't recommend anything to the west of the city. Many choices to the north, including Bears Best, Chestatee, Echelon (difficult course, no clubhouse), The Manor, and Legacy on Lanier.

One course that would be neat to play if you want to squeeze in a quick round in the city is Charlie Yates. It's a par 58 course right next to East Lake that is maintained by the same grounds crew as East Lake. Always in wonderful condition. Home of The First Tee, and a nice example of how golf actually can work into redeveloping a neighborhood. Something of a feel-good story.

[Rich_Den]

We're happy with courses around Atlanta - we played a few last autumn.

We're really looking for ideas of places to stay and play to split the trip in two - so about halfway between Atlanta and DC

Pinehurst and Kiawah/Myrtle Beach are on our radar - but looking for other ideas

[Carolina Golfer 2]

You can't go wrong with Pinehurst..or Kiawah, but that would be another two hours or so out of your way. Pinehurst will be about 2 hours off the direct path as it is...but well worth it.

Another less choice that may not get a lot of attention are the Mountains of North Carolina. Ashville has the beautiful Biltomore Estate and some very nice courses. I'm sure some of my western Tar Heel natives will chime in on the best courses there, and you could do a search of Ashville, NC as I know it has been much discussed before.

If you wanted to drive all the way back to DC and stay there for a couple days before you trip home. There is an abundant list of nice courses within a reasonable drive of Dulles. If that's an option, let us know and the other DC area guys will chime in.

[Hosley]

Asheville is a good suggestion a great town. Would love to hear some of the suggestions as well since my in-laws do not live to far from there.

[MikeMcM]

Asheville's a good stop, great town and place to base a few days, if your budget allows the Grove Park Inn is the place to play and stay, there's also Reems Creek, Black Mountain, and the Asheville Municipal's not bad, would be a couple of good days of golf in the beautiful fall in Asheville. On the way back I'd opt to a little more laid back atmosphere than Myrtle Beach, and head to Wilmington, which has plenty of beach, resorts, and great golf. A few you might consider are Cape Fear, Beau Rivage, Echo Farms, Magnolia Greens, Porter's Neck, and Masonboro. Enjoy!

[Rich_Den]

Thanks MikeMcM

That's really helpful - and I'll look at booking something before we leave - when I've worked out our itinerary in detail!

Thanks for your help guys

[Carolina Golfer 2]

[quote name='Rich_Den' timestamp='1345216184' post='5488890']
Thanks MikeMcM

That's really helpful - and I'll look at booking something before we leave - when I've worked out our itinerary in detail!

Thanks for your help guys
[/quote]
Other than knowing Scotland has a lot of fantastic coastline, I don't know if you have any elevation to speak of. If not, Ashville will be a real treat for you. It is just spectacular in the fall. It's also my favorite time of year to play golf. Of course you will have to adapt the "leaf rule" that we use so freqeuently here in the fall

[toypor]

For the inland route, Primland would be an excellent option. Not too far off the most direct route, almost right at the halfway point, great resort, great golf, and a scenic drive. While I have not played the course, it is definitely on my radar. It has received very high reviews and looks stunning. The architect is from the UK : )

http://primland.com/

As for the coastal route, I would second the comment regarding Wilmington and Cape Fear National. Wilmington has a cool downtown right on the Cape Fear River and the Atlantic is only about 10 miles from downtown. The other public options in Wilmington are not nearly as strong as Cape Fear National and might be a bit of a disappointment. Atlanta to Wilmington and Wilmington to Dulles are both about 6.5 hour drives.

A couple other options along the coast would be the Outer Banks on the North Carolina Coast. This would add quite a bit of driving time as it is further out of the way and there are no freeways into this area. Also, at this time of year the area will probably be somewhat "dead" as it is a summer destination. There is another thread that discusses the courses. Nothing spectacular, but a pretty neat area. Finally, Kingsmill in Virginia. The issue there would be you are almost all the way back to Dulles at this point, so it would not do much to break up your drive.

[Rich_Den]

Well we've booked up our golf for the trip now

We're doing a two night package at Asheville which includes High Vista GC and Grove Park - staying at Holiday inn Biltmore - and includes tickets to Biltmore Estate

On the way back up to DC we're staying at Beau Rivage Golf Resort in Wilmington for two nights and playing 2 rounds there

Many thanks to the guys who gave their recommendations to us

BTW - Carolina Golfer - Scotland has lots of elevations!!! - We have mountains - just Google us and you'll see it's a wonderful country to visit - both for the scenery and the golf

[Carolina Golfer 2]

[quote name='Rich_Den' timestamp='1348221868' post='5672551']
Well we've booked up our golf for the trip now

We're doing a two night package at Asheville which includes High Vista GC and Grove Park - staying at Holiday inn Biltmore - and includes tickets to Biltmore Estate

On the way back up to DC we're staying at Beau Rivage Golf Resort in Wilmington for two nights and playing 2 rounds there

Many thanks to the guys who gave their recommendations to us

BTW - Carolina Golfer - Scotland has lots of elevations!!! - We have mountains - just Google us and you'll see it's a wonderful country to visit - both for the scenery and the golf
[/quote]
Sounds like a great trip. I'm envious.

thanks for the info on Scotland. I have a couple friends who travel there reguarly to play. It is most definitely on my Bucket List to make it over there.