Private courses have become available for play on Scottsdale golf vacations. Here's the scoop on whether you should play them.
There’s always plenty of interest in Scottsdale golf vacations, but seeing the “enthusiastic” galleries and party-like scene of this week’s Phoenix Open usually cranks things up.
So, in case you, too, have plans to visit the Valley of the Sun, I thought I’d tip you off about a couple previously private courses that are now available to you.
Now, you may have heard about these courses in other golf articles, but I’m not merely going to tell you their names and that you can play them.
I’m going to tell you whether you should. Read more →
Torrey Pines Golf Course (South) is a former U.S. Open venue and annual PGA Tour Stop. Here's how to play it for less than half of its regular rates.
The PGA Tour is playing at San Diego’s Torrey Pines this week, and once again, my friends at Golf Odyssey have the lowdown on playing this former U.S. Open venue and usually crowded municipal complex.
By “lowdown,” I mean the smart way to score a tee time at what is often called “Bethpage West,” and how to save a ton of money in the process.
Consider this: a traveling golfer who books an advance tee time on Torrey Pines’ South Course will have to pay an eye-popping $300 in fees (Bethpage Black is “only” $150 for nonresidents).
That’s a lot to pay for any U.S. Open course, let alone a muni.
Thankfully, there’s an easy and surprisingly convenient way to play Torrey Pines for more than half that much. Read more →
Waialae Country Club hosts the Sony Open...and you, too, if you know this secret.
Here’s a great tip you can use the next time you’re traveling to or through Honolulu, Hawaii (often a required stop before puddle jumping to the other islands).
Only 15 minutes from the airport is Waialae Country Club, where the PGA Tour just finished playing the Sony Open.
I can’t tell you I watched the tournament, but I can tell you how to get on this private golf course, which was originally designed by Seth Raynor and Charles Banks.
So, want to play it the next time you’re in Honolulu?
Here’s exactly what to do. Read more →
Golf Digest ranks Kiawah Island's Ocean Course as the toughest in America.
Yesterday, I was reading the January issue of Golf Digest and came across its list of “America’s 75 Toughest Golf Courses.”
As someone who has always valued “the overall experience” over sheer difficulty, I flipped right past it.
But then I flipped back.
Many of the names were familiar, top-100 courses that I have been lucky enough to play and thoroughly enjoyed.
I started wondering just how many of Golf Digest’s “America’s Toughest” courses were also on its list of “America’s Greatest.”
So I counted them. And I was shocked by what I found. Read more →
- After Bandon Preserve (above), resort owner Mike Keiser may bring Bandon Muni Golf Links to the Southern Oregon coast.
I’m breaking one of my rules today to tell you about a new project by Bandon Dunes Golf Resort owner Mike Keiser (no, it’s not Bandon Preserve, scheduled to open in 2012).
See, I normally don’t comment on “planned” golf projects.
So many things have to go right for a new course or resort to open (and stay open) that I’d rather not deal in speculation.
Why am I making an exception today?
For one thing, it’s the exciting plan: Keiser wants to create a St. Andrews-type setup near his Southern Oregon resort that already boasts four courses ranked in the top-100.
More importantly, it’s the man: Keiser has proven he knows how to get things done. Read more →
This might strike you as strange, but I watch very little golf on TV.
Playing golf? Love it. Watching other people play it? Not so much.
Other than the majors, the only time I’ll tune in is if the tournament is being played at a special place.
This week is one of those times.
Splashed across the screen will be images of one of the best golf experiences in America.
It’s no wonder this event boasts the best field in the PGA Tour’s “fall series.”
Even tour pros are blown away by this place. Read more →
Depending where you live, you may never have heard of the CordeValle golf resort.
It only has 45 rooms, but the hard-to-please editors of Golf Odyssey recognized it as one of the “Best US Golf Resorts for Awesome Accommodations” and one of America’s “Most Romantic Retreats with On-site Golf” in their annual awards.
This on-site golf course — where the PGA Tour is playing this week — is a fixture among the top-100, and you can play it and a top-50 course it teamed up with as part of this noteworthy package. Read more →
Bandon Dunes golf packages are a little different than at other golf resorts. Here's what you need to know.
Oregon’s Bandon Dunes Golf Resort delightfully marches to its own beat, and this includes how it views and handles golf packages. Here’s what you need to know:
Read more →
