Golf Trip to the South

[flybub]

Recommendations?

Hey all. Some freinds of mine and I are looking to take a golf trip South sometime in Early March. We've been going out West for the last couple years but guys are starting families and cost has become too much. We are in Ohio and looking for a 3 maybe 4 day trip. We went to Myrtle Beach 3 years ago about the same time and it snowed 1 day and never got above 45 the rest so the Carolinas are out, not taking that chance again. We are looking Alabama, Florida, maybe Georgia, the farthest West we want to travel is Eastern Texas. We are looking for a resort setup but the courses don't all have to be on the property, just as long as they are close. Replay's are nice to have but not a necessity. Any recommendations/suggestions would be great. Thank You.

[MadGolfer76]

Why not make a Bay Hill Pilgrimage? Take a drive up to St. Augustine or TPC Sawgrass from there. Depends on what you want to spend, I guess.

[blonday]

Alabama... Jones Trail. Not as condensed as Myrtle but very nice.

[sabram]

Myrtle Beach in March is usually not too cold, but there are exceptions. If you really want to be assured of warm weather, your best bet is Florida. It can be cold in Alabama and Georgia that time of year.

I'd suggest either Orlando which has almost as many courses as Myrtle Beach or for great golf at a reasonable price play World Woods in Brooksville, just north of Tampa. Two world class courses.

[url="http://golfcourses.weebly.com/orlando-fl.html"]Orlando Golf[/url]

[Chopper69]

I am from OH as well. We have been going in a golf trip for the last 15 years the week of St Patricks day. Great time for a buddy trip! We have done Myrtle, Charleston,Hilton Head, Alabama (RTJ trail and Gulfshores), Jacksonville, and even St George Utah. The best weather and variety of courses was in Destin FL. We stayed at Sandestin Resort (twice) 4 course On the property and great pricing! The next place we found a great value and weather was Jacksonville. Enough course inthe area to appeal to all and great quality golf. Both areas the weather was awesome. Alabama was also great but the courses were far apart.

I hope this helps

[bullie76]

If you are looking for a resort, you can't go wrong with Sandestin.

[url="http://www.sandestin.com/Golfers/BrowseCourses.aspx"]http://www.sandestin.com/Golfers/BrowseCourses.aspx[/url]

[vermontgolfer]

The Vermont Golf Association sponsors the Winter 4-Ball in Myrtle Beach, March 2-4. We play a practice round at True Blue on Friday, 18 holes competition on Saturday and Sunday at True Blue and Caledonia.

With lodging (4 to a quad), $379. per player. Price includes driving range, carts, golf, welcome gift, dinner on Saturday nite, and prizes.

Go to www.vtga.org to check it out. Last year we had 120 players.

[vermontgolfer]

The Vermont Golf Association sponsors the Winter 4-Ball in Myrtle Beach, March 2-4. We play a practice round at True Blue on Friday, 18 holes competition on Saturday and Sunday at True Blue and Caledonia.

With lodging (4 to a quad), $379. per player. Price includes driving range, carts, golf, welcome gift, dinner on Saturday nite, and prizes.

Go to www.vtga.org to check it out. Last year we had 120 players.

[flybub]

Thanks all for the suggestions so far. I am looking into all of them mentioned. Keep them coming. Thank You!

[Llortamaisey]

Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Georgia. It has 6 courses on Lake Oconee. Great rates for early March and they over seed some of the courses.

There's a Taylormade Performance lab there as well.

[8orBetter]

Put Biloxi on your map also. Fallen Oak is one of the best in the country, Shell Landing and Grand Bear are fantastic as well. The whole gulf coast is littered with good tracks. RTJ trail is good but they get boring after a while, kinda all look the same to me.

[bullie76]

[quote name='8orBetter' timestamp='1324609241' post='3978385']
Put Biloxi on your map also. Fallen Oak is one of the best in the country, Shell Landing and Grand Bear are fantastic as well. The whole gulf coast is littered with good tracks. RTJ trail is good but they get boring after a while, kinda all look the same to me.
[/quote]

Agree on the RTJ courses, plus more traveling involved depending on how many you want to play. The MS Coast is a good suggestion. See below link. Many courses to select from but look at the premium ones(gold). And if your into casinos, you have all that for night time activity.

[url="http://www.golfmississippicoast.com/golf-courses1-mississippi.html"]http://www.golfmissi...ississippi.html[/url]

[moonshine]

I live near and play the RTJ trail as my home course. I bet if you do a package you will get more golf for your money than any other area mentioned. However, the post about the vermont deal has me intrigued for sure!

[MyBluC4]

Kiawah Island: The Ocean Course is one of the best on earth. Yes, on earth! The Sanctuary is one of the finast hotels in the country. Also has 4 other beautiful resort courses to play:

Cougar Point, designed by Gary Player, is a 6,875-yard par 72 gem and the oldest of the Kiawah Island resort golf courses. We played the Cougar tees at 6,503 yards with a 127 slope and 71.6 course rating (just short of the tournament tees). The track carries a 4 star Golf Digest rating and should be a solid 4.5 stars when compared with other similarly rated tracks. Conditions were terrific all around. Cougar Point is very well bunkered throughout, providing great visual frames from the tees and fairways. The course delivers terrific views of the salt marshes and Kiawah River, with generous landing areas on most holes. Cougar has a good variety of long par 4's framed with large southern tree varietals that give the appearance of wide tunnels to hit through. The par 3's are all stunners with distances ranging from 158 to 201 yards from the Cougar tees. The three closing holes, all par 4's, are terrific, with a wonderful 388-yard par 4 18th that is a slight dogleg over water to a long, tiered lima bean shaped green.

This course is a real winner and one Gary Player made sure would be a crowd pleaser among the many courses in the Charleston area. Cougar Point is a perfect resort course, challenging when played from the correct tees and with beautifully laid out holes.

 

Photos by Elliot deBear

 

 

< Prev Next >

 

Also check out Sea Island in Georgia:

 

On a recent visit to Georgia, I stayed at the Cloisters in the famed 5 Star Sea Island Resort. While very expensive, it lives up to its ratings in every way, especially with its beautiful Seaside golf course. I have, over the last few years, decided to stay fewer days in fantastic resorts instead of longer vacations in mediocre places. It generally comes out to the same cost and turns out to be more exciting and special. The Cloisters at Sea Island didn’t disappoint. Seaside’s design was completed in 1929 by Harry S. Colt and Charles Alison, two famed golf course architects from Scotland. They also designed many of the country’s top private clubs, such as Century Country Club in Purchase, NY, as well as a number of tracks in Scotland. The course was updated in 1999 by Tom Fazio and retains a Golf Digest Top 100 rating with 4 1/2 stars.

 

Seaside is one of the most picturesque courses I have played and certainly one of the best resort courses in the country. The layout plays to a par 70 at 6,557 yards from the back tees, and a rating of 73.2 rating and a 136 slope. The pros at last weekend’s McGladrey Open event played longer than 7,000 yards. The lay of the land as designed by Colt and Alison reflects their Scottish heritage, with many holes framed by dunes and native grasses. There are large bunkers and lots of them guarding the greens. It is said that the greens, which were in perfect condition, are very similar to Augusta National in terms of speed and the crowns on the back nine. Breaks are a challenge to read as they often do not look as big as they are given the speeds. The course rewards straight drives and can provide some nasty challenges if you’re off the short grass, especially on the left sides of many holes.

 

 

There is a lot of water throughout the course, much of it not in play but providing some beautiful views. Breezes alternate from the ocean and river that borders the land. The par 3’s are special gems.

 

Seaside was fun to play, aesthetically beautiful and in prime condition. The complex features one of the best learning centers in the country (reportedly) in the country as well as Plantation, a terrific sister course. 

The Cloisters resort was magnificent and very much like the Sanctuary in Kiawah Island. The spa and fitness center are as good as you will find anywhere, as are the beach facilities. Off site and nearby were a variety of great restaurants to sample seafood and low country fare. The resort is about 1 ½ hours drive from Savannah. We stayed in Savannah for two days and one night to visit the historic district before heading to the Cloisters. It is a fabulous city steeped in culture, spiced with art, architecture and history. Savannah is heavily influenced by its Savannah College of Art & Design whose buildings and exhibitions seem to be everywhere.

 

 

[5 O'Clock Charlie]

Kiawah is amazing. But he was looking for "affordable". A few rounds at Kiawah and you may as well go out west to Phoenix.

[Kentuckygolf]

Have been on 2 different trips to the RTJ Trail and we got 3 days of unlimited golf for an unbeatable rate. We played 2 rounds a day on 2 different courses then made the hour drive to the next location for the next day. You could play Auburn (2 - 18's), then drive just over an hour to Prattville (3 - 18's), then another hour to Birmingham. The driving was easy and only a very small portion of the day. If not Bama, I'd say the Florida Gulf coast is my next suggestion. I have played the Raven at Sandestin, and if the other 3 are any comparison, you will not be disapointed. Plus right down I-10 is Pensacola, and there are some nice courses their as well.

[matt_thatsme]

Me and a group of gents I was in the military with are planning a golf trip during the same time, so I will keep an eye on this thread for ideas. We have went on a trip the last three years. One of those years, we visited the RTJ trail, Prattville and Greenville. Definitely a lot of golf for the money, $135 all you can golf for three days (plus cart fees). I loved the courses in Prattville, but I was not a big fan of the Greenville courses.

One of the guys has a connection in Sea Island, so we are definitely considering that as an option. Another option is Biloxi. Casinos and golf sound like a good time and staying in the officer's quarters at Keesler would save some cash.

[IsleOfMan]

I'm planning a birthday trip (my wife is financing, I'm trying to be considerate in the price) and I'm leaning towards RTJ. Capitol Hill looks like a good central location with a reasonably priced on-site resort and 54 Championship holes. Cambrian Ridge and Grand National are also within a 1-hour drive. The 3-Day Summer Unlimited pass gives you the chance to play A LOT of golf for $150... 108 holes would be do-able, but we'll probably do something like 81 and maybe throw in 9 or 18 on one of the Short Courses.

[jez]

flybub,
Last year a group of 8 of us from Chicago drove down to Gulf Shores. Stayed at [color="#FF0000"]Kiva Dunes.[/color] Great condo overlooking the 18th green. Great course also. The other courses we played were Peninsula, Cypress Bend, Cotton Creek and Gulf Shores CC. Plus there are some great seafood restaurants and beach bars. This March we decided on Myrtle Beach (Legends). Check out kivadunes.com