Destination Golfer 2022

The Ultimate Print & Digital Magazine for the golfer on the go!

HIT THE TRAILS Alabama & Mississippi

HEAVENLY HEARTLAND Kansas, Missouri & Oklahoma

PACIFIC RIM RADIANCE

Hawaii, Washington, Oregon & California

Louisiana

Links Life

Blue bayous and Cajun culture make Pelican State golf red hot

OUR BEST

ENTER TO WIN

EVER

PAGE 33

‘Travel Fitting’ your golf trip PAGE 6

2 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

Destination Golfer 2022 will take you on a coast-to-coast journey spotlighting some American classics VOLUME 14 • ISSUE 1 • 2022

Destination Golfer is published and owned by Varsity Communications, Inc.

VARSITY COMMUNICATIONS 2128 Sahalee Drive East Sammamish, WA 98074 Sales (206) 930-2400 Editorial (206) 484-5284 varsitycommunications.com

EDITORIAL STAFF P U B LI SH ER S Kirk Tourtillotte & Dick Stephens A RT D I R EC TI O N & GR A P H I C D ESI G N Robert Becker CO NTR I B UTI NG ED I TO R Tony Dear STA F F WR I TER Bob Sherwin

I

BY KIRK TOURTILLOTTE

•

PUBLISHER

t’s winter and all I can think about is golf! My wife and I are making plans to spend our second winter in Palm Springs and honestly I can’t wait. Snow is on the ground here in Seattle and it's creeping near 80 degrees in the desert.

As I look back at this past year, I was fortunate to enjoy desert golf in Palm Springs and a four-day bucket list trip to Bandon Dunes — including two rounds at the recently opened Sheep Ranch. The Sheep Ranch far exceeded my expectations and I was impressed with how Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw created this masterpiece that hugged the Pacific Ocean the whole front nine. And the afternoon wind made this a challenge I will never forget.

I also enjoyed some great golf in my home state of Washington including Gamble Sands, Salish Cliffs, Wine Valley, Apple Tree and Chambers Bay (home of the 2015 U.S. Open). The Northwest is a bounty featuring desert, links, mountain and meadow courses. We are indeed lucky.

This is our 14th annual edition of Destination Golfer, it’s our way of firing all of us up for the coming year.

We again return to producing our five consumer golf expos February through March in this COVID era all across America. I get to see so many of you at our shows and watch the excitement we all feel to play the game we love and yet have to wait out long winters while our

clubs sit in the garage, trunk of our car or hall closet.

This 2022 edition, we take you to the Robert Trent Jones Trail of Alabama, the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, the Louisiana Golf Trail and the always entertaining Lake of the Ozarks including a peek at Old Kinderhook. I am planning a fall trip there for my first look at Missouri golf and am so excited to return to this part of the country with bag in tow.

We take a dive into other Midwest golf including Kentucky State Parks, the Shangri-La Resort in Oklahoma and the always-entertaining Prairie Bank Casino/Firekeeper Golf Course outside Topeka, Kan. We also look at great golf out west including Gamble Sands and Salish Cliffs in Washington state and the beautiful Jack Nicklaus designed Hokuala Golf Course on Kauai. And the issue isn’t complete without a California focus on Desert Willow in Palm Desert. You’d be wise to consider all of them as you craft your places to play in this year.

Whatever your golf vacation plans for 2022, it’s my hope that Destination Golfer gives you a glimpse of some of the best places to play across our beautiful country — curl up with this issue and start making dreams a reality.

Here’s to hitting more fairways and sinking more putts while you enjoy a new golf destination or two!

Best wishes.

DEPARTMENTS

DESTINATIONS

3 6 26 28

TEEING OFF

8

SOUTH

16

MIDWEST

UPPER MIDWEST

44

GOLF INSTRUCTION

22 24 34 36 40

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

FOR EDI TO R I A L SU B M I SSI O N S stephens@varsitycommunications.com

ADVERTISING & MARKETING STAFF GOLF MA R K ETI NG MAN AG ER Simon Dubiel FOR ADVERTISING & ACCOUNTING INQUIRIES CONTACT Kirk Tourtillotte • (206) 930-2400 kirk@varsitycommunications.com COPYRIGHT 2022 Destination Golfer.

PUBLISHED IN THE USA. All rights reserved. Articles, photos, advertising and /or graphics may not be reprinted without the written permission of the publisher. Advertising and editorial contained herein does not constitute endorsement of Destination Golfer or Varsity Communications, Inc. Publisher reserves the right to edit letters, photos and copy submitted and publish only excerpts.

The publisher has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of all material contained in this issue. However, as unpredictable changes and errors do occur, the publisher can assume no liability for errors, omissions or changes.

All photos are courtesy of the course or individual unless otherwise noted.

PROUD CHARTER MEMBER

• Kirk Tourtillotte’s vision for 2022

TRAVEL PLANNING • Travel There & Back

TOURNAMENTS • Amateur Players Tour

PRODUCT FOCUS • PXG’s 2022 putter lineup • Leupold Golf Rangefinders • Flag Assist

• Mind 2 Motion

ON THE COVER Cypress Bend Golf Resort • Many, La. Louisiana is like no place else on the map.

It's golf trail is dotted with world-class culinary stops, Cajun and Creole culture, southern hospitality, bayous and coastal waterways that will dazzle the senses.

See cover story • Page 8

• Louisiana Golf Trail • Visit Mississippi • Alabama Tourism

• Lake of the Ozarks • Praire Band Casino • Shangri-La

• Explore Minnesota

KENTUCKIANA • Kentucky Parks

SOUTHWEST • Desert Willow

PACIFIC NORTHWEST • Gamble Sands • Salish Cliffs

• Kauai is Calling D ES T I N AT I O N GO LFER 3

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Old Course St. Andrews • Scotland

‘Travel fitting’ is how these excursion pros make your golf experiences memorable and hit the mark

A

s travel agents, Michael and Michelle Cypher understand that one client is not like another. We all are madly diversified creatures living in a world where we accommodate the differences between the goose and the gander.

In turn, their clients' travel itineraries reflect that diversification. “It’s not cookie-cutter. It’s not onesize-fits-all. It is tailor made for what you, as an individual, wants, what you are looking for,” said Michelle Wicks Cypher, who operates Travel There and Back agency with her husband Michael in Monroe, Wash.

It’s a fairly simple and fundamental concept, indeed, for the individual. Where it gets complicated is when there are twosomes. Or foursomes. That’s when the Cyphers must thread the needle by presenting “those experiences the entire travel party finds as enjoyable things to do,” Michael added, “and not feeling like they’re giving up their vacations for someone else.”

All the travelers have a viable stake in the process, and each deserves consideration. After all, the folks who come to them generally have hard-earned and limited resources and vacation time.

“My goal is not to find the cheapest way to do something, but I do pride myself on providing value for the money they spend,” Michelle said.

Golfers are not Travel There and Back’s primary clientele, although it is a substantial segment of their business that they’re built over the past seven years, crafting hundreds of golf trips throughout the state, region, and world. Many of the trips are stereotypical buddy trips, four guys, but there are also many 6 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

BY BOB SHERWIN

couples golf trips where half the travelers don’t golf, or larger groups where perhaps just one or two want to break away to golf. The Cyphers must take them all into account through their ‘travel fittings.’

It begins with questions probing the basics, where do they want to go, how many, how much they can spend and for how long. Then every session diverts, as Michelle says, as she drills down into each travelers’ interests and what else they might want to do.

“What are the must-haves,” she said. “Then I ask, what are the would-be-nice-if-but-not-required. Then what are the, I-could-care-less-doesn’t-matter-to-me categories. Then when I’m putting it together to fit into their price range, if the must-have category fills up their price range, then there isn’t room for more.

If not, then it would be nice to add the extra touches.”

Those extra touches could be excursions that fill the day for the non-playing travelers to enjoy while the golfers golf. Michelle said many of the options are a nod to the specific area, such as a visit to a scotch distillery in Scotland or Guinness factory in Ireland. But she has found cultural bonuses for folks in different countries based on her initial questioning.

Here's one such example. Finding the option of booking a cooking class where the chef comes to their villa that has a kitchen. A couple visiting Germany had a mutual interest in highbrow music, so she had them attend a workshop where violins are made.

Another couple took part in glassblowing in Venice.

She also has set up factory tours for golfers interested in how clubs are made.

“During our conversations and the back and forth, some things come out,” she added. Many trips

can be customized as much for the travelers as the travel site. Museum tours can be arranged in the cultural cities of Europe. A growing number of golfers/ travelers also are interested in ancestry research, especially in Ireland.

“I can absolutely do that. Several people are interested in ancestry stuff,” Michelle said. “We can do packages that include renting a car for self-tours.

There’s a lot of that in Ireland. Norway is another big one.”

She added that another combination that golfers don’t often associate together is golf and a safari in South Africa. “They can go to Kruger National Park (for a safari) and across the way is a really cool golf course.”

Or golfers can do a two-in-one deal at Skukuza Golf Club, within the boundaries of Kruger. There are no fences around the course so golfers can enjoy a golf cart safari where a possible foursome of impala, warthog, hippo and baboon can play through.

The most natural cultural option with golf for all members of all traveling parties in all areas of travel is wine. Golfers and the non-golfers can gather at the end of the day for wine tasting (and culinary delights).

“Wine with golf is popular. They can be easily paired together,” Michelle said. “Walla Walla is big for that. There are a lot of places here (Northwest) where you can combine those two things. Because there’s pretty much golf anywhere and there’s pretty much wine anywhere.

“So much culture is in what people drink and their culinary tastes. That’s how you learn a lot about a place.”

Louisiana

Links Life Lovely Lake Charles, La., brings so much together for the golfer with gaming, gourmet food and history at every turn.

Blue bayous and Cajun culture make Pelican State golf red hot

L

et’s just assume you want to visit Louisiana at some point in your life. Everybody does.

You’ve heard so much about this fascinating place and are intrigued by what you might find.

A melting pot of French, Canadian, African and American backgrounds, the Pelican State, named ‘La Louisianne’ by a French explorer in honor of King Louis XIV in 1683, is known primarily for its Creole (West African, French, Spanish, Native American ancestry) and Cajun (descendants of Roman Catholic French Canadians) culture, its delicious food and distinctive music. But there’s so much more.

The land of the NFL’s New Orleans Saints, an alligator population said to number in excess of two million, and a world-famous street festival whose

8 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

BY TONY DEAR name (Mardi Gras) means ‘Fat Tuesday’ to signify a day of consuming fatty foods before a period of fasting, is also home to very highly rated fishing both on the Gulf of Mexico and inland. There’s a sizable gaming industry, an impressive selection of craft breweries and, of course, the reason we’re all here — golf.

Though the state can’t boast a terribly high number of courses, there are more than enough good ones — like, nationally-ranked good – to satisfy the golf traveler looking to mix some quality links-time with the sort of activities golfers might not get at home.

Enjoying golf in Louisiana really isn’t hard to do.

The average daytime temperature during the winter months hovers around the low-mid 60s. There’s none of the snow you see up north, and the number of days that are ‘predominantly sunny’ is well above the national average. “Last I checked you do not shovel sunshine in Louisiana,” jokes Mary Williams, coordinator of the state’s Audubon Golf Trail, a network of 16 courses chosen for their high level of design, maintenance and hospitality. “We’re usually playing 12 months out of the year.”

But you don’t have 12 months to enjoy Louisiana, obviously. Your time, much like that of any 21st Century human, is short. And because you’re not a travel expert or frequent visitor to this part of the country, you can’t be sure how you’re going to see and do everything you want to.

Which is why the clever people at the Louisiana Office of Tourism have put together a number of three-day, themed itineraries for golfers who want to play some great courses but don’t want to come all this way and spend the entire time playing golf but taking in as much of what Louisiana has to offer as possible in the short time they have.

There are four suggested trips for those looking to mix golf with some time at the gaming tables or slots. The first of them begins in the city of Lake Charles, three hours west of New Orleans but only two and a bit east of Houston, Texas.

Originally named Charleston, Lake Charles is a city of almost 80,000 people and was founded in 1861.

Now a major industrial center an hour north of the Gulf of Mexico, it is home to a number of Petro-chemical companies and has become a popular gaming destination with four gaming options of which L’Auberge Casino Resort and the Golden Nugget are the largest.

Over the last decade or so, Lake Charles has also developed into a stand-alone golf destination whose list of venues includes Tom Fazio’s Contraband Bayou at L’Auberge Casino Resort, the National Golf Club of Louisiana, the newly built, municipal Mallard Golf Club and the excellent Rocky Roquemoredesigned Gray Plantation, which opened in 1999 and is one of eight Audubon Golf Trail courses that score a 95 percent or better approval rating on GolfPass.com.

Cypress Bend

Ranked even higher in national publications, however, and considered by many as the state’s best course, is the Country Club at the Golden Nugget, designed by California’s Todd Eckenrode and venue for the Korn Ferry Tour’s inaugural Lake Charles Championship in March 2022. A firm, linksy layout, the course sits adjacent to the impressive Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino, which opened on the Calcasieu River at the end of 2014. This hotel is a stunner with over 1,000 rooms.

Day two of the Lake Charles-Baton Rouge-New Orleans Golf and Gaming Itinerary takes you to the state’s capital and the Robert Trent Jones-designed Santa Maria Golf Club. With 18 lakes, the course offers plenty of opportunity for disaster, and yet it is another Louisiana favorite that scores incredibly high marks on GolfPass. Following a beverage in the Spanish-style clubhouse, head into Baton Rouge for dinner and games at one of the city’s casinos – L’Auberge, Hollywood or Belle of Baton Rouge on the Mississippi River.

On day three, it’s an hour’s drive southwest into the Crescent City where you tee it up at the historic Bayou Oaks South Course located inside the 1,300acre City Park. The course dates from 1902 and hosted the PGA Tour from 1938-62. It was badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and reopened in 2017 following a $24 million rebuild (the project included a new clubhouse, dining room, pro shop and maintenance facility) by Rees Jones, who incorporated parts of the old East and West Courses into the new routing.

City Park Golf, which became Bayou Oaks in the 1990s, now features 36 holes with the North Course, originally opened in 1969 then renovated and reopened in 2009, sitting across Filmore St. from its much longer sibling.

In the afternoon, before you prepare for a night out in the French Quarter or elsewhere in the city, consider driving 25 minutes southwest for a round at TPC Louisiana, home of the state’s only PGA Tour event — the Zurich Classic.

A fledgling Tour first came to New Orleans in 1938, the tournament going through several guises before Zurich Insurance Group took over sponsorship, and moved the event to the newly opened TPC,

Carter Plantation • Springfield, La.

in 2005. It was played at the Jack Nicklaus-designed English Turn for the 13th and last time in 2006 before was played exclusively at TPC Louisiana. In 2017, the Zurich Classic became a two-man team event, and this year the defending champions will be the Australian duo of Marc Leishman and Cameron Smith.

Dye’s layout is typically distinctive with a number of water features and Scottish-style pot bunkers.

It closed for six months in 2019 for a renovation in which the existing turf was changed and the bunkers refreshed.

The three other golf/gaming tours take you to superb courses and fun-packed entertainment spots.

Avid fishermen should try the Toledo Bend-Alexandria-Delhi Itinerary, which begins with a morning round at Dave Bennet’s excellent Cypress Bend Golf Course and is followed by an afternoon on 186,000acre Toledo Bend Lake that offers some of the finest bass fishing in the country. The next day takes you to Oakwing Golf Course and the reservoir at Poverty Point State Park in Delhi. Play Black Bear Golf Club the next morning.

There’s a popular golf/music circuit starting in New Orleans, the birthplace of Jazz, and continuing to Baton Rouge and then Lafayette where you should enjoy an evening at the famous Blue Moon Saloon. There, besides jazz, you might encounter a little zydeco or even swamp pop.

The golf and craft beer trail includes some of the state’s finest breweries (as well as golf courses), while the two golf/culinary tours (New Orleans-Baton Rouge-Lake Charles, and NE Louisiana-Alexandria-Lafayette) will allow you to sample Louisiana favorites like gumbo, jambalaya, etouffee, shrimp, crab, crawfish, oysters, grouper, snapper, redfish, Boudin/Andouille sausage, muffulettas, po’boys and a good pecan pie or bread pudding.

Then there are four suggested, un-themed itineraries that include a lot of golf and other activities that take in many of Louisiana’s top attractions.

Themed or un-themed, whichever tour you choose, (you might even combine a couple), will give you an extraordinary trip you won’t soon forget. And when you find the time, you’ll be back for another.

You can follow these plans or make your own at louisianagolftrails.com and audubongolf.com.

Koassati Pines at Coushatta Casino • Kinder, La.

Cypress Bend • Many, La.

D ES T I N AT I O N GO LFER 9

Roll ‘Royally’ When golfing in New Orleans, drop you bag and pin at the Omni Royal Orleans Hotel

T

he historic Omni Royal Orleans Hotel, located at the fashionable intersection of St. Louis and Royal Streets in New Orleans’s storied French Quarter, has seen, enjoyed and survived its share of trials and adventures throughout its 180-year history.

And, if you are looking for ‘Royal’ treatment in the heart of the Crescent City while playing Audubon Park GC, TPC of Louisiana, Bayou Oaks or legendary English Turn G & CC, this is the place to stay and play. Trust us. We at Destination Golfer set up camp here recently and this place etched indelible memories for us to relive.

The early/mid-1970s marked perhaps its most active period in mainstream culture as James Bond 007 stayed here while fleeing from corrupt Caribbean dictator and heroin-dealer Dr. Kananga during filming of ‘Live and Let Die’ in 1973 while, three years later, the hotel was the subject (and title) of a Led Zeppelin song in which lead singer Robert Plant poked fun at fellow band member John Paul Jones for accidently setting fire to his room.

The Royal, as locals refer to it, opened for business in 1843 when New Orleans was becoming one of the busiest and most important ports in the country. Five years earlier, entrepreneur James Hewlett had secured the land on which slaves had been bought and sold in the hope of building an elegant and respected hotel that would be welcome to all and which might hopefully transform the character, standing and prestige of the area if not the whole city.

A Creole, of Black and French ancestry, Hewlett hired architect Jacques Nicholas Bussiere De Poilly to recreate the atmosphere and sophistication of the Rue de Rivoli in Paris. Construction took five years owing to a terrible fire that destroyed De Poilly’s work when the building was almost half complete. Beginning again from scratch, Hewlett and De Poilly persevered eventually opening one of the city’s most magnificent buildings and naming it the St Louis Hotel.

10 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

Six hundred well-heeled guests attended the opening ceremony, ensuring a well-publicized event and helping the hotel to become a significant part of city life. Not surprisingly, it quickly became one of New Orleans’s most exclusive destinations and thrived for 15 years or so before the Civil War broke out and the Union sequestered it as a military hospital. The postwar period of reconstruction was a generally depressing period during which the hotel had many owners or lessees none of whom could make it work financially.

The St Louis completely lost its once enviable reputation and slowly moldered, eventually closing its doors in 1912. The hurricane that destroyed much of the building three years later rubbed salt into its seemingly untreatable wounds.

It wasn’t until another 30 years had elapsed that hopes of reviving the battered building, and possibly the rest of the French Quarter along with it, began to emerge. Edgar Stern, a successful businessman in a cotton brokerage, and his wife Edith, daughter of the President of Sears, Roebuck and Company, were major philanthropists who donated significant funds to the city which later repaid the couple awarding them its highest civic honor — the Times-Picayune Loving Cup. It took the Sterns and their co-investors roughly 10 years to gather the necessary money and hire the expertise required to bring the hotel back to life. Architects Samuel Wilson Jr, known locally as the ‘Dean of Historic Preservation’ and Arthur Q. Davis whose firm had designed the Superdome, did a remarkable job recreating the hotel’s Renaissance Revival architecture, a style pioneered in France and Italy during the 18th century, and which invariably involves a focal point staircase emanating from a grand lobby with

chandeliers, statues and arched windows and hallways. The new lobby also featured exact duplicates of the original Spanish wrought iron railings.

After reopening as the Royal Orleans in 1960, it quickly became one of the city’s most distinguished and eminent hotels again, welcoming guests such as Muhammad Ali, Charlton Heston, Louis Armstrong, Paul Newman, Robert Redford, former President Richard Nixon and even famous TV dog, Lassie.

The Sterns sold the hotel in 1980 and it was eventually taken over by Dallas hotel group Omni in 1986 which owns a 25 percent stake in the business and operates the hotel as the Omni Royal Orleans.

Today, there are 345 gracefully-appointed rooms — everything from Petite Rooms to corner suites with balconies overlooking St Louis and Royal Streets and three exquisite 1,000 square foot suites — the Pontchartrain, Royal and Penthouse — that feature art by local artists, French doors opening onto large balconies, wet bars, marble floors and space for entertaining anything from 25 to 50 guests.

The heated, salt-water rooftop pool and opulent Rib Room Restaurant, favorite haunt of literary greats and, says the hotel’s web site, the ‘politically infamous’, are two of the Royal’s most revered amenities while the concierge will help you find, taste and experience the best that the surrounding streets and neighborhoods have to offer, be it food, booze, music or entertainment.

The Royal sure has seen a thing or two in its time.

Perhaps it’s time now for you to visit this member of the Historic Hotels of America organization, which identifies hotels that have maintained their authenticity, sense of place, and architectural integrity, and add your own story.

So, as you can see, this hotel is a landmark — not just a destination for golfers and travelers. Visit OmniHotels.com to book your stay here or any of their locations across the map.

Mississippi The Refuge Golf Course • Flowood, Miss.

The Refuge anchors The Magnolia State's bucket list courses with a new hotel and look

T

he Refuge Golf Course, smack in the middle of Mississippi in Flowood — just outside of Jackson — has a new look and a new attitude, one that folks here hope golfers see in a new light.

The Refuge underwent a near four-year renovation, finally re-opening this past spring. Welcoming the course back also is a brand new shiny $50 million Sheraton hotel that gives visitors the incentive, or at least now the option, to stay and play the course just a wedge away. “The hotel is the focal point. It catches your eye for sure,” said Blake Hatfield, The Refuge’s PGA professional. “This ties the whole thing together.

We (Jackson) didn’t have a place like this. It’s certainly one of the things we can target, buddy trips for 12, 16 golfers, staying at the hotel and playing golf.”

The Refuge had a solid first run. Originally designed by the late Roy Case, it opened in 1998 and was immediately acclaimed as one of the top public courses in the state. The property is flush against 200 acres of wetlands. More than 500,000 cubic yards of dirt and sand was spread across the terrain to shape it and form various water hazards.

Then in July 2017, the course closed for a complete renovation. Nathan Crace of Watermark Golf oversaw the project and his team introduced three new holes, removed scores of trees, enhanced and enlarged the playing corridors, and improved the drainage, irrigation and bunkering systems.

“It’s a lot more playable now,” Hatfield said. A primary objective of the renovation was to bring the No. 9 hole back to the clubhouse. To do that, the architects initially converted No. 18 to No. 9 while redesigning two other holes to make room for new/improved holes. No. 2, now a 431-yard par-4, was lengthened

12 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

Dancing Rabbit Golf Club • Philadelphia, Miss.

BY BOB SHERWIN another 50 yards with a new green set against a pond.

No. 8 was converted from a par-4 to a 189-yard par-3, also with a new green and an adjacent pond.

No. 18 is brand new, a 421-yard beauty that, like No. 9, returns to the clubhouse. Crace’s effort earned second-place honors for 2021 Renovation of the Year, by Golf Inc. magazine. By maintaining routing through the centuries-old oak trees and towered pines and not disturbing the surrounding fragile habitat, the renovation also earned an “Environmental Excellence Award” from Golf Digest.

The layout, with green fees as low as $65 on the weekends, now stretches to 7,013 yards from the back tees. A new golf shop, locker room and a water practice range were also part of the renovation. On the range, the grass extends out about 75 yards, where wedge balls fall. For the longer clubs, balls splash into a large pond with various colored fountains that are uniquely used as distance measures. “It’s a pretty cool look at night,” Hatfield said.

While the City of Flowood owns the property, Troon Golf took over in 2020 to manage it and it is adjacent to The Refuge Hotel & Conference Center. The 10-story resort hotel is a 196-room facility that features a spa, large pool, a lazy river, a 15-acre lake, a culinary school, and the popular Missy Sippy Roof Top Bar. The hotel was developed independently from the course renovation, but it turns out to be fortuitous symmetry. The Refuge immediately gets in line as one of the state's golf destinations. “There’s nothing

in this part of Mississippi like this. Anything similar is two, three hours away,” Hatfield added. The quality Gulf Shores courses are the closest comparisons, but they aren’t close, more than 150 miles south.

About an hour (70 miles) away is one of the state’s most popular golf spots, Dancing Rabbit Golf Club on the Choctaw Reservation near Philadelphia, Miss. Refuge would do well to replicate the Dancing Rabbit success story.

Poverty and unemployment haunted the Choctaw people until Phillip Martin was elected the tribal chief in 1979. He lured various manufacturers to the area and, ultimately, two casinos, the Silver Star Hotel and Casino and Golden Moon Hotel and Casino, part of the Pearl River Resort.

The area was transformed, as more than 7,000 people found employment and area wages soared $200 million a year. But Martin didn’t think it was enough for the area to sustain growth. So, he sought out one of the finest golf architects, Tom Fazio, to build a pair of courses to attract another wave of tourists.

Fazio, together with PGA Tour veteran Jerry Pate, designed a pair of elite 18-hole layouts under the Dancing Rabbit umbrella, The Azaleas, completed in 1997, and the Oaks, opened in 1999. The courses, set in one of the state’s most beautiful natural woodland settings, enjoyed immediate success and drew praise from golf publications across the state and nation.

Golf set the property on a better course, as it can for The Refuge. “The first few months we were extremely busy,” Hatfield said. “We got a great response from our market. People love the new layout. We’re getting people from all over, from California, from Canada. Without the hotel, this doesn’t happen.”

TRAIL TIPS Florence The Shoals has two long (8,000 yard) monsters — Fighting Joe and Schoolteacher, that both opened in the early 2000s.

HOTEL • Marriott Shoals Hotel & Spa Huntsville Hampton Cove has a 54-hole complex with two 18-hole layouts — the Highlands and the River (with no bunkers and an abundance of water), plus a fun Par 3 course.

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trial • Ross Bridge • Hoover, Ala.

Anniston/Gadsden Silver Lakes has three nine-hole courses with inventive names — Mindbreaker, Backbreaker and Heartbreaker.

Alabama

Birmingham At Oxmoor Valley, there are three choices — The Valley Course, the Ridge Course and another enjoyable Par 3.

Birmingham/Hoover The lush Shannon Valley is the home of Ross Bridge, which features one of the longest golf courses in the world — 8,191 yards from the back tees.

HOTEL • Renaissance Birmingham Ross Bridge Golf Resort & Spa Opelika There are two 18-hole layouts at Grand National — Links and Lake, and an 18-hole Par 3 course where you can hone your wedge game.

HOTEL • Auburn Marriott Opelika Resort & Spa & Grand National Prattville Capitol Hill has three of the Trail’s most praised and popular courses — the challenging Judge Course with 14 holes adjoining the Alabama River; the Senator which annually hosts a LPGA Tour event.

HOTEL • Montgomery Marriott Prattville Hotel & Conference Center at Capitol Hill Greenville Cambrian Ridge has three nine-hole courses — Canyon, Sherling, and Loblolly, and also a fabulous Par 3 course.

They are considered among the most scenic on the Trail.

Dothan Highland Oaks has three nine-hole course — Highlands, Magnolia and Marchwood, and, guess what, a great Par 3 course.

Mobile Magnolia Grove has two contrasting 18-hole beauties — Falls and Crossings that has hosted multiple LPGA Tour events.

HOTEL • The Battle House Renaissance Mobile Hotel & Spa Point Clear Venerable is a description that not only fits the two superb courses at the Lakewood Club — Dogwood and Azalea — which joined the Trail in 2005 and are situated along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. HOTEL • The Grand Hotel Golf Resort & Spa, Autograph Collection 14 D ESTI N ATI ON G OL FE R

Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail impact resonates to each corner of The Yellowhammer State

I

BY TONY DEAR

t started with an inspired vision three decades ago and nearly 15 million golfers have attested that, all these years later, it was, indeed, a mighty fine idea.

That figure represents the number of folks from all 50 states and much of the world that have played a round on Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail since it opened 1992. What began with four courses grew into a globally recognized 26-course trail, covering 468 holes at 11 locations and more than 300 miles of playable terrain. The number of birdies over that time is unknown, fixed merely in the memories of the millions who came to play deep in the Heart of Dixie.

For a brief Trail history, there are two people primarily responsible. One is Dr. David Bonner, CEO of the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA). In the late 1980s, he was looking for a way to diversify the state employees’ retirement fund as well as improve the state’s economic/tourism status. RSA initially invested $100 million to fund one of the largest golf projects anywhere in the U.S., setting the gold standard for any subsequent ‘Trail’ project around the country.

The other, of course, was Robert Trent Jones, Sr., an internationally renowned golf architect with more than 500 career course designs. He was so excited to be part of it that, even in his mid-80s, he threw himself tirelessly into the effort. It turned into the piece de resistance of his illustrious career (he died in 2000). SunBelt Golf Corporation followed Jones’ directions and designs with a massive land assault. At one point, the company put into use more than 700 earth-moving pieces of equipment around the various locations.

The RSA fund certainly has prospered from Dr.

Bonner’s benefaction, exceeded only by the state’s economic benefits and (enduring) tourism flow. When the project started, Alabama’s tourism proceeds were a mere $3 billion annually. That figure has climbed to more than $13 billion today and the RTJ Trail — with more than a half million annual rounds — has had a significant impact on that tourism surge.

Initially, the project generated around 77,000 jobs, and currently more than 50,000 RTJ Trail-related Alabamans are gainfully employed. There have been more than 8,000 houses constructed around the golf properties along with the development of five million square feet of commercial space.

Alabama, a roughly rectangular shape with the jagged southern Gulf Coast, is not a small territory at 52,432 square miles. It is 330 miles long, north-tosouth, and 150 miles wide. The RTJ Trail was well planned with courses strategically dotted and spaced at various locations for tourists/golfers to get a sampling of the terrain, culture and culinary tastes of the entire state.

Also was well planned were the accommodations, perhaps the most undervalued element of the Trail. There are plenty of hotels and suites to choose from, but the Trail has eight time-tested, golfer-pleasing resorts, not far from the various courses, that offer southern chic, charm and comfort.

Guests are never far from some BBQ ribs, grits, catfish and banana cream pie, but it’s the people that are perhaps the most treasured element who are endearing, helpful and hospitable.

Here are capsules for the 11 RTJ Trail locations, starting at the north end near the Tennessee border, with eight resort suggestions that get you as close to the clubhouses as possible (see rtjgolf.com to help any play-and-stay plans).

American golf landscape ‘centered’ with resort and championship options in

Missouri

The Show Me State's Old Kinderhook brings the meadows and heathland together in a unique way.

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ring up a digital map of the U.S. and highlight Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri.

Now zoom further and further out until you notice that that location — north-south and east-west — appears to be just about smack in the middle of the country.

It’s not the actual middle-middle — Lebanon, Kan., about 400 miles due west has been designated as the geographical center — but if the U.S. map was a dartboard the Ozarks would be the bulls eye. Center of the state, center of the country, nearly equidistant from St. Louis and Kansas City.

As you zoom out in concentric circles from the Ozarks, 200, 300, and 400 miles, the mighty Midwest cities of Memphis, Wichita and Des Moines pop up. Further on, Oklahoma City, Indianapolis and Nashville appear. You can drive there in a day from two-thirds of the country or fly from the four corners in the same amount of time. And millions have for decades. Readers of the USA Today voted it “The Best Recreational Lake in the Nation.”

It also has become the center of attention for golfers, primarily because of the Lake of the Ozarks Golf Trail. It’s a 13-course trail — none more than 30 minutes away from another so they can be played in daily twosomes — many conceived by some of the most notable design minds in the country, Robert Trent Jones, Sr., Arnold Palmer, Tom Weiskopf, Bruce Devlin-Robert Von Hagge and Ken Kavanaugh.

The tightly bunched Trail group includes: The Cove at the Lodge of Four Seasons (Jones, Sr.), Golf Club at Deer Chase in Linn Creek, Eldon GC, Indian Rock GC in Gravois Mills, Lake Valley GC and Old Kinderhook GC (Weiskopf), both in Camdenton, Osage National Golf Resort (Palmer) and The Ridge of the Lodge of Four Seasons (Kavanaugh), both in Lake Ozark, Rolling Hills CC in Versailles, Redfield GC in Eugene, Bear Creek Valley GC and The Oaks Course and Margaritaville (Devlin-Von Hagge) and

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Osage National Golf Resort • Lake Ozark, Mo.

BY BOB SHERWIN a nine-hole course, all in Osage Beach.

Golfers dropped off the Trail for a while early last year because of the pandemic, but golf, viewed as a safe endeavor, recovered by mid-summer. Jasen Jones, Old Kinderhook director of hotel and marketing, said last spring, “we saw a lot of people from Chicago, Oklahoma, Texas, Wisconsin and Minnesota, places from where we traditionally don’t see a lot of business.” People are showing up from all around and rounds continue to increase.

Each course on the Trail has its own characteristic, thickly forested, tree-lined, distinctive water hazards, or significant elevation changes. Many offer spectacular vistas of the lake. Old Kinderhook Resort, the Weiskopf design on a 750-acre plot, seems to have a mix of all of the above.

As part of Weiskopf’s design, he incorporated drama into the 6,726-yard, par-71 layout, such as waterfalls, strategically located streams, elevation changes, narrow chutes, and breathtaking views.

The course opened in 1999 as part of the planned community on the west side of the lake that features the 84-room Lodge hotel and spa, conference center, and resident housing dotted throughout the Ozark Hills. There are other amenities such a fishing tournament, the area’s only ice-skating facility and sand volleyball courts.

Old Kinderhook, a public course open yearround, has an 11-acre practice facility with three restaurants on site.

For the first two holes, both par-4s, on Kinderhook, you’ll need some hazard avoidance. Limit your approach shot distance on No. 1 with a lake directly behind the green. Water comes into play on the sec-

ond hole’s left side, but the real menace is a cavernous bunker guarding the front of the green.

The par-4, 446-yard fifth hole is the No. 1 handicap hole with issues on your first and second shots.

A huge tree on the right provides a disincentive on your drive but a pull to the left could land your ball in a thick hillside rough. Your second shot needs to be straight, with nothing but marshland to the right and rough close to the fairway on the left.

Straight and accurate are just as paramount for the par-3, 152-yard seventh hole. You hit from an elevated green, over a valley of ball-hiding bramble onto an elevated green.

No. 8, a 416-yard, par-4, can be a scenic nightmare. You drive through a narrow chute with unforgiving forests on each side. Then again, a premium is placed on a precise approach shot, with a creek in front, a giant tree on the left (and water behind it) and a forest closely bordering the green on the right.

Another ball in your pocket might come in handy.

The back nine has more lake views and elevation changes highlighted by two impossibly challenging par-5s, the 14th and the 18th.

The 559-yard 14th hole, the longest on the course, has water the entire left-side length. Four bunkers, two on each side, can easily collect approach shots to a smallish green.

The 18th, a dogleg right down a chute, you might want to cozy your drive as close as you can to the flat right-side bunker. This will give you a better line to a treacherous approach. Even big hitters would be wise to lay up with a large lake on the left, a small lake on the right, a creek running between, and two bunkers behind the small green.

It might be a rude way to say goodbye, at least to your sub-80 intentions. But whatever your score, you’re still in a good place, in the middle of a resort in the middle of the country.

Land of Ahhhs Firekeeper GC burns brighter than ever on the Kansas prairie

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hen the Firekeeper Golf Course in Mayetta, Kan., not far from Topeka, opened little more than 10 years ago now, its importance to the region might have been undervalued at the time.

As an amenity to the popular casino/hotel on the Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation Reservation, it was uncertain whether it would give visitors another reason to stop, stay and play in an area that they might have otherwise driven past without notice. But it has been well received, opening as the ninth best new course in America and continuing to be ranked as the No. 1 course to play in Kansas.

“We’ve been unbelievably busy,” said Randy Towner, Firekeeper’s general manager and head professional. “It’s bigger than our expectations seemed possible. Golf is considered a safe activity and continues to be,” he added. “People are willing to travel now. The hotel and casino are busy. Groups are coming in from farther away, Minnesota, Nebraska, Texas, Oklahoma. They’ll come one year as a foursome and a 16-some the next year.”

The entire complex, the Prairie Band Casino and Resort, is the economic engine for this region in Kansas’ northeast corner. It has drawn thousands over the

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Kasan

Firekeeper Golf Course • Mayetta, Kan.

BY BOB SHERWIN

decade to play the tables and the fairways and created hundreds of jobs.

But there’s also a more implicit impact on the local people themselves, people who appreciate the golf course’s success just as significantly as they extol their pride in the fact that someone from their ancestry is responsible for it. This was the first golf course on Native American land that was co-designed by a fullblooded Native American — Notah Begay III. It also was the first signature course for Begay, best known as a TV golf commentator and PGA Tour pro, and then design partner Jeff Brauer. It was Begay who first approached the people here. He didn’t get the job simply because he was Native American but because he had the best ideas. Towner said Begay’s proposal promised “the least amount of soil moving,” immediately appealing to the earth-revering tribe.

“We liked his layout, as it did not disrupt the land much, which was important to us.”

Begay, who grew up on a reservation near Albuquerque, was the natural fit. He is part of the Navajo, San Felipe and Isleta people. He had the culture, the background as well as the brains for the project. He is a graduate of Stanford and was part of the Cardinal 1994 NCAA championship team that included Tiger Woods.

He went on to become the only full Native American on the PGA Tour and is a four-time Tour champion.

In 2002, Begay started his golf course development company, NB3 Consulting. The company has gone on to develop projects around the country, from Arizona, California and New Mexico to North Carolina and New York. His company’s stated mission is to work with tribal communities to build courses and sports facilities to aid economic development. Firekeeper is a testament.

The vast Prairie Band of Potawatomi Nation Reservation is located 15 miles north of Topeka and about 60 miles west of Kansas City. Firekeeper unobtrusively melts into this serene environment. By Begay design. After teeing off, there is not a structure on the

course until you step off the 18th green and return to the clubhouse. As Towner says, “it goes out into the prairie and there’s nothing out there but golf holes.”

He said the first seven holes look much like a Scottish course. Scanning the flat prairie, Towner said expressed that golfers can see 10 miles in every direction. “Then you transition to the valley holes, eight, nine and 10,” he added. “Then you go through the woodland holes. It’s typical of the views you’ll see in Kansas.”

The par-72 layout can be stretched to 7,500 yards with five sets of tees. The tees all have names, with the deer tees the shortest, followed by bear, buffalo and eagle. The back tees are all called the Notah tees.

For those who might consider playing from the Notahs, check out No. 4. It’s a par 5, 640 yards. That’s a lot of prairie to cover.

One of Firekeeper’s most memorable holes is the par-4, 440-yard ninth, in that it might remind folks who have seen Augusta National’s closing hole. Like Augusta, you’ll need to guide your Firekeeper tee shot through a narrow chute. There are two bunkers on the left to avoid and tall native prairie grass on the right. Your remaining shots are all uphill to an elevated green guarded by bunkers left and right.

Firekeeper’s closing hole offers a dilemma and drama. It’s a par-4, dogleg-right, 455-yard hole with a double fairway. For the robust and confident — such as PGA Tour players Brice Garnett, Gary Woodland or Tony Finau who have played the course — there is a long risk/reward shot across a waste area, leaving a short distance to the hole. For the rest of us, the safe way is around the waste area, but a much longer approach shot.

Civilization returns as you walk off the course and enjoy a beverage on the clubhouse patio. The 18th was designed as a natural amphitheater for spectators. It has helped the course attract a stop on the women’s Symetra Tour. One day, they hope Firekeeper can lure in a Champions Tour stop.

#1 Course in Kansas you can play!

Whether it be a single outing or a large golf group, enjoy one of our STAY & PLAY packages.

Sculpted in harmony with nature and featuring stunning course conditions, it is easy to see why the nationally recognized 18-hole Awardwinning Firekeeper Golf Course has surprised even the most experienced players.

To book your STAY & PLAY and Tee Times Package, call Chele Kuhn at 785-966-7742.

FirekeeperGolf.com • 12524 150th Road • Mayetta, KS 785-966-2100 • North of Topeka, Kansas off Highway 75 PrairieBand.com

Shangri-La Resort • Afton, Okla.

Visionary Gibbs made his dream a reality in Oklahoma with Shangri-La

Okahoml

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hether it’s on the battlefield or playing field, Eddy Gibbs is making sure that Americans, particularly Oklahomans, never forget the legends of our land who protected us, secured us, and thrilled us.

Gibbs is a successful Tulsa businessman, purchased a hopelessly rundown golf-centered property in 2010 called Shangri-La on Monkey Island in the northeast corner of Oklahoma. Over the decade, Gibbs invested more than $60 million into the property. His initial move was to add another nine holes to make it a 27-hole layout. His team then enhanced the nearby marina and set up development for a resort hotel, townhouses and supporting properties, transforming the property into one of the state’s most blossoming tourist attractions.

The three nine-hole Shangri-La courses — The Champions, The Heritage and The Legends — stayed true to memory of Oklahoma’s most favored son — Mickey Mantle. The Yankee luminary was born in nearby Spavinaw and lived most of his life in the area.

Shangri-La was his home course, as he held an annual charity golf tournament here (1991-94) until his death on Aug. 13, 1995.

The Legend’s closing hole is affectionately known here as ‘The Mick.’ It is a unique par-5, 580yard ‘double-green’ finish that is the state’s most famous hole. Golfers must decide whether to risk a long over-water shot to the right-side island green or choose a safer shot to the other green, 70 yards further and bordered by a right-side waterfall hazard.

The 18th, with a statue of Mantle behind the hole, honors the Commerce Comet not just because of his extraordinary baseball career but also because he once made a double eagle on the 18th. It was the last course, the last hole, Mantle ever played.

“Most golf courses have that one special hole. The ‘Mickey Mantle Hole” is our most famous,” said Mike Williams, Shangri-La’s director of communications.

“But there are eight or nine holes that get a lot of talk and a lot of cursing here. That was the deal from the be-

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BY BOB SHERWIN

ginning. They wanted to make every hole memorable.”

This past year, mega improvements to the property have given folks pause to reflect on different kinds of legends — servicemen whose sacrifices should be honored by all. In June, the resort opened a $12 million year-round indoor/outdoor facility called “The Anchor.” The facility features tennis courts, pickleball courts, basketball courts, a Fenway Park-like Wiffle ballpark and plenty of games, including popular Trackman Golf Simulators.

The reason it is called the ‘Anchor’ is because the facility has on display a 20,000-pound replica of the battleship U.S.S. Oklahoma’s anchor. The Oklahoma was one of the ships sunk during the surprise Pearl Harbor attack on Dec. 7, 1941. There also is a tribute wall to the 429 servicemen who lost their lives on the ship that fateful day.

Gibbs, a World War II buff, also has bought in various memorabilia from the war, such as a Sherman tank and a variety of military service boats. “That is an absolute game-changer,” Williams said. “There is not a facility like this between Kansas City and Dallas. It’s an incredible attraction. It fills the hotel.

We put a dome over the tennis and pickleball courts (during the winter). Our sports bar is jam-packed to watch the football games. “With this, I figure Eddy Gibbs has at least a $100 million investment (in the resort),” he added.

Shangri-La Resort’s humble beginning was in 1964 with the building of a conventional center, a hotel and an 18-hole golf course, Old Blue. That drew tourists from all around the nation. But the resort aged badly and by the 1980s had fallen into disrepair. None of the original buildings remain. Gibbs’ investment and vision have created the region’s second largest economic engine (behind the Grand River Dam Authority). The resort employs between 250 to 300 locals.

The ‘Anchor’ is the first leg in a two-part resort project that will include a new 3,000-yard, par-3 golf course called “The Battlefield.” It is projected to open in the fall of 2022. It is anticipated that the

par-3 course will lift the resort onto another level of popularity. As Williams says, the ‘Battleground’ will be “one of the nicest par-3 courses in the country.”

The abrupt elevation, with grades as deep as 100 feet, will be the golfers’ takeaway. The first nine holes will be descending. The back nine will be all uphill. Even for a par-3 course, Williams suggests that a cart might be appropriate. “We’re pretty excited. It’ll give us 45 holes,” Williams added. “There will be a variety of tee boxes so you can make it as hard or as easy as you want.”

Tom Clark, the architect behind the full ShangriLa course, and Kevin Atkinson are designing the par3 project. It will have its own clubhouse and practice facility along with a 10,500-foot outdoor center for weddings and special events.

Besides “The Mick,” the Heritage and Champions also have holes that bring folks back from all corners. The Heritage’s most distinctive hole is par-4, 388-yard No. 2, patterned after an undulating green created at the Biarritz Golf Club in France in the late 1880s. The original, called “The Chasm,” was a long green divided by a swale, as much as five feet deep.

Heritage’s Biarritz hole is the shortest par-4 on the course and the longest green, 180 feet, with a middle swale that divides it into three distinct sections. The middle section, or the gully as they call it here, is four feet below the back and front sections.

“The miserable place to be is the front part of the green (when the pin is back),” Williams said. “You have to go down first then uphill. Too much speed or not enough? If your putt falls back into the gully, you could roll off the green.”

The Champions’ most distinctive hole is the eighth, a par-4, 412-yarder. It has parallel water hazards that pinch the fairway down to just 15 yards. It’s so narrow that the club discourages even driving a golf cart between them. There’s no effective bale out area. It’s a long uphill shot to an elevated, two-tied green that slopes back to front. A birdie on this one could make anyone a legend.

The North Star State has 10,000 lakes

Minnesota

BY TONY DEAR

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new year means the opportunity to set goals and create lists for your golfing

bucket list.

After filling up hometown tee sheets the last two years, golfers are looking to hit the road to enjoy one of life’s simple pleasures — a golf trip. Minnesota has long been a popular vacation spot and continues to be a trip of choice for golfers looking for top-quality, but attractively priced, places to play.

The State Of Golf The Wilderness at Fortune Bay • Tower, Minn.

Did you know Minnesota is the only state to have hosted all 13 USGA championships, the PGA Championship, Women's PGA Championship, Walker Cup, Curtis Cup, Solheim Cup and, of course, the Ryder Cup in 2016 at Hazeltine Golf Club, to where golf’s most exciting team competition returns in 2028.

Quality + Variety + Value = Your Bucket List The overall quality of golf in Minnesota is unparalleled. The Minnesota golf landscape constitutes a hall of fame of award-winning courses. The variety of Minnesota courses is a result of Mother Nature’s artistry and the talent of some of golf’s greatest architects. True value is a major attribute of golf in Minnesota with green fees lower than in other golf hotbeds.

An Invitation We’re excited to invite you to our wonderful state. It’s time to start planning your 2022 golf trip to play the great Minnesota courses. Visit Minnesota — the STATE of GOLF at ExploreMinnesotaGolf.com and StateofGolf.com.

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Grayson Lake • Olive Hill, Ky.

Wasioto Winds Golf Course • Pine Mt., Ky.

Kentucky

Kentucky’s golf, park system, horses and whiskey make it a bucket list, which will keep you coming back for more

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entucky’s State Parks golf course network never fails to impress. The number and quality of the layouts, which feature a dozen 18-hole facilities designed by Michael Hurdzan, Arthur Hills, Larry Packard, the very underrated Brian Ault and the revered Perry Maxwell among them — the equal of that belonging to pretty much any municipal entity, be it city, county, or state, in the country.

If you have a spare couple of weeks, were up for a different course every day and had a modest budget for the affordable green fees, lodging and a little flutter for the eight horse racing tracks, we recommend you put this place at the top of your list. And, don’t forget Kentucky’s famous bourbon distilleries scattered all over the state.

For the purposes of this issue, we’re going to focus on the eastern quartet of courses — Grayson Lake, Yatesville Lake, Pine Mountain and General Burnside Island, which a whopping 99 percent of GolfPass readers who reviewed the course would recommend you play.

Located on a 430-acre island (like at the 17th at TPC Sawgrass, a causeway connects the ‘island’ to the mainland) on Lake Cumberland, formed by construction of the Wolf Creek Dam in 1952, the golf course at General Burnside State Park first opened as a nine-holer in 1950 — eight years before the Corps of Engineers transferred the land to the State of Kentucky.

Originally named in honor of Kentucky Governor A.B. Chandler, its name was changed in 1960 to recognize Civil War Union General Ambrose Burnside whose unconventional facial hair eventually led to the

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BY TONY DEAR

term ‘sideburn.’ A 20-minute drive south of the city of Somerset and 140 miles southeast of Louisville, the course was redesigned in 2008 by Brian Ault, who served as President of the American Society of Golf Course Architects from 2000-01.

Ault spent $7.25 million in totally transforming the course that has generous Zoysia grass fairways and big, bentgrass greens, which all golfers should find eminently playable. Surrounding trees make you forget you’re on a small river-island but occasional glimpses of the water from the course’s higher ground remind you how (nearly) cut off from civilization you are. It’s no surprise this beautiful course wins so many local accolades and has earned a sizable following and an enviable reputation.

The same is true of Arthur Hills’ Eagle Ridge Course at Yatesville Lake, a serpentine reservoir formed by Yatesville Dam, which opened in 1988.

Hills’ masterpiece is located on its eastern banks on spectacular ground that Steve Forrest, Hills’ associate designer, describes as “mountainous rather than hilly.”

A course on this sort of land can quickly turn into a survival test rather than an enjoyable round of golf.

One considerably up-and-down hole after another can get a little predictable, if not tiresome. Hills, who passed in May of last year, was in his early 70s when the course opened in 2003 and, having designed more than 150 courses by that stage of his career, was an experienced hand who knew just how to make the most of the land without overdoing it.

The thrills come at just the right times and are nicely spaced out, avoiding a huge peak of adrenalin followed by a disappointing collapse and weak finish.

That said, Yatesville is not your typical muni. It’s tight in places and, like we say, quite breathtaking.

Bring a good supply of golf balls and plenty of energy, and you might have one of the more memorable rounds of your life.

You’ll not soon forget your visit to Dr. Michael Hurdzan’s Wasioto Winds Course at Pine Mountain State Park either. One of the most prolific and successful designers of the 1990s and early 2000s, Hurdzan is associated with more than 400 projects around the world the most notable of which are the two courses of the Pulpit Club in Ontario, Canada, FarmLinks in Alabama, Naples National in Florida and, of course, 2017 U.S. Open venue Erin Hills.

Also, the designer of the excellent course at Mineral Mound State Park five hours to the west, Hurdzan built five par 3s and five par 5s at Pine Mountain, which cost $10 million to build and opened in 2001.

Bisected by Clear Creek, Pine Mountain stretches just beyond 7,000 yards and finishes with an intimidating 639-yard par 5 with water down the right side.

That just leaves Brian Ault’s Hidden Cove Course at Grayson Lake, another narrow, wooded reservoir created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. About an hour northwest of Yatesville and 180 miles east of Louisville, the extremely popular, course opened in 2003 and boasts bentgrass fairways and greens, and a healthy number of really good golf holes.

At some point you’ll want to say you’ve played all of Kentucky State Park’s golf courses, and starting in the east is a heck of a start. For information regarding the courses, greens fees, directions, lodging and more, head to parks.ky.gov/golf.

KY Parks FP

AMATEUR PLAYERS TOUR 2022

Wolf Creek Golf Club • Mesquite, Nev.

Bandon Trails course at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Oregon.

Compete and feel like a pro on the Amateur Players Tour

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hey may not have the ‘names’, the proficiency, or bank accounts of the PGA Tour professionals, but the thousands of golfers who annually compete in the Amateur Players Tour, they are treated like the pros.

The APT, which completed its first full season in October — with a championship final at Pinehurst No. 2 — is committed to running professionally-run tournaments, in competitively-matched divisions, played on some of the finest courses in the country.

“They announce your name on the first tee,” said Eric Seibert, a Division 4 competitor from Charlotte, N.C., “You feel like a pro, even though you’re an amateur.” Brian Gregor, another Division 4 competitor from Charlotte, added, “the tournaments that we play, the way they’re run, they feel very official.”

The beginning of the APT was in 2018 in St. Louis. Matt Minder and his father Steve Minder, who ran amateur events in the St. Louis area, teamed with Nashville’s Jeff Barnett, a friendly competitor with Matt on the amateur circuit. Just two years later, they expanded exponentially onto a national platform, moving from one St. Louis chapter to 35 chapters in the U.S. and Canada.

It conducted an expansive North American schedule last year, more than 300 events involving 3,300 golfers.

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The motto for the Tour is, ‘by the players, for the players.’ Gregor said that’s the key to success because “they get feedback from the players so they can tailor what the players want to play. They ask the players what courses you’d like to play.”

APT members played on some of the nation’s most prestigious courses, facing the same shots the professionals face in their PGA Tour play. Some of the courses are, TPC San Antonio, host of the Valero Texas Open, The Greenbrier, Cog Hill, French Lick, Hilton Head, Gainey Ranch, Troon North, and Whistling Straits, which hosted the 2021 Ryder Cup. Competition is broken down into five handicap groups — Division 1: 3.4 and under; Division 2: 3.58.4; Division 3: 8.5-13.4; Division 4: 13.5-18.4; Division 5: 18.5 and above. “It’s for everybody. It’s not just for the Division I or the really good golfers,” Seifert said. “You’re valued as a player on the APT Tour.”

Tournaments are also not always straight metal play. Some chapters have requested different kinds of competitions and are accommodated by APT with Stableford rules play, four-ball, two-ball and skins games.

Most of the APT members play in their local areas and courses but some move on to compete in the national competitions. The 54-hole APT Championship was played Oct. 25-27 at Pinehurst No. 1, No. 6, No. 8 and No. 9. The top 20 competitors in each handicap

group were treated to a final-round privilege of playing on the prestigious Pinehurst No. 2, considered by many to be the best golf course in America.

Scott Roberts of Lancaster, S.C., played like a professional in the finale. He shot a final-round 69 on Pinehurst No. 2 for a three-day score of 2-under 218 to win the inaugural title by 11 strokes.

The other winners were: Russell Cook, Oxford, Miss. (D2), Kevin Smith, Massapequa, N.Y. (D3), Jack Pereira, Myrtle Beach, S.C. (D4), Rick Burton, Seymour, Ind. (D5), and Jeanne Rowzee, Burtonsville, Md. (Ladies Net).

“It was a banner first season,” Matt Minter said.

“We couldn’t have been happier.”

This year the APT will climb higher on the ambitious meter, with tournaments in every month of the year and just about every state, including dozens of private country clubs. Some of the tournament sites include, Wolf Creek in Mesquite, Nev., TPC San Antonio, The Greenbrier, W.Va., Streamsong, Fla, French Lick, Ind., TPC Deere Run, Ind., Bethpage, N.Y., Chambers Bay, Wash., and Bandon Dunes, Ore. All the tournament information, the full schedule and signups can be found on the APT app. “The mobile app has everything the golfer needs,” Gregor added. “You can plan your entire year through the mobile app.”

PXG 2022 ‘Battle Ready’ putter lineup features nine mallets and blades

PXG Battle Ready™ Putter Guide — Boost Your Confidence On The Green As all golfers know — the battle is often won or lost on the green. Having a putter that suits your stroke and gives you confidence is essential to improved performance, and let’s face it — having more fun on the course. That’s exactly why PXG launched the Battle Ready Putter Collection, an innovative succession to their flagship line of putters.

The Technology Behind Battle Ready Putters PXG engineers continue to push the envelope — their extensive research and development process has led to game-changing innovation. The design, tech-

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nology, and performance packed into the nine, 100 percent milled PXG Battle Ready Putters Collection is years in the making.

Each putter is crafted from aerospace-grade aluminum or milled 303 stainless steel and high-density tungsten. Unique to the Battle Ready lineup, highdensity tungsten inserts are strategically positioned in each putter to enhance stability and boost the moment of inertia (MOI). Introducing tungsten allowed PXG’s engineers to place more mass farther back in the clubhead to create an optimized center of gravity (CG) location.

Testing with a wide variety of player skill levels — from PGA Tour professionals to beginner golfers — PXG found that a deeper center of gravity creates a more consistent stroke. When players are making more consistent strokes, it leads to more putts made.

The proprietary Pyramid Face Pattern, originally introduced in the PXG GEN2 Putter lineup, has been reengineered. With meticulous research and feedback from PXG Tour players, PXG’s engineers adjusted the groove depth to further improve mishit performance and ensure consistency across the face for exceptional distance control. PXG Battle Ready Putters also feature the company’s signature Precision Weighting Technology that allows adjustments to the balance of the putter by changing the amount and location of weight.

PXG PUTTERS PUTTERS FOR EVERY STROKE TYPE AND PREFERENCE MALLET PUTTERS The PXG Battle Ready Putter lineup offers five mallet-style putters. This design suits golfers who want more stability and balance.

Blackbird • The Blackbird offers killer stroke stability and bold, arrow-like alignment features.

Gunboat • A PXG classic that delivers an extra-wide sightline helping golfers line up and sink more putts.

Bat Attack • Providing exceptional stability through outer wings that also support alignment on the green.

One and Done • Prominent parallel and circular alignment aids and four adjustable weight ports for the ultimate confidence boost.

Blackjack • Get ready to put everything on the line with this compact-style mallet that packs forgiveness on every stroke.

BLADE PUTTERS Four blade-style putters are available in the Battle Ready family. This head design suits golfers who prefer a traditional aesthetic and the ability for increased control and feel.

Brandon • A modern take on a traditional blade-style design — Brandon is fully optimized for maximum control and consistency.

Spitfire • With angled wings that support stability, this unique design also enhances confidence over the ball with bold alignment aids.

Closer • A wide, blade-style putter, the Closer delivers a high MOI design in a sleek package.

Mustang • Featuring weighted heel-toe ballasts, Mustang provides increased stability and forgiveness to ensure a smooth stroke.

PXG Battle Ready Putter Online Fitting Tool

Get Fitted For A PXG Putter In-Person

To help golfers find their ideal PXG Battle Ready Putter, PXG created the ultimate putter fitting tool that comes complete with custom questions and short videos designed to help you select your head shape, hosel, loft, lie, length, grip, and weighting.

All PXG Battle Ready Putters feature PXG's iconic Darkness Insignia — a skull with the number 26 — a nod to PXG Founder and CEO Bob Parsons’ service in the 26th Marine Corps Regiment during the Vietnam War.

An in-person PXG putter fitting experience is unlike any other. Golfers are given the freedom to choose any putter head, based solely on the laws of attraction.

Then, with five different hosel configurations to select from — Plumber's Neck, Double Bend, Heel Shafted, Armlock and, for the Blackjack, Center Shafted — PXG Fitting Specialists will study your stroke and match you with a hosel to help you sink more putts. In short, Battle Ready Putters take personalized performance to the extreme.

Built to spec, the entire Battle Ready Putter lineup is now available. For more information, find a store near you, or to book a putter fitting call (844) PLAYPXG. Ready to fast fit your putter and buy online? Try PXG’s engineer-approved fitting tool at PXG.com.

D ES T I N AT I O N GO LFER 29

In 2022 Leupold Golf will keep you lasered in

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he fastest way to shave strokes off your score, says Leupold, is by having all the facts. The Beaverton, Ore.-based company has been in the business of giving facts to land surveyors, engineers, the military and outdoorsmen, for 115 years.

Leupold’s just won its 11th consecutive ‘Optics Manufacturer of the Year’ Award from the National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers recently, and why it has always preferred laser to GPS. It certainly has its fans, but Leupold regards GPS as a decidedly inferior method for gauging distances. “GPS gives the distance to the front, middle and back of the green,” says Leupold leadership. “It’s a shotgun approach. Our GX rangefinders give you the exact distance to the pin — more of a sniper-rifle approach.”

An engine comprising well-established Leupold technologies powers the 2022 GX line-up. Digital Signal Processing, which cuts out surrounding digital noise, and Digitally eNhanced Accuracy which gives you distances to within a tenth of a yard be it on a straight line on flat ground via Line of Sight and True Golf Range (TGR) by taking critical factors into account such as temperature, altitude, and slope all of which can influence the effective. After entering your average striking distances into the device, another Leupold trademark, Club Selector, can give you club recommendations based on your TGR. It’s like having your own caddie without the $100 tip. If you play a lot of rounds at high-end resort courses and take a caddie every time, a good quality rangefinder could save you quite a bit of money over time.

These standard GX features, in concert with additional Leupold innovations, give the golfer a level of certainty and assuredness he might not get with other brands. And, as every golfer knows, even a nano-second’s indecision rarely ends well in this game.

Pinhunter 3 eliminates false readings caused by unsteady hands. One-Touch Scan Mode allows you

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to range multiple targets with a single sweep simply by holding down the power button, enabling you to plot your way down a lengthy par 5 for instance.

Fog Mode delivers fast and accurate readings no matter the weather. Prism-Lock Technology locates the flagstick’s in-built prism instantly and gives you an audible alert the moment it does, and Flag-Lock Technology identifies the pin rather than surrounding obstacles such as trees and bushes. It’s an impressive package by any measure.

The flagship of the new GX family is the GX6c which, to put it mildly, has it all. An attractive (aluminum housing), durable (rugged rubber armor coating) device, it features every Leupold technology eliminating errors and guaranteeing accuracy. It features a bright, red OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display that is much easier to read than traditional LCDs, offers three reticles (pattern of lines in the eyepiece that aid measuring distances, locating objects, or aiming) — Cross, Criss-Cross, and Circle, and has a maximum reflective range of 700 yards.

Image Stabilization Technology works in conjunction with Pinhunter 3 Laser Technology to reduce excess movement caused by shaky hands. The emphasis, as always with Leupold, is on accuracy. It’s waterproof, USGA legal (as always ensure rangefinders adhere to local rules), magnification is 6x, it features Fog Mode, and the battery will last for more than 4,000 actuations which, assuming you’re measuring twice on Par 4s and 5s and once of short holes, means it will last for about 125 rounds.

The similarly feature-heavy GX-5c can actually ‘see’ 100 yards further than the 6c, giving it a total Reflective range of 800 yards. Slightly smaller and lighter than its big brother, the 5c offers three different reticles — Plus Point, Bracket Circle, and Bracket Circle Duplex.

Next in line is the GX-3c, which could almost be

described, as GX-5c-lite. Everything is pretty much the same — size, weight, reticles, USGA conformity, battery life, Bright Red Display, Fog Mode, 6x magnification, 800-yard Reflective range, Scan Mode, Pinhunter 3, Prism Lock, and DNA. What it lacks though, and what makes it significantly more affordable, is TGR and Club Selector. Some will certainly miss that particular capability, but if weather conditions in your neighborhood are fairly consistent, your course is pretty flat, and you want to save yourself some money, the 3c will do just fine.

At a slightly more attractive price-point still is the GX-2c, which is a great choice for those who want the features but don’t mind losing Leupold’s distinctive black/silver look and the Bright Red Display.

The cosmetics may be different, and the display is less powerful (traditional LCD not OLED), but the accuracy remains constant, and the Reflective range extends to 800 yards while the pin/flag range is a more than adequate 350 yards (you won’t be able to range the pin from the tee on a 600-yard Par 5, but we’re guessing you might need two, or more likely three, shots to reach the green). Battery life is strongest of all on the 2c (over 6,000 actuations), and the reticles on offer are Reticle with Plus Point, Diamond with Plus Point, and Diamond Plex.

That leaves the entry-level, eminently affordable PinCaddie 3, which might not offer Leupold’s most powerful and up-to-date technologies but does feature PinHunter 2, Flag Lock, and Scan Mode in a lightweight polymer housing. Pin/Flag range is 300 yards and battery life extends beyond 5,000 actuations. Waterproof and USGA-compliant (remember those Local Rules), the PinCaddie 3 will ably serve a great many golfers needing accurate measurements to their target.

Golf is booming and products are flying off the shelves, so go to LeupoldGolf.com and laser in on saving strokes today.

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an MGI Cart, a PXG Driver or a Leupold Rangefinder!

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A Leupold Rangefinder

Just like the feature at the left beautifully outlined, having a Leupold GX model in your bag is like having your own personal caddie. Click a few questions and you may be toting one of these beauties everywhere you play.

D ES T I N AT I O N GO LFER 33

California Desert Willow has you covered in The Golden State's Coachella Valley

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or anyone in search of a suitable golf course among a plethora of choices in the golferfriendly Coachella Valley, Desert Willow Golf Resort just might be the one. Not only do the Californians here welcome you to play one of their two inviting championship courses but they want you to play them well.

That is Desert Willow’s emphasis, one that might separate this club, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, from the 120 or so course alternatives throughout the Valley. The resort has the facility, the faculty, and the forte to make a difference to your game. “Our practice facility is one of the best in the area,” says Brian Simpson, Desert Willow’s marketing director. “It’s a big part of what we do to help grow the game.”

While lines of golfers practice their games at one end of the range, at the other end many more are seeking help in the resort’s Palm Desert Golf Academy where nine PGA teaching professionals are available for instruction. Yes, nine. The facility has golf fitness evaluations and the latest in video computer analysis.

Clinics are available daily. The academy offers the Signature golf school in which a golfer can have a morning lesson followed by on-course afternoon instruction with one of the professionals.

There’s also a vibrant junior golf program. Last year the resort’s PGA Junior League team won the area championship — you’re never too young or too old to improve.

Golfers will need their swings to be at their best

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Desert Willow's • Firecliff Course • Palm Desert, Calif.

BY TONY DEAR

when taking on Desert Willow’s two public courses, both stretching beyond 7,000 yards from the back tees. One has the interesting name of Firecliff, which has nothing to do with heat or heights. The name is an amalgamation of Leonard Firestone, son of Firestone Tire and Rubber Company founder Harvey S. Firestone and, Cliff Henderson, a co-founder of the city of Palm Desert, Calif. The other course, Mountain View, is as it sounds. Both are beauties.

“They’re the best public courses you can play, from a beauty standpoint, from a playability standpoint and turf conditions and service levels,” says Simpson. “And all for a reasonable price.”

Both courses, a couple miles from I-10 in the central portion of the Valley, southwest of Palm Springs and northwest of Indio, were designed by Dr. Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry who are best-known perhaps for the design of 2017 U.S. Open venue Erin Hills.

Desert Willow is their only design in the Valley.

Desert Willow has earned its share of laurels over the years. Firecliff opened in 1997 and has been ranked the 20th best course you can play in California by Golfweek. GolfPass ranked Firecliff the 25th best course in California while Mountain View, which opened in 1998, was recently named 13th best.

“They’ve (courses) fared well over the past 25 years,” says Simpson. Hurdzan and Fry have touched up the bunkers and taken out about 10 percent of the sand in an effort to make the courses more playable.

Visitors can at least find an exit from a bunker but escape is not much of an option from water, which is

a frequent threat on both courses.

Two of the best holes on Firecliff are the 17th and 18th both of which feature the wet stuff. There’s plenty of sand on the right side of the 204-yard 17th, too. Steer away from trouble though and you might find another bunker to the left of the green.

“It’s a great finish,” Simpson asserts. “The 17th is the most demanding Par 3 we have. It’s well protected over water and sand. Then, the 536-yard 18th with its second shot over water is truly one of the best in the Valley.”

Over on Mountain View, try to stay dry on the 476-yard sixth hole. It’s a shorter Par 5, but not so simple. There’s another long stretch of water all along the right side, but the real problem is with the approach where you need to either lay up short of a creek in front of the green or, if you’re feeling frisky, attempt to clear it all. If you go for it, you not only need to be long but straight due to two bunkers on the right and more water on the left.

Right-side water seems to be the theme all the way to the finish again at the 538-yard 18th. A large pond on the right at about 350 yards narrows into a creek, which crosses the fairway and forms another large pond to the left of the green. On this hole, you really need to thread the needle twice to stay dry.

When finished, you can look back on your finalhole travails from the clubhouse dining room, comforting yourself with crème brûlée, French toast or a Monte Cristo. From swing-to-sandwich, Desert Willow has you covered.

Gamble Sands &Salish Cliffs are ‘quintessentially Northwestern’ and show Washington’s diversity Gamble Sands • Brewster, Wash.

BY TONY DEAR

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olf in the Pacific Northwest can be a double-edged sword. On one side are the record high temperatures, significant flooding and above average snowfall/bizarrely low temperatures the region encountered during the last four or five months of 2021. And, on the other you find a handful of truly world-class courses open to the public.

Two of our favorites are Gamble Sands and Salish Cliffs which, though situated in very different landscapes, are both quintessentially Pacific Northwestern.

Gamble Sands, found in Central Washington’s high desert on a rugged plateau, 500 feet above the mighty Columbia River with distant views of the Cascade Mountains, opened with David McLayKidd’s exceptional Sands Course. A 200-mile drive east of Seattle, its remoteness meant word of how good a course it was emerged about as slowly as something can emerge in today’s hyper-connected world, but it wasn’t too long before it had earned a spot in national rankings and golfers from further afield than Seattle and Spokane were showing up.

With its reputation growing, the Gebbers Family, which owns the property (along with a successful, generations-old fruit and ranching business), decided in 2016 the time was right to add a lodging component. Each of the 37 rooms of the Inn at Gamble Sands affords great views over the Columbia and easy access to McLay-Kidd’s Cascades Putting Course, where end-of-day putting contests keep guests going late into the night.

Consistent exposure, a growing resort and the continued climb up the rankings gave family patriarch, Cass Gebbers, the confidence to add the sort of play-in-an-hour short course that has become an essential part of modern resort golf. Like the Gil Hanse-designed Cradle at Pinehurst, Tiger Woods’ re-imagined Hay at Pebble Beach, Keith Rhebb and Riley Johns’ Bootlegger at Forest Dunes or Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw’s brilliant 13-hole Preserve at Bandon Dunes, McLay-Kidd’s 14-hole Quicksands Course is a blast, a non-stop fun-fest where golfers can play holes named Plinko, Crater, Donut and Boomerang in flip-flops with seven of their pals.

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Salish Cliffs Golf Club • Shelton, Wash.

Washington A short but wild ride round 25 acres of sandy ground a hundred yards or so east of the clubhouse, Quicksands is a course where success is not measured by how low you can score necessarily, but how many laughs you share. It’s so intimate, the loud celebrations of holed putts and merciless heckling following a shank, can be heard by everyone on the course. It isn’t a place for cap-doffing, polite applause or the strictest adherence to golf’s time-honored etiquette you understand, but a raucous playground where virtually anything goes.

Those fortunate to have played the Sands Course, Quicksands and an up-and-down loop round the Cascades Putting Course, stayed at the Inn or eaten at the

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Danny Boy clubhouse restaurant, know just how special a place Gamble Sands is and, naturally, want more.

Given the deliberation over additional development, it’s obvious the Gebbers are in no hurry to keep building and aren’t going to de-flower their land for the sake of a quick profit. McLay-Kidd routed a second regulation-length course three years ago but when it actually will get built depends on several factors.

“The land is very similar to that of the original course,” says McLay-Kidd. “But there might be even more dramatic 'edge' holes.

“The challenge will be how to create a course that meets expectations but is also a sufficiently different experience. Slight changes in terrain and views will do much of that work for us, but I also think we will look at making the course just a little more intricate than the first.”

Though built on starkly different terrain, four and a half hours to the west at the southwest corner of the Kitsap Peninsula, Salish Cliffs is an equally enjoyable round. Gene Bates took a largely-wooded parcel

with a 600 foot elevation change and designed an incredibly beautiful and constantly engaging course with so much fun shots and interesting dilemmas — most suitable line at the 2nd; how close should I get to the 8th green with my second; how much of the fairway bunker on the 16th can I clear; should I take on the green at the 18th?

Salish definitely is one of those courses you want to take on again immediately after completing your first round, but maybe wait overnight in the adjacent Little Creek Casino Resort where you’ll find some great food, can take in a show at the Skookum Creek Event Center, visit the Seven Inlets Spa to rejuvenate or find a comfy bed.

The golf course celebrated its 10th anniversary earlier this year. A good indicator of how much you enjoy doing something is how quickly the time goes when you’re doing it. That we can barely believe Salish Cliffs is 10 years old tells you just how much we’ve enjoyed playing it since it opened.

Gamble Sands turns eight this year. And no, we can’t believe that either.

KAUAI CALLING Is

The par 3 14th might be the most stunninglybeautiful hole you’ll ever play.

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BY TONY DEAR

he Hawaiian Islands are full of the sort of golf holes that don’t look real somehow and you assume they were created by an over-stimulated artist or graphic illustrator on a sugar rush.

Maui certainly can claim a few, and the Big Island has its share. One of Lanai’s two courses has a couple of the best, and Oahu isn’t short of extravagantly beautiful holes.

Kauai, the ‘Garden Isle’ and fourth largest of the 137 volcanic islands that form the Hawaiian Archipelago, fares very well in the ‘almost-hallucinogenic’ golf hole category, with Poipu Bay, Puakea, Makai, Kiahuna, Kukui’ula and even the municipal Wailua all contributing. None of them, however, can quite hold a candle to Hokuala and its two spectacular back-nine stunners, for which you’ll need to pause a moment just to pinch yourself and confirm this place does, indeed, exist.

The bones of the Jack Nicklaus-designed Ocean Course at Hokuala, situated on the southwest corner of the island a few miles outside Lihue, date back more than 30 years. Originally there were 36 holes here but significant changes to the development, purchased for $60 million by Colorado-based Timbers Resorts in 2015 since when the company has made $800 million worth of improvements (and changed the business model to one based predominantly, though not entirely, on luxury residential ownership rather than hotel/timeshare) have left just 18 very special holes.

The inland front-nine traverses dramatic terrain among mango and guava groves and includes a hand-

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Ocean Course at Hokuala • Lihue, Hawaii

ful of holes that would highlight any round and which you think you’re going to remember forever. But then you reach the back and play a sequence of holes that obliterates images of everything that went before.

The 10th, 11th and 12th are good holes certainly, but not showstoppers. The 11th and 12th run parallel to the runway at Lihue Airport (direct flights from west coast cities — Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Los Angeles and San Diego), but this isn’t Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta or London Heathrow. You might see one plane take off or land, but it’s really not going to spoil your round.

At the long par-4 13th, with its line of palms ringing the back of the green and the blue Pacific extending beyond, there definitely is a sense you’re approaching something special. And though you won’t care about such things as you’re on vacation, and scholarly pursuits can take a back seat, there is actually some good, old-fashioned design theory on this hole where sound tactics will usually pay off.

A string of bunkers lies in wait for the slightly pushed drive to the right. But, going as close to the sand as you dare will leave a much easier second shot as the green is angled toward you and you needn’t carry the bunker at the front, which you will if you drive left. It's a simple strategy that makes an already alluring hole that little bit more enjoyable.

And then you walk onto the tee at the 14th. The sense of awe no doubt peaks the very first time you see it, but no matter how often you see the hole your eyes will grow wide and mouth open if only for a moment.

You’ve played slightly downhill, 210-yard par-

3s before, but the others didn’t have Nawiliwili Bay lapping up against the rocks below or the 86-foottall Ninini Point Lighthouse behind you. And there are plenty of palm trees to finish off the unforgettable scene.

As if the 14th wasn’t enough, you play another memorable oceanside beauty two holes later. The 15th is a fine par-5 that sweeps left around Ninini Beach but it won’t set your senses on edge like the 14th or spectacular short par-4 16th, where the second shot plays downhill to a heavenly green surrounded by sand and rocks with the smaller Kuki’i Point Lighthouse to the left.

The natural topography dictates the hole gets very narrow toward the green, but it actually works well. The prudent play is to aim for the wide part of the fairway with an iron, but if you’re in the mood and confident of threading the needle then by all means pull out the driver.

Nicklaus explains: “The 16th is a standout. It challenges you to make the right club selection on the tee. If your tee ball travels down the slot, then you have a chance to drive it on the green and putt for an eagle. A tee shot miss and you have an awkward pitch to the green. It may be smart to hit a hybrid or a 3-iron off the tee and leave yourself a little wedge down to the green.”

You could shoot a miserable, worst-score-ofyour-life 100 at Hokuala, but if you make a couple of pars at the 14th and 16th, or even birdie one or the other, you will more than salvage your day. You can dine out on that story for years.

FLAG ASSIST

Bottoms up!

Flag Assist is an ace

New product for courses, destinations and marketers takes the bottom of cup and flagstick to next level

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ountless technological advancements in the sport of golf surround us at every turn — and have for decades. Golf clubs, shafts, grips, balls, bags, handheld electronic tools, shoes and even golf attire are in a never-ending evolution of improvement.

All this has benefitted the golfer greatly. But as far as the flagstick and cup, there has not been a major overhaul of this equipment really to speak of.

Frankly, there’s been no change to it in decades — until now.

An Oregon-based visionary, named Vernie Santos, has changed all that with the recent unveiling of a new product called Flag Assist, which launched during the pandemic, and which has attracted dozens of rave reviews.

Mike O’Reilly, the Golf Operations Manager at Blackwolf Run and Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wisc., and the Badger State’s PGA Golf Professional of the Year in 2017, says employees and guests have been very pleased with how the product has performed on the golf course since the beginning of 2020. “It allowed players to finish the hole without touching the flagstick,” he adds. “And we found the product more versatile and better-made than other options in the market.”

Tom Brodeur, superintendent at TPC Boston was likewise impressed. “It helped our members enjoy the golf course at a difficult time for everyone,” he says, referring to the lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic. “It was nice that they were able to putt without the ball bouncing out of the hole.”

And, PGA Professional Mike Raschko of Willamette Valley Country Club in Canby, Ore. goes as

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far as to say the club’s members have been “really excited” about the product, adding that turf on the putting greens has held up much better since the club began using it. “Also, the majority of the members think it's very convenient not to have to bend over to retrieve their ball after holing out,” he says.

What are they talking about? What is this product that is saving greens turf and helping golfers feel better during their round? Flag Assist is described as a ‘Patented, adjustable receiver cup that allows players to retrieve the ball without touching either the flagpole or cup.’

A former plumbing contractor and currently the Vice President of Business Development for Portland-based Aerial Inspection Resources, Santos says Flag Assist receiver cups became a vital tool in assuring golfers could complete a round safely during the pandemic when the USGA advised against touching the pin in conjunction with state, county, and local government policies.

By positioning a Flag Assist Cup about two inches below the surface of the green, the ball stays in the hole every time and makes it easy for the golfer to retrieve the ball. Since the USGA guidelines have been lifted, however, and we have been able to touch the pin, golfers have discovered that by taking the pin out of the cup entirely they can retrieve their ball without having to bend over, which is a big deal for golfers of a certain vintage and those with suspect backs.

What’s more, says Santos, repeated removal of the ball from a cup with the pin in place can deform the surrounding turf, cause the cup to shift, and even ‘dome’ the earth surrounding the cup. “However,

Flag Assist allows players to lift the ball clear simply by lifting the pin out of the hole,’ he adds. “This means they won't need to use external tools that could damage the green.”

Flag Assist also helps keep the flag straight and centered in windy conditions and gives courses the opportunity to add branding and marketing. “The removable inserts at the top and bottom of the cups are customizable,” says Scott Pelzer a Manager at Pelzer Golf, based in Clackamas, Ore., which sells, markets and distributes Flag Assist and which has supplied golf products (balls, gloves, tees, ball-markers, towels, cleats, bag tags, rangefinders, grips, club repair tools, training aids, umbrellas, ball mark repair tools, range supplies, etc.) wholesale to pro shops and other golf-related businesses around the country since 1982. “The inserts are a great way to add custom messaging for events, tournaments, holidays, you name it.”

Frankly speaking, the marketability of branding the inside of the cup is one of the most innovative opportunities on the golf course as all players reach the cup.

Flag Assist was one of the most popular exhibits at the 2022 PGA Show in Orlando and the courses and marketers were crafting orders on the spot.

Flag Assist attaches easily to the flagstick with no need to remove the flag, can be positioned at any height, is made to last from high-quality materials and comes with a one-year free replacement part warranty.

To learn more visit flagassistgolf.com or pelzergolf.com and learn about the customizable opportunity available for your golf entity.

MIND 2 MOTION

Swing Science Made Simple The latest in golf instruction is Kinetic Engineering for the golf swing

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Shutterstock

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or the first time in golf instruction history, there is a science and fact-based method of golf instruction that can train our minds how to think the right thoughts and our bodies to feel the right feelings, so we get the results we want. Thereby creating permanent swing changes that transfer to the golf course. It’s called Mind2Motion (M2M) Golf.

For the past 23 years, Alison Thietje, the founder of M2M, albeit unintentionally, has been doing “unofficial” research and development, discovering the Body Movement Laws governing the golf swing. During a research study this winter, prominent golf professionals at one of the top 50 private clubs in the U.S. found that M2M qualifies as a new science by definition of the word. The new science is called Kinetic Engineering. Kinetic for the sequencing of human movement and engineering, which is the process of making practical applications of the sciences.

We want to emphasize the vast difference between teaching and training.

Unfortunately, teaching is based on swing mechanics and works well for approximately 20 percent of golfers. On the flip side, swing training is based on

Body Movement Laws. A step-by-step, engineeringtype process proven to work for 80 percent of golfers.

Swing training is like building a house via a blueprint (cause) verses talking about how the house will look (effect) when completed.

We trust blueprints because they’re a clear-cut, systematic, and reliable source of truth. Likewise, M2M’s golf swing blueprint builds confidence because it clarifies, simplifies, and deepens our understanding of the golf swing. Subjective human input plays no part. This makes M2M Golf the world's first and only objective, fact-based swing training program.

The process of Kinetic Engineered Training is founded on Newton’s laws of motion and on creating neuroplasticity (permanent swing changes) for human movement; in this case, the golf swing.

These sciences eliminate our need to interpret the golf swing personally by giving us definitive answers about the what, where, when, why, and HOW it works. This is the most important scientific breakthrough golf instruction has ever seen. The founder, Alison Thietje, and Casey Cox, Director of Golf at Old Warson Country Club in St. Louis, are spending the rest of this year solidifying that belief by continuing research on the Mind2Motion training.

Shutterstock

HOW CAN YOU PARTICIPATE? Go to mind2motiongolf.com

FOR $100 OFF

Enter the code ‘mind2motion’ at CHECKOUT Shutterstock

BODY MOVEMENT LAWS, when mastered, give us a new skill that can be taken to the course with minimal effort The discovery of the M2M Body Movement Laws and the Kinetically Engineering a golf swing is the number one confidence builder for golfers on the golf course. Laws make us confident because they are reliable truths that are predictable. Laws are cut and dry and most importantly — they never contradict. Laws, like facts, don't care about our feelings or our opinions. Laws eliminate all the contradictions of teaching by swing mechanics.

Example: Body Movement Laws has revealed that the coveted Tour pro release/impact positions are merely a reaction to another body movement that is the action. The video links below are great examples regarding the difference between a traditional lesson dealing with swing mechanics and using M2M Body Movement Law based teaching. Click below to watch The Release Part 1 video explaining the body movement laws that govern the release, and The Release Part 2 is an excellent in-home drill.

THE RELEASE PART 1

THE RELEASE PART 2

Click these two PLAY buttons to see Mind 2 Motion in action.

The self-taught golfer can go through the program via VIDEO TUTORIALS and test-out each learned Body Movement Law (7-12 benchmarks) online with a trained Mind2Motion instructor or Alison herself.

Combine the videos with regular ONE-ON-ONE ZOOM LESSONS using the Body Movement Laws with a trained Mind2Motion instructor or Alison herself.

Participate in M2M ONLINE RESEARCH GROUPS offered in two formats. A fast track 3-day golf school or a 4-8-week program taken at your own pace.

If interested in any of above, please email Alison at Alison@mind2motiongolf.com Also visit her website at plumblineuniversity.com and Mind2Motiongolf.com.

D ES T I N AT I O N GO LFER 45

SHOOTOUT AT

GAMBLE SANDS

Two Amazing Days of Golf at Gamble Sands Including an Evening on the New Quicksands Short Course

JOIN US JULY 23-24 BEST GOLF WEEKEND OF THE YEAR! CONTACT: Simon Dubiel simon@cascadegolfer.com • (206) 778-7686

REGISTER AT • cascadegolfer.com

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