It’s no secret that the horrible pandemic gave a boost to the golf industry nation-wide, and that is most evident in Mississippi. The sport has really taken off there in the last few years.

That was evident when a small group of golf media members from all parts of the country spent a week getting a thorough look at the state’s best courses, be they private, resort or public.

While I don’t take any of the major course rating polls as gospel, our group played seven of Mississippi’s top 10 in the Golf Digest rankings. That gave us a good feel for what golf has done for the state since the pandemic.

“We were the No. 1 state in the country for recovery,’’ said Craig Ray, director of tourism for Visit Mississippi.  “That’s according to the U.S. Travel Association.  We got our casinos open early and encouraged our golf and other outdoor activities (to do the same). That’s why we came back quicker, with a smaller percentage of losses than any other state.’’

The casinos were important, of course, but golf was also a big key to recovery.

“We wanted to get people to the casinos, see a show, get a great dinner,’’ said Ray. “We wanted the golfers to see everything else we have to offer – the hunting and fishing, the culinary tours. We have the largest music trail system in the world.  We wanted to show them the whole state.’’

On our trip the group took in a couple of the casinos, Beau Rivage in Biloxi and Pearl River Resort & Casino in Choctaw. We enjoyed some fine dining at Field’s Steakhouse and Oyster Bar, Jia (featuring Pan-Asian cuisine), Phillip M’s Steakhouse, Mama ‘N’ Ems and Cameron’s at Old Waverly Country Club.

The good golf, though, was spread around the state. Using the Golf Digest rankings, we hit No. 1 Fallen Oak, No. 2 Mossy Oak, No. 3 Old Waverly, No. 5 the Azalea course at Dancing Rabbit, No. 6 Grand Bear, No. 8 Dancing Rabbit’s Oaks course and No. 10 Shell Landing.

While that was a good sampling of what Mississippi has to offer golf-wise, our visits did not include three others in the top 10 – No. 4 Annandale in Madison, No. 7 Reunion in Madison and No. 9 The Preserve in Vancleave – or Country Club of Jackson, site of the state’s only PGA Tour stop — October’s Sanderson Farms Championship.

What we did see, though, was plentiful and impressive.  Our stops were roughly divided into three sections.

COASTAL – Beau Rivage’s 32-story MGM-owned resort is Mississippi’s tallest building and offers spectacular views of the Gulf of Mexico and Biloxi’s Back Bay. Its Fallen Oak course has long been the consensus No. 1 among the state’s courses.  A Tom Fazio design,  it hosted PGA Tour Champions tournament  from 2010 to 2021. (The pandemic forced cancelation of the event in 2020). Fazio has long been one of the premier designers of his era, and Fallen Oak is considered one of his best creations.

Beau Rivage recently completed nearly $100 million in property enhancements including a $55 million remodeling of each of its 1,645 hotel rooms. The resort offers live entertainment in its 1,550-seat theater, an upscale shopping promenade with 12 retail shops, the Black Clover Lounge and Topgolf Swing Suite and a world-class spa. It also has 12 restaurants in addition to an 85,000 -square foot gaming area.

Clearly it’s Mississippi’s full-service sports betting and entertainment destination.

As for Fallen Oak, the course opened in 2006 and has consistently been ranked as the No. 2 casino course in the U.S., trailing only Shadow Creek – its MGM sister course in Las Vegas. Probably because only Beau Rivage members and resort guests can play Fallen Oak the course doesn’t get heavy play and is the best-conditioned of the layouts our group played.

When Fallen Oak asked out of hosting the PGA Tour Champions in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic the tourney switched sites to Grand Bear, a Jack Nicklaus design in Saucier, in 2022 – the last time the tourney was held. Grand Bear, a public course, opened in 1999 and – for the record – our media tour group considered it very much on par with Fallen Oak.

Nicklaus courses are generally very demanding and this one is literally “a Bear” from each tee placement. The front tees are called Teddy Bear, then they go back to the Black Bear, the Brown Bear, the Golden Bear and the Grizzly Bear from the tips.

The course measures 7,204 from the back tees, but this Nicklaus creation, built along the Biloxi River, is more user friendly than many of his others. Grand Bear hit the national spotlight as the site of the Rapiscan Systems Classic in 2022.  Steven Alker was the lone senior star in command that week.  Finishing 62-65 he finished at 18-under-par in the 54-hole test and enjoyed a six-stroke advantage on Padraig Harrington and Alex Cejka.

Shell Landing, a heavily-played public course in Gautier, gives Coastal Mississippi a third course in the state’s top 10. Shell Landing, designed by Davis Love III, was immediately well-received by national golf publications when it opened in 2002. In addition to its popular 18 holes Shell Landing has a 15-acre practice facility.

DANCING RABBIT – The Pearl River Resort is operated by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, and its Dancing Rabbit Golf Club is one of its biggest attractions. The facility opened in 1997.

Dancing Rabbit has two 18-holers, The Azaleas and The Oaks.  Both were designed by Fazio in conjunction with Jerry Pate, a Floridian who won the U.S. Open in 1976. Both are well-received public courses with more elevation changes and tighter fairways than were offered at the Coastal courses.

Aa major renovation was recently completed at Dancing Rabbit Inn and the Geyser Falls Water Theme Park is also an available attraction.

With more than 6,000 employees, the Choctaw Tribe is one of the top five private employers in Mississippi and the Pearl River Resort is one of its biggest properties. It encompasses the Silver Star and Golden Moon hotel/casinos.

The Silver Star has a spa and salon where guests can enjoy a full complement of skin and body treatments, soothing steam baths, a whirlpool, sauna and outdoor pool. Its fitness center is filled with state of the art equipment.

Golden Moon is a bit different. Its amenities include The Whiskey Bean (for coffee, sandwiches and pastries), Bistro 24 (for a broader menu that includes mouth-watering steak), Timeout Lounge (for easy TV viewing while enjoying a variety of drink selections) and the excellent restaurant, Mama `n’ Em, with particularly interesting menu offerings.

MOSSY’S ARRIVAL – West Point has been a Mississippi golf hotbed once George Bryan’s Old Waverly Country Club opened in 1988.  Bryan passed on in January but left the place in great shape as a unique two-course complex.

Old Waverly is a prominent name, especially in women’s golf.  The U.S. Women’s Open was played there in 1999. The Handa Cup, a team event for senior women stars, followed in 2014 and the U.S. Women’s Amateur came in 2019.

That was all well and good, but Bryan and Toxie Haas, a long-time business associate and West Point resident, wanted more. They rallied some friends to add a second course and there’s no other course in Mississippi like Mossy Oak.  It’s a sporty but challenging layout that also is the home of the Mississippi State University men’s and women’s teams.

“Our whole goal with that course was to develop a different atmosphere,’’ said Greg Flannagan, the director of golf who is in his 23^rd year at Old Waverly. “We didn’t want golfers to get bored with the stay-and-play option.’’

The courses are very different.  Old Waverly is private, yet can be played by those staying at either the Mossy Oak Cottages or the lodging option right at Old Waverly, while Mossy Oak is comparatively new and, well….different. While it’s officially public, most all of its play comes from stay-and-play visitors.

Mississippi State holds its annual men’s tournament at Mossy Oak while the women’s team conducts its big event at Old Waverly. Both courses have accompanying cottages that make for most pleasant stay-and-play visits.

Flannagan says the goal for the year is to get over 22,000 rounds played on Old Waverly and reach 13,800 on Mossy Oak. The newer layout still has some rough spots and could use signage in a couple places to facilitate play, but it was without question the most fun course that our media contingent played during our most memorable tour of Mississippi.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:  visit www.VisitMississippi.org/golf.

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s time to hit the road again.  Our visits to golf travel destinations will take us to Mississippi, Alabama and Pennsylvania over the next few weeks, but there’s plenty going on at other places that golf travelers should know about.

For instance:

REYNOLDS LAKE OCONEE – Famed architect Tom Fazio is returning to this beautiful resort in Greensboro, Ga.  He’s completed plans for nine holes that will join with his existing Bluffs nine on The National Course, the eventual result being a new 18-hole layout.

Fazio designed the 18-hole National course, which opened in 1997 with two nines – The Ridge and The Bluffs.  An additional nine, called The Cove, was added in 2000 to allow for more playing options.

The future 18-hole course will utilize the existing Bluff nine with adjacent land that includes a creek, natural boulders and an existing pond.  The land slopes down toward a cove of Lake Oconee with more than 100 feet of elevation change.

When completed the new course will be the only one at the resort to traverse both sides of the peninsula and touch the lake from both Richland Creek and the Oconee River.  The first five holes of the Bluff routing will be followed by nine all-new holes and the final four holes will connect back to The Bluffs.

The new course is scheduled to open in late 2024 and will be private, accessible only to Reynolds Lake Oconee members.  Reynolds Lake Oconee will then have two private courses as well as another 90 holes available for member and resort guest play.

MYRTLE BEACH – The folks at this golf mecca in South Carolina are celebrating the 40^th anniversary of the World Amateur Handicap Championship.  It’s rightly billed as the “World’s Largest’’ tournament and registration has already topped 2,400 for an event that runs from Aug. 28 to Sept. 1.

Usually the tourney draws about 3,200, with players coming from all 50 states and over 25 countries, but this one could be bigger.  Players are flighted by gender, age and handicap and over 50 courses – ranging alphabetically from Abderdeen to World Tour Golf Links – will be used during that big week as golfers compete for over $100,000 in prizes.

CRAGUN’S RESORT – The season is just getting underway at this 36-hole facility in Brainerd, MN. The Lehman 18, created in a multi-million dollar renovation supervised by Minnesota native and PGA Tour Champions player Tom Lehman, will be in the spotlight.

The Dutch 27, three nine-hole layouts dubbed the Red, White and Blue,  will offer a variety of other playing options, though the Red nine is set to undergo a Lehman renovation on July 1 and won’t re-open until 2024.

WALT DISNEY WORLD – The Orlando, FL., resort has four courses operated by the Arnold Palmer Golf Management firm. World Disney World just concluded its 50^th anniversary festivities and will begin work towards its centennial with the Magnolia course of immediate interest.

A Joe Lee design, it’s the longest of Disney’s four courses and had hosted a PGA Tour event for several years.  An extensive renovation has limited play to 14 holes but the course will be at full strength before the year is out.  Holes 14-17 are being reconfigured and all 18 greens are being substantially enhanced.

RODEO DUNES – Be on the lookout for this one.  Michael and Chris Keiser, owners of Wisconsin’s Sand Valley, are bringing their Dream Golf vision to the Denver area.  They’re building two courses on property that is an hour from Denver and there’s space for up to six courses there.

AND MORE FOR 2024 – North Carolina’s Pinehurst Resort is getting a 10^th course, and it could well be a “Perfect Ten.’’ Tom Doak is designing it.

And the Dormie Network is hoping for a “Lucky Seven.’’ The network’s seventh destination will be GrayBull, a David McLay Kidd creation in Maxwell, Neb.

 

NEW EVENTS – Florida is getting a couple of big pro events that are sure to lure visitors in December.

The Grant Thornton Invitational will bring players from the PGA and LPGA tours together at Tiburon, in Naples, beginning on Dec. 4.  It’ll mark a return of a mixed team event, with 16 PGA and 16 LPGA players competing for a $4 million purse. The last time such an event was held was in 1999 when John Daly and Laura Davies won the final edition of the JCPenney Classic.

Meanwhile, the Concession Club, in Bradenton, will debut the new World Champions Cup – a PGA Tour Champions creation – from Dec. 7-10.  This event will have an unusual Ryder Cup-style format, with three teams doing battle – Team USA, Team Europe and Team International.  There’ll be eight nine-hole matches each day of the competition. Points will be awarded for holes won, not just the overall matches.  Jim Furyk will captain Team US, Darren Clarke will guide Team Europe and Ernie Els directs Team International.  There’ll be a $1.35 million purse, and each player on the winning side gets $100,000.

 

GULF SHORES, Alabama – First off, let’s make this perfectly clear.  Gulf Shores-Orange Beach – a  community sandwiched between Pensacola, FL., and Mobile, AL., and not far from the Mississippi state line – offers a lot more than golf.

But we will get to those other nice things later. Gulf Shores is a unique spot for golfers. Not only are its courses good, but they’re also not far from each other. The Gulf Coast and Orange Beach Vacation Guide lists 15 courses in the area with three of the best especially close together.

“We’ve got an island that is 32 miles long in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach,’’ said Easton Colvin, public relations coordinator for Gulf Shores-Orange Beach Tourism. “In it there’s 32 miles of pretty, white sand beaches and 20 miles of golf, if you add the yardages of the courses there together.  All of our courses are public.  You can schedule a tee time on your own at every one of them.’’ We also learned that full-service golf packages can be booked by a division of Troon, which owns three of the course, called Coastal Alabama Golf.

The three courses on the island part of Gulf Shores form a tasty trio.

Kiva Dunes has earned the most accolades.  It’s a links-style layout 200 yards off the beaches. Jerry Pate, working with good friend and developer Jim Edgemon, designed it.

Pate was a hot commodity as a player before Kiva opened in 1995. He starred for the University of Alabama golf team, winning the U.S. Amateur in 1974. His pro career started with a bang, too.  In 1976,  his rookie season on the PGA Tour, he won both the U.S. and Canadian Opens. Six years later he won The Players Championship.

Those are pretty good titles to have on a playing resume, and Pate won five other times before shoulder and knee problems slowed his playing career down. With Kiva one of his first designs Pate converted to being a successful course designer, developer and businessman while settling in Pensacola.

In its early years Kiva hosted the second stage of the PGA Tour Qualifying School three times and was named the No. 1 public course in Alabama in 2017. Located on the Fort Morgan peninsula the facility has condominiums and beach houses to rent, plus four swimming pools, two on-site restaurants and over a mile of waterfront.

Kiva has gained recognition far beyond its home state, and it’s our choice as Gulf Shores’ best – but not by all that much. Peninsula Golf & Racquet Club is pretty darn good, too.

This facility also opened in 1995, with Earl Stone designing its 27 holes on 800 acres.  Peninsula has some things that Kiva Dunes doesn’t have.  It has three nines – the Lakes, Cypress and Marsh – and the facility also has an 8,000 square foot fitness center, eight tennis courts and indoor and outdoor swimming pools.

Third of the island courses is Gulf Shores Golf Club, the oldest course at the destination.  It was built by the father-son team of Jay and Carter Moorish in the early 1960s and they also handled a fullscale renovation there in 2005. The course was hit by Hurricane Sally in 2020 and is still somewhat in recovery mode but its sharp doglegs and numerous water hazards make for a challenging test.

Biggest of the Gulf Shores facilities isn’t on the island but is just five minutes up the road.  Craft Farms has 45 holes with its Cotton Creek and Cypress courses and a nine-hole par-3 layout.  Those two 18-holers comprise the only Arnold Palmer designs in Alabama.

The legendary Palmer was just starting to dabble in course design when he developed a close friendship with Robert Craft.  They worked together for the 1987 opening of Cotton Creek and the 1993 debut of the Cypress course.  Craft passed away in 2006.  His son has been the mayor of Gulf Shores since 2008.

Though some seasons are better than others weather-wise, there’s pride in what Gulf Shores has to offer golfers.

“Gulf Shores in November is as good a place to play golf as you’ll find anywhere,’’ said Dan Dorrough, now the head superintendent at Gulf Shores Golf Club after stints as an assistant at Kiva Dunes and Craft Farms.

We made our first trip to Gulf Shores in 2012 and played the same four courses as we did on this visit. The Gulf Shores community looked a lot different this time, though. Now there’s more, new, or at least expanded, attractions.

For starters there’s Gulf Shores State Park with its 6,150 acres creating a haven for hikers, cyclists and Segway tours. The Hugh S. Branyon Backcountry Trail spans all of the park’s 28 miles and connects both Gulf Shores and Orange Beach to the park. There’s also a nature center, over two miles of uninterrupted pristine beachfront and a lodge (actually a 350-room Hilton hotel that was rebuilt in 2018) featuring the Perch Restaurant.

Our favorite dinner spot was Big Fish, a great place featuring seafood and a sushi bar but steak, pasta and sandwiches are available, too.  Lucy Buffett’s LuLu’s, located on the Intracoastal Waterway, also has good food along with live music, a fun arcade, a three-story climbing ropes course and children’s activities. The owner is the sister of one of my all-time favorite singers, Jimmy Buffett.

Sassy Bass Cookout Tiki Bar has a somewhat hidden location between Kiva Dunes and Peninsula but the food, served in hot iron skillets, was delicious in addition to having a unique presentation.

And then there’s the sprawling Flora-Bama Yacht Club with its world famous Flora-Bama Lounge, Package & Oyster Bar. It offers open-air waterfront dining and a lot more. This is a legendary place near Orange Beach that appeals to all ages with its music, interesting decor and numerous bars.  Though it was hit by many hurricanes over the years, Flora-Bama remains a must visit no matter the duration of your stop in Gulf Shores-Orange Beach area.

You don’t have to just play golf and eat in Gulf Shores, either.  On rainy days you can still play miniature golf indoors – at the glow-in-the-dark Jurassic dinosaur adventure. It has a unique 5,000 square foot prehistoric setting and was a nice diversion for even the most serious golfers in our group. Most all of them, however,  preferred the Sail Wild Hearts’  relaxing two-hour sunset cruise in a 53-foot open-ocean catamaran. For more information visit gulfshores.com.

 

 

 

 

 

NEKOOSA, Wisconsin – Mike Keiser’s Sand Valley Resort has already brought a new look for golfers looking to travel.

Its two 18-holers, Sand Valley and Mammoth Dunes, are walking courses with lots of sand – of course – and lots of great views.  On our recent visit we asked some of the veteran staffers to pick their favorite course and some didn’t hesitate to go in another direction.

Rather than choose between the 18-holers they went with Sandbox, a series of 17 par-3 holes that really makes a player think and have fun at the same time.  We had played the two 18-holers on previous visits, but didn’t get to the Sandbox until this summer. I can see why that course was so positively received.

The holes roughly measure between 50 and 150 yards.  The yardages change with the daily adjustment of tee markers.  And, there’s an extra shovel-designed tee marker on each hole for those wishing to have an extra challenge.  It’s much closer to the putting surface, designed for putting only and ideal for match play competitions.

The greens have all kinds of elevation changes and the many bunkers are deep and difficult to escape. All of this was the creation of architects Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, who also designed the Sand Valley 18-holer. Short courses are the in vogue thing now, and the Sandbox is like no other that we have seen – and we’ve played lots of them.

Choosing a favorite in the short course world isn’t easy, but it comes down to the Sandbox or the Cradle at North Carolina’s Pinehurst Resort.  They’re different, but both designed purely for fun. I found that playing the Cradle was addictive, but now the Sandbox gets my nod as the more fun of the two.

That review completes our current appraisal of the Keiser’s Wisconsin resort that opened in 2017. It was a big hit from the outset, and now things are changing.

Keiser, a Chicago resident who had a successful career in the greeting card business,  became enthralled with the links courses of Scotland and Ireland.  Taking that passion back to the United States, he built Bandon Dunes — a true links course in Oregon.

He’s also built award-winning resorts from Tasmania to Nova Scotia. We haven’t visited any of those, but we’ve encountered a wide variety of golf destinations in our travels and Bandon stands by itself.

Sand Valley, though, is closer to our Midwest roots. We visited there before the place was open and got a walking tour from Keiser’s son Michael Jr. Our first rounds there several years later didn’t disappoint and we left for the drive back to Chicago this year with the same very positive vibes, but we also had to wonder if Sand Valley isn’t headed in a new direction.

For one thing, the Wisconsin State Amateur took over the two 18-holers the day after our departure. That’s the most significant competition held at Sand Valley since the resort opened.  Could more be coming?

The obvious construction work beside and across the street from the entrance to Sand Valley indicates more projects are in the works, and plans for them indicate it won’t be more of the same golf-wise. This is what I’ve learned:

Next course to open there, in 2023, is The Lido. This intrigues lovers of golf history, and I’m certainly one of those.

Lido Golf Club was a private facility built in 1917 on Long Island. Charles Blair Macdonald, designer of America’s first 18-hole course at the Chicago Golf Club, was the main designer of this one and it was called “the most demanding course ever built’’ in its day. It measured only 6,693 yards from the back tees, but that was considered very long a century ago when hickory-shafted clubs were the best equipment option.

During World War II The Lido became “lost.’’ It was demolished by the U.S. Navy, which declared it a strategic defensive site. Some courses after that were “inspired’’ by The Lido, but the Sand Valley version is being touted as the real thing.

Architect Tom Doak, who is overseeing the project, has the advantage of working with an unparalleled collection of photos which are said to replicate the original Lido to the linear square foot.

Sledge Village is also bringing something new and different to Sand Valley. Scheduled to open in 2024, it’ll bring residential golf into the picture with the building of 36 homes. The residents will have a course to play, called Sedge Valley.  Also included in the project is a six-acre putting course, a tennis center, a bistro restaurant, a pool house and an arcade with golf simulators.

Along with the work being done at Sand Valley Keiser has just come out with a new book, “The Nature of the Game – Links Golf at Bandon Dunes and Far Beyond,’’  written with Stephen Goodwin (Alfred A. Knopf, Publisher, New York).

While copies weren’t available at the Sand Valley pro shop or several PGA Superstore locations at the time of our visit, I did find one at a Barnes and Noble location. The book provides insight into all of Keiser’s resort creations, including what’s in the works at Sand Valley.  His final sentence of the book, though, may be the most revealing:

“The most interesting chapter is always the next one.’’

 

 

WISCONSIN DELLS, Wisconsin – Golf is different in the Wisconsin Dells.  Given all the entertainment options for tourists, golf seems more an amenity than an attraction.

But, make no mistake, it’s a good one.

The Dells offers 142 holes and 12 different golf experiences, ranging from short courses to championship versions. The courses were designed around landscapes left by the glacier period and surrounded by sandstone bluffs, towering pines and rolling hills.  That makes The Dells special as a golf destination.

For the record my favorite course there is the 18-holer at Wild Rock, created by the well respected design team of Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry.  It’s a frequent tournament venue.

That said, the best golf facility in The Dells, in my book,  is Trappers Turn. It’s got three fine nines – the Arbor, Canyon and Lakes – as well as a unique 12-hole par-3 course called 12North.  Two-time U.S. Open champion Andy North and Oliphant Haltom Golf teamed up on this one for a series of challenging holes that measure between 50 and 120 yards and also includes a one-acre putting green.  Toss in the big clubhouse and restaurant and Trappers Turn gives you all you could want.

That’s brings me to the most interesting course in The Dells.  That would be the 18-holer at Christmas Mountain Village, called The Oaks. Christmas Mountain doubles as a ski area with 16 runs and two chairlifts in the winter.

Located in unincorporated Dells, it has the widest range of lodging options I’ve seen at a golf facility.  There are 60 year-round residents and visitors can also stay in campers, tents, log cabins, condos or villas. BlueGreen Vacations Unlimited oversees that.

What Christmas Mountain Village lacks is historical information, perhaps because the staff is relatively new.  Jacob James, the head professional, has been on hand for less than a year and Greg Schernecker, who has done solid work in improving course conditioning as the superintendent, has been on the staff for less than two years after coming over from John Deere Co.

Schernecker built a nine-hole course in Poynette, Wis. from the ground up in 1999.  He had superintendents jobs at two other Wisconsin courses over a 10-year period before his stint selling Deere equipment, but the focus now is on upgrading Christmas Mountain Village.

“We’ll just keep improving,’’ he said.  “I’m excited to see where we can take the course next.  I want this to be the best course in The Dells.’’

From what we could gather the resort opened in 1969 for skiers. The Oaks course was designed by Art Johnson. Johnson passed on in 2010 at the age of 82, and his architectural work on The Oaks was reportedly done in 1985. The course opening, though, wasn’t opened until  1990. At least that’s what we could find in published reports.

Johnson participated in the design of about 40 courses, most all in Wisconsin, and was best known as a park planner for many years in Madison.  He was dedicated to his craft, as his death came following a heart attack triggered when he had been taking down a tree and lugging away some logs near his home.

Christmas Mountain Village also has a nine-holer called The Pines.   Schernecker brought it back to life after it’d been closed for two years.  The Oaks, though, is the eye-catcher – especially the back nine.  The views there are stunning and the course can stand up to any in the area.

While all the putting surfaces are huge, The Oaks has two that are unique.  One is in the shape of the state of Wisconsin, the other in the shape of the state of Illinois.  Flags of both states are behind their respective greens.

Fairfield Hills, located in the foothills of Baraboo, has the largest practice range in the Dells and a course that has 12 holes.  It can be played at three, nine, 12 or 18 holes, however.

Pinecrest, in the Dells’ downtown area, is a par-3 with holes ranging from 90 to 150 yards.  This facility also includes an archery course.

The setting for Spring Brook, another nine-holer, is in tall pines with rolling terrain and wooded surroundings. It’s good for all skill levels and especially good for family games.

 

 

GALENA, IL. – The General at Eagle Ridge Resort & Spa isn’t your ordinary golf course – not by a long shot. So, it’s fitting that this Andy North-Roger Packard design isn’t getting the standard treatment for a course hitting its 25^th anniversary.

It’s getting a “Celebration Restoration’’ instead.  We’ll explain, but first know this:

Not only is The General one of the very best courses in Illinois, it’s also the most different.  No 18-holer in Illinois has the 280 feet of elevation changes that The General has.  It’s a course that isn’t suitable for walking, but its views are unmatched.

So is its history.

John Schlaman was the director of golf at Eagle Ridge when The General was under construction. Schlaman, who would later direct the operation at Prairie Landing in West Chicago, is back now as head professional of the resort’s South Course. He can attest that the building of The General was no easy task 25 years ago.

“Building that course was obviously difficult,’’ recalled Schlaman.  “What I remember most was the fire in the hole. For a lot of that course we had to dynamite stuff to create different routings. We also struggled with seeding on the 17^th hole.  It’d wash out and had to be re-seeded.’’

That happened several times, to the dismay of the two architects. North was a two-time U.S. Open champion, and Packard, who also worked on two of the resort’s other three courses was the son of Larry Packard – one of the great architects of his generation.  Both Roger and Larry have passed on.

Playing The General was always a memorable experience, but the course was never ideal.  Keeping the course in proper condition wasn’t easy, in large part because of its elevation changes. Previous owners were reluctant to deal with that.

The nines were flipped after Mark Klausner took over ownership of the resort in 2019 and brought in Mike Weiler as director of golf. That was a big change, and a most positive one.

More recently Weiler uncovered two “mystery tees.’’  They were there when North and Packard did their work but disappeared from the scorecard seven years ago. Weiler found what looked like overgrown tees at Nos. 6 and 8. To be sure he had superintendent Sam Marzahl conduct some soil tests that confirmed it.

Now, rather than honor the reputation The General has built over 25 years, the Eagle Ridge leadership is focusing more on a restoration project centering on those “mystery tees’’ but it’ll go much further than restoring a couple of tee boxes.

“We’re not so much celebrating as we are upgrading,’’ said Weiler.

Marzahl was hired as The General’s superintendent two years ago, and he’s tackled a cleanup project encompassing the “mystery tees’’ that will lengthen those two holes and add still more spectacular views for the players. Other tees have been added and the end result may add as many as 400 yards to the layout from the back tees.

Klausner, meanwhile, brought in Moline, IL.-based John Deere Co. for a much-needed replacement of maintenance equipment that was at least nine years old under the previous ownership.

“A three-year deal for $1 million a year,’’ said Klausner.  “They’ve been super people to work with, and they teach us how to use the new equipment.’’

Klausner had also ordered an expansion of The Highlands restaurant, the moving of the Village Store and the creation of a new, very upscale Stonedrift Spa.  It’s scheduled to open in mid-September. That’ll be a story in itself when it’s ready.

In the meantime the “Celebration Restoration’’ and spa opening will follow The Legends Dream Big Charity Golf Tournament, the highest profile event in resort history coming up on Aug. 10.  That celebrity-filled outing is one of the lead-ins to the following night’s Field of Dreams game between the Cubs and Cincinnati Reds in Dyersville, Ia., about an hour’s drive away.

Eagle Ridge has more golf than just The General.  In all there’s 63 holes – 18 on both the North and South courses and nine on the sporty East layout. Larry Packard designed the North, which opened in 1977 and hosted the Illinois State Amateur right away.  Gary Hallberg, who would become a multiple winner on the PGA Tour, was the champion.

That event set the tone for what was to come.

“Gary was 4-under on the North and the next year, when he won at Crestwicke (in Bloomington) he was 13-under,’’ said Weiler. That underscored the fact that Eagle Ridge had a course of championship caliber.

“The North had just a ton of elevation changes,’’ said Schlaman.  “You didn’t see (PGA) tour events on courses like that.’’

And you still don’t.

The South, which opened in 1984, was a combined effort by Larry and Roger Packard and Roger would later create the East, which is shorter but is certainly no executive course.

Weiler admits that all the resort’s courses had problems.

“The condition of the courses, we had issues,’’ he said.  “Now we’re getting compliments on every golf course.’’

He also found a new forward tee at No. 5 on The General that won’t impact the course’s yardage and – in one of the most visual changes – a bunker fronting the No. 6 green has been reconstructed with railroad ties put in place. A new back tee which would lengthen No. 10 is also under consideration.

While the “celebration renovation’’ has a catchy title, Weiler labels the in-house project more a “tee enlargement program’’ that was needed to bring back the looks that North and Roger Packard originally created.

“Roger and Andy created some visual objects than can confuse your eye,’’ said Weiler, who had never played an Eagle Ridge course until Klausner hired him.

“This has been so exciting,’’ said Weiler, noting the resort has 182 new golf members. “We want to move past that.  Eagle Ridge is back!’’

Golf travel writing is a lot of fun, but it isn’t easy.  I guess you could say “It’s a tough job but someone has to do it.’’ At least that’s how we felt after the first month of our later-than-usual start for our spring trip.

From May 26 to June 24 we played 342 holes spread over 18 courses in three states. During one stretch we played 13 days in a row. Our long-range planning didn’t call for this, but that’s how it turned out.

Bad weather never stopped play, but it did reduce one round from 18 to nine holes. We’ve done more extensive travel on our golf/writing journeys over the last 13 years but never anything as concentrated as this.

The goal was to ascertain how golf travel has changed with a little more time separating us from the heart of that horrible pandemic. Looking back now, the start – three rounds each in golf hotbeds Pinehurst and Myrtle Beach – seem like a warmup for what was to come.

Sixteen rounds, spanning 234 holes, were played in Michigan. We played rounds that started in 40-degree temperatures there, and also had some that were played in 90-degree heat. With both Joy and I in our seventies, this golfing odyssey took a physical toll.  We were dead (well not quite) tired when we finally drove past the Michigan border into Indiana – but no regrets!

It was clear that golf has benefitted from the pandemic.  That’s what all the course operators told us, corroborating media reports of the last 18 months. We saw more golfers on courses in June than we used to see in that month. Still, it wasn’t like any of those courses were turning away players because they had run out of tee times.

It was much more obvious that staffing issues were a problem in all phases of our golf travel.  Hotels and restaurants were negatively impacted more than the golf facilities themselves. But, it’s important to note that our stops were at places that’d be considered golfing hotspots any time of the near, and not just in June.

The trip climaxed at two of our old favorites, places where we had especially fond memories from past trips.

First of those was Grand Traverse Resort in Traverse City, Mich.  It’s the home of The Bear, a Jack Nicklaus design that is arguably the toughest course in Michigan. It wasn’t as tough as it had been in June of 1985, when I played it for the first time. That was a breakthrough event in the golf travel industry.

Grand Traverse Resort & Spa took the then unheard of step in staging an elaborate media day to get its newest course up and running.  The U.S. Open was held that year at Oakland Hills at a time when media turnout for tournaments was much higher than it is now.

The upscale resort, which has three courses, invited the media horde from Oakland Hills to come to Grand Traverse the day after the Open, won by Andy North but also notable for T.C. Chen’s “double chip’’ that severely hurt his improbable run at the title.  (He later was dubbed “Two-Chip Chen).

Members of the Golf Writers Association of America were invited to hold a meeting at the resort, spend a night to recuperate from the tournament work week and then play The Bear – a rare, at that time, opportunity that drew a big turnout.

With its elaborate mounding covered in deep fescue, The Bear was brutal at that time. Tom McGee, now the director of golf operations, said the cutting back of the fescue slowly started in the 1990s because players rightly complained that it was too tough.  It wasn’t as tough this time – but it was tough enough and those deep bunkers were still a constant challenge.  The Bear, while never used for a PGA Tour stop, is the annual site of the men’s Michigan Open. In short, all is still well at The Bear.

The final stop came at Crystal Mountain, a popular golf/ski resort that opened in 1956.  It  was to host the Michigan Women’s Open the week after our visit on its Mountain Ridge course. Michigan’s version, which has been held for 29 years, is considered the best of the women’s state opens with its $40,000 prize fund.  This year’s tournament had 74 players for the 54-hole competition.

We made our first of several arrivals at Crystal in 2015, at a time when Joy was playing with clubs that badly needed replacing. An assistant pro, Greg Babinec, played with us and he urged Joy to try a set of upscale rental clubs.  On the second hole of the Mountain Ridge layout , a par-3, she put her tee shot within inches of the cup.  I knew after the excitement of that near hole-in-one that a purchase of that set of irons was inevitable.

Babinec is now the head professional at Crystal Mountain, and we also remember that day because he shot a 64 — a score he said was his best at the time.  Babinec wasn’t on site when we were there this time. Too bad, but – though the clubs we purchased then are no longer in use – that was one of the many fun memories we’ve had in our golf travels.

This time we played Crystal’s other course, Betsie Valley. It underwent a four-hole renovation (holes 4, 5, 8 and 9) last year under the direction of architect A. John Harvey. Betsie Valley is 400 yards shorter than Mountain Ridge but still a worthy challenge and offers great views.

The resort also has a 10-acre practice and learning center for golfers as well as archery, tennis, pickleball courts, disc golf, 25 kilometers of mountain biking and hiking trails and a water playground for those looking for more than just good golf.

 

 

 

There are golf resorts – and then there’s A-Ga-Ming. It has four courses in Northern Michigan, but their 72 holes are spread out. Each has its own history, but over the last 22 years they’ve grown together.

Mike Brown and Larry Lavely were 27-year old Central Michigan University alums when this project started. They moved to the northern part of Michigan when they bought a course called A-Ga-Ming in 1996.

A-Ga-Ming had a catchy name. For American Indians it means “on the shore.’’ Roy Wetmore designed the original nine holes in the 1970s and Chick Harbert arrived to build the second nine in 1986.

Ten years later the Brown-Lavely team arrived, and over the years Jerry Matthews – the long respected, prolific Michigan golf course architect – made his impact, too.

Matthews designed Sundance, a second 18-holer at A-Ga-Ming, in 2005 and the original course there was renamed The Torch.  Matthews also designed the courses at Charlevoix Country Club and Antrim Dells.  They’re the other courses in spread out resort.

The 36-hole A-Ga-Ming is in Kewadin.  Antrim Dells is 12 miles away, in Ellsworth, and Charlevoix Country Club is 28 miles from A-Ga-Ming.  For vacationers, though, it’s a resort on the shore of Torch Lake and Lake Michigan that makes for a destination for golf trips as well as membership and daily-fee play. There is also the possibilities for a variety of other social attractions.

A-Ga-Ming has the bulk of the lodging with three on-site accommodation options – Maplewood Ridge, Cedar Hollow and Vista Townhomes.

The Brown-Lavely team purchased Antrim Dells in 2010 and Charlevoix Country Club in 2017.

“The three places are pretty easy to get to,’’ said Brown, “and to do a golf package you need three-four courses.  Everybody stays at A-Ga-Ming.  It’s worked out really well. ‘’

Charlevoix was a private club at one point but, after suffering damage in a fire, it was on the brink of closing when Brown and Lavely picked it up.  Now, in addition to a particularly well-conditioned golf course with four of the toughest finishing holes in Michigan, it has such amenities as a fitness center, swimming pool and pickleball courts.

Antrim Dells opened in 1971 and was the 36-hole qualifying site for the Michigan Amateur throughout the 1980s before the finalists moved on to the match play portion of the tourney at Belvidere. It’s still a tough course with its hill terrain but not the toughie that it had been.

David Hill is the managing partner of Antrim Dells now.  After working at the Boyne Resort and several other Michigan courses Hill calls Antrim Dells “my retirement gig, and I love it.’’

Working with Boyne veteran Bernie Friedrich, Hill had been involved in the opening of The Heather and the Donald Ross Memorial courses at The Highlands (formerly Boyne Highlands).

After taking on the operation at Antrim Dells in 2017 he had over 500 trees removed to make the course more user-friendly.  He also used bird houses and yardage signs (made from redwoods on the original course) and unique décor in the Sunset Bar & Grill to give special touches to the facility.

Antrim is a county in Ireland, and the clubhouse décor underscores that. A view of Grand Traverse Bay as well as six holes of the course is possible from the patio at the elevated clubhouse.

While Hill declares “We’re a family here and have four courses that can stand with anybody,’’ the heart of the resort operation is at Ag-A-Ming.

The Torch is a challenging shot-maker’s course with water coming into play on 11 holes.  Sundance was a delight for our round there. It’s challenging, too, but the wide fairways, windswept bunkers and heather-clad mounding make for a more fun experience.