Destination golf courses may cost more than your monthly car payment (most of the time) but they treat you to a once-in-a-lifetime experience: to play where the pros play. To go to golf courses previously seen only on television.
There are literally hundreds of noteworthy options all throughout the planet. To limit the list to just five is to exclude many exceptional courses. The spots featured on this list have several common factors that earned them a spot.
The first is that they are accessible. Not financially, but practically. Augusta National is arguably the most worthwhile course to visit on the planet. Good luck getting in. These courses are all public, or at least have the option for non-members to book tee times.
They are also all in vacation-worthy spots. If you are going to get on a plane this summer, it might as well be pointed in a direction you actually want to go, right?
Finally, all of the courses featured on this list are located in the United States. That’s mostly a matter of narrowing the field down.
With those disclaimers out of the way, read on to learn more about five of the most vacation destination-worthy golf courses in the country.
Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach is arguably the public course answer to Augusta National. Aesthetically, the courses have little in common. Augusta is located inland, in the heart of Georgia, whereas Pebble is off the Pacific Ocean in California.
Where these courses converge is in the history books. Pebble Beach is about as famous and noteworthy as a golf course can get, having hosted many regular season tournaments, as well as a long list of majors.
It is perhaps best noted for its U.S Opens. This is where Tiger won by a historic fifteen shots in the 2000. It’s where Jack Niklaus hit a one iron to a foot at the notoriously hard par three 17th on his way to winning the 1972 Open.
The golf club’s current slogan is “Golf as good as it gets.” That seems right. This historic course may drive your score to three digits—notoriously challenging as it is—and it won’t do any favors to your bank balance either—currently listed at just under $600 per round—but it will treat you to a golf experience you can’t get anywhere else.
If you have any money left—or have maybe already thought to contact your bank about the exciting possibilities of a second mortgage—there is another champion-level course located only a stone’s throw away. Pebble is within spitting distance of Spy Glass.
This, coupled with the various spas and restaurants located on or around the property make it a great place to enjoy a vacation.
Bethpage
Bethpage is an everyman’s alternative to Pebble Beach. The famous Black course is less than $100 dollars per round. There is a Dante-esque sign in front of the course, akin to “abandon all hope ye who enter.”
“Warning. The Black course is an extremely difficult course which we only recommend for highly skilled players.”
Does that sound like you? Don’t worry. You don’t have to submit an official handicap before you book your tee time. You will need to make your tee time WELL in advance. All championship courses are booked almost constantly to capacity but Bethpage has the added difficulty of financial accessibility. Spending $600 for a round of golf is a lot even for a splurge. It’s much easier to justify $100 to have the chance to play a U.S. Open golf course.
As of writing, it has hosted our national championship twice. Once in 2002, when Tiger took home the prize, and again in 2009 when Lucas Glover claimed his first and only major championship.
Bethpage Black definitely has teeth, so bring a few extra sleeves of balls.
TPC Sawgrass
Sawgrass is—you’ll pardon the obligatory reference—a course that is “Better than most.” It’s here that the unofficial 5th major is hosted. The Players Championship, where inside the clubhouse, all of the lockers are dedicated to former winners.
The “TPC” designation stands for “Top Players Choice.” There are around 30 courses in this network but most are country clubs. Only thirteen—including Sawgrass—are open to the public. Designed by Pete Dye, the property has two famous courses. Dye’s Valley—which is probably nice, but who will ever find out? And the Stadium Course—which is what will have brought you to Ponte Vedra Florida in the first place.
The Stadium Course is most famous for its 17th hole. The island green has hosted some of golf’s most dramatic moments. For pros, this hole is almost a paradox. What should be a simple wedge onto a moderate-sized putting surface so frequently turns into round-killing double bogeys.
For us mere mortals, the risks are even more severe. It’s a great place to lose a sleeve or two of balls—probably with a smile on your face.
Sawgrass green’s fees fluctuate depending on the year. During the busy season—summer months—you can expect to pay in the $600 range. It’s a little cheaper in the offseason, at around $500.
Pinehurst No. 2
Unless you happen to be on the PGA Tour—Rory, is that you?—you won’t have any luck getting on Pinehurst No.2 until at least around July. That’s because the course is pretty busy this June, preparing for and hosting the annual U.S Open Championship—underway by only a matter of hours at the time of writing.
Pinehurst No.2 is technically a private course, but it is accessible to anyone staying within the resort complex where the course is situated. Don’t get confused. There are many golf courses on the property, but 2 is the one you want. Considered a U.S. Open “anchor site,” this course has hosted many championships in the past and is currently scheduled to hold the event every five years for the foreseeable future.
It's a great course. It’s a historic course. It is an expensive course. To stay at the resort and play at the championship courses on the property costs an average of $1000 a day during peak season. Still, it would be hard to beat this North Carolina course in terms of history or significance.
Torrey Pines
Well, did you expect anything different? That’s another U.S. Open commentary pun for those not quite following along at home. Torrey Pines is a public course located in San Diego. The South course is playable to the public for the relatively affordable price of around $200 during the off-season. If you happen to be a county resident, you can get in for less than half that.
The South course at Torrey Pines has hosted a lot of great golf moments over the years, perhaps none better than the 2008 U.S. Open, which Tiger famously won on a broken leg. Woods entered the 18th needing a birdy to tie journeyman player Rocco Mediate, whose career had been steady, but not even the smallest fraction of Tiger Woods’s legendary history.
Woods got off to a rough start, chopping his ball in and out of the rough on his way to finding the green in three. His clutch fifteen-foot birdy inspired a roar from the old cat, and the famous Dan Hicks call, “Expect anything different?”
And of course, we in the audience, did not. Woods went on to win in a surprisingly close eighteen-hole playoff against Mediate.
This course, aside from being historic, is also beautiful. It offers players a few of the Pacific, and, while it may well be more expensive than you are used to, can probably be paid for without the need to liquidate any major personal assets.
Conclusion
We could go on. And on. And on. All of the courses on this list had some sort of historical significance. If you are going to shell out big bucks for a destination golf outing, it should be for a place that delights and excites you, right?
But there are also TONS of great courses sprinkled throughout the country that have not hosted major championships. For that matter, they may not have hosted PGA events at all.
One good way to find courses that are worth your time and money? Consider researching interesting designers. Arnold Palmer, Jack Niklaus, and now, even Tiger, have designed courses all over the world. Pete Dye and many other course designers are also famous for their excellent and challenging courses.
And of course, most nice resort towns will have no shortage of good courses to choose from. Find a spot you are interested in, and go from there. After all, there’s no such thing as a bad day at the golf course.
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