GolfBlogger’s 2022 Father’s Day Golf Gift Guide: Golf Travel
There comes a point in life when Dads don’t value things as much they value experiences. Here are a few that The GolfBlogger has enjoyed:
- A Dream Trip to Pinehurst Resort
- A Trip To Boyne Golf In Northern Michigan
- A Pure Golf Experience At Bandon Dunes
- Play Three Top 100 Courses At Forest Dunes
- Take An Exotic Golf Trip To Morocco
- Choose From Seventeen Courses At The Gaylord Golf Mecca
- Find Great Midwestern Golf At Eagle Ridge in Galena
- Play 108 Holes of Golf At Gull Lake View
- Golf, Gambling and Entertainment Await At Turning Stone
- Take Two At Tullymore Golf Resort
- Get Away From Everything At Island Resort
A Dream Trip to Pinehurst Resort
In 2021, I had the opportunity to take a dream trip to Pinehurst Resort. It was an absolutely incredible golf travel experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.
These days, if you want to play the top-tier tracks at famed Pinehurst Resort, No. 2, No. 4 and No. 8, you’re going to need to stay at Pinehurst Resort. Due to demand from area golfers, resort guests and members, the resort eliminated outside play on its marque courses for the foreseeable future. One of the best ways to experience The Cradle of American Golf is to book a Sunday through Tuesday stay via the Donald Ross Package, which includes lodging in the Carolina Hotel, Holly Inn or Manor, three rounds of golf (choose from nine courses plus the nine-hole, par-3 Cradle), Southern breakfast each morning and a three-course dinner, nightly. Rates start at $1,509 singly occupancy and drop slightly May 26 through Sept. 5 for the summer. There’s a $195 premium to play vaunted No. 2, U.S Open Anchor Site, but it’s hard to put a price on this unforgettable experience.
For more information: www.pinehurst.com
A Trip To Boyne Golf In Northern Michigan
Northern Michigan is America’s Summer Golf Capital, with average summer temperatures in the upper 70s and more than 15 hours of daylight.
No less than Gary Player once said that “Michigan is the home of golf in America.”
Boyne Golf offers three resorts and ten courses, which between them have more holes of golf than any resort in the United States.
I’ve played all of Boyne’s courses, and loved every one. Boyne’s Bay Harbor is ranked #63 on Golf Digest’s list of best public courses. The Heather is a 1966 course designed by the legendary Robert Trent Jones.
My favorite Boyne Course is always the last one I played. Read The Golfblogger’s Reviews on Boyne’s Bay Harbor, Arthur Hills, Crooked Tree, Heather, Alpine, Moor, Monument and Donald Ross Memorial
Boyne offers some great golf travel deals with custom packages that can include not only unlimited golf and lodging, but meals and non-golf entertainment. There is nothing quite like golf in Northern Michigan.
A Pure Golf Experience At Bandon Dunes
Bandon Dunes golf resort, in Bandon, Oregon, boasts four top ranked courses, along with a thirteen-hole par 3 and a 100,000 square foot putting course called The Punch Bowl. Currently, the resort’s Pacific Dunes is ranked #2 by Golf Digest among public courses, Bandon Dunes is #7, Old MacDonald is #12 and Bandon Trails is #13. The new Sheep Ranch is #15.
Bandon offers a variety of lodging options from single bed to cottages for larger groups. Located as it is on the Oregon Coast, Bandon Dunes golf resort is open for play year round. January temperatures average in the low fifties. July temperatures are in the mid sixties. You can read accounts of my Bandon Dunes adventures, Bandon Dunes course reviews and photos at the link.
Play Three Top 100 Courses At Forest Dunes
Forest Dunes Golf Resort is a Northern Michigan golf treasure that offers a three top 100 courses in one compact spot.
The original Forest Dunes course is a Tom Weiskopf masterpiece ranked #33 in Golf Digest’s list. Tom Doak’s “The Loop” is an unique and intriguing reversible course that is ranked #59 in its clockwise routing and #78 in its counterclockwise routing.
You’ll need to stay at least two days at Forest Dunes because The Loop reverses on alternate days. Play The Black one day, and The Red on another. Schedule the must-play Forest Dunes on a third day. In 2020, Forest Dunes adds a ten-hole short course. Forest Dunes has a lodge, villas and cottages for overnight stays.
Take An Exotic Golf Trip To Morocco
A couple of years ago, I was blessed to be able to take a trip to Morocco to play golf — and, of course, take in the sights. If you’re looking for the golf travel trip of a lifetime, I can highly recommend Morocco. The golf is spectacular, the culture is exotic, the people are friendly, and the dollar goes a long, long way.
Morocco is only an eight hour flight from New York. On my trip there, I played Royal Dar Es Salam (a Robert Trent Jones design) in Rabat, at the Mazagan Golf Resort, and at the Royal Palm golf resort in Marrakech. And, of course, I soaked in the local culture and food. I want to spend so much more time exploring that amazing country. Read about my Adventures in Morocco.
Choose From Seventeen Courses At The Gaylord Golf Mecca
The Gaylord Golf Mecca is a consortium of golf courses and lodging all within a short drive from Gaylord, in Northern Michigan. The courses include Black Lake, which I think is in the conversation for best course in Michigan, Gaylord Golf Club, Indian River Golf Club, The Loon Golf Resort, Michaywe Pines, Otsego Resort, The Natural At Beaver Creek, and the courses at Treetops: Premier, Signature, Masterpiece, Tradition and Threetops. Reviews at the links. The consortium has a group of area golf travel experts who can help you put together a great golf vacation.
Find Great Midwestern Golf At Eagle Ridge in Galena
Eagle Ridge, in Galena, Illinois boasts three-and-a-half courses: The General, The North, The South and the nine hole East.
For the non-golfer, the resort also has a spa, pools, horseback riding, bicycling, boating and fishing. Nearby downtown Galena is also a really neat place.
For lodging, Eagle Ridge has hotel rooms, villas and houses. Eagle Ridge is a neat midwestern resort.
Play 108 Holes of Golf At Gull Lake View
Gull Lake View Resort, near Battle Creek, Michigan offers six fun courses, including the award-winning Stoatin Brae, which is the 2021 National Course of the Year and No. 96 on Golf’s Top 100 You Can Play list. [resort website]
During the Michigan golf season, I make a point of making at least one golf travel trip to play a Gull Lake View course. I enjoy them that much.
Because I live relatively close to Gull Lake View, I haven’t tried any of their stay-and-play options. I am confident, however, that Gull Lake View has lodging options that will fit your needs.
- Stoatin Brae Review
- Gull Lake View West Review
- Gull Lake View East Review
- Stonehedge North Review
- Stonehedge South Review
- Bedford Valley Review
Golf, Gambling and Entertainment Await At Turning Stone
Turning Stone is a vast casino and entertainment complex in Western New York that features five outstanding courses: Atunyote, Kaluhyat, Shenendoah, Pleasant Knolls and the par three Sandstone Hollow. [resort website]
Atunyote is a Tom Fazio design that once hosted PGA TOUR events. Kalhuyat, a Robert Trent Jones, Jr. design, is as challenging as you might expect.
Because Turning Stone is a casino resort, lodging ranges from adequate to extravagant. You can get in a lot of activity at Turning Stone. It is another one of those resorts where even a non-golfer can have a good time.
Take Two At Tullymore Golf Resort
Tullymore Golf Resort in Canadian Lakes, Michigan features two fun golf courses. [resort website]
Tullymore is a fabulous Jim Engh design: imaginative and spacious. St. Ives, from well-known Michigan golf course designer Jerry Matthews, is a more traditional mitten state layout, with tree-lined fairways and significant elevation changes.
The resort has a hotel, condos, and cottages that sleep up to ten. The fabulous Lodge at Tullymore has ten bedrooms, each with two queen beds and a private bathroom.
Get Away From Everything At Island Resort
If you really want to get away from it all, Island Resort Casino in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is the place for you. [resort website]
The resort has two absolutely outstanding courses in Sweetgrass and Sage Run. Sweetgrass is a prairie-links style course that has perhaps the best conditioning I have ever seen. Sage Run is routed through woods and across a large drumlin — a hill created by glacial ice.
Nearby, you’ll also find the highly acclaimed Greywalls.
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