Ask Ohio golf coach Bob Cooley what the finest golf course he's played at is, and the answer is fairly simple.
Pinehurst is probably the best golf out there.
Pinehurst represents one of the premier golf destinations in the United States. Located in North Carolina, it contains more than 40 courses, and Pinehurst No. 2 will be the site of the 2005 U.S. Open.
However, Cooley said there were a plethora of comparable options for even the average golfer. These destinations include the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Alabama, Longaberger in Nashport, Ohio, and many spots in Ireland and Scotland, including St. Andrews, a frequent stop in the British Open rotation.
Kimberly Taylor, a sales representative at Hocking Hills Travel in Nelsonville, said that while golf does not represent a sizable share of its business, the company offers trips everywhere. Of the golf trips Hocking Hills does book, Mexico and the Caribbean are the most traveled locations.
Taylor estimated that Hocking Hills makes reservations for only about half a dozen golf trips to Scotland each year. They range anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000 per person, depending on course, time of year and other factors.
The Greenbrier in the southern tip of West Virginia offers three courses at its award-winning resort and is a premium option roughly four hours from Athens. The resort boasts almost 30 individual awards from various magazines and organizations, including being named the fifth best golf resort by Condé Nast Traveler magazine. In 1999, Andrew Harper's Hideaway Report called The Greenbrier the resort of the century.
The Greenbrier has a lot to offer besides golf, public relations manager Lynn Swann said, with more than 50 recreational options, ranging from volleyball and tennis to skeet and trap shooting. But the resort is aware of its main calling card.
Our golf reputation is certainly well-known
Swann said.
With this elite standing comes a steep price. Eighteen holes cost $180 for registered guests and $350 for non-guests. Fees to stay at the resort vary.
Ohio golfer Mark Cimarolli, who visited The Greenbrier about four years ago, summed it up simply.
[It has] really nice courses in great shape he said.
Cimarolli named Firestone - a private club in Akron and the site of Jack Nicklaus' memorable PGA Championship comeback in 1975 - as one of the most challenging courses he has ever played. In terms of difficulty for the average golfer, he said some players might be able to have some success at a prestigious course but would not get as much out of the experience as a more seasoned player.
(Some) might not be good enough to appreciate how nice the course is Cimarolli said. (Places like The Greenbrier and Firestone) are the courses that test you.
For Cooley, the difficulty of any course is relative.
It just depends on what tees you go from
he said.
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Kyle Kondik
