Index of the 2000 Golf Directory
The
Other
Round Ball
North Carolina is usually considered college
hoops country, but we also love playing with
another round ball. At least a hundred new golf
courses have opened here in a decade, an
explosion that's good for the economy and good
for us golfers because competition is forcing
developers to deliver better designs, facilities
and services to keep customers coming back.
What's So Tough About No. 2?
The U.S. Open Men's Championship is returning to
Pinehurst No. 2, a course whose simple beauty
belies its treachery. “You think, `I don't
see what's so tough about this thing,'' admits
Pinehurst director of golf Don Padgett.
“Then all of the sudden in the U.S. Open one
person (Payne Stewart) is under par. It's sort of
pretty. It just lays there and then boom.”
Going Down Tobacco Road
Tobacco Road in Sanford, carved from an old sand
and gravel pit by Mike Strantz, is the runaway
winner for Best New Course of the Year. Our
raters loved it but they warn it can be
challenging. “Playing Tobacco Road is like
priming tobacco. It's hard as hell,” said
one rater.
Red Hot at the Red Tees
Women are taking up the
game in droves but this vital new segment of the
golfing public doesn't feel welcome at clubs that
restrict Saturday morning tee times and maintain
“men's grills.” Plus, clubs often
unwittingly punish women through awkward red tee
placement and forcing long carries into
front-bunkered greens.
Queen of the Sandhills
Pine Needles, which will host its second U.S.
Women's Open Championship next year, is crowned
the state's Best Course for Women
Hidden Gems
North Carolina is blessed with many courses that
offer a challenging round of golf without all the
crowds and expensive greens fees.
North Carolina's Top 100
Courses
The usually stable pecking
order of the state's finest courses has new names
in eight of the 10 spots this year. Pinehurst No.
2 and the Old North State Club retain their usual
1, 2 rankings. Moving up: Grandfather to third
place, Pine Needles to fifth and Linville to
sixth. Moving out: Wade Hampton and Treyburn.
For complete information about North Carolina
golf or vacationing here, visit the N.C. Division of Tourism, Film
and Sports Marketing
|
