Golf vacations

Watch Padraig par a 1,400-foot drop

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Great deals we've found...more to come...

Arizona & Scottsdale golf deals

Scottsdale - 3 nights + 2 golf rounds to April 15 from $475+

The Boulders FORE FOR FOUR - The Boulders' courses, five of Scottsdale's best PGA championship courses, including We-Ko-Pa, Grayhawk, and the TPC, 20% off the Golden Door Spa, carts, and more;  call 866-397-6520

Carolina golf vacation deals (and Georgia, too)

Sea Island - FREE, UNLIMITED golf with its "Lodge Summer Golf Packages" starting at $545 per night. Rooms aren't cheap, but free golf on its famed courses is fantastic.

Myrtle Beach golf deals

Ireland golf deals

Play Waterville Links, Tralee Golf Club and Ballybunion Old for €290 April - July (about 1/2 price)

How to pick the best golf travel company

This golf vacation may be a life-long dream, and you've worked hard.  Make sure - especially in this economy - your dollars are used for the best golf vacation experience possible.

Any trip requires detail, and an international trip compounds it - availability of courses, the right hotels, drive yourself or be driven, the right size car for luggage, golfers, and clubs - especially European cars. 

And make sure you know how long it will take to use local roads.  You don't want to miss a tee time.

For overseas trips, we recommend a specialist, but do your research.  Domestically, golf vacation packagers can open opportunities you might not access and provide extra value.

Here are our tips:

1) Use a company that specializes exclusively in golf vacation travel

2) Make sure it has at least 5 years of experience in golf vacation travel where you will be going

Augusta National to…Australia?

Alister Mackenzie’s Adventure Down Under helped produce 5 of the World’s Top 100 courses.  Did you know you can play them all - and more?

Augusta National, Cypress Point, and Royal Melbourne have two things in common - they were designed by Dr. MacKenzie and are cathedrals of golf.  Ten of his courses are in the World's Top 100.

You will hear a lot of Dr. Mackenzie’s name on CBS during The Masters at Augusta National soon, but how much do you know about Mackenzie’s other work? Especially in golf-mad Australia?

Pebble Beach golf vs. Sea Island golf

by Dave Shultz for Traveler.com

Where do you fall on ‘east coast vs. west coast’?  Are you Wall Street, or Sunset Boulevard?  Grapefruit League or Cactus League?  Larry or Magic?  Diddy or Tupac?  ACC or Pac10?  Ebbets Field or Chavez Ravine?

Sea Island, or Pebble Beach?

When it comes to top tier golf resorts, a precious few can combine the luxury, accommodations, natural beauty, history, and course quality found on these prime Georgia coast and Monterey Peninsula locales. But which is the one golf resort to have if you’re not having more than one?

Let’s see how they stack up against the Tale of the Tape:

The economy has been rocked, but with trials come opportunities.  The most popular courses struggle to fill their tee sheets, so there is no better time to walk up and play the Old Course.

Likewise, who needs to pay for pricey lodging at Pebble Beach for an advance tee time when next-day times are likely to be had?

We are pleased to present the best and worst from our 2008 travels and hope it is helpful in making 2009 a great year of golf travel.

THE AWARDS

Golf Experience of the Year

“Exhilarating,” sums our journey to New Zealand, highlighted by the incomparable Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers resorts, featuring Tom Doak’s layout set on towering Lord of the Rings-like cliffs.

We also proved that you can visit all of New Zealand’s “must plays” while away from the office for only a week.

Best Proof that Resorts take Golf Odyssey Seriously

In 2007, we chided Pebble Beach Resort for nickel and diming guests, including Internet charges. Now Pebble Beach tells us Internet access at the resort is complimentary.  So if only it would do something about those $10 course guides...

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Photo courtesy of Kauri Cliffs