There is very little that is sadder in the world of hospitality than a legacy family resort being bought out by vulture capitalists who proceed to strip its bones for profit as it decays. Happily – very happily – this is not the fate of the iconic Cragun’s Resort on Gull Lake. The recent saleContinue reading “Cragun’s Resort builds for future with transformative upgrades”
Tag Archives: Golf Resort
Sand Valley’s Mammoth Dunes delivers mammoth fun
The term “resort course” is often used to describe certain golf courses. But I’m willing to wager that most casual golfers don’t know what the label denotes, aside from “a golf course at a resort.” There’s only part of it. Resort courses – good resort courses – share certain features: wide fairways, visible hazards, minimalContinue reading “Sand Valley’s Mammoth Dunes delivers mammoth fun”
Sedge Valley is Sand Valley’s shortest 18, but not its easiest
In this age of 460cc drivers and 300-yard drives, length is king. In the U.S., most recreational players immediately check the yardage of the back tees on the scorecard to determine a course’s difficulty or even its appeal. This is an amateur mistake, however. Distance and difficulty are certainly correlated, but correlation doesn’t imply causation.Continue reading “Sedge Valley is Sand Valley’s shortest 18, but not its easiest”
Sand Valley anchors the growing Sand Valley Golf Resort
Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw have made a handsome career for themselves designing golf courses following a “Minimalist” philosophy. Hand these two artists a topographically interesting and well-drained canvas, and they will deliver a masterpiece. Sand Hills Golf Club in Nebraska, Streamsong Red in Florida, and both Bandon Trails and The Sheep Ranch at BandonContinue reading “Sand Valley anchors the growing Sand Valley Golf Resort”
Wisconsin’s Sand Valley Golf Resort: “Best Golf Resort in the Midwest?”
Some say Sand Valley Golf Resort’s history dates to 2016, when its eponymous course, Sand Valley, opened for preview play. Others might say it began in 1999, when legendary golf developer Mike Keiser unveiled Bandon Dunes in Oregon, spurring a golf resort development boom in remote, topographically ideal locations with a “Field of Dreams” philosophy:Continue reading “Wisconsin’s Sand Valley Golf Resort: “Best Golf Resort in the Midwest?””
Temecula Creek Inn: Three Distinct Nines + Wine
I’ve been writing about golf courses and resorts for nearly 30 years. It was this March on my way to my room at the Temecula Creek Inn in Temecula, California, when I experienced a first: A team from the Coroner’s Office loading a cadaver into their van right in front of my room. I tookContinue reading “Temecula Creek Inn: Three Distinct Nines + Wine”
Sandals Emerald Bay Resort and Golf Course are out of this world
The water around Great Exuma Island in the Bahamas is one of the most recognizable landmarks to astronauts 249 miles overhead. The irradiant blue-green hues are unrivalled elsewhere on the plant, as tides rush in and out through shallow channels between Exuma’s 365 islands and cays. The ocean seems to glow, as if lit fromContinue reading “Sandals Emerald Bay Resort and Golf Course are out of this world”
Bay Harbor Golf Club: Top of the mitten, top of the MI must-play list
The 1990s were heady times for golf in Michigan. I lived in The Great Lakes State from 1996-2002 and recall a year or two when one new course was opening every week during the summer months. This was still before the terms “destination golf” or “bucket-list course” had been coined, but the volume and qualityContinue reading “Bay Harbor Golf Club: Top of the mitten, top of the MI must-play list”
Boyne Highlands Resort: A four-course feast of golf
Summer is admittedly short, but if, say, you own a ski resort, and your hotel and sprawling grounds feel abandoned during the long, sun-drenched yet temperate days from May through October in the northern reaches of the state’s southern peninsula, you might well consider expanding your warm-weather offerings. After all, ski season is also onlyContinue reading “Boyne Highlands Resort: A four-course feast of golf”
Kingsmill Resort: Where American History and Golf History Converge
The final two holes on The River Course at Kingsmill Resort, outside of Williamsburg, Virgina, feature several historical markers. One of these describes how the first English settlers in North America landed near the escarpment above the wide James River that is now the elevated tee box of the par-3 17th hole. Those settlers movedContinue reading “Kingsmill Resort: Where American History and Golf History Converge”
Midwestern Golf 