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By
Rick Young
Let's
put your next golf vacation in a different
context.
Lump
those five or seven days together and
refer to them collectively as a product.
What is it you seek in any product? You
look for value, for quality, for absolute
assurance that where you go will meet,
if not exceed, your expectations. You
may demand ‘value-added' with your
purchase, an uncompromising service standard,
a guarantee that you will be satisfied.
You
may also be a consumer who doesn't seek
the obvious. What you yearn for is the
unique, somewhere with an enviable track
record and reputation, a destination not
cut from ‘mainstream' cloth.
In
South Carolina that's a product profile
best describing Charleston, a preserved
traditional city known throughout the
world for history, for Southern charm,
cobblestone streets and, reputation-wise,
as one of America's most beautiful urban
centres.
Specific
to those who yearn to play golf Forbes
Traveler Magazine ranked Charleston as
the 4th best city for golf in the United
States. Golf Digest readers earlier this
year named the Charleston/Kiawah Island
area America's number one golf destination
in its annual Readers Choice Awards.
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Considering
that Charleston is located right between
two fairly renowned South Carolina
golf institutions – Myrtle Beach
and Hilton Head – that's high
praise for an area not typically recognized
for its golf product.
"We
don't have the sheer volume of courses
that Myrtle Beach or Hilton Head has
but what we do have golfers really
enjoy," says Perrin Lawson of
Charleston
Golf Inc. "We
typically find in our research more
couples come here. The big advantage
is the guys go play golf and the wives,
if they don't play, can go shopping,
sightsee or spend some time on the
beach. No one is left out. When you
stop and factor in our history, shopping,
amazing night life and our great dining
establishments Charleston ranks right
up there with America's best travel
destinations."
You
can find as many as 20 playing options
including the outstanding golf product
on nearby Kiawah Island. They're high
profile courses like Pete Dye's Ocean
Course, host of the 1999 Ryder Cup
Matches and the upcoming PGA Championship
in 2012; Jack Nicklaus' Oak Point;
Gary Player's Cougar Point and Tom
Fazio's Osprey Point provide golfers
with not only breathtaking vistas
and uncompromising challenge but also
one of the best collection of designers
anywhere in America.
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Charleston
National
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Rivertowne
Country Club
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Closer
to Charleston proper the course product
maintains an equally high level of quality.
Wild
Dunes Resort is a ‘can't
miss' stop on any Charleston area sojourn.
Highlighted by Tom Fazio's Harbour and Links
courses, the latter being a staple in Golf
Digest's annual Top 100, Wild Dunes outstanding
golf is complimented by its equally fine
resort amenities.
Charleston
National could be one of the
best values anywhere in the Gamecock state.
Fashioned by Rees Jones this award winning
venue traverses its way through low country
marshland and around 100 year old oak trees
and palmetto palms. For around $50 Charleston
National is a veritable bargain for golfers
looking for great value.
Another
course marrying value with outstanding quality
is Rivertowne
Country Club, in nearby Mt. Pleasant.
A former South Carolina ‘Course of
the Year' Rivertowne course architect Arnold
Palmer has taken a fine land parcel and
turned it into a superb routing. All 18
of the King's well considered golf holes
are capable of challenging the very best
players while providing casual golfers with
a tremendous golfing experience.
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If
you plan on playing Rivertowne you
may want to combine it with a round
at Dunes
West, an Arthur Hills gem,
just minutes away. An area favourite
amongst golfers who appreciate its
subtle challenges and captivating
scenery Dunes West has been resoundingly
decorated by Golf Digest, Golf Magazine
and Golfweek Magazine for its captivating
playability and overall enjoyment.
Over in Summerville Legend
Oaks Golf Club is a modern
Scott Pool design fashioned from a
Low Country antebellum plantation.
What distinguishes Legend Oaks is
how it's steeped in traditional golf
values. Picturesque in every detail
this Charleston area staple is simply
classic golf from the era of yesteryear.
By
day Charleston is a veritable golfing
haven. By night the South Carolina
coastal destination comes alive for
those who appreciate fine cuisine.
You love food? It's hard not to love
Charleston. The tantalizing menu at
upscale Charleston
Grill, the French cuisine
at 39
Rue de Jean, seafood specialists,
the Boathouse on East Bay, Japanese
steak and seafood restaurant, Tsunami
and so many other dining possibilities
add to the pleasure of any time spent
in Charleston.
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Dunes
West
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Legend
Oaks Golf Club
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Of
course you don't have to necessarily play
golf every day to enjoy Charleston's charms.
You can visit an historical fort, tour a
Southern plantation, enjoy time at some
of the area's outstanding beaches, specialty
shop or partake in some great inland and
deep sea fishing.
If
you're looking for a golf destination with
everything you want and then some you'll
find it in Charleston, a travel ‘product'
you'll rate highly in every category possible.
11/09
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