[JWinick]

Have you ever been to an area that has land ideally suited for golf, but not many great golf courses?   The land is screaming for good golf courses, but they haven't been built yet.   

Let's keep this to metropolitan statistical areas.

[JNC Lyon]

Between Pensacola and Panama City in the FLA Panhandle.  It has wild, dramatic, perfect dunesland.  It also fails to yield a great golf course.  Camp Creek, Windswept Dunes, and Sandestin are courses of interest, but they are nowhere near great.

[JWinick]

I would nominate East Tennessee.   The Knoxville-area has one great golf course (Holston Hills), but you would expect the area to be a golf destination given the quality of the land.  Land is relatively cheap, the economy is solid, and the region is becoming a second-home destination.   

Name me one high-quality daily-fee course....  It's not easy.

[JNC Lyon]

Don't they have the Honors Club, Chattanooga CC and Lookout Mountain right across the border as well?  No daily fee courses, but that's a pretty good selection, no?

[JWinick]

Those are all in Chattanooga.   Chattanooga may be considered East TN, but I was referring to greater Knoxville and the tri-City area.

Don't they have the Honors Club, Chattanooga CC and Lookout Mountain right across the border as well?  No daily fee courses, but that's a pretty good selection, no?

[Sean Leary]

Maine coast...

[JWinick]

Why is that so?  With all the golf course developments in Florida, it's remarkable that the region disappoints.

Between Pensacola and Panama City in the FLA Panhandle.  It has wild, dramatic, perfect dunesland.  It also fails to yield a great golf course.  Camp Creek, Windswept Dunes, and Sandestin are courses of interest, but they are nowhere near great.

[Bill_McBride]

Between Pensacola and Panama City in the FLA Panhandle.  It has wild, dramatic, perfect dunesland.  It also fails to yield a great golf course.  Camp Creek, Windswept Dunes, and Sandestin are courses of interest, but they are nowhere near great.

I live in Pensacola.  I haven't played Camp Creek but have played all the rest, plus Kiva Dunes in Alabama.  You are right, there are some "courses of interest" - good courses but nothing special.  I think it's because (1) small population base, (2) no perceived economic blowouts for developers, and (3) potential for destruction by hurricanes.  Only Jerry Pate has built strong courses (Pensacola New and Kiva Dunes), the Jones brothers' work at Sandestin is ho hum.  Couples/Bates at Kelly Plantation - ho hum.  Fazio at Camp Creek - need to get over there.  Norman at Shark's Tooth - ditto.

Interesting but not great is a pretty good wrap up.

[Mark Bourgeois]

There could have been a great one on St George Island...never made it past the guvment.

[Bart Bradley]

I would nominate East Tennessee.   The Knoxville-area has one great golf course (Holston Hills), but you would expect the area to be a golf destination given the quality of the land.  Land is relatively cheap, the economy is solid, and the region is becoming a second-home destination.   

Name me one high-quality daily-fee course....  It's not easy.

Well, Graysburg Hills is a pretty good bargain and the original 18 holes are solid...the newest nine, not so much. 

Bart (I agree that overall, daily fee golf suffers in this area -- I live in the Tri-Cities...but we have great private golf for such a small area).

[Lawrence Largent]

East Tennessee is Golf HE$$.  Morristown Country Club is a hidden gem but other than Holston Hills there is nothing of note to make a trip to the area to play.  Unfortantely the Ridges a golf development in Johnson City looks to have doomed any other new courses in the area in the future.  There is some great land and people have had some good ideas but no one has taken the time and put the money up it takes to make a truely great course.  Most of the courses built in the last 15 years have been short cutted so far on the funding level that nothing has turned out as well as it could have. 

[David Neveux]

I thought that when driving to Pete Dye G.C., the land was looking so phenomenal for a golf course, i.e. all kinds of dramatic elevations.  Although Pete Dye G.C. did not dissapoint in any way whatsoever, I just couldn't believe that there weren't more GREAT GOLF COURSES, at least that I know of.  I understand that population and money, and ...... have a lot to do with it, but the land was so tasty looking!!!!

[JWinick]

I would add Hawaii as a place that has great land for golf, but largely disappointing golf courses.  Tom Doak talked about the housing dominating the land except for an obligatory Par-3 over water.

[PCCraig]

Not in the U.S...but Cuba one day will be the future of new golf design.

In the United States? Maine Coast is a good choice.

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