[Phil_the_Author]

This is a question that was recently asked of me and I quickly realized that it is not that easy to answer. Obviously having Augusta National located where you live has a number of advantages, but since it isn't open to the locals, it wouldn't qualify as a community golf course.

So questions that need answering before a course & community can be mentioned are:

What makes a golf community?
How does one balance greatness of course vs. desirability of area to live in?
How does one go about locating golf communities to consider living in?

I could use some help to give an answer guys!    

[Don Herdrich]

one vote for a wintertime retreat: Mountain Lake in Lake Wales FL.......less than 130 members, great restored Raynor course.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Phil

Are you searching for specific golf communities- PGA West, for example, or areas- Pinehurst, for example?

Steve

[Phil_the_Author]

Steve,

That's why this question intrigues me so. There were no parameters put upon me, yet I know that he is seeking a combination of place to live/place to play/place to raise family.

A vacation area that has a good course will many times fail on #3, yet wouldn't the Hamptons and SH/NGLA/Maidstone etc.. be considered a great golf community? Or because this is not inhabited year round by a number of the members does it remove it from consideration?

 

[Kyle Harris]

Flourtown, PA...



http://maps.google.com/maps?q=%2B%22Flourtown,+PA%22&spn=0.141846,0.264825&hl=en

[Phil_the_Author]

Kyle,

I'm still looking for Flourtown on that map!  

Now you must answer what you left out - the WHY, WHAT & name of GOLF COURSE that defines this answer.

[Kyle Harris]

Ahh, I took a different spin on it. Flourtown is in the center of Philadelphia golf. (A certain AW Tillinghast designed a pretty good golf course there that the club now calls the "Flourtown Course"  )

Around Flourtown is the aforementioned Philly Cricket, Huntingdon Valley, Lulu, Manufacturer's Gulph Mills, Merion, etc.

There is also a growing number of really good to excellent public courses all in the region.

So, the why: Living in the Philadelphia area may offer the most options for every type of golfer there can be. From muni hack to private club champion.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Phil,
No one can answer the question you pose, except for themselves.
It's all about priorities. What's #1 on the list, #2, #3, etc..
Once your friend identifies them he has a basis from which to start, otherwise the search is overwhelming as so many communities/cities/towns/villages have overlapping amenities.    

[Jerry Kluger]

I've always wondered if I lived in a golf community and it had only one course would I be bored?  I don't know the answer to the question but the Scottsdale area offers a number of options and I would have a difficult time making a choice.  Of course, there are some spectacular communities with a limited number of residents/members with only one course such as Silverleaf, a really good course in an established community with an active membership such as Troon Country Club, and then there is the huge community with six Jack Nicklaus courses at Desert Mountain.  I suppose that each has its own advantages and from what I have seen I would not complain if I was a member at any of them.  

[Michael Wharton-Palmer]

If playing the game is important to you then having access to the courses has to be the highest priority.
The Philly area has to be one of the finest "communities" there is but access to the finer sites will clearly be limited.

Age is also a concern I guess, one of the finest "retirement" deals is at Hot Springs Village in arkansas that has direct access to I think 10 golf courses 6 of which are really very good.
Palm Springs as a community also springs to mind, and I believe there are a few good courses close to Carmel by the sea

Futhrer afield, the town of Ayr in bonnie scotland and Southport in Lancashire get my votes for the finest two golfing communities anywhere.

[JESII]

Flourtown, PA...



http://maps.google.com/maps?q=%2B%22Flourtown,+PA%22&spn=0.141846,0.264825&hl=en

That's actually hillarious, if you zoom in twice on that link my house is about 1 inch below the center of the map.

IGNORANT BLISS![/color]

[Kyle Harris]

And I am stuck way the hell up in Warminster, Bucks County, the Black hole of golf between Philly and NY.

About 3 miles as the crow flies from Huntingdon Valley though  

[JESII]

Every cloud has a silver lining they say.

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Phil

As a resident of the Flourtown area in eastern Montgomery County, I can say that the proliferation of private clubs is well documented. Joe Logan of The Philadelphia Inquirer did a recent article on this topic and his article was not all inclusive of the entire area. Kyle makes note of Merion & GMGC. They are in another world- the Main Line across the river. As noted, public access courses in the immediate area are weak. So is the winter weather.

The answer really depends on factors such as schools, if needed;weather;cost;taxes;employment or retirement; gated or non-gated; access;etc.

By the way, I agree with Jerry Kluger on the desireability of Scottsdale, except for the summer weather.

Steve

[BCrosby]

Cuscowilla

- great, great course
- 6-8 good courses nearby that you can play
- quiet, beautiful piney woods with lake for recreation
- Madison, GA about 20 minutes away, ATL about 1 hour away, Augusta about 1 hour away and Athens about 40 minutes away (home of the best college golf team in the world, btw. Details provided on request.)
- good year-round weather (though July/August can be a test)
- Bill McBride will visit on short notice

What's not to like?

- limited snow boarding opportunities
- Mike Young will visit unannounced

Bob

[Peter_Collins]

I'm not sure if this is what you are after but let me put a vote in for Wichita, Kansas.  Before you fall off your chair laughing let me explain.  Certainly Wichita cannot match Philly or NYC metro in terms of shear number of great courses, but we can count Praire Dunes (top 25) and Flint Hills National (top 50 in latest GD rankings) in our metro area.  Add Karsten Creek, which is less than two hours south of us, we have three top quality golf courses within an easy drive.  In addition, we have several good, albeit not great, very affordable private courses and handful of respectable public courses.   Thus, in addition to PD, Flint Hills and Karsten there is no shortage of affordable golf courses.  Finally, we have an outstanding public junior program to introduce the great game of golf to kids of all socioeconomic classes.   Adds up to a pretty darn good golf community in my book.

[Kirk Gill]

Living in the Philadelphia area may offer the most options for every type of golfer there can be. From muni hack to private club champion.

What about the private club hack?

[Kyle Harris]

Bucks County Country Club

[Phil_the_Author]

Peter,

That is exactly the type of info I'm looking for, with maybe a bit more specificity to it. For example, A community is a group of people in a geographic location, not the location, therefor why would someone prefer this "community" to live in and for golf and family.

[Phil_the_Author]

One other thought, what if I broke this question into categories here's five:

1- Exclusive
2- Real America
3- Vacation
4- Retirement
5- Obscure (e.g. - Coronado C.C. in El Paso, Texas)
 

[A_Clay_Man]

I realize this may seem a bit unspirited, but, No one should answer this question, at least truthfully.

Let's just say you know of this obscure section of our world, where golf is paramount and everything is perfect.

Answer this post, and you could kill it faster than a black legless lizard. Ruin it - for all time - with an influx of weeny dweebs, the pampered lot, and the first thing they'll want to do is change it all.

[Phil_the_Author]

Adam,

You are correct - it IS a bit unspirited!   But it is also true. Yet consider, wouldn't the best golf communities, because they are GOLF communities, keep themselves relatively safe from the dangers you cited?

[Jim_Kennedy]

Phil,
You need to be more specific. Is the only concern golf or are there others?
How about:
Size (city, town, village)
Area (inland, coastal, mountain, plains, desert, forest)
Price of homes
Taxes
Job market
Educational facilities
Health/Hospitals
Cultural outlets
Transportation (air, train, bus, cab)
Other recreational facilities
Distinctive seasons  
Crime rate
Distance from other family members

This list is incomplete but I think you catch my drift.

I'll throw out one, Asheville, NC
 

[ForkaB]

When I lived there in the late 80's, Ponte Vedra Beach was not bad.  Excellent, voluminous and affordable golf, great beaches, reasonable year-round climate, good night life.  Not sure what it's like the now.

[Gene Greco]

Desert Mountain in Scottsdale would fall in the exclusive category. It is massive with something for everyone with respect to both golf (six courses) and food/club services.

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