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Golf North Carolina

King Charles I thought enough of this region to order that his name be placed on it. (Carolina being from the Latin for Charles.) General Lee dubbed it the Tar Heel state. We just know it for the great golf!

At the top of the list comes Pinehurst Resort & Country Club. Edging out New York’s Bethpage to gain #2 spot in the entire nation amongst public golf courses, this venerable landmark course was designed by Donald J. Ross and opened in 1907. With 18 holes "#2" features 7,020 par-72 yards. The course rating is 74.1 and it carries a slope rating is 131. But we know there’s more to a course than its ratings. At Pinehurst, there’s much more. Steeped for over a century, Ross described it as "the fairest test of championship golf" he’d ever designed, and so it remains to this day. As a country club, it offers the dining, clubhouse, school, accommodations and spas one would expect from such longstanding traditions. As of this writing, Pinehurst is the site of more championships than any other course in the country. Beauty and true, fair challenge combine in #2, (one of eight golf course offerings at Pinehurst) to form the standard of excellence with which all others are gauged.

Surrounding Pinehurst, you’ll find a number of other courses to visit as well. The golf course of Midland, National, Longleaf, Pinewild, all are within a short drive, in Pinehurst, NC.

Moving to the capital of Raleigh, we find River Ridge gaining high remarks and reviews. This 18-hole par-72 course offers 4 sets of tees and has a rating of 72.2 and slope rating of 138.

The Wade Hampton Golf Club distinguishes itself and continues to receive accolades, including being #37 in the nation, but is a private member owned club. Heralded as one of Tom Fazio’s masterpieces, its 7100 par-72yards has a 74.4 rating with a slope of 136, but will otherwise remain a mystery to most mortal visitors to North Carolina.

The loss isn’t felt for long. Pine Needles course at the Mid Pines Inn and Golf Resort in Southern Pines offers up 36 championship holes designed by Donald Ross which are available the public. Pine Needles had been picked as the site of the Womens’ Open and recipient of a 4.5 star rating from Golf Digest. Golfweek placed it in the Top 100, and Golf Digest gave it 4 stars as well. Both fun and challenging, these courses are a highlight of any North Carolina golf vacation and not to be missed.

With so many offerings (we haven’t even gotten to Tanglewood, Tiger’s Eye, or any of the other half-dozen or so that made the top-100 list but haven’t been named or cussed,) it becomes pretty clear that North Carolina has all the right stuff. A perfect blend of terrain, climate, tradition and friendliness, North Carolina makes for an outstanding choice as a golf vacation destination, and promises experiences that you’ll want to repeat over and over, memories to last a lifetime.