Spring brings thoughts of Georgia — and golf
Plush courses, posh luxury resorts make it a must-stay in the South
REYNOLDS PLANTATION, GA . Watching the Masters always gives me a lift — especially this year when Old Man Winter has been as relentless as a telemarketer.
It’s a sign that spring is beginning to bloom and golf courses all over southern Ontario are about to open. It also reminds me that the good golf in Georgia isn’t confined to just Augusta National.
A while back, I had the chance to cover the Andersen Consulting World Golf Championships at the Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Ga. I was following the Phil Mickelson, Mark O’Meara match and had to grab O’Meara after the round for an interview.
Catching O’Meara was the easy bit, getting my antiquated tape recorder to work wasn’t. As soon as I clicked the record button, the flimsy brown tape unspooled, shooting through the gap in the lid, like a cobra released from a basket. I blushed but O’Meara was gracious enough to pretend not to notice. In-
Besides golf, you can fish, boat, hike, play tennis or hang out at the bar at the Ritz Carlton
stead, I scribbled his answers in semi-hieroglyphics on the back of a scorecard.
The faux pas didn’t damper my enthusiasm for Reynolds Plantation. Located in Greensboro, halfway between Atlanta and Augusta, Reynolds Plantation is one of the largest golf/real estate ventures in the South.
It’s enormous, with 117 holes of golf, but with a huge stretch of property the courses each have lots of breathing space, winding independently through the pines or along the banks of massive Lake Oconee — the second-largest lake in Georgia.
Several of the game’s top designers have courses here, including Jack Nicklaus, Bob Cupp, Rees Jones and Tom Fazio, although my favourite is Great Waters, the Nicklaus layout that has nine holes curling around the waterfront.
Besides the golf, you can fish, boat, hike, play tennis or hang out at the bar at the Ritz Carlton, an AAA five-diamond hotel at the Plantation. (Country star Carrie Underwood married NHL veteran Mike Fisher at the Ritz in 2010.) Reynolds Plantation was purchased last year by insurance giant MetLife, which has pumped a substantial stash of cash into the resort, including the recent renovation of The Landing course and a spruce-up of the Nicklaus design.
Another Georgia sweet spot for golf and marquee players is St. Simons Island. It’s not a big place. The sandy, barrier island has a population that’s just a tick over 13,000 people. A growing number of residents are major pro golfers. Davis Love III moved here as a teenager and has been a confirmed islander for more than 30 years.
An avid outdoorsman, Love owns the Paddle and Putt shop, which mostly sells equipment for the growing sport of paddle boarding. His PGA neighbours include Brandt Snedeker, Matt Kuchar, Zach Johnson, Lucas Glover, Harris English and Jonathan Byrd. (It’s an impressive list of names, but the most famous athlete with ties to the Island is Jim Brown, the NFL star who was born on St. Simons.)
You are most likely to catch up with Davis Love III at the venerable Sea Island Resort on the southern end of St. Simons. (Part of the resort sits on Sea Island, a private coastal island that’s surrounded by eight kilometres of gorgeous beach on the Atlantic side. However, the resort’s three golf courses and its lodge are on St. Simons.)
Celebrating its 85th anniversary this year, Sea Island is old-world luxury, a five-star property where guests happily forget about the incessant buzz of the modern world. It’s also home to a PGA Tour event, the McGladery Classic, which is scheduled this year from Nov. 4 to 10 and is played on the resort’s Seaside Course. Naturally enough, Davis Love III is both the host and chairman of the tournament.
Garrison Keillor once wrote a terrific story about flying south in the spring after a particularly long winter up north to play golf with friends. He wrote, “Whenever I feel bad, southern voices make me feel better; whether it’s Dolly Parton, Grandpa Jones or a waitress in a café. When she says, ‘Hi! Haw yew?’ I am immediately just fine.”
I get the same feeling whenever I’m in Georgia.