Short Course Episodes: Georgia Golf

Next up in the Short Course Series, John talks about Georgia golf and the places he most wants to play!

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Welcome to the Southern State of Golf Podcast. Hi, I'm your host, John, and today I'm excited to talk with you. I've got a short course episode where we're going to talk about Georgia golf and the courses that I want to play. Short course episodes are meant to be about a 20-25-minute uh episode where you can listen quickly. They're not meant to go in depth, but just, you know, kind of keep it light and just talk about some different topics in golf. So today we're talking about Georgia golf. And specifically, I want to talk about the 10 courses in Georgia that I want to play. And I haven't played them. Georgia's actually, I've only played one round of golf in all of the state of Georgia, which kind of blows my mind. It's Bears Best Golf Club that's near Atlanta. That's the only golf course I've ever played in Atlanta. Um, or Georgia for that matter. You know, one of the things I'll say too is you think of Georgia golf, I think immediately you think of Augusta National, and with good reason. I mean, you know, when you hear Georgia on my mind, you know, that plan, you think of Augusta National, you think about April, the Masters, and with certainly good reason. But Georgia is an outstanding state for golf. And we'll talk about all the different great golf courses. And we're, it's only going to be a, we're just going to cover just some of the courses that are uh outstanding in Georgia. But let's start with a couple that I'm not even going to talk about. You know, there's a lot of great golf courses in Jekyll Island. You know, there's great dunes. It's a new one that's our renovated, I believe. That's an outstanding one. There's a new one coming out. I think it may even be open now, the fall line. I think it's uh northwest Georgia. It's really interesting. But let's start with number 10 on the list of golf courses that I want to play in Georgia. Well, we're going to start with a municipal course, the patch. You know, the patch in Augusta, Georgia just opened up in April to the public. It looks fantastic. Our guys, Jonathan and Robbie from the Whole Story Podcast, they were out there, they've played, and I've heard nothing but outstanding things about it. I mean, there's just so many cool things. There's a par three course out there as well. It's, you know, it's a hard tea time to get right now to book online. You have to believe it's two weeks in advance. And I've just kind of looked around. There was a couple of times that I've looked to try to get on there. And, you know, kind of a last minute or within a week. I have not seen a single tea time available. So you can go to the website, golfthepatch.com. There's some really cool stuff. And the logo, gosh, I think the logos they got is really, really cool. I I like the font logo where it says the patch on it, Augusta Municipal Golf Course. And then you got the the one with the, you know, it's got the tea, the 1928 with the lettuce on top. I just think there's so much really cool stuff about it. I heard the food there is really good. So I, you know, the patch is one of those. I'm not, I'm not trying to say these are the 10 best golf courses in Georgia, but you know, talking about just appeal and desire to want to play, the the patch comes in at number 10. Number nine is Augusta Country Club. Go to AugustaCountry Club.com to learn a little bit more about their golf course. Here's a question I got. Is Augusta Country Club made better, more prominent because it property backs right up next to Augusta National? Or is Augusta Country Club not given its rightful due as a golf club itself because it backs right up to Augusta National? Now that I don't know, but I've heard nothing but great things about the golf course. It is highly regarded by a lot of different people. You know, it's it's very much a private golf course, but there's opportunities for guests to get on there through different ways. They have um, you know, opportunities to get on there during Master's Week, probably certainly at a very high, elevated fee. So to me, I think something like that would just be such a cool experience. I've heard nothing but good things about Augusta Country Club. So I think that would be one that'd be outstanding to play with people. Number eight is Great Waters. You know, Great Waters golf course is a part of the Reynolds, you know, Lake O'Coney area. I mean, the thing about it is, you know, Great Waters is one particular golf course of the Lake O'Coney experience, but there's actually seven different championship courses within the area. But Great Waters is the one, it's a Jack Nicholas design. It's got some great scenery, you know, there on the lake. I mean, it just looks like such a cool course. And to me, I like, you know, resort feel. I mean, there's a Ritz-Carlton in the area that's highly regarded, and multiple other really good golf courses in the area. So this could be one of those places you could do a full week. Like I said, you can do a full week, and there's seven really good golf courses in there with resort style type stuff. It just seems like a really, really cool experience, one that I certainly would love to be a part of. Number seven on this list is the athletic or the Atlanta Athletic Club, and particularly, you know, the Highlands course that they got there. You know, this is a place that hosted the 1976 U.S. Open. I mean, Robert Trent Jones is the architect of the golf club. It's one of those that they've got 36 holes. They even got a par three course. You know, it's an athletic club, so it's not just a golf club. You know, it's a it's one of those that when you hear about, you know, you hear about it, you've heard of the Atlanta Athletic Club. I think it would be just such a cool experience and a place to play. The course looks amazing with a lot of different scenery. You know, it's an Atlanta golf club, but it doesn't feel like you're in Atlanta. You don't see it. It just looks really amazing to me. I think that would be an outstanding course to play. Number six on my list is a newer course, and it's it's fairly new where it's not, I don't even know if it's in certain golf list top courses in Georgia yet, but the keep at the McLamore Resort. You know, the keep just looks amazing. You know, matter of fact, it's ranked by, you know, uh Sports Illustrators, one of the top new courses in Georgia to play. I mean, Georgia's one of the probably one of the few states that's got cool mountainous type golf, which the keep at McLamore seems to be. It's got, you know, the sea, you know, it's got seaside great golf courses, which we'll talk about some of those. Then you got inland courses. I mean, Georgia's got a very diverse group. And that's why I think Macklemore, and really to me, one of the things that attract me about Mount McLamore and the Keep is it just it screams luxury. It's more than just golf. The focus is golf, but to be in the mountains, there's a couple of really good, you know, resorts there as well, especially here in the south. You know, I think we we don't really always get that mountain feel. And I think something like the keep just it looks amazing. You see the pictures, it looks like something that's really cool. And to go do it at a resort would be outstanding to me. Number five on the list is East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. And the thing that I kind of really like about East Lake, you know, it is, you know, the uh the final event of the PGA Tour playoffs. You know, the FedEx Cup is there traditionally at East Lake Golf Course, but they're real big with golf with a purpose. You know, that they try to, they do give back, you know, to many different foundations in the area. They've got a Drew Charter School, they got the Charlie Yates golf course in the area, first team Metro Atlanta. I mean, there's a there's a lot of intention with this golf club. It's not just a social club. And you can tell that they they do try to give back to the community. And it's just a it's a beautiful golf course. I think it's it's amazing. Um, you know, it was established in the early 1900s. The original architect was Tom Bendelo, which I'll be honest, I don't particularly know that person very well, but it was designed with, you know, Donald Ross reworked a different design. I mean, there's just a lot of really cool things there. East Lake Golf Club just looks like such a great place uh to play. Next up on my list, and this one, this is where we're getting interesting. Like these are high bucket list type courses. Number four on my list is Sea Island, and in particular the seaside course. The thing about, you know, Sea Island is recognized as maybe one of the best golf resorts, not only in Georgia, but the entire country, you could even say world, because there's there's three really good courses there at Sea Island. You had the Seaside course, which is probably considered their best course, plantation course, which is still considered a very good course designed by the Love brothers. And then there's a retreat course. So you've got three high-level courses right there on property. There's two different places where high-level five-star caliber places that you can play. They've got considered, it's there's a lot of people that say golf has about five people five places in the U.S. where the pros like to stay. It's where they like to live because it's where they can work out, work on their game, and Sea Island is one of them. Sea Island Golf has one of the better practice facilities in all of golf down there. You know, you don't, I don't think I hear about it a ton or compared to maybe like abandoned dunes and maybe pebble beach, but I think Sea Island's one of those courses and resorts that I think if I when I go there and play, at some point I will, that I'm gonna rave about it more and more and more. Just like when I had an opportunity to go to a stream song down in Florida and visit that, I was blown away at how good it was. I mean, I knew it was good before going. I got a feeling I'm gonna be I would be blown away more and more by Sea Island. Now, Sea Island is not a budget type destination because it looks amazing. The clubhouse, the locker room, the locker room is considered one of the better locker rooms in all of golf, how vast it is and big. It's like it's a locker room you want to hang out in. You know, there's some locker rooms you're just trying to get in, get out. Sea Island's locker room, the pictures I saw, it look it does look like a place you would just love, you know, to hang out. Okay, number three on my list, I'm gonna have to admit this. I don't know a ton about this golf course, but I know all about it. This Peachtree Golf Club. The Peachtree Golf Club is located in Atlanta. There will be people that will tell you that this is probably the hardest tea time to get in all of Georgia. And yes, even harder to get than Augusta National, which is really hard to believe, but there's not a ton out there about Peachtree Golf Club. It's one of those golf courses, you know, you you can't just go out there unaccompanied, even if a guest sponsors you. There's always got to be a guest with you on property. They don't allow pictures, so there's not a ton of social media pictures and things like that out there about Peachtree. I mean, it's just one of those that, you know, it's a, you know, it's designed by Bobby Jones. Robert Trent Jones also was part of it. I mean, it's just it's one of those that, you know, they compare it to Augusta National, but I think the secrecy of it is such a curious thing. The club doesn't even have a website, an official website, at least not one that I know about. I looked for it, I couldn't find it. You know, there's a no photos policy for visitors, there's not many outside media that come in there. So I think the the secrecy and exclusivity of it makes it a course. I'm putting it at number three, um, as golf courses I want to play. Number two, and I've talked about this a number of times on the podcast, the O'Hoopy Match Club. The O'Hoopy Match Club. I just, if you want to talk about cool factor, I think it just screams cool. Middle of nowhere, Georgia. It is designed as a match play club, very exclusive membership, hard to get in with a cool logo. Anybody, I I can I still can't believe that an onion is considered a cool logo. But it is. And I don't like onions. But I would I wouldn't give to be able to play the course and to go to the pro shop and buy way too much O'Hoopy gear, because I would certainly do it. Um but it just it looks like such a cool place where it's designed as a match play, not a play against your party, play against a partner. It just looks amazing. It's kept in great shape. You know, there's been a lot written about it, and O'Hoopy does give back. I mean, they uh you can tell that they do allow foursomes to be auctioned off, threesomes with members to be auctioned off, you know, for good causes. And these the prices for these are ridiculous. I'm always one of those that hope in an auction that you see a round for O'Hopey match club go for something reasonable. I don't even want to say what reasonable is, but many times I've seen a foursome go for 15, 20 grand at O'Hopey. And that's that's ridiculous for a round of golf, even for a great cause. I think that's ridiculous. But maybe one day, if I ever get just too much money, which I doubt that's gonna happen, I I would do that. But O'Hopey Match Club comes in at at a number two, but I'm not gonna say like a distant far from number one. Maybe it kind of is, but you know, number one, you have to go with Augusta National Golf Club. I mean, can I I I would love for somebody to tell me that Augusta National wouldn't be their number one golf club if they want to play in Georgia. Like who who would say that? Who would not say that? I'm I'm sure it might be somebody that maybe Augusta National spurred them for something, revoked them privileges, or I don't know. But Augusta National would be just an amazing place to to go play. And you know, it is certainly number one. That's why I don't even spend too much time talking about it because everybody knows like that's Augusta National is just it's it's so cool. But I will say a hoopie match club is not crazy far off that list. Now, here's one that I want to you know stick with you. I got a question. This is a deep thought question for you, and I haven't completely come up with the answer. But if God came down to you and said, I'm gonna give you 10 rounds of golf in Georgia, you can play any course you want, you can play any course you want multiple times, but you only get 10 rounds. A, would you take the deal? And B, how would you divide those rounds up? Great question. For someone like me, I would take the deal. You know, but the key is the 10 rounds, you can't play any other rounds in Georgia ever again. You only get 10 rounds. Once you use your 10 rounds up, you can't ever play any more golf in Georgia. Would you take the deal? For me, I would. Living in South Carolina. Now, granted, I if I was Jonathan uh from the Whole Story Podcast and I lived in Augusta, I don't know. That might be kind of a hard deal to take to realize you couldn't ever, after 10 rounds, you couldn't play golf in your state ever again. I have to ask him that question. Would he take the deal? But here you go. I would take the deal. How would you divide up 10 rounds in all of Georgia? But these are only 10 rounds you ever you get to play. And I've really struggled with this. And I'm I'm trying to keep it like there might be some people say, I'm playing all 10 rounds at Augusta National. I wouldn't play all 10 rounds at Augusta National. If I got 10 rounds in Georgia, but I could never play there again. I think I would go with this is a this was a I'm thinking off the top of my head, hopefully I get this math straight. I think I'd play four rounds at Augusta National. I would play three rounds at Ohie. I don't know why I picked three, just sounds reasonable. That's seven. You know, I'm gonna play one round at Peachtree Golf Club. Okay, that's eight. One round at Sea Island, that's nine. And then I'm I'm I'm I'm actually gonna go with the keep at Maclamour. I'm gonna skip East Lake Golf Club. Even though East Lake's number five and the keep is at number six, I'm gonna go with the keep there at the Maclamour because it's in the mountains to give us something just a little bit different. So that's the that's how I divide up my 10 rounds. How would you divide up 10 rounds in Georgia if that is what you got to play for the rest of your life? I'd be curious to what people would say. And would you take the deal? Like I said, if if God came down and asked me, said, John, I'm gonna give you 10 rounds of anywhere in South Carolina you want to play. But after those 10 rounds, you could play golf no more in South Carolina. Would I take the deal? No, I wouldn't take that deal in South Carolina. Georgia absolutely would take that deal. But I'd be curious, would you take the deal and how would you divide it up? Like I said, I'd be curious if there would be people that would sit there and say, just give me 10 rounds at Augusta National. It's not even close. But to me, I think four at Augusta National, three at O'Hoopy, like I said, one at Peachtree, one at Sea Island, and one at the Keep at Macklemore. Kind of surprised myself with that a little bit. Um, I was thinking about even just going three and three and divide it up a little bit more, but I think that sounds right. So what would you pick? I would certainly love to have your answers. And tell me, what other great golf courses did I miss in the state of Georgia? Because I do think there are so many really good ones that we haven't even talked about. I've talked about golf in Augusta area before. There's some really good ones outside of Augusta National and the Augusta Country Club. And there's some other good ones there on the coast, there in Georgia, but I would love your feedback. Hey, shoot me an email, southernstateofgolf at gmail.com. Hit us up on social media as well. At SS of Golf, I would certainly love your feedback. I'd love to take, I'd love to hear what is your, what would be your 10, 10 rounds of golf in Georgia that you would like to play? I'd be curious what people thought about that. I appreciate your time today. Listen to the short course episode of the Southern State of Golf. Take care.