When people tee off for a game of golf, it’s usually on perfect greens and golden sand dunes with nothing more perilous than bad winter weather to deal with. But have you ever thought of swinging your golf clubs with the mighty Himalayas as your backdrop, or between minefields in the Korean Demilitarisation Zone?

For the more intrepid breed of golfer out there, here are five alternative golf courses around the world that will challenge not only your patience: but your nerves and endurance, too.

Legend Golf and Safari Resort, South Africa

If you head to Entabeni Safari Conservancy for your holidays this summer, don’t miss out on the Legend Golf course. Not only is it a stunning mix of African wildlife and breathtaking scenery, but the Extreme 19th hole requires a helicopter to reach the tee, which is based half a kilometre above the green, near the top of Hanglip Mountain. Watch out for lions.

Joint Security Area, Korean Demilitarized Zone

If laughing in the face of danger is your thing, then heading just south of the most heavily guarded border in the world to hit a ball in your finest golf clothing will definitely be your cup of tea. The one-hole, 192 yard, par-three course was named “The World’s most dangerous golf course” in 1998 due to minefields bordering three sides of the course. Players are advised not to go after stray balls when they enter the course.

North Star Golf Course, Alaska, USA

When you head to America’s most northern golf club, you’ll be given a scorecard that not only documents your round of golf, but the animals you’re likely to spot on your way. Anyone teeing off in the early hours are likely to see moose, hawks, coyotes, eagles and muskrat. If you’re lucky, you could spy a grizzly bear or lynx sleeping on the green – try to avoid hitting them on the nose with a ball though, or you might not be so lucky.

The Himalayan Golf Club, Nepal

This golf course set in the middle of the Himalayas was made to indulge all of your senses from every angle. Think turquoise rivers gushing through a pristine valley, ice-capped peaks at the edge of every horizon and fresh, mountain air invading your lungs. And that’s before you’ve even tasted the food and mixed with the locals. A trip to the Himalayan Golf Club is for the true golfing-culture-vulture in search of something a little more out there.

Nullabor Links, Australia

A golf course of sheer endurance and determination, the Nullabor Links course spreads nearly 850 miles down the Australian coast. The longest golf course in the world has an average distance of 50 miles between holes and links all participating towns along the Eyre Highway from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in the south.

Photo above: Retief Goosen inspects the 19th hole at the Photo: Legend Golf & Safari Resort.

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Not long ago my brother and his wife took a holiday to Spain and part of their trip included the Costa Blanca region of Spain.

While there he enjoyed 2 of the many exquisite golf courses that are part of the Costa Blanca region.

Costa Blanca is one area that is truly unique. One major attraction is the spectacular climate. This particular coastline gives more hours of sunshine than almost anywhere in Europe.

And you know what that means – more sunshine equals more golf. I really like the sound of that!

Another major attraction is the number of beaches which attract millions each year and the quaint little towns and villages that populate the seaside. Anyone for a cold beer on a nice little seaside patio?

One course my brother played and really loved on his Costa Blanca golf holiday was the Bonalba Golf Club.

Bonalba Golf & Spa Resort course, despite opening in 1995 already seems a very seasoned course. The course is also situated in the Alicante region.

The course (18 hole Par 72) of almost 7,000 yards offers some excellent views of the coastline and sea (I saw the pictures – so I know!)

The course consists of wide fairways (that always helps) some absolutely undulating and tricky greens which include some strategically placed lakes to deal with.

The final 3 holes, my brother mentioned, were particularly tough as you have to negotiate the coastal sea winds as these holes are much more exposed than the others and demand solid ball striking if you plan on paring out.

The other he played was the Las Colinas Golf & Country Club (top photo) is a beautiful par 71 18 hole championship course located in the province of Alicante and was just awed by the beauty of the course. He shot an 80-something but said he could of cared less because he just loved the layout.

The layout includes a good variety of short and longer holes with five unique par 3′s. The main features of the course are some challenging water hazards and the dramatic bunkering (which is seen hinted at in the above photo on hole #12)

The golf course has been carved out of a dramatic gorge and has breathtaking panoramic views of the nearby coastline which includes a nature reserve.

I have to admit, being from America, that I don’t often think of Spain as a destination to visit but I am really thinking of planning something in the near future, and of course, I already have 2 great golf course recommendations!

We typically visit Europe every other year but for some reason Spain is never on the agenda and I’m not sure why.

I’m a huge art buff and visiting the home of Goya, El Greco and Picasso and seeing some of their amazing art would be reason enough to go.

Now if my wife would only allow me a round or two of golf . . .

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We’ll soon be taking a trip to Foxwoods Resort Casino and I plan on playing some golf at the Lake of Isles while we visit and also hitting some of my favorite casino games like Roulette and Black Jack!

Some things in life seem to go together almost perfectly and with golf this is no different. Golf and wine, golf and cigars, golf and beer, golf and a little friendly wagering. Anyways, I’ll be in the right place.

Not that I’m a huge gambler by any means. I usually take a set amount and once it’s gone it’s gone. I never expect to make much (that might be a problem right there!) but do love the thrill while playing.

One of the courses I do plan to play is the Lake of Isles North Course (see photo above). They also have a South Course but that one is private and members only.

Both are stunning courses set in the beautiful countryside of North Stonington, CT designed around a 90-acre lake by famed golf course architect Rees Jones. The course is a fair challenge with it’s multiple sets of tees making it playable for almost any skill level.

Honestly I don’t know a lot about the course but have heard from a few friends that it is an awesome golf experience.

Rates, however, are not cheap. During summer hours (June through Oct 17) the green fees will set you back in the area of $170-$200. Slightly less ($119) from Oct 18-31 and $99 from November until the end of the year.

The fees include a cart, range balls, yardage card (whoopee!) and bottled water. Might not sound like much but I do appreciate that they package this stuff into one fee. Nothing worse than paying 2 bills for a round then having to pay and extra $20 for range balls!

My reasoning is this: I figure I’m only going to play this course once (in the next few years) so I can somewhat justify the fee. I figure it will also keep me out of the casino and allow me to have a memorable experience (rather than losing $$$)

Anyways, will give a full review on the course once I have played it. Curious, have you played the Lake of Isles North Course (or even the private South)? Love to hear your comments.

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I just discovered that one of the local semi-private golf courses is offering a new membership deal. At first, when I saw it posted in the clubhouse, I couldn’t understand it because it seemed unbelievable.  Here it is in its simplest form: 2 year membership for $198 + tax! This is for a club where summer play is in the $35-$55 range depending on time of play, if you take a cart, etc.

Maybe I’m slow, but I had to go into the pro shop and ask them to ‘explain’. Here’s what I got: pay your 2 year fee (above) up front and then your only cost for a round for the next 2 years is a cart whether you take it or not. That amounts to $9 for 9 holes and $16 for 18 holes.

Sounds like the best of times, right? Not quite so fast. Clubs don’t offer these kinds of deals unless their backs are against the wall. This particular course is in an area of the state away from the large city populations, but where it competes for summer business with 4 other courses that are roughly the same. If times are this tough, how long before some of these clubs have to close their doors. While I like the idea of cheaper golf, I don’t want to lose variety.

This isn’t just a one course phenomenon. A private club in the area is now offering their traditional one year membership (already discounted) good for 18 months. I’m sure there are other similar deals out there.

If courses can’t figure out how to increase play, some are going to have to shut down until the economy turns around. And that could be long enough into the future that many won’t make it. I hope that doesn’t happen. Once a course closes you’ve probably lost that track forever as it’s plowed under for some other purpose.

It’s time course owners got together and figured out more ways to increase play. While that may seem counterintuitive, I think they’re more likely to survive togther than alone. Private courses could certainly let the public play during select weekday periods when they are almost vacant. They’d get some extra dollars and maybe even some new members. Competing just on the price of a round at the public courses will probably mean that some will close in the next couple of years.

Best: Cheap Prices    Worst: Fewer Courses

If you’ve got a novel idea on what to do about the problem, please add a comment.

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So I just joined my 1st golf club in like 10 years. I am now a member of the Crumpin Fox Golf Club here in Bernardston, MA. Previously I was a member of Hickory Ridge GC in Amherst, MA.

I took advantage of the end-of-the-year special, where you pay so much to play the rest of the year then that fee is subtracted from next year’s membership.

So why did I take the plunge and join? For a number of reasons.

1. The course is just a gem to play. I have played it many, many times and just love the layout and beauty of the course.

2. It’s like 12 minutes from our house.

3. I really want to re-dedicate myself to the game and improve in every area.

4. My “day job” is as a software engineer and after sitting on my butt all day in a corporate environment it is pretty nice to do something physical (like play golf)

5. I have a number of friends who play/are members there.

6. I want to play more competitive golf in tournaments, etc.

6. Got the OK from my wife

Pretty sound reasons, right? Anyway, really looking forward to playing a lot more golf.

If any of you readers are up in the area and would like to play a round, let me know and we can perhaps set something up. Guests of a member also get a discount on greens fees.

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So my fellow GolfDashBlog partner, John and I finally got out to play some golf last Friday at Hickory Ridge Country Club in Amherst, MA on about as nice a golf day as is possible.

I was a member of Hickory Ridge about 10 years for 5 years or so and never got tired of playing the course. It was built in 1969 and designed by famed architect Geoffrey Cornish out of a pasture and farm land.

I actually re-did their logo way back then by refining it (it was in desperate need of an update) so it’s still pretty cool to see it on all their apparel, equipment, etc.

There are some great holes at “the Hick” my favorites being #9 (a wicked par 4) #17 a longish par 3 that par is always a good score and the long par 4 #18 – my vote for one of the best finishing holes in Western, MA (and pictured above)

We played on a Friday and the greens fees were $30 each – about as good a deal as you can get for this quality of a course. It goes up slightly on the weekend ($45) but still a very reasonable fee by today’s standards. It is also a very enjoyable course to walk (which we did)

John played some great golf. Laser accurate and long off the tee, he had many chances to probably shoot on the 70′s just his putting was a tad off. Me, on the other hand, had some good holes but am struggling with consistency off the tee. Many times I hit pretty strong shots but a number of times I duffed it trying to kill the ball.

I keep telling myself I need to play more than once every two weeks to get any better but still it’s not easy when your in the heat of the moment trying to string together good shots.

All in all it was great to catch up with John and we plan to play again in the Fall season, one of the best things about Fall is New England golf – which is right around the corner.

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Well, thank God LeBron has a new home now (Miami Heat) so we can be less distracted with his circus and on to more exciting things – like what’s going on in golf!

All sorts of stuff! Yesterday 46 year old tour veteran Paul Goydas threw up an amazing 59 on his first round at the John Deere Classic – That’s 12 birdies! and get this – Steve Stricker shot a 60 with the chance to tie his 59 on the last hole! Talk about throwing darts! There were lots of low scores so this tourney looks to be super low scoring and extremely fun to watch.

Of course, the 2010 US Women’s Open also launched it’s open day at Oakmont Country Club and what is speculated to be one of the toughest tests of golf in it’s history. Currently Brittany Lang is the leader at -2. MJ Hur and Inbee Park are tied at -1. Runaway LPGA Championship winner Christie Kerr is closely behind at +1. Teenage phenom Alexis Thompson shot a very respectable 73. The ever unpredictable Michelle Wie shot 82 and was tied at 130th.

One of my favorite majors of the year, the Open Championship, is right around the corner at the hallowed grounds of St Andrews. With all the ultra manicured courses we have and see week-to-week on the PGA tour it is just so refreshing to see links golf and all the unique strategy involved. Who knows maybe Tom Watson can revive a little more magic this year.

My Golf Dash partner, John, mentioned a swing training aid in a recent post called Grab Bag and Random Thoughts. It’s called the SwingRite. It was surprising to me as I never heard of the thing before but apparently it has been around since the 1960′s. Anyway I called John and discussed it with him and he highly recommended it. So I went out and bought one. All I can say is since using it I had one of my best front nines of the year (a 37). So check it out. If you have any questions about it just comment on this post and I will be glad to provide any feedback I can.

Finally, I played Red Tail Golf Course in Devens MA last weekend on one of the most gloriest golf days you could ask for. Had a very mixed round with a good front and terrible back. Ended up shooting 87. Red Tail is really a beautiful course and I highly recommend it if you are out in this area. My only issue is the fee. It costs $99 to play and in my opinion, it is too high a fee for this caliber of a course. I played on a mid Saturday morning and the place was practically dead. They really need to re-think their pricing.

One thing they do that I like and that members of my foursome are involved with is they have some called a Hawk Membership – again the price is not cheap, $850, but you save a bit and this entitles you to 10 rounds of golf and a few other perks. I wish a number of courses in my area (Western Ma) would do these types of “mini-memberships” I definitely applaud their innovative thinking about how to re-package memberships and limited memberships.

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I am planning a late fall golf trip to play Harbour Town golf links, (home of the PGA stop, the Verizon Heritage Heron Point and the Ocean Course at Sea Pines Resort in Hilton Head, South Carolina.

Of course, Harbour Town is famous for the iconic Harbour Town Lighthouse. The 90-foot, red-and-white striped tower of the Harbour Town Lighthouse on Hilton Head Island is the visual centerpiece of Sea Pines.

Construction on the hexagonal Harbour Town Lighthouse began in 1969 and was completed in the spring of 1970. This was the first privately financed lighthouse to be built since the early 1800s. Of course, it serves as the perfect backdrop for the 18th hole at Harbour Town.

I can’t wait for some Hilton Head golf (well, yes I can because that would mean the round would be just about over) and to try the famous shot at the final hole at Harbour Town. I have seen so many of those shots on TV that it will seem very strange actually playing the hole.

They have a number of nice packages through the resort itself. You can check out some of the golf packages and see what you think. Currently for 2 night and two rounds of golf, at approximately $350, that is a pretty good deal.

Couple hotel tips (that apply across the board – not just at Harbor Town)

1. It’s always a good idea to call the resort’s or hotel’s local number and NOT the 800 number as the 800 number typically gets re-routed to an off-site call center. instead of asking for reservations, ask to speak with the manager or the general manager on duty or the sales director as they have the authority to negotiate room rates.

I did this recently on a trip and asked the manager to get the room for $100 (it was a $350 room!) My wife and i had many choices and after we said no to the $350 he asked me what I would like for and instantly my request was granted.

I really did this more as an experiment but you would be surprised HOW flexible price is (especially in this economy)

2. The best time to make a reservation (if you want to do it this way) is right after 6 pm. This is when hotels wipe clean all the no-show reservations that were unsecured by a credit card. Then they offer those rooms at nice bargain rates.

You can check out the Sea Pines courses which include nice hole by hole gallery.

Tiger also gives a brief overview of some of Harbour Town’s key golf holes in a video.

Be curious what your experiences have been at Sea Pines and and other tips, restaurants or other excursions you found worthwhile while there.

You can also find other Hilton Head tee times if you are interested in playing other HH courses. We, however, are only playing the Sea Pines courses.

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Rhode Island’s newest and longest public course opened in April of this year. I had the chance to play it with a couple of friends last week. We’re geezers so we played the Green tees at a little over 6500 yards. Had we been feeling our Wheeties we could have teed off on the Blacks which come in at just over 7400 yards.

This course is owned by the Hendrick family who have been in the golf business in the state for over 40 years and own two other good 18 hole layouts. A rarity these days in the golf business, they’ve proven that they know how to make money. Unfortunately, they started building Meadowbrook before the recession.

What else to do but soldier on and complete it. The Rhode Island golf market is difficult these days with player rounds down and many private courses struggling to keep up their membership numbers. The Hendricks will have the tough job of bringing this course along without digging further into their own pockets.

Once you set foot on the course it’s clear that it’s brand new. The greens, tee boxes and fairways are in good shape. The rough and the finer points of landscaping are a work in progress. Overall, I like the layout. It has potential, but reaching it will depend on how much stomach the owners have for investment. We’ve already seen what happens at a very good course, Newport National, that runs out of cash. That one actually went under, was sold to another owner and has stayed open, though they still are using trailers for a clubhouse and have only the most basic facilities.

I don’t think anyone would deny that Meadowbrook could become one of the premier golf destinations in the state, but it needs a lot of finishing touches to get there. The rough is sketchy, but that’s to be expected in the first year. I’d say the course could use another 15 traps to make it really interesting. These don’t have to be the giant traps that US courses most often build. With Meadowbrook’s rolling fairways, a few carefully placed, small pot bunkers would make a lot of difference, forcing players to shape shots, manage distance and play more thoughtfully.

For a new course, the greens were excellent. They are hard, as in very hard, but this makes for more challenging golf. If you fire at the pins from any distance, you’re very likely to find yourself off the back. I thought the greens rolled fair. With their tremendous size, over 9000 square feet, you can end up with putts that feel they should be teed up. Needless to say they have an almost endless selection of pin locations. Add to this five sets of tee boxes (yes, you read that correctly – 5) and this course can play different every day for the entire season.

I loved the 8th hole which reminds me of something you might find in Scotland. The tee box is elevated and looks on a gradually rising fairway that turns right. Where you’d like to land your tee shot are a couple of middle of the fairway bunkers. If you avoid these you have a dicey shot to a steeply mounded elongated green that angles away from the golfer. This is the kind of hole that challenges you every round.

On the back nine, the course moves more into the woods, but also has large open fairway sections where holes come together. Ultimately I’d like to see some landscaping to separate the fairways, but then again I’m not the one who has to pony up the dough. One thing the course is missing, as it is at many public tracks, is a practice area/driving range. If you’re going to be a top notch course, good players will expect a place to warm up before they play. I’d also like to see some seed mixture on the par 3 tee boxes and more rakes in the traps. It’s a real pain to have to walk to the far end of a twenty yard bunker to clean up after yourself!

Bottom line, the course could become a classic or just a very long public course that will attract outings and the once or twice a year visit from the average amateur. I don’t envy the Hendricks having to negotiate a course greening during an economic downturn. They ultimately have plans to build a big new clubhouse, but for now the remodeled version of the old one will have to do. By the Fall we should have a much better idea of where Meadowbrook is headed to greatness or just another very long loop.

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That was fun yesterday watching Phil and his “birdie-barrage” yesterday at the US Open. Man, that guy can really turn it on at times. I guess that’s why we all seem to love Phil.

I couldn’t help but notice the inherent differences between Phil and Tiger yesterday. Even though Tiger is playing well he just looks a bit out of it – almost like he has lost his golf “superpowers” that he once held so near and dear. It’s now this facadeless character who just doesn’t look comfortable in his own shoes.

Compared to Phil, who is just an innately likable character. Just looks likes he’s having a ball out there (I guess 6 birdies will do that for you!) And there is no one funner (OK maybe “funner” is not a word but I’m going to use it anyway) to watch than Phil.

Although sometimes his antics and choices are downright dumb, you have to admit he’s consistent. (I seem to remember a recent shot by 2 pine trees at Augusta)

Of course, there is much golf to come. I, for one, am sort of secretly rooting for Ernie Els. He just seems due. Been out of any sort of serious contention in majors for years.

The other guy who looks real solid to me is Ian Poulter. He’s coming into this with a lot of confidence after winning the World Championship Match play earlier this year.

My dark horse pick is David Toms. I would die to have a swing like his. Again, been out of any really serious contention for years too but as a former PGA Championship winner just may find that “fire-in-the-belly” he needs.

Finally, Chris Berman has got to be one of the worst announcers I have ever heard. Seems like half the time he’s talking about food. He is just too LOUD and just doesn’t get the intricacies of the game. Cannot wait for Johnny Miller to take over on the weekend!

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