Doon Brae
There’s no doubt that golf travel has seen a massive boom since 2020.
The game is doing fantastic from a business perspective, and as a result some of the biggest and best names in golf are continuing to double down and invest in the experience that they bring to you in future years. With quite a few projects underway in the United States currently, we’ve highlighted a few of our favorites for you here to help you with your planning for your crew’s next golf stay and play.
Scarecrow at Gamble Sands – Brewster, Washington
One thing we know we will never get enough of is more David McLay Kidd designed gems for us to enjoy. In his latest installment at Gamble Sands in Brewster, Washington, McLay Kidd has created another beautiful 18-hole design that joins the already breathtaking Gamble Sands Course, the QuickSands Short Course that is 14 holes of pure fun, and the Cascade Putting Course as the perfect cherry on top of the golf experience at Gamble Sands. In addition to the new course, the resort is also adding in a substantial amount of lodging to coincide with the opening of Scarecrow. There’s no doubt that this additional 18-holes of top-level championship golf vaults Gamble Sands’ placement in the categories of top golf resorts in the United States to visit, so do yourself a favor and start looking into the Northwestern beauty for your next golf adventure.
Roost at Cabot Citrus Farms – Brooksville, Florida
The team at Cabot has made a massive impact on the world of golf travel over the last decade or so, and one of our favorite contributions they made to this landscape was when they purchased the property that was previously known as World Woods in Brooksville, Florida and have now reimagined the entire property into Cabot Citrus Farms. This new vision for the property fully takes advantage of the land provided to create an epic golf experience now, and the latest iteration of golf that is scheduled for its grand opening in January of 2025 is the Roost at Cabot Citrus Farms.
Designed by a team of designers that includes Kyle Franz, Ran Morrissett, Rod Whitman, and Mike Nuzzo, the Roost has capitalized on a unique setting in Florida that features multiple 50-foot elevation changes, massive oak trees, and several wild Osceola turkeys that parade around the course and can often be heard “roosting” throughout your round. The resort will now feature 18 holes of championship golf on both the Roost and Karoo courses, as well as two fun short course designs with The Wedge and The Squeeze courses.
Roost at Cabot Citrus Farms
Doon Brae Short Course (and Himalaya Putting Course) – Harbor Springs, Michigan
Some resorts just continue to do it right time and time again. BOYNE Golf is one of those companies. With 10 (yes…10!) courses in its portfolio already in Northern Michigan, BOYNE Golf provides an incredible variety of golf for your group to enjoy on your next golf vacation. As one of the largest golf resorts in the United States, their team can customize a golf getaway for you in a way that few other properties can provide as you can literally visit this resort multiple times and have a completely different experience each time you come.
One of our favorite resort hubs for golf groups here is The Highlands, and the property is getting even better as they will be adding the new 9-hole short course known as Doon Brae into the mix in 2025 along with the new Himalaya Putting Course. Doon Brae works away up, down, and across the sloped terrain it is located on to give you a wonderful variety of shots throughout your round. Doon Brae is also going to be lit for nighttime rounds which we are incredibly excited to see as the team at BOYNE continues to deliver when it comes to creating a great experience for traveling golfers.
Cliffhangers at Big Cedar Lodge – Hollister, Missouri
Big Cedar Lodge has famously used a tagline of “America’s Next Great Golf Destination” for years. Well, we are here to tell you that the word “Next” needs to be removed from the vernacular here. Big Cedar Lodge has created one of the best golf experiences for vacationing golfers to enjoy, and the property has already made a name for itself in the world of short courses with its Jack Nicklaus-designed Top of the Rock 9-hole par-3 course (drone footage featured below) and the Mountain Top course designed by Gary Player.
The resort is once again adding to its short course prowess with its latest offering: Cliffhangers at Big Cedar Lodge. This 18-hole par-3 course is located on a footprint of the property just below the Mountain Top clubhouse and overlooks the famous Payne’s Valley course. The cliffside location will offer dramatic views of the property and a stunning setting for yet another great design at Big Cedar Lodge. The course is currently scheduled to be opening in 2025, and we will be sure to let you know in future stories when an exact date is settled upon.
Cliffhangers
The Keep at McLemore (Grand Opening) – Rising Fawn, Georgia
Currently open for preview play through early 2025 with the official opening scheduled for summer of 2025, The Keep is already stirring up quite a bit of chatter amongst golf circles. Serving as the sister course of The Highlands Course which you may recognize from viral photos and videos of the epic 18th hole cliffside setting, this Rees Jones layout has been described by its famous architect to be “one of the world’s great sites for golf.” The natural beauty of the surrounding areas includes uninterrupted cliff edges, spectacular mountainside views, streams and waterfalls, and ancient boulders and rock outcroppings to perfectly blend this spectacular design amongst its incredible setting. Combine your rounds of golf with a stay at the new Cloudland Hotel Lookout Mountain, Curio Collection by Hilton or enjoy one of the golf cottages, homes, or villas that are available to rent for a phenomenal golf getaway in the mountains of Georgia.
The Keep at McLemore
The Sand Creek Course at French Lick Resort – French Lick, Indiana
When it comes to great golf, French Lick Resort offers one of our favorite golf experiences as the resort features two incredible, yet unique, 18-hole designs with The Pete Dye Course at French Lick and The Donald Ross Course at French Lick. The Pete Dye Course, as you’ll see in the drone footage below, offers one of Dye’s most visually stunning and challenging designs that you’ll find anywhere in the world. As a perfect contrast to the experience at the Dye Course is The Donald Ross Course at French Lick. Designed in 1917 by world-renowned golf architect legend Donald Ross, this course has more subtle features but includes classic Ross bunkering, deep rough, and challenging elevation changes.
One area of the resort that we hate to admit that we had missed on previous visits until recently was The Valley Links Course at French Lick. This Tom Bendelow design is a blast to play, and it features 9 regulation length holes that can be tacked on easily to a day at the resort to cap off a perfect golf day in Indiana. In addition to The Valley Links Course, the resort has also announced that they will be adding a new short course to the property known as The Sand Creek Course at French Lick Resort that is scheduled to open in Spring of 2025. The 9-hole short course will feature holes that range from 35 to 90 yards, and it will showcase signature features from the famed Pete Dye and Donald Ross courses such as miniature Dye volcano bunkers and the challenging, undulating greens found on the Ross Course. It’s a great addition to an already fantastic golf resort, and we’re excited to see this one come to life in 2025.
Rodeo Dunes (two courses) – Undisclosed City, Colorado
All we have to do is hear that the Keiser family is getting involved in a golf project, and our ears perk up immediately. After the booming success of Sand Valley in Wisconsin by Michael and Chris Keiser, sons of Mike Keiser who famously owns Bandon Dunes and a share of Cabot Cape Breton, the brothers have set their sights on rural Colorado to develop a new golf resort for us to enjoy. The resort has announced two golf courses to be designed, one by the famous duo of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw who have a storied history with the Keiser family at their properties with courses like Bandon Trails, Sheep Ranch, Bandon Preserve, Sand Valley Course, and The Sandbox at these properties.
The second course announced for the resort will be the first solo design for Jimmy Craig who has been a top assistant for Coore and Crenshaw for over 25 years. The resort currently isn’t scheduled to open to the public until 2026, but if there’s one thing we’ve seen when it comes to resorts owned by the Keiser family is that demand is destined to be high for this new property, so we wanted to get it on your radar for future golf trip planning.
Rodeo Dunes