We-Ko-Pa in Scottsdale, Arizona
Golf clubs in your hands by the day, and dice in your hands by night — is there any better combination for a golf trip?!
Across the United States, a remarkable collection of destinations has emerged at the intersection of perfectly manicured fairways and glistening casino floors to give you and your crew everything you could want all under one roof.
Whether you crave the neon-soaked opulence of the Nevada desert, the magnolia-shaded grandeur of a legendary Southern resort, or the rugged drama of a mountain retreat with a poker room tucked inside, these resorts deliver.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is certainly the golf standard when it comes to golf and gaming. While it may be the glitz and glamour that put Las Vegas on the map, it’s the incredible variety of great golf that has continued to have golfers schlep their clubs through the casino floor after a big night out to play some of the best courses in the country.
High rollers often enjoy the opulence of the Wynn Golf Club, a lush and impossibly green layout that unfolds just steps from the resort’s famed casino floor as well as Shadow Creek, the ultra-private Tom Fazio masterpiece available exclusively to MGM Resorts hotel guests that routinely appears on national rankings of America’s finest courses despite being carved entirely from flat desert.
For golfers searching for a great golf experience without breaking the bank, check out Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort as their three Pete Dye designed golf courses are only about 25 minutes off the Strip and provide a much more affordable round that all provide exceptional conditioning and memorable layouts. After a round, the casinos await with their dizzying array of sportsbooks, poker rooms, and table games at a variety of price points. Las Vegas is not the quietest golf getaway, but it is certainly the boldest. And there is something deeply American about teeing off at dawn and cashing chips at midnight…what more could you ask for?!
Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort
French Lick, Indiana
Few resorts in America possess the accumulated layers of history that French Lick does. Nestled in the rolling hills of southern Indiana, this legendary property is home to two grand hotels, the French Lick Springs Hotel and the spectacularly domed West Baden Springs Hotel which has been hosting the well-heeled since the 19th century.
The Pete Dye Course, a bruising and exhilarating layout etched into side of of a mountain provides sweeping panoramic views of hardwood forest, and it is widely considered one of the finest public-access tracks in the entire Midwest. As you’ll see in our drone footage of the course here, this course is spectacular in every way.
The Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort was painstakingly restored to its 1917 character and offers a gentler but historically rich counterpoint to the Dye Course. Between rounds, the French Lick Casino provides lively table action and slots in a handsome setting creating a perfect Midwest golf and gaming experience.
Biloxi, Mississippi
Biloxi deserves far more attention than it typically receives in golf travel circles.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast is home to a surprising concentration of exceptional courses, including the celebrated Fallen Oak at the Beau Rivage Resort.
Fallen Oak is a Tom Fazio design that is so outstanding that it has hosted PGA Tour Champions events. The Beau Rivage itself is one of the Southeast’s premier casino resorts, with a gaming floor that rivals anything in Tunica or along the Gulf.
The nearby Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi adds even more options for serious gamers, and the coastal climate and sea breezes make golf enjoyable here year-round. The local cuisine of fresh Gulf shrimp, oysters on the half shell, and po’boys overflowing with fried seafood make the evenings as rewarding as the rounds themselves.
Fallen Oak
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City’s casino landscape has been uneven in recent decades, but its position as a regional golf hub continues to strengthen quietly. The area’s crown jewel is Twisted Dune, a windswept links-style course in nearby Egg Harbor Township that plays like something transplanted directly from the coast of Ireland.
Blue Heron Pines and Renault Winery Golf Club round out a region with more quality golf than most visitors ever discover. The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa remains the city’s most sophisticated gaming floor, while Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City brings energy and entertainment.
Play 36 holes through the pines in the morning, dine at one of Borgata’s upscale restaurants in the evening, and spend the night at the baccarat tables. Atlantic City, at its considered best, still genuinely delivers.
Twisted Dune
Scottsdale, Arizona
The Sonoran Desert is one of golf’s great natural canvases, and Scottsdale is where the finest art hangs.
Troon North, Grayhawk, We-Ko-Pa, TPC Scottsdale, the catalog of world-class courses here is frankly staggering. The nearby Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community operates Casino Arizona and Talking Stick Resort, which features its own outstanding golf facility as Talking Stick’s North and South courses, designed by the celebrated team of Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, are among the most thoughtful and naturalistic desert layouts in the country.
We-Ko-Pa’s incredible 36-hole facility with the Saguaro and Cholla courses are consistently ranked among the best courses in the state, and with their own casino onsite this is the perfect place to send up your golf and gambling getaway.
Make the most of your days by spending your mornings chasing birdies across red rock terrain and your evenings in Casino Arizona’s spacious, comfortable card rooms. The combination of year-round sunshine and serious gaming makes Scottsdale one of the most effortlessly satisfying dual-purpose destinations in all of America.
Grayhawk
Cherokee, North Carolina
Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort, operated by Caesars Entertainment on the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians’ land deep in the Great Smoky Mountains, has grown quietly into one of the Southeast’s premier gaming destinations.
Its proximity to some genuinely spectacular mountain golf makes it a well-kept secret for the dual-pursuit traveler. Sequoyah National Golf Club, a Robert Trent Jones II design on tribal land that is managed by Kemper Sports, offers challenging mountain golf with breathtaking elevation changes that will captivate even the most discerning golfers.
The casino itself has expanded dramatically in recent years, featuring a luxury hotel tower, multiple upscale restaurants, and a full Las Vegas–style gaming floor. The cool mountain air and lush scenery make this one of the most atmospheric stops on any golf-and-gambling road trip east of the Mississippi.
Sequoyah National Golf Club