Mississippi Golf Trip: Play The Best

The Magnolia State is home to more than 140 courses! With beautiful courses designed by some of the best names in the business like Fazio, Palmer, Nicklaus and Irwin, Mississippi has everything you need on a golf vacation.ÂÂ

Courses like Azaleas and Oaks at The Dancing Rabbit in Choctaw have put Mississippi on the national golf map and made the state a preferred destination for golf packages. Mississippi is a popular golf tour state with the ladies as well; in 1999 U.S. Women’s Open Championship was held here at The Old Waverly Golf Club. More recognition has come with the PGA TOUR stopping here for the Southern Farm Bureau Golf Classic.

Mississippi has enough golf to tire out even the most prolific golfer and there are enough ritzy tracks that would do any golf tour proud. Consider playing layouts like Arnold Palmer’s The Bridges at Casino Magic in Bay St. Louis ($75 - $80) and the Davis Love III signature course Shell Landing Golf Club ($65 - $89) in Gautier. Equally glamorous are The Oaks Golf Club in Pass Christian and the Jack Nicklaus designed Grand Bear in Biloxi.

But there is more to Mississippi than just glitzy courses. The recent golf bloom has led to the development of several daily-fee courses that test your skills and patience without testing your wallet. That is why a Mississippi golf tour is one of the best and most affordable golf vacations you could plan.

For instance for just $50 you can add some fun to your golf vacation with The St. Andrews Golf Club in Ocean Springs. Built in 1968 and designed by James Thompson, this 18 –hole course is a fun layout with great views – wait till you get to the signature 13th right on the Gulf of Mexico.

Hurricane Katrina has left its impressions everywhere in the Magnolia State, but downed golf courses are hitting back with a vengeance. One such place is the Mark McCumber designed Windance Country Club, just a few miles from the Gulf of Mexico. Once ranked No.3 on Golf Digest’s Best Public Courses list, Windance has bounced back and is still the same old mix of crafty layout, beautiful views and a modest fee. Add it to your golf tour and you’d be spending anywhere from $65 to $70 depending on the day you play on.

Route your golf travel path to Biloxi and you could be playing two fantastic post–Katrina courses. Try ‘The Preserve’ by Jerry Pate and Tom Fazio in Vancleave for its stunning 1800-acre nature preserve that often finds it way into the layout. The greens are painstakingly maintained and the clubhouse next door makes for a great experience. Although at $90 to $100, playing this 18-hole beauty may seem to be a little out there, the fees include free range balls, yardage books and in-between coolers. Good things come at a price, even in Biloxi.