When Jack Nicklaus’ Tradition Course opened at Reunion Resort in late 2006, it joined two other championship courses designed by living legends. Arnold Palmer’s Legacy Course and Tom Watson’s Independence Course  were already on site and had received critical acclaim, not to mention the honor of hosting the annual Ginn Open, one of only a handful of LPGA tournaments televised on network TV.

Don’t worry Augusta isn’t the Southeast’s only exclusive layout. If you crave manicured fairways and first-class facilities (that are open to the public), then tee it up on one of these top-notch Southeast resorts. After all they’re just a short drive from Augusta National and a heck of a lot easier to get on. 

St. James’ legacy lives on in many forms. Numerous churches, hospitals and even a Broadway theater have been named after the patron saint of equestrians (among other things). There aren’t any horses at St. James Plantation in Southport, N.C., but there’s plenty of wide-open space, a nature trail and Waterway Park contained within the private community’s 5,000 acres.

A number of destinations around the world feature golf as the main attraction, and the Brunswick Isles, an area straddling the border of North and South Carolina, is definitely one of them. There are 16 golf courses from Calabash up north to North Myrtle Beach down south. Along the way, golfers can tee it up on courses designed by Arnold Palmer, Rees Jones and Myrtle Beach regular, Dan Maples, to name a few, and find themselves negotiating marshland, rivers and creeks, as many courses take advantage of the area’s natural hazards.

Things aren’t always the way they seem. Remember M. Night Shyamalan’s movie, The Sixth Sense, with its edge-of-your-seat surprise ending? (If you haven’t seen it, Bruce Willis reveals in the last minute that he wears a toupee.) Just kidding.

We know what you’re thinking. And while we’re somewhat guilty of taking pleasure in riding the Peter Pan and Dumbo rides, the Walt Disney World mecca is also home to some outstanding golf. There are 99 holes there, with top-rated golf courses that include the Magnolia and Palm, two courses that regularly play host to the PGA Tour every year. Say what you will about the theme parks, Walt Disney World has some awesome golf courses to boot.

The common misperception is that all 100+ courses along the Grand Strand are right on top of each other. Not the case. (It’s not named the Grand Strand for nothing.) From the southern chunk of North Carolina to Georgetown County 20 miles south of Myrtle Beach, the Grand Strand (or as numerologists call it, Hwy. 17) stretches over 60 miles with golf courses that range from the sublime high-end daily fees to cheap munis. It seems there’s literally every type (and price range) available for all kinds of budgets and skill levels.