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The 75th Masters takes place at the revered Augusta National course in April. Few mortals ever get to grace such hallowed fairways but there’s a pretty good alternative just down the road. By Tim Bona & Michael Stewart.
Having conquered ‘the impregnable quadrilateral of golf’ – the British and US Amateur Championships and the British and US Opens – in 1929, Georgia native Bobby Jones retired from competitive golf at the adventurous age of 28 and set out to build his dream course somewhere in the American South.
The Augusta National Golf Club, home of the prestigious Masters that is the ‘holy grail’ of all golf tournaments, was founded in 1931 by Jones and business partner Clifford Roberts on the site of a former indigo plantation and commercial nursery named Fruitlands.
Jones was “the model American athlete come to life,” according to Herbert Warren Wind, who went on to write: “his eyes gleamed with both a frank boyishness and perceptiveness far beyond his years.”
It was with Bobby’s same ingrained ‘perceptiveness’ that the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company sought a location to build the first destination resort of its kind in the United States in nearly 100 years.
The good folks at Ritz-Carlton were fortunate to discover a long treasured family retreat in the foothills of eastern Georgia that has steadily been establishing an internationally renowned reputation. Now revered as the South’s premier residential lake and golf community, Reynolds Plantation was recently named one of the eight most exceptional golf communities in the world.
Just a short drive from the hustle and bustle of Atlanta, this once tranquil hunting and fishing getaway, lovingly referred to as ‘Linger Longer’ by the Reynolds family, seems a world away! Towering oaks, thickets of loblolly pines, fragrant magnolias, flowering dogwoods and the unhurried waters of beautiful Lake Oconee (a Creek Indian term meaning ‘great waters’) provide an idyllic sanctuary for an authentic golf and ‘lingering’ experience.
Acknowledged as the ‘North American Golf Resort of the Year’ shortly after opening in 2002, few communities or resorts can boast the calibre of courses found at Reynolds Plantation. There are 117 holes of incomparable golf designed by the greatest architects in the game.
Setting the stage for Reynolds to become a prime golf destination, The Landing was the first course built on popular Lake Oconee. When it debuted in 1986, Bob Cupp's masterpiece was hailed as one of Georgia's best courses, second only to Augusta National. "The Landing is a hidden gem...Cupp's architectural genius was unveiled to the golfing world," exclaimed Bob Mauragas, Vice President of Golf Operations. From the masterful green settings to the challenging and scenic routing around beautiful Lake Oconee, The Landing is clearly one of Georgia's finest kept secrets.
The original Plantation Course designed by Bob Cupp, with help from US Open champions Fuzzy Zoeller and Hubert Green, set a very high standard for all succeeding layouts. While certainly not visually intimidating (hardly more than a dozen bunkers are scattered about the design), as Cupp describes, “It is the beauty of the land, the subtleties of the rolling terrain, the variety in the length of holes and the size of greens that makes the Plantation a great course to play.”
Voted the ‘Best Present Day Architect’ by US Golf Digest, Tom Fazio was chosen to add to the masterful designs at Reynolds. Employing the dramatic, existing topography, elevation changes, mature stands of hardwood and pine, natural streams, several ponds and memorable lake views, Fazio created the magnificent National course which features three nines: The Ridge, Bluff, and Cove. “It’s no surprise that Reynolds National turned out as well as it did because the Reynolds folks have the patience and commitment to do things right,” Tom recently expressed on a return visit to the site.
One of the latest additions to the roster of great golf course architecture is The Oconee course. Named after 7,600-hectare Lake Oconee, it is another superb design by Rees Jones. World renowned for reworking some of the game’s most revered venues, including Pinehurst Number 2, Rees smartly utilised an intuitive routing plan over the stunning terrain presented to him by the Reynolds family.
There is an abundance of exciting, risk/reward golf on the Oconee, with breathtaking elevated teeing areas providing panoramic lake views. “We have uncovered a dramatic golf course without changing a lot of what we found when we got here,” observed Jones.
Most recently, The Creek Club became the first private club within the community and is named partly in recognition of the rich Native American heritage that the Creek Indians have contributed to the region over many generations. Jim Engh, Golf Digest’s ‘Architect of the Year 2003’, aligned this course along the channels of Richland Creek which rambles throughout the property and, much like creek, his design flows with constantly changing features, appearing mild at some points while dramatic, bold and wild at others.
Of particular note, and one that would no doubt bring a smile to Bobby Jones’ face, Engh constructed three separate and unique green complexes on the 18th, providing a variety of challenges each and every time the closing hole is played.
With such a great diversity of holes and courses to choose from, including the current development of the Plantation's seventh course, the Pete Dye-designed Richland Club, you’ll want to stay at Reynolds and play them all. Fortunately, the accommodation is just as good as the golf.
An exclusive meeting venue in the tradition of a grand American resort, The Lodge offers an exquisite blend of gracious southern charm and legendary Ritz-Carlton luxury. Tucked away on a secluded peninsula among the pines and draped in beds of ivy and blooming myrtles, The Lodge greets their guests with cordial bellhops in Argyle socks and knickers before they enter the soaring, beamed lobby reflecting the pre-Civil War and Native American heritage of the 4,000-hectare resort.
In addition to the 256 handsomely appointed guest rooms (each with a private balcony), The Lodge offers six, two-and-three bedroom golf cottages which feature spectacular lakeside accommodations complete with stone verandas, wood-burning fire places, wrap around porches and your own BBQ butler upon request.
Among countless other luxurious amenities are personal chiminea’s for cozy, starlight snuggling, an award-winning spa, fine dining, swimming pools, three full-service marinas, a new lakefront Lake Club, wellness centre and tennis complex.
at a glance
Getting there: Delta Airlines flies direct from Sydney to Los Angles with connecting flights to Atlanta and onto Augusta. Contact Global Aviation Services on (02) 9767 4333, e:mail
info@deltaairlinesaustralia.com.au or visit www.delta.com
Green fees: Great Waters. $205 for guests peak season, $135 non-peak.
National. $175 (PS), $115 (NP)
Oconee. $265 (PS), $155 (NP)
Plantation. $175 (PS), $115 (NP)
The Landing. $145 (PS), $105 (NP)
Creek Club. $106 peak season, $96 non-peak (for guests of members)Accommodation: The Ritz-Carlton Lodge, Reynolds Plantation has 256 well-appointed guest rooms and suites with resort and lake views, plus six two-and-three bedroom golf cottages.
Stay & Play package: The Reynolds Plantation Ultimate Golf Package. SUS249 per person, per night until March 13.
Off-peak only.
Contact: For more information, visit www.reynoldsplantation.com
All prices in US dollars.
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