Featured Golfer's Guide Golf Courses and Golf Resorts

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Sometimes it pays to have spent 80-odd years as a muni.

Designed by Donald Ross in 1925, the Biltmore Golf Course served the Miami area for decades as both stellar municipal track and playground to a parade of sporting celebrities, from Babe Ruth to Bobby Jones to Johnny Weismuller to Tiger Woods.

The course fell into disrepair late in the 20th century. In this case, however, it was better to have been neglected than irretrievably altered. Thanks to architect Brian Silva, whose comprehensive restoration of the course was unveiled this winter, the Biltmore GC has again joined the ranks of America’s premier resort tracks. 

During the days of westward expansion, settlers descended upon Carson City intent on mining for precious minerals, silver in particular. Today, Nevada's state capital is a hub of history proudly displaying its Wild West record.

To the east, large swaths of desert mark the treacherous terrain settlers had to endure to reach the city. To the west, the breathtaking Sierra Nevada Mountains loom as a gateway to the Pacific. The remnants of a storied past remain but are now joined by the trappings of modern consumerism, like Wal-Mart and McDonald's. 

A $16.5 million renovation project has transformed struggling Galveston Municipal Golf Course into the new Moody Gardens Golf Course, a par-72 layout expected to rank as one of the best public courses in Texas rivaling the state’s finest municipal venues.

Opened in early June, Moody Gardens is the culmination of a two-year project undertaken by the City of Galveston, the Moody Foundation and Moody Gardens intent on making the 32-mile-long, 2-mile wide south Texas island more attractive to traveling golfers while giving residents a reason not to leave home.