West Virginia 2008 Official State Travel Guide - (Page 52) REPORTS GOLF COURSE ROUNDUP by Dale Leatherman Wild West Virginia From left to bottom right: Twisted Gun Golf Course at Wharncliffe , Pipestem Resort State Park at Pipestem and the Palmer Course at Speidel Golf Club at Oglebay . i h d FIVE GREAT PLACES to Play for Under $50 Having a great golf experience doesn’t have to be expensive. Here are five courses where you enjoy an entertaining test of golf without breaking the bank. Locust Hill Golf Course, Charles Town This Eastern Panhandle course offers a country club experience at bargain prices. Incorporating 35 acres of lakes, ponds and streams, the layout has water hazards on 11 holes. Keeping your ball dry and in play is not easy. IF YOU GO: $38 weekdays or $35 weekends after 2 p.m. For more information, call 304-728-7300. f The Highlands Golf Club, Franklin The state’s newest course is also its best bargain. Surrounded by 700 acres of forest, the club is blissfully isolated, but easily accessible. Architect Bill Ward, whose portfolio includes Virginia’s Meadows Farms, has given us a scenic, hilly layout with cleverly contoured greens. It’s groomed to perfection, and the clubhouse is spacious and comfortably elegant. IF YOU GO: $35 weekdays, $40 weekends. For more information, call 304-358-2261. Pipestem Resort State Park, Pipestem Another great value, Pipestem has a cunning par-three course where you can sharpen your short game before tackling the main venue. A classic Geoffrey Cornish design, the rolling layout edges along the rim of the Bluestone Gorge. IF YOU GO: Main course, $25 weekdays, $30 weekends, or $18 Nov. 1 - March 31; par-three course, $21 year-round. For more information, call 800-CALL WVA. g h The Highlands Golf Club, Franklin . g Twisted Gun Golf Course, Wharncliffe Even though it’s miles from the ocean, Twisted Gun evokes the links experience with its treeless expanses and tall grasses rippling in the breeze. It’s on a reclaimed mountaintop flattened by mining, but the aerial views remind me of the barren but stunning Cape Kidnappers course in New Zealand – and that says a lot. IF YOU GO: $40 weekdays, $45 weekends. For more information, call 304-664-9100. i Palmer Course at Speidel Golf Club, Oglebay Resort & Conference Center, Wheeling If you take advantage of the twilight rates, you enjoy a visual treat as the shadows enhance Arnold Palmer’s bunkers, mounds and large, sculpted greens. The 6,725-yard length is deceptive, as are the generous fairways. If you stray, the rough and the hazards are severe. d IF YOU GO: $37 after 3 p.m. Sun.-Thurs., $42 Fri.-Sat. after 3 p.m. For more information, call 800-624-6988. 52 1 - 8 0 0 - C A L L W VA
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