How You Can Play The Best PGA Tour Golf Courses
If you're someone who has followed the PGA Tour through the years, then you will instantly recognise many of the venues that are featured each season. Whether you love the West Coast or the Florida Swing, everyone has their favourite part of the schedule, where you see the courses that most resonate with your sensibilities and offer incredible drama.
However, you will also likely be aware that it can be extremely difficult to gain access to private clubs in the United States, meaning that the vast majority of revered major championship hosts are simply inaccessible for the average visiting golfer - not even Augusta National, as heartbreaking as that reality may be.
That said, of the regular list of layouts that are showcased each year, there are some notable ones that you can play, which is an opportunity that our travel partners Golfbreaks can help to make happen for you.
Whether you have the desire to embark on your own Players Championship experience or wish to walk in the footsteps of legendary US Open champions, then here is how you could play some of the best golf courses on the PGA Tour.
TPC Sawgrass
Home to The Players Championship since 1982, the Stadium Course was designed by Pete and Alice Dye, and it has undeniably established an iconic reputation during the ensuing decades. Perhaps best known for its closing three holes that are fraught with peril, the par 3 17th has become one of the most famous and memorable on the planet.
It's a challenging layout that offers a range of unforgettable shots. And it's thankfully open to the public, with the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa being a great base from which to play both the Stadium Course and its sibling Dye Valley Course, which itself is a fine test of golf.
UK Golfers - Packages start from £1,275pp on Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $1,159pp on Golfbreaks.
Bay Hill
It became Arnold Palmer's home from home, and the King's legacy hangs over every blade of grass at Bay Hill Club & Lodge, which has become renowned as being among the most testing examinations on the PGA Tour. We can all recall the many victories of Tiger Woods - often secured in thrilling fashion on the 18th green - and it has remained one of the most alluring events on the circuit.
There are three 9-hole loops at Bay Hill, with the Champion and Challenger nines being the stage for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. If you wanted to travel to nearby Orlando, then one of the 70 bedrooms located at Bay Hill could be yours for a truly fabulous stay.
UK Golfers - Packages start from £759pp on Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $489pp on Golfbreaks.
Harbour Town
Located on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, Harbour Town Golf Links is widely regarded as being one of the finest courses on the PGA Tour schedule, traditionally hosting many of the world's best players the week after the Masters. Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus collaborated on this design, and the result was a layout that demands pinpoint accuracy, with narrow fairways and small greens being its defence.
That said, the unmistakable closing hole is certainly not narrow - it's one of the widest fairways you will ever see!
UK Golfers - Packages are for a minimum of five nights and three rounds, with prices available on enquiry at Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $899pp on Golfbreaks.
Pebble Beach
When you draw up a list of the best-known golf courses in existence, Pebble Beach will be close to the summit. It has become famed for hosting the PGA Tour each February and has welcomed several major championships during its lifetime, including many a US Open and PGA Championship.
Positioned on the Monterey Peninsula and laid out across a breathtaking piece of land that hugs the Pacific Ocean, the vistas are simply mesmerising and the shots you are faced with are intoxicating. Every golfer can instantly call the short par 3 7th and the stunning closing par 5.
UK Golfers - Packages start from £1,789pp on Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $2,115pp on Golfbreaks.
TPC Scottsdale
The WM Phoenix Open is the most raucous event in professional golf, but there is more to TPC Scottsdale than just the large crowds and loud atmosphere. It's a tremendous layout, highly playable but with enough intrigue to satisfy even the most accomplished of golfers.
Alongside the more famous 18-holes, there is the Champions Course too, in addition to many other venues throughout this corner of Arizona, with Scottsdale itself being a wonderful city to visit.
UK Golfers - Packages are for a minimum of three nights and three rounds, with prices available on enquiry at Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from £405pp on Golfbreaks.
PGA National
The Champion Course at PGA National - which was designed by Jack Nicklaus - has been a regular host of a PGA Tour event for many years, and it previously staged the Ryder Cup and PGA Championship. The 'Bear Trap' is a feared stretch of holes that stand as the highlight of what is a fantastic resort in the Palm Beach area of South Florida.
PGA National Resort houses 339 modern and comfortable rooms, with a variety of options available for any size of group.
UK Golfers - Packages are for a minimum of five nights and three rounds, with prices available on enquiry at Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $799pp on Golfbreaks.
Torrey Pines
When you think of the 15 major championships that Tiger Woods has won, the 2008 US Open is definitely among the most precious given the extraordinary physical obstacles that he had to overcome. Torrey Pines also has a special place in Jon Rahm's heart as he claimed his maiden major title on this scenic landscape on the outskirts of San Diego, California.
The PGA Tour has been coming here for decades in what is now called the Farmers Insurance Open, competing across both the North and South Courses, the latter of which is the centrepiece of this esteemed public facility.
UK Golfers - Packages start from £2,325pp on Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $1,249pp on Golfbreaks.
Innisbrook Golf Resort
Situated close to Tampa International Airport, Innisbrook is perhaps an underrated stop on the PGA Tour's Florida Swing. The Copperhead Course is a testing layout - staging the Valspar Championship each spring - with its 'Snake Pit' finishing holes ranking among the most difficult on the professional scene.
Now, you could take on that challenge yourself, in addition to playing the other superb courses at the resort, with there also being a fine collection of restaurants at the venue to ensure a rewarding stay beyond just the golf.
UK Golfers - Packages start from £869pp on Golfbreaks.
US Golfers - Packages start from $465pp on Golfbreaks.
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