The River Golf Club is located just a few miles from Augusta National, and it's a favorite spot for patrons who attend the Masters and want to bring along their golf clubs. But you better book way in advance during Masters week. Tee times are a little easier to get during the other 51 weeks, and it's a terrific playing option for golfers any time of year, Mike Bailey writes.
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The River Golf Club is one of those admirable golf courses risen, literally, from the rubbish heap. It sits on the site of an abandoned railroad yard and former illegal dump, a 5-iron over the Savannah River from Augusta, Ga. Despite the proximity of the mighty Savannah River, the only water that comes into play are the lakes, ponds and impenetrable marsh that lie inland.
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Golfers making the trek to the 2004 Masters will find affordable, under-hyped golf just beyond the shadow of golf's Sistine Chapel. The Aiken/North Augusta area is home to a respectable collection of pay for play tracks that attract loyal followers from as far away as Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and Canada. A quaint retirement town, Aiken is a little slice of golf heaven in the Southeast.
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Clearing the cobwebs from one's head from a solid night of imbibing is as much a part of a golf road trip as greasy spoon diners and gas station coffee. And true to form, that is exactly where the head clearing began on this morning. The Capital Café in Columbia is just a chip shot from the state capital, and serves up plenty of comfort food in a 1950's style atmosphere.
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Tall pines line each fairway. The greens are elevated and protected by prodigious bunkers. Lush doglegged fairways reward accurate shots and penalize the errant strike. These are the hallmarks of the Cedar Creek Golf Club near Aiken, South Carolina. This Arthur Hills design will test the skills of the finest shotmakers. Forget bump-and-run here; you either fly it to the green or you are more than likely staring at the near vertical face of a five-feet deep sand trap.
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Water. For some golfers, that word strikes fear in their hearts. If that's your case, you might want to approach The River Golf Club in North Augusta, South Carolina like a Stephen King novel; embrace the fright, realize it's only a golf ball at stake, and enjoy. This 18-hole Jim Fazio design is set in the floodplains of the Savannah River, directly across the waterway from downtown Augusta, Georgia.
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