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U.S. golf travelers have more choices than ever before when it comes to selecting their next golf trip.
Industry insiders like to say that the more high-quality golf courses and resorts a region offers, the better chances it has to attract golfers at scale that helps everyone not just survive but thrive. Competition, of course, is inevitable, especially for top resorts that attract the same demographic of high-end golfers.
These are golf's greatest regional resort rivalries - golf vacations so good that they often force potential customers to choose - us or them. We dive into the pros and cons of each:
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California's Pebble Beach Resorts vs. Oregon's Bandon Dunes Golf Resort
![Pebble Beach vs. Pacific Dunes]()
This is the only rivalry with such a vast distance between the two resorts, but make no mistake, these two are competing for the same type of golf travelers: the ones who love golf and are willing to pay whatever it takes to play at, arguably, America's top two golf resorts.
Bandon likely wins out for the buddies trip. It's got more courses, which also happen to cost less than their California counterparts. Pebble Beach punches back as the better option for couples, families and that once-in-a-lifetime experience sort of feel. Pebble boasts more consistent weather and more off-course touristy opportunities (such as visiting San Francisco) and other great courses nearby (Pasatiempo, etc.). Visiting Bandon Dunes tends to create a loyalty where groups go once and immediately plan to go back again.
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Destination Kohler/The American Club vs. Sand Valley in Wisconsin
![Sand Valley vs. The American Club]()
This is a battle between the establishment and the new era. Great times are possible at both thanks to gracious service, well-done food & beverage, excellent and varied accommodations and, of course, high-quality golf.
Established throughout the 1990s as the top golf resort in the Midwest, Destination Kohler and its owner, Herb Kohler, quadrupled down on the work of Pete Dye, letting the sometimes controversial but always exciting architect run wild with 72 holes split between two properties 10 miles apart: the forested Blackwolf Run and the totally manufactured lakeside links concept Whistling Straits. These contrasting sites make golfers feel like they have the run of two totally different golf environments on the same trip, which is something very few other golf resorts can offer. Distinct lodging options also contribute to a choose-your-own-adventure feel.
Whereas Kohler has the charm and infrastructure of a historic company town on its side, Sand Valley follows in the golf-first ethos and high standard set by Bandon Dunes. Its sprawling, contiguous property makes it feel like its own kingdom that has always and will always be about golf. It is an emerging golf community, but the super-low density approach makes it feel isolated and quiet in the best ways. It's also enormous - some 12,000 acres vast - so it feels like it's still in its infancy, which is an exciting thought considering the existence of four "big" golf courses, a short course and another on the way.
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Virginia's Omni Homestead Resort vs. West Virginia's The Greenbrier
![Greenbrier vs. Omni Homestead]()
This rivalry in the Allegheny Mountains has been ongoing for a century. It crosses state lines - West Virginia to Virginia - yet each place still claims the same golf legend as its own (Sam Snead). After millions of dollars spent in ongoing investments, these two historic, iconic properties should continue their friendly competition into the next century. The Greenbrier's advantages are more courses; an impressive resume of hosting professional golf events, from the PGA Tour to the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup; and a casino. Conversely, the Omni Homestead Resort wrapped up a $150-million renovation in 2023, so everything that's old looks polished again. Its Cascades Course remains on the USGA's short list of great amateur venues. It will host the 2025 U.S. Senior Women's Amateur and the 2029 U.S. Senior Amateur. The 6,100-yard Old Course - home to the oldest first tee in America - provides pure fun, where three par 5s in the first four holes makes starting the round under par a real possibility. Of the selections we've listed in this story, I'd say this is the one most likely to end in a tie.
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Cabot Citrus Farms vs. Streamsong in Florida
![Cabot Citrus Farms vs. Streamsong]()
This rivalry is in its infancy. Cabot Citrus Farms opened several courses last year with the accommodations coming online soon, making it one to watch. Both resorts offer something unique to Florida: modern golf architecture where sandy soil and the use of contours allows the ball to bounce everywhere.
Streamsong's trio of courses - Red, Black and Blue - and new 19-hole short course called The Chain have been designed by golf's hottest architects: Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw, Tom Doak and Gil Hanse. Cabot Citrus Farms has countered with Kyle Franz as the headliner on Karoo and a co-creator role with Mike Nuzzo on The Roost, which debuts in January 2025. Adding a second round of the day on Nuzzo's The Squeeze (a mid-sized 10-holer) or The Wedge (a night-lit, 11-hole short course) will make for a fun-filled 24 hours.
Cabot Citrus Farms will probably take the lead the next couple years as golfers who have already been to Streamsong give it a test drive. But come 2027, it will be interesting to see who grabs the pole position from there.
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Pinehurst Resort vs. Pine Needles Lodge/Mid Pines Inn in North Carolina
![Pinehurst vs. Pine Needles]()
If we're being honest, Pinehurst Resort - now an anchor site for the U.S. Open - has few peers when it comes to golf vacations. That makes this rivalry a little lopsided. Most golf groups visiting America's "Home of Golf" for the first time will stay and play at Pinehurst for as long as they can. There are 10 courses now, plus the wildly fun short course, The Cradle, so it might take two trips before golfers play them all. But savvy golf travelers who keep an eye on course ranking lists and read architecture-mad publications would know how the three Donald Ross courses across town at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club (host of four U.S. Women's Opens), Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club and Southern Pines are just as crucial to experiencing the true heartbeat of North Carolina's Sandhills.
The decision could come down to what you are looking for in a golf vacation. Pinehurst is a sprawling property with golfers everywhere. Its location within walking distance to the charming village and the sheer number of restaurants and accommodation options are its greatest strengths. Staying at the Pine Needles Lodge or Mid Pines Inn - sister properties across the street from one another - will deliver a more intimate weekend where you will get to know every employee's name. We like the Inn for its creaking floors and old-school vibes, while the chalets at Pine Needles are probably better for buddies trips.
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