The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes
Are you a dedicated weekend golfer who wrote “correct my overswing” at the top of your 2014 New Year’s resolution list? Maybe you’re a beginner who can’t tell a putter from a pitching wedge? Whatever the case, grab a friend and tee off with this trio of women-centric golf getaways as part of your training plan.
The Greenbrier Faldo Golf Center, The Greenbrier
With women accounting for nearly half of the golfers it hosts each year, this property’s golf instruction center and three courses — options range from the classic Old White TPC Course to the picturesque Meadows Course — naturally cater to ladies. The golf center conducts daily clinics and has half- and three-day schools for aspiring players. For fans of the game’s history, and those in the mood for something really different, the West Virginia escape has a fourth layout, Oakhurst Links, that is actually the first course ever designed and built in America. Though the first Oakhurst tournament was back in 1888, female golfers today still wear gauzy skirts and billowing hats from the late 19th century (men sport tall socks and ties) and use hickory-shafted clubs and sand-and-water tees on the links to this day.
Indaba Spa
Ladies Ultimate Golf Institute, Innisbrook, A Salamander Resort
Offered five times per year (the next session tees off April 10-13), this intensive four-day program is for clubbers of all skill levels and provides computer swing analysis, course-side instruction and much more. The Tampa-area Recommended resort’s commitment to training women runs deep: Dawn Mercer, the director of instruction at the Innisbrook Golf Academy, was named one of America’s Top 50 instructors by now-defunct Golf for Women Magazine. Though schedules are loaded with classes, there will still be ample free time to enjoy treatments at Indaba Spa (an 80-minute sports massage will sound great after a morning of swinging from the rough) and nosh on veal chops and seafood at Packard’s Steakhouse.
Girlfriends’ Golf and Spa Getaway, The Ritz-Carlton Orlando, Grande Lakes
Book two nights at this Four-Star resort with your favorite gal pals and experience a spectacular, 7,127-yard course designed by two-time British Open champion Greg Norman, and receive a special rate that includes two rounds of golf, massages, breakfast and a golf shop credit. Upgrade to the Caddie Concierge Program and secure a personal attendant for your round who provides golf ball location, course navigation and tips, and golf club cleaning. If the kids are in tow, those up to 17 can play free with each paying adult.
Photos Courtesy of The Ritz Carlton Hotel Company LLC and Earl Kogler
