GREENSBORO, Ga. -- Only North Carolina's Pinehurst Resort (eight courses) and New Jersey's Crystal Springs Golf Resort (seven courses) offer more holes of resort golf than Georgia's Reynolds Lake Oconee. Only 18 of Reynolds Lake Oconee's 117 holes are private.
Jim Engh's Creek Club remains off-limits to those golfers staying at the posh Ritz-Carlton Lodge, Reynolds Lake Oconee. Resort guests will run out of time, though, before they run out of choices in this golf mecca located halfway between Atlanta and Augusta. Nearly every golf course has been refreshed since MetLife bought the golf resort community out of receivership in 2012.
The Great Waters Course by Jack Nicklaus makes the best use of Lake Oconee, offering up spectacular views and some nerve-wracking carries over water. The National Course's 27 holes by Tom Fazio will reopen in spring of 2014 with new Champion Bermuda greens, renovated bunkers and trees removed for aesthetic purposes. The Landing looks refreshed after a full renovation in 2012-13 upgraded the bunkers, added front tees on eight holes, planted decorative grasses to better define fairways and redesigned the 15th hole, a project led by original architect Bob Cupp (who also designed The Plantation Course). In 2013 the Oconee Course by Rees Jones underwent a similar conversion to Champion Bermuda greens, along with an extensive tree-removal program.
Armed with the Reynolds Kingdom of Golf presented by TaylorMade, spearheaded by renowned instructor Charlie King, Reynolds Lake Oconee just might be the most versatile golf resort in America.
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Bob Cupp designed The Plantation golf course at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Ga. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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The Reynolds Kingdom of Golf presented by TaylorMade can get golfers a full set of custom-fit clubs in a single day. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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The Landing at Reynolds Lake Oconee -- including holes 4-5 -- is the original golf course on Lake Oconee. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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Charlie King (right) runs the highly respected Reynolds Kingdom of Golf presented by TaylorMade. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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Only members get access to play the 18th hole of the Creek Club at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Georgia. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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The National is Reynolds Lake Oconee's only 27-hole course. The eighth hole on the Bluffs nine is lush and green. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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The 16th green on the Oconee golf course at Reynolds Lake Oconee is protected by a stream. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
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Almost the entire back nine of Great Waters at Reynolds Lake Oconee, including hole 14, brings Lake Oconee into play. Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee
