Best Golf Courses Near Gulf Shores, AL
Located 33 miles west of Pensacola, Florida at the southernmost reaches of Alabama, lovely Gulf Shores, Alabama is a resort destination with 32 miles of white sand beaches on the Gulf of Mexico. Sun, surf, sand and numerous golf courses are an open invitation for golfers to come for a prolonged visit. Gulf Shores became a bonafide golf destination in the late 1980s when Craft Farms Resort opened its two Arnold Palmer-designed golf courses. Cotton Creek is a traditional-style layout, while Cypress Bend presents a links-style game. The two Craft Farms 18s were preceded by Gulf Shores Golf Club, the area’s first course, which opened in 1963. Large bunkers and lots of water add bite to this popular, straightforward layout that offers good value, especially when tee time discounts can be had. Gulf Shores’ top two courses earn raves from Golf Advisor for being among Alabama’s very best layout and, better still, they both also offer tee time discounts. At the 27-hole Peninsula Golf Club, the Lakes nine is the shortest but it features a signature hole on Mobile Bay and water on every hole; the Cypress nine skirts a nature preserve and presents the easiest challenge; and the Marsh nine is the longest and widest at the club. Kiva Dunes, a formidable course with enormous bunkers and large sandy areas guarding its generous fairways, is Gulf Shores’ marquee layout—Golf Advisor rated it #1 in Alabama from 2016-2018. It frequently is a Golf Advisor “Golfer’s Choice” award winner and it also has earned kudos for being one of the country’s best conditioned courses. After golf, your options are all good. Some of the more popular activities are: the beach; deep sea or back-bay fishing; birdwatching and exploring nature at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge; visiting the family-friendly Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo; or touring Fort Morgan State Historic Site, a fort that played a key role in the 1864 Battle of Mobile Bay. Then again, with so many good golf courses close at hand, you may just want to make another tee time.