Michigan Golf Journal May 2020

RTJ Trail in Alabama It’s Hard to Beat Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Trail By Dave Daubert It seems every state has some sort of golf trail, but the granddaddy and the very best is the Robert Trent Jones (RTJ) Golf Trail in Alabama, a collection of 26 jaw-dropping beautiful courses at 11 different sites from Muscle Shoals in the northwest to the Gulf Coast in the south. I recently took a whirlwind tour of a few of the locations and was overwhelmed by the sheer beauty and diversity of the courses, the hospitality of everyone associated with the trail and the incredible value for so much memorable golf. When the Trail opened, Alabama was attracting about $2 billion annually from tourism; that number is now close to $15 billion. I began my Trail experience at Hampton Cove in Huntsville, a 54-hole facility with two drastically different championship-caliber courses and an 18-hole par 3 course. The Highlands course is a Scottish links- style design complete with flowing fescue bordering the fairways with two dynamic finishing holes. Highlands stretches out to 7,428 yards and has four sets of tees. In complete contrast, the River course laid out on a former soybean farm in the flood plain of the Flint River has 16 holes with water that comes into play. Its saving grace – zero bunkers – not a spec of sand. The River is a throwback to the bygone days when very little dirt was moved to construct a golf course. The short (Editor’s note: this golf trail was chosen due to its combination golf and Spa amenities.) Continues on next page >> Photo by Jonathan Hoomes