A Trip to Southern Utah

Where do I begin…

Just last week, GolfTrip embarked on a journey to Southern Utah. With a quick pit stop in Las Vegas, we headed north through the desert, quickly watching as the landscape became more and more mountainous on our two-hour drive. As we breached the Utah border, the dirt and rock started to change color, showing shades of a deep and robust red. In what looked like Mars, we finally arrived at the town of St. George, Utah – home of America’s next golf mecca.

I’ve been lucky enough to play all over the world. I can honestly say, the golf here was some of the most unique, fun, and interesting courses I have ever seen. You’re probably thinking to yourself, how is this any different than Arizona golf? Well, it is. Mountain views on nearly every hole, the sun setting on the red rock, fairways carved into black lava (yes I said lava), St. George had it all. And the best part is, all of these courses were within 30 minutes from where we stayed. This was a setup you could not beat.

Over the next few weeks, I am going to deep dive into some of these courses, as I truly believe they are worthy of their own blog. But for now, here’s a quick teaser for each:

Copper Rock: This was our home course and it felt like home. The Copper Rock hospitality set the bar high. The golf course hosts luxury-style accommodations located right on the course. The second you walk into the Pro Shop you are welcomed. The course is a Championship course with breathtaking condition, layouts, and views of the Hurricane Cliffs.

Black Desert: Breathtaking. This brand-new course, which will soon host the PGA Tour, is a real treat. Service is absolutely impeccable here and the golf course blew my mind. The conditions were as close to PGA Tour level as possible and the looks this course gives you is something you’ve never seen before. Black lava engulfs the sides of every fairway as red rock mountains stare at you from a distance. This is one of the best courses I have ever played.

Sand Hollow: A course that arguably has one of the best back nines in the game. Sand Hollow is a playable course with extreme views. Some of the holes on the back nine scale the side of cliffs with crazy elevation changes. Get your camera out because your jaw will drop when you finish hole 10.

Other honorable mentions in the area include Coral Canyon and The Ledges, which are also within a very reasonable drive. The nice thing about a trip to St. George is that you pass all of the famous Mesquite, NV courses. We stopped and played Wolf Creek, which by the way was also one of the most insane courses I’ve ever played. If you want to play in Mesquite, Wolf Creek and Conestoga are worth it.

The best time to go to Southern Utah is definitely in the Fall. The week we went was 80 and sunny every day with temperatures getting cool enough at night for a fire (perfect). We also did a day at Zion National Park which was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. What really made this trip special outside of golf was the accommodations. We rented an absolutely beautiful luxury home for a great price. The house fit 11 people and had a grill, pool, hot tub, fireplace, and amazing amenities inside. There are many new homes going up in the area and they all are amazing.