Successful Meetings - Nevada September 2013

so many inviting, glittering gaming choices that one doesn’t know where to begin.

It’s actually a great dilemma to have with golf course selection because the variety of options gives planners the opportunity to pick the course that best fits their group’s personality and demographics.

Planners should make sure to choose the hotel site with golf in mind.

“Many people don’t differentiate between a ‘private course’ and a ‘resort course,’” says Megyn Wolff, CEO of Vegas Events, Inc. “For example, some major hotels, such as the MGM Resorts International and Wynn and Encore, have their own course, which gives preferred access to their own hotel guests.

Should your group prefer these resort courses, it’s
best to book their stay at that resort for access.”
The 2,023-room New York-New York Las Vegas
Hotel & Casino offers guests opportunities to play
at three high-profile courses: Desert Pines, often
referred to as the “Pinehurst” of Vegas; Bali Hai Golf
Club, a scenic gem on the Strip with towering palm
trees, exotic foliage, and volcanic outcroppings;
and Royal Links, a tribute to Scottish golf with 11
replica holes from courses like the Old Course in
St. Andrews, Royal Troon, Carnoustie, Turnberry,
Muirfield, and Royal Birkdale.

If you want to play the Las Vegas Country Club, an historical, fully refurbished classic layout that originally opened in 1967, it’s conveniently located next to the 3,000-room Las Vegas Hotel & Casino.

Concierge and guest services staff at meeting-friendly hotels such as the 653-room Palms Casino Resort and 1,658-room Tropicana Las Vegas are familiar with the Las Vegas golf scene and can provide information and help arrange tee times.

A cursory perusal of other play possibilities on the menu include Angel Park Golf Club, a 36-hole public play complex with Arnold Palmer-designed golf and an onsite group event planner;

Badlands Golf Club, a collection of
three nine-hole desert-style courses
set in the Red Rock Canyons that can
accommodate groups up to 216; TPC
Las Vegas (formerly known at TPC
Canyons), a phenomenal desert course
designed by Bobby Weed and Raymond
Floyd that has hosted Champions Tour
Events; and Siena Golf Club, a daily-fee
course with stunning
mountain views.

Nobody does upscale golf like Las Vegas. For those who want to play in posh, verdant, impeccably maintained settings and enjoy the ultimate private club experience, the choices are outstanding.

Guests at the 3,933-room Bellagio have access to the uber-private Shadow Creek Golf Club in North Las Vegas. One of the most opulent and expensive courses ever built anywhere, Shadow Creek is a magnificent masterpiece designed by Tom Fazio. Instead of a desert golf experience, Fazio created a spectacular, lush parkland environment with manmade lakes, waterfalls, gardens, hundreds of varieties of trees, and exotic birds.

If groups stay at a Caesars Entertainment property (Caesars Palace, Flamingo Las Vegas, Harrah’s Las Vegas, Nobu Hotel, Paris Las Vegas, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, and Planet Hollywood) they’re afforded special access to two opulent layouts, Cascata and Rio Secco Golf Club.

Designed by Rees Jones, Cascata is a one-of-a-kind golf experience with deep canyon walls framing each hole, natural rock outcroppings, stunning manmade water features, and a plush, Tuscan-style clubhouse.

Rio Secco, also designed by Rees Jones, set at the foothills of the Black Mountain Range, is three courses in one, with six holes in steep canyons, six holes on a plateau overlooking Las Vegas, and six holes in broad desert terrain.

OTHER OPTIONS

The Reno/Sparks/Tahoe area in the western part of the state near the California state line has quietly evolved as a golf mecca as well.

There are more than 50 courses within 90 minutes of Reno, highlighted by layouts like

TaylorMade For You

The TaylorMade Golf Experience, an innovative golf shopping, club fitting, and event venue, will debut in October on Las Vegas Boulevard, south of the Strip.

At the space formerly occupied by the Callaway Golf Center, this new remodeled complex will encompass 4,500 square feet of retail space featuring TaylorMade golf equipment and its related product brand lines Adidas and Ashworth, as well as two state-of-the-art fitting bays. During the remodeling period, other amenities will be open such as the driving range, golf academy, a restaurant, and a nine-hole, par- 3 course called the “Divine Nine.”

“The TaylorMade Golf Experience will be a world-class facility in every way,” says Julian Dugas, director of sports marketing for the Las Vegas Convention Visitors Authority.