Diversity is the key to golf in North Carolina - diversity of courses and terrain and temperatures and temperament. Planning the perfect golf trip starts with appreciating the state's many twists and turns.

Start on the coast and work your way west. You can't go wrong relaxing on the Outer Banks for most of the year. Long a destination for vacationers, the string of islands is quickly becoming a haven for golfers, with championship-caliber courses like the Carolina Club in Grandy, Sea Scape Golf Links in Kitty Hawk and the Country Club of Landfall, with golf courses designed by Jack Nicklaus and Pete Dye, just south in Wilmington.

If the beach isn't your thing, head inland to the Sandhills, making sure to stop in Pinehurst, a must-golf destination for pros and amateurs alike. There are 43 courses in the Pinehurst/Southern Pines/Aberdeen area, the most famous of which are the eight courses at Pinehurst Golf & Country Club, home of the 1999 and 2005 U.S. Opens and the 2008 U.S. Amateur Championship. Or "settle" for Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, home of the 2007 U.S. Women's Open.

Venture on to the Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill Triangle, an area known for its universities and medical research facilities. And what do doctors and college students have in common? A need to unwind. Relax at the Governors Club, a 27-hole Nicklaus design in Chapel Hill, or Treyburn Country Club in Durham, a Hale Irwin course.

Looking for a retreat away from the big city? Don't forget the Tom Fazio-designed Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point on Badin Lake in New London, 40 miles from Charlotte. Or man up, hit the traffic, and check out some of the Charlotte courses, like the Donald Ross-designed Charlotte Country Club, Arnold Palmer's TPC at Piper Glen or Quail Hollow Country Club, home of the annual Wachovia Championship.

If you start at the beach, you should end in the North Carolina mountains, the land of great summer weather, outstanding views and better golf. Grandfather Golf & Country Club in Linville is a mountain institution and Elk River Club in Banner Elk is another Nicklaus design. Also, don't forget the Wade Hampton Golf Course, a Fazio design in tiny Cashiers, and the Grove Park Inn Resort in Asheville, one of the few hotels that can boast both Tiger Woods and Houdini as former visitors.

North Carolina Golf