Pebble Beach won’t see our shadow. Neither will Doral and certainly not Winged Foot. But Arizona, Utah and Wyoming will.

We’re on the road now. No, not on the run as in from the law. We are in transit from Arizona to Wyoming where we will spend the summer. Our route takes us along any road other than an Interstate. Our quest is always to find local public golf courses with two criteria: the first is that the course must be off the beaten cart path, little known except to local players. The second is that it must be reasonably priced. We realize that reasonably priced is obviously a subjective term, a qualification that has a different meaning to each golfer. But, despite the escalating cost of gasoline and the increase in hot air production from politicians, we feel you should be able to get a game for $25 for 18 holes walking. We always leave out the cart. If the course is not designed to be walked or does not allow walking, it needs to be converted into a housing development or a strip mall.

Now you might think that these two guidelines are not mutually exclusive and you would be right in many cases. In our travels throughout this great country, we have found that a majority of local courses has a sensible price point. Take Chamberlain Country Club in Missouri for instance. A nine hole course set in a small valley that will cost about $10 to walk. Or you can go visit the golf course in Benson, Utah and play that nine-hole we located on the site of an old Mormon fort for about $12. And what will you get for that low, low everyday price? A decent, fun golf course, fresh air and exercise, and really great people.

On the other hand, every once in a while we run into a small-town golf course that has not yet received the low price memo. Within the past couple of days we have encountered one of these in Payson, Arizona. The public course is compact, short with two sets of tees and the walking price is $34 – definitely not a good deal and thusly, definitely not on our golfing agenda.

The moral of the story: The height that your golf ball soars from the face of your driver is not determined by the price of your greens fee.

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