Ancala

"Matt likes to joke with pitchers that since, unlike them, he's a real player, he doesn't get to go out and play golf four out of every five days," writes Behmer. Living in Paradise Valley, northeast of Phoenix, Williams has plenty of options for a round. In this week's spotlight article, Williams talks about a few of his favorite courses, including The Raven at South Mountain (where he often tees it up with former Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Roy Green) and the Ancala Country Club in Scottsdale. Both courses should be on your must-play list if you're heading to the Valley of the Sun this month for spring training. Behmer helps out with this description of Ancala: "Set in the foothills of the McDowell Mountains, this Pete Dye-designed desert course offers a peaceful atmosphere, picturesque views, lush fairways, and slick, smooth greens." Sounds like the perfect pre-game appetizer.

GolfFlorida.com:
A True Challenge in the Heart of Venice

Related Links • This Week at TravelGolf.com (Feb. 5-11) • Past articles by Douglas Carey

If the Grapefruit League is your destination, be sure to check out GolfFlorida.com staff writer Joe Bruno's review of the Lake Venice Golf Club, a municipal facility adjacent to tiny Venice Airport. Unfortunately, Bruno says there's plenty of better options during your spring training vacation: "As with most municipal courses, the staff at Lake Venice Lakes could use a class or two at a local charm school. Friendly and accommodating they're not." You can't call in advance for tee times here, and the service definitely leaves something to be desired. Lest you think Bruno didn't like anything about the course, consider his comments about the layout: "The course itself is not so bad, except for the greens, which are excruciating slow, with bumps and grinds on the green and blotches of sand stopping your putts as if they were stuck in glue, or rolling in mud." On second thought, you may just want to take in a double-header instead of spending the morning at Lake Venice.

GolfArizona.com:
Many Chances for Ambush in the Desert

	No. 18 at the Talon (Grayhawk)

Back in the Cactus League, the golf is about as consistently great as Alex Rodriguez's glovework. Senior writer David R. Holland takes us to another great escape at the Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale. In addition to an amusing anecdote about Phil Mickelson and Tim Herron, Holland offers his expert opinions on Grayhawk's two challenging daily-fee golf courses (Talon and Raptor). "Hosting 80,000 rounds a year, you know Grayhawk is a popular spot," writes Holland, who gives Grayhawk an A grade. "The Talon Course features elevated greens that are extremely large and undulating with water hazards on two holes and impressive views of the McDowell Mountains and the Phoenix Valley." Be sure to catch another of Grayhawk's anecdotes at the end of the review. This one's about Gary McCord. 'Nuff said.

GolfCalifornia.com:
Parnevik Prepares for Hope Defense

	Jesper Parnevik

Of course, not everyone heads out to spring training during the first week. Perhaps you're driving out to Palm Springs for this week's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic (Feb. 12-18) at the Arnold Palmer Private Course at PGA West. The other courses being used in the $3.5 million tournament are Bermuda Dunes Country Club, Indian Wells Country Club and La Quinta Country Club. Our tournament coverage begins with a question-and-answer session with defending champion Jesper Parnevik, who talks about his new baby, his recovery from offseason surgery, and the Ryder Cup. He also expresses high hopes of winning the Masters this year: "I really want to do well at Augusta. It should fit me well. It's very mind-boggling and can frustrate you. I might be too aggressive there and it can be penalizing."

GolfArizona.com:
One of the Best in Phoenix

Fittingly, we'll wrap up this week's spring training travel guide in Phoenix with a visit to the Wildfire Golf Club, designed by Arnold Palmer and built in 1987. GolfArizona.com staff writer Henrik Berezin says you can't ask for a better location for a golf course. While situated in the rugged Sonoran desert, with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains, it's only 16 miles from downtown Phoenix and 10 miles from downtown Scottsdale. Berezin says Wildfire's classic design helps make the course a true destination. "The greens at Wildfire are fairly big and very receptive. And more importantly, they're in great shape." Intentions are for Wildfire to become as popular and well known as its more famous neighbors, Grayhawk, Troon North and the TPC. So far, it appears Wildfire is well on its way.

From the Rough

	Pelican Pointe

In case you missed last week's report, be sure to catch GolfFlorida.com staff writer Joe Bruno's review of the Pelican Pointe Golf & Country Club in Venice, which enjoys an average annual temperature of 75 degrees. For golfers in the northeast part of the country, that must sound like heaven. You won't get a heavenly experience at Pelican Pointe, but Bruno says the course is well worth a visit. That said, you'll definitely want to bring a few extra balls to the course. "To a 20-handicap or more duffer, Pelican Pointe is highly challenging and too often darn intimidating," writes Bruno, who notes that the par-four, 338-yard finishing hole may be one of the most difficult in Sarasota County. "The bottom line is that it is a comely course and quite difficult to play," Bruno writes. "Expert golfers will not complain too much, because after all, challenging golf is what real hardcore duffers desire anyway. But whackers and hackers beware."

As always, if you disagree with our reviewers on a certain course or just want to sound off about Tiger's views on the PGA Tour, be sure to visit the TravelGolf.com forum, a series of message boards where visitors can write about everything from the Myrtle Beach golf scene to new equipment. There's also a free classifieds section where golfers can advertise that old set of clubs they've been meaning to sell for years. And if you haven't checked it out already, be sure to visit the new TravelGolf.com Pro Shop, a joint venture with The Golf Warehouse. With all of this at TravelGolf.com, there's no need to go anywhere else on the Web.

Until next week...happy golfing!