The Best Golf Trips You Can Drive to From Chicago
Chicago sits at the center of one of the best golf road-trip maps in the country. Here are the seven best drive-to golf trips, ranked by what you get...
Ryan Wilson17 min readAugust 6, 2026
Stories, tips, and guides from the world of golf and travel. 19 posts found.
Chicago sits at the center of one of the best golf road-trip maps in the country. Here are the seven best drive-to golf trips, ranked by what you get...
Ryan WilsonA mid-handicapper should carry 6 to 9 golf balls for 18 holes. Here is what the loss data, the Rules of Golf, and the cost math actually say about how...
Ryan WilsonThe average male golfer swings a driver about 93 to 94 mph, squarely in regular-flex range. Here is why most 15-handicaps play stiff by mistake, what...
Ryan WilsonFor a 10-to-20 handicap, a good score on a par 72 is a round in the 80s, and breaking 90 is the defining benchmark. Here is what the data actually say...
Ryan WilsonScottsdale in July averages 107°F highs, yet summer is when the desert's best courses get cheap. Here is exactly how hot it gets, whether it is safe,...
Ryan Wilson
EquipmentA rangefinder removes yardage guesswork, but the data does not show it lowers a mid-handicapper's score on its own. Here is the honest case, the rules...
Ryan Wilson
TravelThe cheapest time to book a golf trip is not one date on a calendar. It is traveling in your destination's off-season and booking flights, hotels, and...
Ryan Wilson
TravelMyrtle Beach is the value and variety pick (80+ courses, packages from about $209 per person); Pinehurst is the bucket-list pick (a Donald Ross stay-a...
Ryan Wilson
EquipmentA 15-handicap is the average male golfer, and real on-course data shows what that means club by club: about 236 yards with a driver and 155 with a 7-i...
Ryan Wilson
TravelA mainstream U.S. country club costs roughly $5,000–$50,000 to join and about $6,000 a year in dues, before food minimums, cart fees, and assessments....
Ryan Wilson
TravelA 3-night, 4-round U.S. golf trip runs about $520–$885 per person on a budget and $860–$1,435 mid-range. Here's the real line-by-line breakdown, a sam...
Ryan Wilson
EquipmentThe best irons for a 10–20 handicapper are forgiving, cavity-back game-improvement irons, not blades. Here's the loft data, a distance-by-handicap cha...
Ryan Wilson