Looking for the perfect gift for a golfer? Give them more golf

It’s likely you woke up this morning to an in-box full of Black Friday golf deals. Everything from training gadgets to golf clubs, novelty items to the latest quarter-zips. There are a few things among the offerings that I, a frequent golf traveler, would love to have. Other things, I would never ask my family to pick out for me as a Christmas gift. 

Want to get a loved one a golf gift and don’t know where to start? Here’s the secret: Don’t buy that golf nut a nutty golf present. We don’t want cutesy socks, a funny hat or an on-the-toilet putting game. What we want is more golf – not golf things, but rounds of golf.

How do you gift that? Start with Golfweek’s Best ranking of the top 100 public-access courses in the United States. There is likely a golf course on that list within a couple hour’s drive of your home. If not, check out Golfweek’s Best ranking of the top public-access golf courses in each state for further shopping. 

Many of the golf courses on those lists offer gift cards. If your preferred course doesn’t, then just write the name of the course on a nice piece of stationary, stick it in an envelope or a little gift box, and put it under the tree. Consider it to be an I-O-U. The golfer will know what it means: He or she is owed a round of golf they won’t soon forget. I promise, the golfer will be thrilled. 

Sound too expensive? It’s true, many of the courses on these lists cost hundreds of dollars, some even more. But there are also many ranked course that can be played for less than $200 or even less than $100. In an era when a nice new golf-themed baseball hat can cost north of $50, great rounds of golf can still be a bargain.