Up the coast at Kiawah in South Carolina, the public gets a bit more access. It's a gated community, but some of the restaurants at the Sanctuary at Kiawah are open to the public; so are five layouts, including the famed Ocean Course. What you won't get by staying at the Sanctuary is the chance to play the island's two private courses, Cassique and River. As an owner, though, you'll have no shortage of golf, perhaps at the two private courses (if you buy a home with a membership or if you go on a waiting list). There's also the Governor's Club, open only to residents, which provides reduced green fees at all five public-access courses.

At Barton Creek in Austin, Texas, which has 23 homes available for a one-thirteenth fractional ownership (you get 27 days a year), those fractional owners get full country club privileges and more: They can make tee times 45 days in advance (as opposed to 30 for resort guests) and they are not required to use forecaddies, as hotel guests must. For someone like Wayne Rose, a 55-year-old partner at Deloitte & Touche in Dallas, the fractional ownership concept was a great deal since he's still working and doesn't want to have to pay for a home he's only going to be able to use when he's on vacation. And as part of Barton Creek's Owner's Club, Rose can visit four other vacation sites, including the Homestead.

Building a community Rather than having to play catch up, developers are choosing now to include a full-service hotel and spa along with the homes they're building right from the start. That's true at Suncadia, a new resort on the eastern slopes of the Cascades, about a 75-minute drive east of Seattle, that's projected to open in 2010. Built on 6,300 acres on the Cle Elum River, Suncadia will have three courses—one of them, Tom Doak's Tumble Creek, will be private—expansive swimming and fitness facilities, a spa, plus a 180-room hotel, the Lodge at Suncadia, as part of Suncadia Village.

"The Lodge will make the Village a lot more lively, which in turn makes it that much more attractive for residential home owners to go and have dinner," says Alex Hillinger, Suncadia's director of communications. "It won't feel the way a lot of country clubs feel, which is kind of empty. We're going to have a day life and a night life and we think it will be a really big draw and probably have a big impact on property values."

In the end, your best resource while checking out any one of these resort communities is the residents themselves. That's probably the best reason of all to get out on the golf course or hiking trails. Mary and Tom Wojnas both serve as "property ambassadors" at Reynolds, where they counsel prospective buyers without making them feel the same pressure a salesman might.

They'll also tell you there's very little at Reynolds that you don't get access to when staying at the Ritz. You won't be able to play the new members-only Jim Engh-designed course when it opens in early 2007, and out at the Lake Club, you can only use the tennis courts at the state-of-the-art health club with its incredible views of Lake Oconee.

Otherwise, a stay at the Ritz surely gives a visitor a great taste of what living at Reynolds would be like. When you're making a decision as important as this one, you need to take all the time you can. As Bill Houghton puts it, "You really have to seriously kick tires."

With the right connections, a whole new world of golf vacations can be yours. Just ask Chuck Busse. He has been part of an eight-player group from Richmond, Virginia, that has made numerous trips to the Forest Creek Golf Club, a private golf community near the Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina. Through a member, Busse and his buddies skip the usual hotel or resort experience, opting instead for a luxury cottage on the property, which boasts 37 holes designed by Tom Fazio.

They bed down in one of 10 four- to eight-bedroom homes, which are owned by members and rented to guests. "The whole experience is incredible," says Busse. "We have great access to the club and course, the cottages are comfortable and spacious and just being on the property is terrific."

Forest Creek is one of a growing number of clubs offering cottages for members and their guests. Some also offer concierge and catering services, even doing grocery shopping and preparing gourmet meals during your stay.

"After 36 holes, we come back to the cottage and the chef is there with a nice selection of heavy hors d'oeuvres," Busse says. "We have a nice meal and great wine and we don't have to run back to a hotel, get cleaned up and worry about dinner reservations. We pop in, take a shower and go back downstairs."

Each cottage at Forest Creek comes with a wide-screen media center, pool table, custom bar and card table. There are even lighted putting greens within a stone's throw. Reservations can be made six months in advance; members can sponsor guests to stay in the cottages but must accompany them to play golf.

At other clubs, like Horseshoe Bay Farms in northeast Wisconsin, you don't even need to know a member to stay in one of the two-bedroom suites overlooking the 10th hole.