Cupp and Snead, whose bust greets golfers at the first tee,
offered
variety in their design, from the driveable but narrow 324-yard 14th to
the 660-yard boomerang-shaped seventh, nicknamed “Big Duke.” Despite
its urban
setting, the layout is imbued with a natural feel—it’s
essentially a series of
fairways and greens set amid a sea of
marsh.
Measuring nearly 7,300 yards from the back tees and buffeted
by
winds off the adjacent rivers, Savannah Harbor can be physically and mentally
demanding. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Greenbrier Spa, patterned
after its
West Virginia namesake, offers a full menu of treatments,
including the
“Signature Greenbrier,” which begins with a soak in
sulphur crystals imported
from White Sulphur Springs, West
Virginia.
Savannah Harbor is open to daily-fee play, but the best
option is to
spend a few days soaking up the resort’s comforts and exploring the
rich historic district of Georgia’s first city, founded by James Edward
Oglethorpe in 1733. (Bonus tip: Hotel guests have access to Haig Point
Club, a
private 29-hole facility on nearby Daufuskie Island, South
Carolina.)
The Westin’s Aqua Star restaurant is a fine choice for
dinner,
especially if you’re looking for good seafood—try the creamy she crab
soup. Also be sure to stop by the Midnight Sun lounge, named for the
work of one
of Savannah’s famous sons, songwriter Johnny Mercer.
Mercer was roused to write one of his biggest hits, “Moon
River,”
while gazing at the waterway that ran behind his Burnside Island home
near Savannah. It seems all the rivers around here have a way of
inspiring.
