Birdies and the Blues in Mississippi

by ed travis A lthough the best golf trips are all about spending time with friends, what else makes an ideal golf trip? The answer is easy -- in addition to golf, there should be good times and great food.

While many might not think of it at first, northwest Mississippi’s Delta region deserves a place high on everyone’s “mustgo” list. Bordering the Mississippi River, the Delta region runs south from Memphis for almost 200 miles to Vicksburg, Miss.

Golf on the Delta is plentiful and certainly in the “value category” with the highest 18-hole weekend rate we found being $65, but more likely you will see prices of $40 or less depending on the season.

Even golf fanatics, however, can’t play all day every day and we found lots to see and do. The Mississippi Delta is world famous as the birthplace of the blues, America’s unique contribution to music that grew out of songs played by slaves and after the Civil War by sharecroppers.

Blues music covers a spectrum of local flavor and regional styles, but all share a common characteristic – the expression of deep emotions ranging from joy to sadness, emotions which still connect with us today. Blues had a strong influence on New Orleans jazz, and in the 1930s and ‘40s spread around the country as musicians travelled by railroad from the Delta to cities further north, including Memphis, Chicago and St. Louis.

Growing up in the land of snow and taxes, Delta blues never appeared on my radar but a little research showed it was a primaThe best of the blues may be heard at Ground Zero Blues Club where actor Morgan Freeman is a part owner. Birdies and the Blues

During a recent weeklong visit to the Delta, we discovered blues history while stopping at many sites associated with its beginnings, such as the J.D. Williams Library at the University of Mississippi in Oxford and the Dockery Plantation outside Cleveland, Miss. In particular, Dockery is an excellent example of the venues where early Blues musicians played and can be rightfully called “The Birthplace of the Blues.” In Clarksdale, live blues music is heard 365 nights a year and we enjoyed Red’s Blues Club and the Ground Zero Blues Club where actor Morgan Freeman is a part-owner.

Several well-known authors also have strong ties to the Delta with John Grisham and William Faulkner at the head of the list. Touring Faulkner’s home, Rowan Oak in Oxford, provided an interesting view into the private world of this Nobel Prize laurate. No exploration of the Delta would be complete without time in the GRAMMY Museum in Cleveland or the Gateway to the Blues Museum in Robinsonville, but the truth is our time on the Delta only allowed us to barely scratch the surface of all to be seen and done.

And a short note about feeding the inner man. Experiencing the Shrimp and Original Grit Girl Grits (spicy cheese grits, sautéed shrimp with garlic, mushrooms, scallions, a little white wine, lemon juice and Big Bad bacon) as served by the City Grocery in Oxford was maybe worth the trip all by itself. But then it would be unfair to not mention the Memphis BBQ Company in Horn Lake where its World Championship baby back ribs draw natives and tourists alike.

Of the hotels we stayed in, The Graduate in Oxford and The Cotton House in Cleveland were favorites with the charming atmosphere of the old South and staffed by friendly and courteous employees.

The Delta golf courses we played started with the family owned Cherokee Valley Golf Club in Olive Branch. It is located a short drive from Memphis International Airport and has an interesting routing on and around a large slope. There are four sets of tees from 4,442-to-6,751 yards and

with 11 lakes the layout is lots of fun. We liked the generous width of the zoysia fairways, and the challenging speed of the Champion Bermuda greens.

Next was North Creek Golf Club located in Southhaven with a layout very reminiscent of a seaside course and members in our group commented on the extensive mounding, especially around the greens. A par-72 that plays from 4,559-to-6,433- yards, also has Champion Bermuda greens, however, the fairways are Mississippi Choice Bermuda. The course does have one very unusual feature – a tunnel that runs underneath the double green serving the 13th and 15th holes. It is believed this is the only time that has been done on any golf course in the world.

We were looking forward to playing the Ole Miss Golf Course owned by the University of Mississippi just two miles from the campus and weren’t disappointed. The “way-backs” naturally are played by the Ole Miss men’s golf team and measure 7,035 yards, but we played at a far more sensible 6,338 yards. Because of the terrain, some in the group even opted for the tees from 5,457 or 4,849 yards. One of the very clear memories from Ole Miss is the 18th hole, which measures a modest 321 yards from the white tees, but the last 150 are more than 40 feet uphill, making for a very difficult blind second shot. Next was River Bend Links, which is near the gambling casinos in Tunica, and self-billed as the only Scottish links course in the mid-south. The greens were impressively quick, and the layout has some kingsize carries from the back two sets of tees while the more forward sets are less stressful.

Finishing up our stay was a delightful day at the Tunica National Golf & Tennis course, which is even closer to the Tunica casinos than River Bend. This layout deserves its reputation as a great test for players of all skills, but with the entire Delta being virtually flat, don’t look for a lot of hills and valleys as the routing winds its way between the many lakes. Playing from the middle markers, my evaluation of Tunica was certainly colored by making two birdies on the front and then a birdie on the back plus an eagle on the par-5 16th.

Birdies and the blues make for a good time and build lasting memories. Cherokee Valley Golf Club www.olivebranchgolf.com North Creek Golf Club www.wwncgolf.com Ole Miss Golf Course https://bit.ly/37jAIEC River Bend Links Golf Course www.riverbendlinks.com Tunica National Golf & Tennis www.tunicanational.com Gateway to the Blues Museum https://bit.ly/38xCnGF Red’s Blues Club https://bit.ly/2uuIOvj Mississippi Blues Trail www.msbluestrail.org The Graduate www.graduatehotels.com Dockery Plantation www.dockeryfarms.org GRAMMY Museum www.grammymuseumms.org The Cotton House www.cottonhousecleveland.com City Grocery citygroceryonline.com/city-grocery Memphis BBQ www.memphisbbqco.com CONTACT INFORMATION: