SILVIES VALLEY SENECA, OREGON

Oregon again? Sure—the state has some of the best land in the country for golf, and Silvies Valley Ranch, situated 300+ miles from Portland and 200 miles from Boise, makes my list, as it’s big (100,000+ acres) and offers activities beyond golf.

When the goats (nearly 3,000 of them) outnumber the residents, you know this is not a typical golf course. Oh, and by the way, you can even use one of the goats as a caddie, as Akbar Chisti, the co-founder of Seamus Golf, has designed a unique golf bag specifically for this purpose!

Architect Dan Hixson created two 18-hole layouts, which are played on alternate days, allowing you to play the course in both directions. Hixson’s excellent par 3 layouts are especially great and add to the fun of playing here.

Don’t forget to sample the farm-to-table cuisine at Silvies and enjoy the many available non-golf activities, such as hiking, biking and horseback riding.

Does this exhaust my list of great courses? No way—there are many more, with Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y., and Pebble Beach in Pebble Beach, Calif., as additional standouts I must mention. It’s also great to play a course that has recently hosted a major, because when you watch the tournament you’ll have enhanced knowledge of the venue. But the half-dozen courses I’ve described here are great for starters. Make sure, if you can, that they don’t linger long on your “not yet” list.