A Great Itinerary for Scotland:

1. Castle Stuart

2. Royal Dornoch

3. Cruden Bay (one of the most scenic in the world)

4. Royal Aberdeen

5. St. Andrews (of course, try to play the Old Course if you never have. If you have, consider the Castle Course, the newest of the seven courses at St. Andrews.

6. North Berwick (fantastic taste of the orgins of golf!)

7. Kingsbarns (simply gorgeous)

8. Carnoustie (very tough)

Note: The above list is truly an itinerary, the order in which you would play these great, iconic Scottish courses, which I did earlier this year. You would likely stay in Inverness for two nights initially, then drive to Cruden Bay and play it. Then drive to Aberdeen for the night, playing Royal Aberdeen the next day. Then drive to lodging in St. Andrews for the duration, traveling to the remaining courses from the "Home of Golf."

Chicago's Medinah Country Club #3 during the 2012 Ryder Cup. In the bottom right corner are the tee boxes for the 2nd Hole, with the shot to be executed over the water. Just above the 2nd tee and to the left is the 1st green. Note the swarming fans working to cross the water over the narrow foot bridge.

A Chicago Itinerary:

1. Medinah #3 (private)

2. Cog Hill (Dubsdread) #4

3. Stonewall Orchard

4. The Glen Club

5. Cantigny Golf

6. Orchard Valley Golf Course

7. Harborside International

8. Mistwood Golf

(Courses 2-8 above are all available to the public for play. You are on your own to find a way to get on Medinah CC -- very tough golf course and tough to gain admission)

A player tees off at Cruden Bay.

The three photos to the right are of the Wente Vineyards golf course in Livermore, CA., a gorgeous Greg Norman design. After golf, consider going to the Wine Tasting room about 200 yards from the pro shop for some sampling.

A San Francisco Itinerary:

1. Presidio Golf (in the city)

2. Silverado Resort & Spa (Napa) (Pure golf! --wonderful greens)

3. Wente Vineyards (Livermore)

4. TPC Harding Park (in the city)

5. Half Moon Bay Golf Links (Half Moon Bay)

6. Pasatiempo (Santa Cruz)

7. Callippe Golf Course (Pleasanton)

8. Of course, you can consider a trip to the Monterrey peninsula to play the triumvirate of Pebble Beach, Spyglass, and Spanish Bay.

Note: The above list is not intended to be played in any particular order. It is simply a list of great courses in the San Francisco area that I have played and can vouch for as being generally excellent (and some fantastic!)