Regatta Bay Golf and Country Club in Destin, Florida

You won't find many settings more beautiful than where architect Robert Walker laid out the Regatta Bay Golf and Country Club. First of all, it's in Destin, that strip of vacation land that lies between the rolling dunes of the Gulf of Mexico and the languid waters of Choctawatchee Bay.

The golf course is set in the lush woods and wetlands of the Florida Panhandle, where you can hear the birds twittering and see the sun setting over the Gulf. The course does have homes around it, but they are set back more tastefully than most development courses; it's almost as if they were warned to back off and allow the course to be the star of the show.

Conditioning is immaculate, as fine as any you'll find along this stretch of what the marketers call the Emerald Coast; the cart rides between holes are botanical adventures in themselves.

The terrain itself is a mix of flat and rolling, or as rolling as you could rightfully expect in this part of the flat state.

Walker used to be the lead architect for Arnold Palmer's company, Palmer Design, and he did a nice job here of putting together a resort course that will please those who expect the niceties associated with an upscale, country club scene - mango scented iced towels anyone? No, how about a chilled apple?