San Diego has a new luxury resort, The Grand del Mar, which opened in October. The resort's 249 guest rooms, including 31 suites, don't skimp on the details: They feature gilded gold and wrought-iron accents and hand-stenciled ceilings.

Golf is a main attraction, and the 18-hole, 7,160-yard, par-72 Grand Golf Club, opened in 1999, spans 380 acres. The course was recently renovated and added a water feature with an 18-foot waterfall; a practice area featuring a chipping green and sand bunkers; a second 4,200-square-foot putting green; and a 5,000-square-foot practice tee. Resort guests have exclusive access to the private club.

The resort also offers four swimming pools, tennis, fine dining, and a 21,000-square-foot spa with 11 treatment rooms. Guest rooms feature marble bathrooms with 13-inch, flat-screen televisions; pillow-top beds with goose-down pillows and Italian cotton linens; 40-inch, flat-screen televisions; and wireless, high-speed Internet access.

The Grand del Mar offers more than 20,000 square feet of function and meeting space, including a 10,000-square-foot ballroom; an 8,400-square-foot outdoor event lawn; a 2,500-square-foot salon; three wine-themed meeting rooms with an adjacent private dining area in the wine cellar; and access to Yacht America, a replica of the vessel that won the 1851 America's Cup, which is available for groups of up to 85 people.

Venue News

Golf News

Sawgrass Golf Resort & Spa, a Marriott Resort

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

The News: The resort changed its name from Sawgrass Marriott Resort & Spa to Sawgrass Golf Resort & Spa, expanded its lobby, and opened Kelly's Pub.

Specs: 508 guest rooms, more than 56,000 square feet of meeting space, 25,000-square-foot spa

Timeline: Pub was completed in January as part of a three-year plan begun in 2006. A $16 million guest room renovation was also completed that year.

Extra: Improvements to the resort's guest rooms coincided with $40 million in improvements to the TPC Sawgrass course. A $30 million, 77,000-square-foot clubhouse was built in 2007.

Ocean Edge Resort & Club

Brewster, Ma.

The News: The $8.5 million Nicklaus Design remodel of the Cape Cod resort's 18-hole, par-72 golf course is almost complete. The clubhouse has also been redesigned. A $10 million expansion is adding 5,000 square feet of meeting and function space and a 2,500-square-foot pavilion.

Specs: 15,000 square feet of meeting space in 13 rooms; 334 guest accommodations — 90 in the 1912 Victorian-style Nickerson Mansion and 244 one-, two-, and three-bedroom villas; wireless Internet throughout; tennis complex; fitness center; four restaurants

Timeline: Course grand opening June 2008.

Extra: Ocean Edge will become a private course, exclusively available to club members and hotel guests.

Teton Springs Lodge & Spa

Victor, Idaho

The News: The first phase of this resort community is open.

Specs: Phase one includes 37 one- and two-bedroom condominiums and 2,000 square feet of meeting space. Phase two will add 43 units and a restaurant; convert the first-phase meeting space into retail space; add a club and conference center with 3,000 square feet of meeting space; and add a 5,000-square-foot spa.

Timeline: First phase opened December 2007; second phase expected to open in 2008

Extra: Headwaters Golf Club, offering an 18-hole championship course, nine-hole executive course, and a practice facility, is open.

Cougar Canyon Golf Resort and Spa

Trinidad, Colo.

The News: Construction has begun on Cougar Canyon Golf Resort and Spa, a new 117-suite boutique hotel in the Cougar Canyon Golf Resort Community.

Specs: A 3,000-square-foot event space, a 900-square-foot boardroom, a spa, a restaurant and lounge, and a business center are part of the design.

Timeline: Construction began in December. Completion is expected in spring 2009.

Extra: The Nicklaus Design Cougar Canyon Golf Links offers 18 holes.

One Ocean Resort

Atlantic Beach, Fla..

The News: One Ocean Resort opens May 1.

Specs: 193 guest rooms; 10,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space; wireless high-speed Internet in all meeting rooms; business center; teambuilding activities; spa with six treatment rooms; two restaurants; fitness center; golf at the Queen's Harbour Yacht & Country Club, home to the 18-hole Mark McCumber Royal Course, and access to The Players Championship course at Sawgrass.

Extra: The resort has “docents” — personal concierges for each guest.

Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club

Naples, Fla.

The News: The resort completed a multimillion-dollar renovation of its 318 guest rooms and suites in February.

Specs: 34,000 square feet of meeting and event space; on-site, par-72 championship golf course; spa; fitness center; tennis center

Timeline: These improvements follow a six-year, $40 million expansion of the hotel that was complete in 2006.

News Makers

• William Courtney Lowe has joined Bedford Springs Resort, Bedford, Pa., as director of sales and marketing. The resort completed a $120 million renovation, that included its A.W.Tillinghast/Donald Ross 18-hole golf course.

• The Resort at the Mountain, Welches, Ore., has appointed Frank Casarez general manager and Chy Charles sales manager. The resort has a 27-hole golf course and is undergoing a $14 million renovation to be completed in late 2008.

• Tara Seech, CMP, has joined Omni Interlocken Resort & Spa, Broomfield, Colo., as convention services manager. The 390-room resort offers 27-holes of championship golf; Omni Interlocken Golf Club was named “Best Practice Facility” by Avid Golfer magazine.

• Heath Patrick was hired as director of conference services for Cheyenne Mountain Resort, Colorado Springs, Colo., which features a championship Pete Dye — designed golf course. Patrick most recently served as director of catering sales and event management for the Colorado Springs Marriott.

A New Perspective

Want to “see” a course before you play? GolfFlyover LLC and V-Empower Inc. have partnered on www.GolfFlyover.com, where you can experience a free virtual tour of a golf course, as if you were riding in a helicopter. Selections are limited at this point, but GolfFlyover expects to complete virtual flyovers of 18,000 U.S. courses this year, and then expand to the rest of the world. Tours are powered through Google Earth, which you must download and install before you can use the site.