Enjoying golf, wine, and adventure in New Zealand
There’s no place like home — especially when you golf at The Cliffs — but we all have bucket lists.
“It’s hard to leave The Cliffs. It’s tough to find better courses and playing conditions anywhere else,” says Mike Williams, a PGA golf professional and real estate sales executive at The Cliffs. “So if you’re going outside the gates, you need to go someplace historic, or somewhere truly incredible.” 
Which is exactly what he and a group of members did last winter. Williams led seven couples from The Cliffs on a “New Zealand Golf, Wine & Adventure Experience,” a two-week excursion filled with splendid accommodations, world-famous
golf courses, an abundance of cultural activities, and lots of local wine.
“The golf was so good!” Williams says, noting they played golf at the six highest ranked courses in New Zealand, five of which rank among the top 100 in the world. One, Tara Iti, is No. 2 in Golf Digest’s list of the World’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses. “These are bucket-list golf courses. It was mind-blowing to spend two weeks playing them all.”
The members who accompanied Williams on what he calls “an adventure of a lifetime” were Graham & Mary Hallward (The Cliffs at Mountain Park); Jeff & Kelly Thode (The Cliffs at Walnut Cove); Jim & Carol Litwak and Jay & Kathy Campana (The Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards); and Larry & Anne Scheidler, Bob & Beckie Stubler, and Steve & Shelly Harkness (The Cliffs at Keowee Falls).
“It’s difficult to sum up this trip — everything was amazing,” says Beckie Stubler. “We’d play one golf course and say ‘Oh, it’s beautiful; this one is our favorite’ and then we go to the next one and say the same thing. They were all our favorite!”
Stubler and her husband, Bob, especially enjoyed traveling with and getting to know members from across The Cliffs. “The camaraderie was delightful. It was a lovely group,” she says.
The New Zealanders were welcoming; the scenery was incredible; and the food, the wine, and the golf were truly an adventure.
“It’s going to be tough to top this trip,” says
Williams. But he plans to try.
This story was featured in Cliffs Living magazine. To read more stories like this one and learn more about The Cliffs, subscribe here.
