Best Golf Trips in September

September is the connoisseur's month. The summer crowds thin, the north is still fully in season, and the Southeast starts its second peak. Firm turf, fewer people, shoulder rates creeping back in — a lot of folks who take one trip a year take it now.

How we rankedRanking blends a destination's typical weather and course-open window for the month with its peak-vs-shoulder season — the same read a group does when it asks "where's actually good to golf right now, and where are we overpaying for it." It's a planning heuristic, not a forecast.

California

Monterey, CA

The bucket-list capital of American golf

6 courses3 bucket-listMRY · 10min

California

Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

Storybook village, world-class golf, and Carmel Valley wine

5 courses3 bucket-listMRY · 15min

California

Palm Desert, CA

PGA West, Stadium glory, and the valley's best public courses

5 courses1 bucket-listPSP · 20min

California

San Diego, CA

Torrey Pines, perfect weather, and Gaslamp nightlife

5 courses1 bucket-listSAN · 15min

California

Palm Springs, CA

Sunshine, mid-century cool, and wall-to-wall desert golf

5 coursesPSP · 10min

California

Napa, CA

Wine country golf, big-cabernet nights, and Silverado

5 coursesOAK · 60min

California

Sonoma, CA

Laid-back wine country with public golf and a real plaza scene

5 coursesSTS · 35min

California

Los Angeles, CA

Cliffside Trump National, sneaky-good munis, and big-city nights

5 coursesLAX · 25min

California

Ojai, CA

A storied valley resort, mountain light, and a quiet luxury escape

5 coursesBUR · 75min

California

Santa Barbara, CA

Oceanfront Sandpiper, Spanish-style nights, and beach-town golf

5 coursesSBA · 15min

California

Temecula, CA

Wine country, casino nights, and value golf between LA and San Diego

5 coursesSAN · 65min

California

Truckee, CA

High-Sierra mountain golf above Lake Tahoe

5 coursesRNO · 40min

California

Half Moon Bay, CA

Two oceanfront 18s at the Ritz, 30 minutes from SFO

5 coursesSFO · 30min

California

Sacramento, CA

Value golf, a real downtown, and wine country at the edges

5 coursesSMF · 15min

California

Carlsbad, CA

North County beaches, resort golf, and the Omni La Costa

5 coursesSAN · 40min

California

San Francisco, CA

Major-championship muni golf with a world-class city behind it

4 courses1 bucket-listSFO · 25min

California

Bakersfield, CA

Cheap, year-round golf and honky-tonk nights in Buck Owens country

4 coursesBFL · 15min

California

South Lake Tahoe, CA

Lakeside championship golf with casinos a short walk away

3 courses1 bucket-listRNO · 70min

California

Aptos, CA

MacKenzie's finest work and beach-town golf above Monterey Bay

3 courses1 bucket-listSJC · 45min

California

Lompoc, CA

One of California's toughest public tests in quiet wine country

3 coursesSBA · 55min

Pacific NW

Bend, OR

High desert golf with a brewery on every corner

7 courses2 bucket-listRDM · 20min

Northeast

Williamsburg, VA

Historic Virginia golf with colonial charm and championship courses

6 courses2 bucket-listPHF · 20min

Northeast

Cape Cod, MA

Coastal New England golf with lobster and ocean breezes

6 courses1 bucket-listHYA · 10min

International

Costa del Sol, Spain

Marbella & Sotogrande — Valderrama, Finca Cortesin, sun and beach clubs

5 courses3 bucket-listAGP · 45min