Golfing Lake Charles, southwest Louisiana

Whether you are a novice or a seasoned professional, these Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana golf courses offer excellent conditions with Southern charm and hospitality.

In keeping with Cajun tradition, Calcasieu Parish’s golf courses are as friendly as they are challenging. The city of Lake Charles offers public golf courses, including Gray Plantation Golf Course, Contraband Bayou Golf Club at L’Auberge du Lac, Mallard Cove Golf Course and Pine Shadows Golf Course. The City of Sulphur has Frasch Park.

Gray Plantation Golf Course is on the prestigious Audubon Golf Trail. The 18-hole, 7,000-yard championship links golf course keeps with the natural beauty found in Louisiana. For a daily fee, the course offers public access to quality golf, including a 15,000-square-foot state-of-the-art club house and pro shop, 12 holes with more than 60 acres of water, new USGA hybrid “tiff” eagle grass greens with Bermuda 419 fairways and a 300-yard practice range with a dual tee practice facility with three large target greens. The course is ranked third in the nation for public golf course design as named by "Golf Digest."

Designed by world-renowned golf architect Tom Fazio, the Contraband Bayou Golf Course showcases the marsh and lowland features of the natural Louisiana environment on its unique 7,000-yard, par-71 championship 18-hole golf course. Fazio has been honored for creating award-winning courses throughout the United States, and no living designer has more courses credited on the "Golf Digest" list of America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses and "Golfweek" magazine's collection of America's Best. In 2011, Contraband Bayou Golf Club was ranked No. 3 in the state on "Golfweek" magazine's list of Best Courses You Can Play.

Frasch Park Golf Course in Sulphur is a 6,267-yard public course at Sulphur’s Frasch Park and is located near the Sulphur Parks Aquatic Center. It's the perfect place to bring the whole family. The course is an 18-hole, par-71 golf course, and there are mature trees throughout the entire design. The terrain is fairly flat with a canal that runs through the course.

Mallard Golf Course in Lake Charles is a championship 18-hole golf course with a 3.5 rating by "Golf Digest." Also try your swing at Pine Shadows Golf Course, a traditional course with tree-lined fairways.

In nearby Westlake, play the nationally ranked, 18-hole, par-72 course at the National Golf Club of Louisiana. Designed by David Bennett, the course is sited among a mature-growth pine forest in the master-planned community of The Villages of West Trace, and it features an abundance of water hazards, preserved wetlands and roughly 90 bunkers. The National Golf Club of Louisiana was named among "Golfweek" magazine's Top 100 Best New Courses for 2010. 

The area also has top-notch sporting facilities that can host a wide range of tournaments and events. For more information on golf courses and for sports facilities in Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana, contact the Lake Charles/Southwest Louisiana Convention & Visitors Bureau at 800-456-7952 or visit www.visitlakecharles.org.