Had a friend call me and ask if I knew any courses in the Raleigh area where his boss could take a pretty big client. They are looking for a high end course that is OPEN ON MONDAY's, no price limit. The nicer the better. Can anyone help me out here, thank you.

If driving 90 minutes is an option, Pinehurst #2.

Tobacco Road in Sanford. Worth the drive. Trust me.

Pinehurst #2 and 4 are in the middle of overseeding, call ahead!

How about the new Arnie course, Lonnie Pool at NC State. I heard it is a tough track. I personally like Heritage at Wake Forest.

Raleigh is kind of weird for upscale public golf, especially if you are trying to impress a client. There is plenty in Piinehurst and that is about 1:15 by car from downtown Ral. I wouldn't recommend Tobacco Road for a "business related" round of golf. It is just different and for anything else it is amazing and definitely a must play. People tend not to like it the first time around, and if your client isn't getting the ball in the air, or it isn't his cup of tea, it might make for a long day.

If making an impression is important and he can't get on anything private, I guess I would recommend Heritage in Wake Forest, Finlay at UNC, or Duke University GC. Lonnie Poole at NCSU is an awesome track and within the city limits, but the clubhouse is in a trailer right now.

There are a couple decent semi-private courses around and all will be open on Mondays. River Ridge and Eagle Ridge are OK and are a little closer to town. A little further out than that is the Preserve at Jordan Lake. The Neuse in Clayton, Mill Creek in Mebane and Chapel Ridge in Pittsboro are a little farther away but worth the trip.

Lonnie Pool is a great track, but still BRAND NEW and not fully grown in yet. Also, as mentioned above, the "clubhouse" is a double-wide. If you want to stay in the remote vicinity and need a public course, I'd recommend either UNC or dook. As you can probably tell by my screen-name, I'm a Tarheel. That said, if I were taking a client out and didn't have UNC ties, dook's course is VERY nice. Just tell 'em to wear God's color when playing to make sure the dookies get reminded of where they stand.

Go Heels!

I would have to agree one with what a few people have said so far and go with either driving down to pinehurst or heading out to UNC to play Finley. Loonie Poole is nice but like others have said, it hasn't fully grown in yet which can make it a little difficult. Duke's course is nice as well, but if you are trying to impress a client, I'd stay clear of the River/Eagle Ridge's, they are fine but not too impressive. Hertigage isn't bad, but if you aren't hitting the ball strait it can make for a long day, at least longer than usual.

+ 1 Chapel Ridge