Atlanta -- home of the Braves; CNN; some of the largest corporations in the world, including Coca Cola; and the 1996 Olympics. It's a city of contradictions, a southern city almost more populated by northerners than Peach Staters and as poor as it is wealthy. Bulging at the seams with roads, cars, and every conceivable diversion, Atlanta is the hub of Delta Airlines bringing ever more people and businesses to the Gateway to the South. With so much going on, the city is an ideal place to hold a convention and to make a deal. Or to visit family and friends.

And if you are planning your next trip to Atlanta, whether for business or pleasure, there are two Atlanta area golf resorts which are less than two hours from downtown Atlanta, where you can unwind in the quiet of nature, play golf on spectacular golf courses and pamper yourself with other leisure activities. For the business traveler, especially, Chateau Elan and Callaway Gardens are ideal business/pleasure resorts, offering the best in quiet business-like atmosphere, and right outside the meeting room door there is plenty to do to relax.

Chateau Elan

Chateau Elan is located about an hour's drive northeast of downtown Atlanta just off I-85. Chateau Elan is an outstanding golf resort but much more. It was first opened in 1981 by owners Donald and Nancy Panoz, who first came to the southeast looking for a place to establish the American operations of their Irish-based pharmaceutical company. Donald, an Ohio native, also owned Mylan Laboratories which pioneered the nicotine patch and helped propel the Panozs into the stratosphere financially.

Arriving in north Georgia on their corporate scouting expedition, the couple observed that though the area had a few wineries none of them were commercially successful because, the couple was told, the soil and climate here are unsuitable for commercial grape growing. Gifted entrepreneurs with businesses that also include car-building and racing, beauty products and sparkling water, the Panozs relished the challenge of proving people wrong. With the finest research, a world-class staff of wine experts, and state-of-the-art technology, the couple established Chateau Elan, a thriving winery that produces fine wines, sherries and champagne that are available through Atlanta area retailers as well as to visitors to the resort and winery.

Along with a winery, Panoz wanted a place where people could not only taste the wines but unwind. Next to the winery, he built a Mobil 4-Star resort hotel, now managed by Marriott, and he commissioned golf course designer Dennis Griffiths to build several golf courses.

At the 3200-acre resort, there are 63 holes of golf: a private club, Legends, accessible to hotel guests; two public 18-hole courses, Chateau and Woodlands; and a 9-hole walking course. The property also has six- and seven-figure homes in a real-estate operation.

Built in French architecture, the hotel has 277 spacious rooms and a huge central atrium where the signature restaurant is located, giving it an alfresco feel. The health club, indoor pool and outdoor Olympic size pool are just off the atrium and near the hotel is a Stan Smith-designed tennis complex and European health spa which is open to the public. The spa has hydrotherapy, massage and every other health care treatment.

The Chateau Course is one of the better resort courses I have played. It stretches to 7100 yards from the back tees but is very manageable from the forward tees. It winds through classic north Georgian ecology with pines and oaks, a few willow trees, and plenty of flowering shrubs. It has a fair amount of water and rolling hills. The greens are challenging but not too taxing. The flow of the course is excellent. Houses border some of the holes but are positioned unobtrusively away from the layout.

The Woodlands course lies on some of the finest land for a golf course I have ever seen. The classic out-and-back layout features one dramatic hole after another including a majestic downhill 210-yard par 3 over water. In most holes, the fairways crest in the middle and fall away left and right at the margins. For this reason, the course is much less forgiving than Chateau, but it is still a walk in magnificent surroundings. You will want to play this course before too much longer, as houses are springing up around the course rapidly, changing the wilderness character of the course.

The Legends Club is the site of the Sarazen World Open, a tournament that was eliminated this year because of a time schedule conflict with the new world tournament schedule. The course is about 6800 yards and is terrific. It was designed by Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead and Kathy Whitworth. Each legend was asked to contribute three of their favorite holes from famous courses they had played. Consequently, the beautiful par-3 15th is modeled after #12 at Augusta, and #7 is a rough replica of The Postage Stamp at Troon, for example. This is definitely a course you will enjoy.

My stay at Chateau was highlighted by playing 54 holes one day with assistant pro Geoff Sarazen, the grandson of "The Squire." Geoff is a delightfully genuine man of 29 with an outstanding golf game. His plan is to begin playing tournament golf at the PGA sectional level and try to work his way up from there. Geoff is typical of the golf staff at Chateau, most cordial and friendly.

Meanwhile, when you tire of golf, visit the winery where you will see huge stainless steel tanks and splendid French oak barrels where the aging wine is stored. The winery sits atop a hill not far from the hotel and is surrounded by vineyards where stationary guns periodically fire to ward off crows and other grape scavengers. The winery includes a restaurant and gift shop where the wines and sherries are sold.

For the business traveler, Chateau Elan, with some 40,000 square feet of meeting space, is an ideal place to hold a business meeting or convention. Located conveniently from Atlanta in the hamlet of Braselton, Ga., it is a resort to look into.

For reservations and information, call 1-800-233-WINE.
Photos courtesy of Chateau Elan.

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