On an incredible piece of land, high in the Blue Ridge Mountains, just north of the North Carolina state line, in Meadows of Dan, Virginia sits Primland Resort and the fantastic Highland Course at Primland Resort.

Ranked No. 30 on Golf Digest's current list of the Top 100 public golf courses and No. 36 on GolfWeek's list of the Top 100 You Can Play, Primland is one of the most diverse golf course designs you'll ever find playing mountain golf. 

Blessed with room to route the course across an expansive mountaintop plateau, golf course architect Donald Steel gives us a design that offers variety, awe-inspiring views of the river gorge and mountains that surround the property, and virtually none of the repetitive up-down-up-down play that often defines mountain golf. In fact, I'm not sure there are any two holes that really play alike from start to finish at Primland. The course offers long holes, short holes, doglegs left and right, elevated tees on some holes, elevated greens on others, play through valleys and holes that make you feel as though you're looking down on the entirety of the world when you glance out beyond the green or back behind the teeing ground.

I was really fortunate the day I played. Unable to score a room at the resort, my family and I spent the night before in Mt. Airy, North Carolina, about 40 minutes away. I drove in to the property at Primland early in the morning, and it's about a 15-minute drive from the moment you enter the gate until you wind your way up, up into the mountains and finally reach the lodge and golf course. And it is an incredible drive! There are signs to watch out for both golfers and bears. To your left, you find incredible cliff-faces, while to your right you are met with unbelievable views that seem to go on forever. 

When I arrived at the golf course, I discovered that I had the first tee time of the day and that I would be playing alone. Now, I enjoy playing with other golfers a lot; I love the social aspect of the game and the relationship building that comes with sharing that experience on the course. But, playing alone and first off the tee this day meant I could really take my time and soak in the experience on this unique property. As it turned out, most folks at the course that morning were there to take part in a skills event with PGA Champions Tour player Jay Haas, who I'm sorry to say I did not get to meet.

I did, however, get to spend a bit of time before my round with Head Pro Jeff Yost. Jeff came out to greet me and tell me about the course as I was loading onto my cart, and we got to talking. Turns out, he went to high school just minutes from where I live now in Pittsburgh. He noticed the Laurel Valley Golf Club bag tag on my golf bag -- something I got the day I met Arnold Palmer for the first time -- and we got to talking about life and golf in western Pennsylvania. Jeff couldn't have been nicer or more welcoming -- and the same is true of every member of the staff I met that day. 

Primland offers a terrific driving range and short game practice area for warming up, and I spent a little time stretching, hitting balls and getting a feel for the pace of the greens (quick!) before finally heading to the first tee.

I played Primland from the red tees this day, which measure 6,450 yards. It's worth noting that the course is designed for players of all skill levels with four sets of tees and a red/black combo option giving golfers every opportunity to play from the tees that will best allow them to enjoy their round. The course can stretch to just over 7,000 yards from the tips or play as short as 5,140 yards from the forwardmost tees. But 6,400-6,500 yards is about my sweet spot, and with a rating of 72.5 and a slope of 143, the red tees offered plenty of challenge for me.  So, all yardages mentioned from here on out will be from the red tees.

The first hole at Primland is a fantastic 509-yard, dogleg right par-5 that plays through a bit of a chute off the tee but opens to a very generous fairway. I was warned by the starter that on No. 1 and throughout the course, left is generally safer than right. Can't say I necessarily listened on the first tee shot, but it didn't matter as my drive drew nicely up and over the right fairway bunker and landed in beautiful position at the top of the fairway just as the hole begins to turn to the right.

The second shot on hole No. 1 plays downhill, and a good drive offers a terrific opportunity for long players to reach this green and begin their round with a bang. What I loved about this hole -- and it set the tone for the entire day -- was the dramatic framing of the hole. Boulders, fescue and other high natural grasses, tall trees and the mountains in the distance make virtually every hole at Primland seem both grand and at the same time intimate. It's rare at Primland to see much of any other hole from the hole you're playing. In those rare instances that two holes are in close proximity to one another or play parallel to one another, dense trees and changes in elevation still make it feel like the whole you're on really exists in its own space apart from anyone else. It's a real testament to both Donald Steel's artistry as an architect and the canvas nature gave him to paint this masterpiece.

A look back from the first green gives you a sense of the dramatic elevation change from the landing area off the tee to the putting surface.

And just beyond the first green, the course offered the first of many amazing views of the gorge below and the Blue Ridge Mountains that surround the property.

The second hole is a 177-yard par-3 that plays across a bit of a valley. Tee shots short and right can lead to trouble, while balls hit to the left will funnel down off the hillside toward the hole. I found myself in the greenside bunker and thought I was in real trouble when my sand shot sailed well past the flag. But as it turned out, the slope of the green served as a terrific backstop that caught my ball some 25 or 30 feet beyond the flag and sent it back toward the hole, settling just four or five feet from the cup. On any given day, I could see this mid-length par-3 turning out bogies and double bogies for many a golfer. I felt really fortunate to escape with my second consecutive par.

The cart ride from tee to green on No. 2 offered up yet another spectacular view of the gorge and surrounding mountains. It's safe to say by this point I was already smitten with the place.

The third hole is possibly the best scoring opportunity on the front nine. A short, 473-yard par-5, it is easily reachable with a good drive ... and made moreso by the fact that a drive beyond about 210 yards will catch a severe downhill slope and run down the fairway, gaining tremendous distance off the tee. In my case, I hit a low line drive off the tee -- probably a 220-yard shot if the tee and fairway are level. But once it fley by the aiming pole in the left-center of the fairway and disappeared over the ridge, it must have just run and run and run. By the time I found it at the bottom of the fairway I was a good 310-yards from the tee with just about a 160-yard shot into the green.

My tee shot was still well down the hill from where I took this picture, but this shot gives you a terrific sense of the approach, which has to carry a hazard maybe 80 yards short of the elevated green. Being deep on the approach shot into this hole is better than winding up in either of the bunkers that guard the left and right front of the green.

Looking back at this hole from the green provides a clearer picture of how dramatic the fairway's change in elevation truly is. It's easy to see how a ball that just cleared the ridge at the top of the fairway wound up all the way at the bottom of that slope and just 160 yards or so from the hole.

The fourth hole is a terrific little par-3, playing slightly uphill to a green that is partially out of view from the tee given the elevation change, mounding and bunker in front of the putting surface. It's a hole where you have to commit to a distance, pick your club and play to your yardage.

When the pin is on the front of the green, playing out of the front bunker is a difficult shot with not a lot of room to work if you want to stick it close. 

The fifth hole at Primland looks really narrow from the tee. But at just 328 yards, it gives you plenty of options to keep your ball in the fairway and still have a short iron or a wedge into the green. Due to the elevation change, even a mid-iron off the tee can net you 200 yards or so in distance, leaving less than 150 for your approach.

Either way you play it -- bold or safe -- the 5th hole offers a very real opportunity for birdie so long as you keep your tee shot in the short stuff. And I should know! I stuck my 60-degree wedge stiff from 85 yards to make my first birdie of the day from the 5th fairway.

The 6th hole is a tight-driving par-5 -- the third par-5 on the front nine. It plays longer than the 503 yards listed on the socrecard due to the uphill tee shot that robs you of much roll and an uphill approach into the green. This is a fun, hole, though, that demands three good shots. Avoid the nearly hidden fairway bunker to the left off the tee to set up a second shot that will need to avoid another fairway bunker on the right.

Really, unless you're a very long player and you're planning to go for this green in two, there's no need to even flirt with the right bunker on your second shot. A layup 20 yards short of that bunker will leave you a relatively flat lie with 100 yards or less into this elevated green. Note that the green is longer than it appears from the fairway, and it's important to know where the pin is located when making your club selection for the approach shot if you want a chance at birdie.

I love and hate the 7th hole at Primland. It's a great hole. The view to the left of the tee box, which I somehow didn't capture, is gorgeous, looking out over the mountains and the river gorge below. And it's a really well-designed hole, too -- a very long par-4 at 464 yards that requires a great drive and a great long iron/hybrid to reach the green in regulation. However, this is one of the few holes where left is worse than right at Primland ... and after hitting every fairway to this point, I hit a hook off the tee here that had no chance. A lost ball later, I was on my way to a triple-bogey that derailed an otherwise really terrific front nine.

The second shot on No. 7 (or 4th shot, if you play it the way I did) is  likely to be a long one into an elevated green protected in the front by bunkers right and left. Again, left on this shot is dead as any ball hit in that direction that misses the bunker will end up in the high fescue and natural grasses with at the bottom of the hill, making for a very difficult up and down ... if you can even find your ball. Better to play long and right. Bogey is not a bad score here, and par is a very, very good score on No. 7.

Making up for the three par-5s on the front nine, No. 8 is the third par-3, measuring 193 yards and playing significantly downhill. The green is bigger than it appears from the tee. In fact, the bunker on the left, which looks to be front-left, is actually in about the center of the green from front to back. Best to play your ball to the right-center of the green as anything that carries the front of the green -- and the bunker front-right -- will safely find the dance floor and offer a good opportunity for par and maybe even a birdie.

The 9th hole is a great finish to the front nine -- a short hole at just 315 yards, but it plays significantly uphill and requires a forced carry to reach the fairway. A long-iron or hybrid off the tee will set up a wedge into this green, but take enough club to carry your ball all the way to the flag if you want to turn this short hole into a birdie oportunity.

I really enjoyed the playing the 9th hole despite a pushed second shot that put me in an awkward position chipping onto the green and the bogey that resulted. Truly, I enjoyed every hole on the front and could not wait to get over to the back nine to keep my round rolling.

The 10th tee at Primland will test your nerves as guests of the resort drink their morning coffee or take breakfast on their balconies watching you try to get your back nine off to a good start. The hole doglegs right and requires a big tee shot if you intend to try to carry the fairway bunker on the right and take any length off of the hole's 427 yards. The safer play, to the left side of the fairway, will leave a long, difficult shot into this green. 

The approach on 10 requires a long, well-struck shot into a green that slopes dramatically from left to right. A ball out to the left has a chance of running down the slope to the hole, but an approach right of the flag runs the risk of taking the slope off the side of the green all the way into the trees. 

As you make your way around the course at Primland, you're likely to encounter resort guests walking the cart paths as they hike the mountain trails ... or even a family of wild turkeys just out for a stroll and hoping to see an excellent golf shot.

No. 11 is a 369-yard par-4 that is one of my favorite holes at Primland ... and not just because I recorded my second birdie of the round here. The 11th hole bends around to the left and requires some thought off the tee. A long drive runs the risk of running through the fairway and into the fescue.

A drive of about 250 yards, though, wil leave players with an excellent opportunity to play a wedge into this green and putt for birdie. 

It's worth pausing just to say that the greens at Primland were spectacular -- virtually pristine and rolling so smoothly. It helped, of course, that I was the first player on the course this day. But I often play first-of-the-day golf, and these greens were something else. They were consistent from the practice hole to the first hole to the last. I've rarely putted on better greens, and probably never on a resort course.

The 12th hole is a challenging par-3 -- 180 yards with a forced carry and natural terrain that wants to take the ball right and into trouble. There is room to bail out left of this hole, and there is no shame in playing to defend par (or even bogey) instead of chasing after a birdie, especially with a back-right pin placement that brings the hole's one bunker (and worse) into play.

Hole No. 13 is a 528-yard par-5 that calls for a fade off the tee as the hole bends around to the right and then runs gently back to the left as you play your second and third shots. Stay on the high side the entire length of the hole to avoid a ball bounding into the trees just beyond the fescue and tall natural grasses that line the entire right side of the hole.

The danger to the right looks intimidating from just about every vantage point on this hole. And for good reason -- because any ball that winds up right of the fairway is, at best, likely to cost one or more strokes. 

It's a challenging hole, but three solid golf shots should set you up with a birdie opportunity on this hole's long, narrow green.

One of the interesting characteristics of the Highland Course at Primland is short flagsticks. Rather than the typical flag, which I figure stands about 7 feet above the putting surface, the flats at Primland seemed to be about 5-feet tall. It was something I haven't seen on many courses, and it took some getting used to. I'm sorry I didn't think in the pro shop afterward to ask if there was a reason for the shorter flagsticks. One effect of the shorter pin that I did notice, though, was the illusion on approach shots that I was farther from the hole than was actually the case. 

The only hole that underwhelmed me during my round at Primland was the 147-yard, par-3 14th. Unlike the other 17 holes, which all felt inspired to me, the 14th felt like a hole I've just seen on a lot of courses -- a mid-length par-3 with a forced carry over vegetation from an elevated tee to an elevated green. Perhaps the fact that it features no bunkers left me feeling like it lacked character. Or, perhaps the fact that I found the other holes to be really spectacular simply left this quality hole lacking by comparison. In any event, it's a very straightforward hole. Take enough club, make a smooth swing, and this should be a relatively easy par.

I bogeyed the hole. ;)

Everything about the course at Primland fits so well in the mountain setting -- from the design of the holes to the aesthetic of the lodge to the on-course storm shelters and rest rooms that, from the outside, appear to be log cabins. 

The 15th hole is a straight-away par-4 measuring 336 yards. Don't go right, which is a likely lost ball penalty, and this should be a relatively easy scoring hole. A well-struck tee shot sets up a short-iron approach into an undulating green that is unprotected apart from the mounds and swails of the surrounding terrain. 

The 16th tee provides another magnificant look at the gorge and the surrounding mountains.

The 16th is a really terrific dogleg-right par4, measuring 391 yards. The fairway is narrow, and trouble to the right can convince a player to aim farther left than they otherwise might, bringing trees into play and making for a much longer approach into a slightly elevated green.

No. 17 is the longest par-5 on the course, listed as 536 yards but playing significantly longer as it climbs uphill from tee to green. Aim at the left center of the fairway, and give this one all you've got. Just keep the ball left of the trees, fescue and other high grasses to the right.

All but the longest hitters will be looking for their best opportunity to layup after even a great drive on this hole. Layup short of the fairway bunkers on the left side to leave yourself a 100-yard shot into the ample green.

The 18th tee offers one final great view of the surrounding area, and it's an opportunity to reflect on the journey you've been on through the mountains over the previous 17 holes -- a moment to consider just what a special place this is. And then it's time to pull the driver back out of the bag for one more great big swing.

The 18th hole looks narrower off the tee than it really is due to the prominence of the trees that rise up from below the fairway on the right. The hole bends from left to right, and a well-struck drive -- ideally a nice fade that begins up the left side -- will position the player for a mid- to long-iron approach on this closing hole.

The downhill approach, though long, offers an opportunity to take a little off your swing or to club down and run the ball into the wide 18th green.

The final green is protected by two bunkers front left and right, and undulations on the putting surface make it important to get your distance right on the approach. But find the dance floor with your second shot, and you should be able to count on closing out your round with a par.

Notice to the far right in this picture a small platform where a couple of lodge guests were taking a private yoga class near a cliff's edge, looking out over the river gorge. I've never taken a yoga class, but in a setting like this, I just might be persuaded to give it a go.

I wound up shooting an 84 at Primland -- pretty good relative to most of my play this year -- and had a fantastic time experiencing the Highland Course. It was easy to see why it has earned its place in the rankings. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to tee it up here, and I hope it's not for the last time.