By Tim McDonald

Well, it isn't exactly a secret: The five cottages at the Southwood Golf Club have been there for a few years now.

Still, maybe because I live so close, I never knew about them, and I'll bet quite a few other golfers don't know about this great option. Southwood golf course is an award-winning course in Tallahassee and one of the best tracks in northwest Florida.

The fact that Southwood Golf Club of Tallahassee has a "stay and play" option makes it even more attractive, for things like couples getaways, small groups, et cetera. I would think if you're a Florida State University alumnus and a golfer, as I am, and you're in town for a football game or whatever, these cottages would be perfect.

I stayed in one of the cottages recently – Sweet Pea – and they're crying out to be described as "quaint." And so I shall.

They're located in a lovely part of the Southwood development, on a shady, green hill across the lawn from the historic Southwood house.

All five of the cottages found at the Southwood Golf Club of Tallahassee have living rooms with gas fireplaces, efficiency kitchens, full baths, comfortable bedrooms with cable TV and "traditional southern front porches" with rocking chairs. Three of the cottages have king-sized beds while the other two have queens.

You can sit in a rocker in the evening, after a hard 18 holes, and look out over the fields, pretending you're the overseer of a vast plantation in the 1700s.

PLACES TO REMEMBER