Even though Columbia is the state capital, Upstate is South Carolina's economic and political powerhouse. The drive down I-85 from Gaffney to the border with Georgia demonstrates the area's industrial muscle: Factories, warehouses and related facilities line the interstate to the point that there's barely room for another Wendy's or Motel 6.

The crown jewel of this roaring hinterland is the BMW factory in Greer, about midway between Greenville and Spartanburg. Since it opened in 1994, the facility has pumped out thousands of those spunky Z3 convertibles and is now producing BMW's sport-ute, the X5. To get an idea of the type of moolah involved in all this, consider that BMW invested $600 million in 1999 to expand its Greer plant to accommodate X5 production, creating 1,000 new jobs. Before the Greer BMW plant opened, major suppliers like Bosch and Michelin opened factories and warehouses to support Z3 manufacturing.

So, if you're wondering why Interstate 85 in the Upstate seems to be under construction almost permanently, now you know why: The state is trying to accommodate the traffic created by the region's pullulating business and industry.

The influx of newcomers to the Upstate is creating a bit of culture clash between the hard-core conservative natives and more liberal influxees.

Interestingly, golf course development, like the aforementioned interstate, has not caught up with the new prosperity, and there have been no significant public golf course developments in recent years, something that's likely to change.

But Upstate residents should not be ashamed of their portfolio of public golf courses. North of Greenville-Spartanburg, there are some spectacular courses nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians, while in the "low" country around Greenville and Spartanburg, the topography is perfect for inland courses: gently undulating parkland with an abundance of streams and natural hazards.

It's not a stretch to say that the Upstate could be South Carolina's most underappreciated golf region. Proof of this might be the fact that George Cobb, Russell Breeden, John LaFoy, and Tom Jackson make (or made) their homes in this area. While none of these men are household names, these prolific and successful golf course architects are well known to golfers throughout the Carolinas. And Tom Fazio, perhaps the nation's foremost golf course architect, lives just an hour's drive from the Upstate in Hendersonville, North Carolina. Other fine architects like P.B. Dye and Gary Player produced work near Greenville and Spartanburg.

Pick of the private tracks might be Chanticleer, the Valley and Cliffs Courses at Glassy Mountain and the Pine Valley-like Musgrove Mill.

So, while the Upstate is best known for its industrial and political clout, it's worth a visit if you're interested in lesser-known good golf courses. And if you're visiting on business and will have some spare time in your itinerary, pack those golf clubs.

In this chapter, we include courses in the Greenville-Spartanburg and Greenwood-Abbeville regions.