Play days, school days, Maine to Myrtle Beach

The Boston area finally appears headed toward summer and peak golf season. Other regions -- some not so far from here -- are trumpeting early or offseason greens fee rates.

For instance, about four hours away in Dixville Notch, N.H., better known for its tradition of casting the first ballots in the presidential election, The Balsams Resort is just hitting its early season stride. Through June 28, this classic grand hotel offers what it bills as the "Golf Free" package. From Sunday through Thursday, the per-person, double-occupancy rate of $99 includes room, breakfast, and unlimited play on its 27 holes. On the other side of summer, which we really don't care to think about yet, The Balsams will resume the $99 special, starting Aug. 26 and ending Oct. 14.

The Balsams has earned a slot on the Condé Nast Gold List for 2007, which means it is among the magazine's top 700 hotels/resorts in the world. It boasts the Donald Ross -designed Panorama course, which stretches to 6,800 yards from the back tees and plays along the side of Keazer Mountain . For more information, go to thebalsams.com or call 877-225-7267 (877-BALSAMS ).

The Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate has a pair of Greg Norman -designed courses, and if your game needs some attention, it is also headquarters for the David Leadbetter Golf Academy . Leadbetter is generally acknowledged as the top instructor in the game and provides tutelage to players such as Ernie Els , Michelle Wie , and Nick Price , so chances are his school would whittle a stroke or two off your handicap.

ChampionsGate also features unlimited play on its courses: the International , which is a links-style layout surrounded by woods and wetlands; and the National , which has a more American feel and boasts four consecutive holes (numbers 7-10) that play through orange groves.

The package starts at $139 per person per night, double occupancy, and includes all-day play with cart, breakfast at the resort's Trevi's restaurant or through room service, and accommodations. If a day of golf isn't enough, there is also unlimited play on the Champions 9 , the resort's lighted par-3 course.

The $139 rate is available May 29- Sept. 5 and does not include tax, resort fee, or gratuities. Some blackout dates may apply. For more information call 800-843-6664 (800-THE OMNI) or go to omnichampionsgategolf.com.

In a bit of irony due to Mother Nature, Sugarloaf Golf Club in Carrabassett Valley , Maine, can thank record April snowfall for what course founder Peter Webber calls its best season-opening condition in 20 years.

The Robert Trent Jones Jr. design recently earned the No. 45 ranking on Golf Digest's list of the top 100 public courses in the country. It was one of only three courses in New England to make the list, and the highest ranked. Great River Golf Club in Milford, Conn., at No. 69 , and Belgrade Lakes (Maine) Golf Club at No. 93 were the others.

Kyle Ladd, superintendent of the Sugarloaf course, said the turf emerged from winter with little damage, thanks to conditions that brought snow, but few thaws that build up damaging ice. The snows also were protection from variable spring weather. Golf packages start at $105 per person per night and include lodging, greens fees , and a cart. For more information, call 800-843-5623 (800-THE LOAF) or visit sugarloaf.com .

The Celebrity Course at Indian Wells Golf Resort in the Palm Springs, Calif., area, which recently landed the $1 million LG Skins Game for the next three years, offers a summer unlimited package from June 1-July 14.

Two players can stay at the Hyatt Grand Champions Resort & Spa and play the Clive Clark -designed course, which features water in the form of ponds, creeks, and waterfalls on nine holes and has views of three mountain ranges, for $190 weekdays and $210 on weekends. Rates do not include taxes and $18 per night resort fee.

For more information, call 760-341-1000 or go to grandchampions.hyatt.com .

The Patricia Resorts , a group of 10 mostly oceanfront resorts in the Myrtle Beach, S.C., area, have several offerings, including the Tour Package, with three nights in an oceanfront condo, breakfast, and three rounds with cart on a choice of six courses, including three Dan Maples designs (Man O' War, The Witch, and The Wizard ), Raymond Floyd 's 27-hole Arrowhead Country Club, and Pete and P.B. Dye 's Prestwick Country Club . From tomorrow through Sept. 5, the package is $309.

Rates are per person based on two people per room and do not include taxes. Weekends, holidays, and special events may be slightly higher, and restrictions may apply. Go to patricia.com or call 866-469-7853 .

The Northern Bay Golf Resort and Marina in the Wisconsin Dells region offers a course whose holes are replicas of some of the game's most famous: No. 18 at Bay Hill in Orlando, No. 16 at Augusta National , the island-green 17th at TPC Sawgrass . It is not the first attempt to re -create a "dream 18," but it earned a Golf Digest honor as one of the top new public courses in the January issue.

The summer season package, which starts Friday and runs through Sept. 4, includes a round of golf with GPS-equipped cart, practice balls, and accommodations for $125 per player, $150 on Friday and Saturday. Rates are based on quadruple occupancy in a golf-view condo and do not include tax.

Call 800-350-0049 or go to northernbayresort.com .

Ron Driscoll can be reached at rdriscoll@globe.com.