Long, open fairways in the Iga forest

Wing Towa Golf Club, formerly Ariji Country Club Hanagaki Course, sits in natural forest in Iga City, western Mie Prefecture. It opened in 1996 to a design by Shunsuke Kato and plays 18 holes at par 72 across 6,804 yards. It's a hill course, but the fairways are broad and mostly flat, so the main test is length and the ponds that bring strategy into many holes. The finishing hole is the club's signature: a long downhill 18th running toward the clubhouse, with a green surrounded by water. Riding carts with GPS are standard, and the 200-yard, 18-bay range has approach and bunker areas for warming up.

Broad fairways that reward a big swing, and a water-ringed green to finish.

Iga is famous as the home of the Iga ninja. The Iga-ryu Ninja Museum and Iga Ueno Castle make a fun half-day before or after your round, and the region is known for Iga beef and Iga-yaki pottery. Nara and the Ise-Shima area are both within driving distance, so Wing Towa fits a Kansai road trip well. The course is about 5 km from the Haruta exit on the Meihan Expressway and roughly an hour by car from Osaka. The club runs no shuttle bus, so plan to drive or take a taxi.