Mohave Valley, Arizona/Nevada

To lessen the possibility of first-tee jitters, I was tempted to slink down the descending arroyo that defines the monster par-five opening hole at Laughlin Ranch Golf Club to a less daunting tee box. A mining theme permeates the course and clubhouse, and I wondered whether an ore cart was required to negotiate the elevation drop between the gold tees and the distant fairway that cascades between boulders and cacti. Hoping I'd left my bad luck at the casino the night before, I calmed my nerves, launched a drive well down the fairway, and congratulated myself for not being in Las Vegas.

Sure, that megalopolis has its appeal, but most everything that Vegas has too much of-snail-like traffic, endless hype, bling-is blessedly absent a hundred miles south in Laughlin, Nevada, and neighboring Bullhead City, Arizona. I used to play poker three or four times a year in Las Vegas. A decade ago, however, I discovered Laughlin, and on my numerous return visits to this desert retreat I've stayed in most of the casinos, camped on a bluff above the Colorado River, hiked the nearby canyons, fished in adjacent Lake Mohave, and canoed a stretch of the dam-tamed Colorado. This body of water most distinguishes Laughlin from Vegas. Faux canals, mechanically created waves, dancing fountains and concrete-encased "rivers" comprise Vegas' waters.

When I wake up in Laughlin, however, to the flow of a real river a few yards from my hotel room, then stroll along the Riverwalk, I feel my day has started perfectly. In Laughlin, I find the poker tables to be more profitable and the attitudes to be friendlier than those in Vegas, and visitors can negotiate Laughlin far more easily than they can its highly hyped big brother. In fact, I now only suffer the snarl of Sin City's famous Strip when visiting my grandmother, a Vegas denizen.

And then there's Laughlin golf. Named for Don Laughlin, the town sprang from the 98-cent, all-you-can-eat chicken dinners that he and his wife sold at their restaurant. The growth that followed, including the development of retirement communities in the area, shattered the region's somnolent image and created the mini-Vegas that is today's Laughlin-a neon-bedecked, year-round destination that draws more than 4 million travelers annually to its slots, table games, card rooms and waterways. What the region has not done, however, is establish itself as a must-experience golf destination. Currently, therefore, savvy golfers can book tee times on the four preeminent courses (there are six within a half hour's drive) without being shoehorned between the hordes that descend on Vegas.

Though less lavish than the likes of Shadow Creek and Wynn Las Vegas, Laughlin's courses serve up captivating desertscapes that include mountains as backdrops. Golfers who find the cards, dice or slots running cold can still afford rounds in this budget-conscious version of Vegas (the peak green fee at Laughlin Ranch is $125). Stretching to 7,155 yards from the tips and bearing a slope of 142, the Laughlin Ranch course delivers sustained challenges, with stark waste areas nipping at the edges of numerous fairways. Yet this course's allures are not all so demanding. An award-winning clubhouse, a comprehensive spa and The Grill at Laughlin Ranch add comfort to a round of golf on the course that overlooks Laughlin's casinos.

The Mohave Valley offers enough elegant golf to justify a visit to this stretch of desert for at least a long weekend. Mojave Resort Golf Club, for example, conjures up one deceptive tee shot after another, causing golfers to wonder where among all those traps a ball is safely able to land. Though my drives stayed clear of the sand during my last round on this meticulously manicured course, the cattail-lined lakes proved to be punitive as well as aesthetically pleasing.

El Rio Golf & Country Club's impressive Spanish mission-style clubhouse suggests that the round ahead will be first rate. And it is. El Rio is a cross between a desert and a links course; its forgiving fairways wend past red iron-infused rocks but rarely demand target-golf shot-making, since elevation changes are few. The large undulated greens are tough but true, and the whole layout delivers views of jagged mountain peaks. Course architect Matt Dye displays a less-sadistic streak than his famous uncle tends to, so perhaps some credit for the best round I've ever shot goes to the younger Dye's benevolence.

Should golfers need a breather before playing the last of the four stellar courses in the region, Los Lagos Golf Club, they may want to lounge in cabanas at Harrah's Laughlin, and the Golden Nugget, then take a high-speed jet-boat tour downriver to ... the London Bridge. This iconic historic landmark now straddles a section of Lake Havasu, about a 90-minute boat ride south of the casinos. If travelers head upriver instead, they'll encounter Lake Mohave, a scenery-rich aquatic playground that spreads out south of Willow Beach, where the world-record freshwater striped bass-67.1 pounds-was landed in 1997.

About 40 minutes from the casinos, the former gold mining town of Oatman, Arizona, on a remnant of Route 66, features semi-wild burros, horseback rides and shops selling touristy kitsch. Visitors to this dusty town can peer into the room at the Oatman Hotel where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard spent their wedding night. The perplexed looks on people's faces when they view the dingy, cramped quarters are almost worth the trip.

Natural wonders and historic oddities aside, golfers should not skip Los Lagos Golf Club, the newest addition to the valley's courses. Despite not yet being open the day I played it, Los Lagos ranks among my top-five favorite courses anywhere. The links-style elements-wide-open treeless expanses, pot bunkers, heavy rough and ample mounding-are novel features in a desert setting and contribute to my glowing assessment, but only slightly. Incorporating what to my sensibilities proved to be the perfect mix of water hazards, elevation changes, risk-reward opportunities and waste areas that remind golfers that this is, in fact, naturally harsh terrain, Los Lagos delivers plenty of memorable challenges. One of these days when I tee it up at Los Lagos I expect to greet playing partners who have made the two-hour drive from Vegas. Until word gets out, however, Mohave Valley golf will still be a sure thing.