Woods chooses N.C. mountains for first U.S. golf course (USA Today)

Reigning PGA Champ Tiger Woods announced that his foray into designing a golf course on U.S. soil will be located at the 5,000 feet above the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains on the North Carolina-South Carolina border.

And if you’re planning to play the course when it’s completed, be sure to bring some comfy Foot-Joys: walking only.

…Woods already is trying to determine the configuration of the holes, but he said he has so many options that it’s difficult to decide. It will have one characteristic: It’s designed for walking.

“Jim and I both have an interest in fitness,” Woods said. “Obesity and diabetes is an epidemic in the country. We want something to encourage physical fitness.”

He said he was unsure about the length, but he added, “We’ll have a complex of about five tees on every hole, and we’ll have no more than a 5% grade on any hole so we’ll have a course everyone can walk.”

The course will be a part of The Cliffs, a golfing community that already consists of courses that have been designed by gold legends Jack Nicklaus, Tom Fazio and Gary Player.