The buzzword in golf these days appears to be Ross, as in Donald Ross, the crafty Scotsman who left his legacy scattered across the country in great golf courses.

Pinehurst No. 2 is the most acclaimed of the hundreds of courses attributed to Ross, but any course with his name attached appears to be worthy of hosting championship golf.

The 144 players who attempt to qualify for the 99th U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship will play a Ross course rich in history and tradition. The Biltmore Forest Country Club in Asheville was designed by Ross and opened in 1922. It has hosted numerous amateur and professional tournaments and has been tested by most of the game’s top stars.

The Women’s Amateur is scheduled for Aug. 9-14 and will challenge the players over a par-72 layout that measures 6,202 yards. Following two days of qualifying, the field will be cut to the low 64, and six rounds of match play over four days will decide the champion.

Biltmore hosted its first women’s amateur event in 1923, and the invitational was played annually until 1946. Some of the winners were Louise Suggs, Estelle Lawson, Dorothy Kirby, Jan Cothran, Maureen Orcutt and Jane Crum.

A prestigious men’s amateur tournament was held from 1922 through 1962, producing champions such as Billy Joe Patton, Harvie Ward, Al Dowtin and P.J. Boatwright.

A professional event called the Land of the Sky was a regular stop on the PGA Tour in the early 40s. Ben Hogan won it three straight years, outplaying such stars as Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Cary Middlecoff and Dick Metz.

Middlecoff was a Biltmore member, along with U.S. and British Amateur champion Jess Sweetser and the USGA’s Boatwright. The late Bobby Jones was a frequent guest and reportedly loved the hilly, tree-lined layout that lies in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Brenda Corrie-Kuehn, a Biltmore member, will be a sentimental favorite. Grace Park of Phoenix, Ariz., won last year.

Skill-Tester: The Toyota Golf Skills Challenge will hold its competition at Crooked Creek Golf Club in Fuquay-Varina July 16-18. More than 800 amateurs of all ages and skill levels are expected to compete.

The event takes approximately 2 1-2 hours to complete and moves participants through a series of eight golf skills including the long drive, middle iron shot, chip shot, short iron, putting, pitch over hazard, trouble shot and greenside bunker.

Each player is allowed three shots per skill, with only the best shot counting toward the overall score. Divisions are offered for men,(high and low handicap), women, senior men (age 50 and older), juniors (age14-17, and kids (age 8-13).

Each of 24 city champions will advance to a national finals with an opportunity to win a 2000 Toyota Camry Solara SE.

Registration is $30 per player. Tee times may be made by calling (800) 932-8337.

One of the Best: The golf school of Pine Needles Resort has been ranked among the top 25 in America by Golf Magazine.

The magazine, in conjunction with Shaw Guides Inc, the largest publisher of golf school directories in the world, rated a field of more than 200 schools based on curriculum, instruction facilities, staff credentials and a survey of golf school graduates.

Pine Needles and Mid Pines are owned and operated by the Bell family. Peggy Kirk Bell is a charter member of the LPGA and a recipient of numerous awards. She is a master professional and is ranked as one the top 100 instructors in the nation. Along with her son-in-law, former PGA Tour professional Pat McGowan, and several other top teachers in golf, Mrs. Bell has taught thousands of students of all skill levels how to excel at the game.

"Our motto is to have fun while learning," McGowan said.

Tough Track: The slope rating for Tobacco Road, the Mike Strantz-designed course located near Sanford, is 150, the highest of any course in North Carolina.

Tobacco Road, which is currently rebuilding its clubhouse, destroyed by fire a few weeks ago, has been nominated as "best new course of the year" by two major golf publications.