Pepper turned and pointed, her dark brown body almost invisible in the tall weeds that held the quail. At first her bobbed tail wiggled back and forth like a windshield wiper on high speed, but as her vacuuming nostrils filled with the hot scent, she leaned forward toward the birds and became a living German Shorthair statue.

John moved quietly in toward the spot, his 20-gauge Browning over-and-under at the ready. Just as he was in mid-step, three tiny bomblets exploded up out of the tangle, all silhouetted in the deep blue Alabama sky. Twisting and turning, they separated as if on signal, each trying to find a different oak-covered knob to hide behind.

With the practiced ease of an experienced gunner, John fluidly moved his weight to his front foot, swung the barrel toward the flight plane, caught up to the brown missile darting off to his left, and followed through as he fired. The angry swarm of No. 8 shot caught up to the fleeing quail and brought him to the ground, several white under-feathers floating on the light breeze.

Quickly bringing his shotgun back to his right, he located the second fleeing quail. Just as my companion came on plane and pulled the trigger, the bird juked to the right even more, eluding the cone of shot that went buzzing by him. John turned to me with a sheepish grin and shrugged his shoulders, both of us knowing that sometimes they just get away.

John and I were hunting on the 3,500 acre sportsman’s paradise called Pursell Farms, located in Sylacauga, Alabama (home of Jim Nabors), about one hour southeast of Birmingham. David Pursell had invited us down for a golfing, hunting and fishing trip that proved to be a delightful November vacation. The property has a myriad of recreational options that play havoc on the decision making process.

Do I play golf on the championship course or should I go fishing in the stream and ponds that contain bass up to 10 pounds? Should I hunt for turkey, deer or quail or should I shoot clay targets on the five-stand course? What about tennis or wildlife photography? Maybe I should wander down to the practice area and better my golf game on the range, putting green or chipping area. For the outdoors person this huge farm offers enough to keep the most avid sportsman busy all day. Earlier in the week I had the pleasure of playing on the Farm Links golf course that is rated the No. 1 public course in Alabama. This is not a venue that will beat you up. If you play from the appropriate tees and strike the ball reasonably well you will be rewarded. However, if you play back on the tips and if the greenskeeper wants to be devilish with the pin placements, it can be a challenge for even the best of golfers.

The course wanders through a valley surrounded with gentle hills that in November are ablaze with color. When we played it last week, an early morning frost had turned the leaves into bright butterflies covering the oaks with their fluttering wings. Although there is a little water on the course, it seldom comes into play. The traps are strategically located so that the long ball hitters have to hit the throat of the fairway, but there are not so many of them that they are a huge distraction.

What really makes this course is the way the whole business end of the enterprise is organized. When the Pursells built this course it was to be a lost leader for their main business which was their patented slow-release fertilizer. They wanted to construct a research and demonstration project to show what different soil, water, seed and fertilizer combinations could be employed to optimize the golfing experience. They teamed with Toro, Club Car and other industry leaders to develop the latest and best turf management practices to show course superintendents from around the country how to best manage their playing surfaces.

Over the last few years Pursell Farms has brought to its campus as many as 1,200 course superintendents a year for a three day experience to learn about turf management by some of the top leaders in the industry. Topics like soil reliever aerification, pre-emergent weed control, green top dressing, etc.,etc. You get the idea. Every latest tool and trick are employed in different ways to demonstrate what works best under different conditions.

The best part of this for folks like you and me is as a result of all of this attention the course is always in unbelievable condition. Every blade of grass looks like it has its own attendant. The rough is so luxuriant that the ball just sets up on it like on a tee. Those that have a tendency to move the ball left or right off the tee will have a surface from which to play that will leave them with a decent second shot.

There are a couple of surprising elevation changes on both the fifth and 17th holes. The fifth is a par three wonder that drops some 171 feet in elevation to a generous but tricky green. The 17th is a par-3 over the water that plays 196 from the tips. The wide triangular-shaped green has room at the back, so unless you are a lot better than I am, hit it to the back middle of the green no matter where the pin is located.

The greens fee is $135 a day. However, this includes all the range balls you want to hit, a cart, a really nice lunch at the turn, free non-alcoholic drinks and snacks on the course, and, you can play as many holes as you want. When you figure all that in, it is a pretty reasonable price for playing the number one course in the state. They also have vacation packages for those that want to stay a few days. Their brand new guest houses are set up for gracious living with a large putting and chipping green just out the back door.

So, what do you say to some quail hunting in the morning, a little golf in the afternoon, and then some five-stand shooting in the evening. Follow that up the next day with some trophy bass fishing, another round of golf and then a nature walk into the setting Alabama sun.

If you are interested in a few days of southern hospitality at its finest in a true plantation-style setting, you can contact them on the web at www.farmlinks.org or give them a call at 877-292-3276.