NEW ORLEANS - There's a trail of money being left all over the United States by golfers. That's right, trails that stretch from California to Virginia are being paved with the billions of dollars - $30 billion (U.S.) last year alone, according to American statistics - that golfers are dropping while enjoying their favourite sport.

Most of the trails have names. Like the Robert Trent Jones Trail - named in honour of the famous golf course architect - in Alabama and the Smoky Mountain Trail in Tennessee. Not to be outdone, Louisiana has just opened its new golf trail, christened the Audubon Trail in honour of the renowned naturalist and artist John James Audubon, who spent a great deal of his time in the Bayou State painting the rare birds that migrate here each year.

The golf trail idea first took root, we believe, in Alabama when some smart tourist officials realized that by linking golf courses with resorts and hotels, players would be inclined to stay a little while longer in their state and spend a whole lot more.

Louisiana's trail consists of several courses located in various parts of the state. And that's one of the biggest side benefits to any golf trail because it usually takes players to remote corners of a state or province and thus spreads out the tourist dollars far more evenly.

For instance, did you ever think of visiting a place called Thompson Creek or Cypress Bend or Lake Charles in Louisiana? Of course not. But you will if you follow the Audubon Trail. And to get there, you will have to travel amazing highways that sit on stilts -- some stretching almost 50 kilometres -- over the state's swamps and bayous, where alligators and giant snakes sun themselves in full view of passing motorists. Your first stop on the Audubon Trail should be a course called The Island in Baton Rouge.

This course was carved out of a sugar plantation and it's pretty sweet, although the 54 bunkers and nine lakes scattered about the 7,000-yard, par 72 championship course will leave you feeling a little sour if you don't bring your A-plus game. The biggest bonus to playing golf in Louisiana is the prices charged at the six Audubon courses -- most are in the $40 (U.S.) range, which includes cart.

From Baton Rouge, you'll head a little north to the Bluffs On Thompson Creek, an Arnold Palmer-designed course that takes you through tight terrain. It's ranked the 34th-best course in the United States and it doesn't disappoint. Top hole is the elevated par 3, 17th that is protected by water on the right and bunkers in front and to the left of the green.

Then there's Tamahka Trails Golf Club and Cypress Bend to play a little farther north near Alexandria before heading for the most northern point in the state, Shreveport and the Olde Oaks course, which straddles the Texas border. Tamahka is nestled in thick forest while Olde Oaks, designed by PGA star Hal Sutton, is a modern layout. A beautiful lake borders Cypress Bend and makes every shot a test for the golfer.

Lake Charles, a good drive from Shreveport, is home to the Gray Plantation course, the final stop on the trail and maybe the most memorable. Golf Digest magazine recently ranked this No. 3 among new American courses. The 7,000-yard layout features 60 acres of lakes that come into play on 12 of the holes. Moss-draped pines and 94 bunkers are the other challenges you will have to contend with on this beauty.

Lake Charles is home to Harrah's Casino and Steamboat Bill's, which serves up some of the best jambalaya and gumbo in Cajun Country. There are other worthwhile side trips along the trail as well, like the 260 kilometre Creole Nature Trail -- well worth the trip on its own -- near Lake Charles and the amazing Rosedown Plantation, one of the last well preserved cotton plantations where hundreds of slaves toiled in the nearby fields during America's most troubling period.

Over the next few years, more championship courses will be added to the Audubon Trail to fill in the spots between stops.