Got golf? Columbia certainly does, giving residents the chance to “grip it and rip it” at a variety of courses.

Hobbit’s Glen Golf Club allows member to tee off on a regulation length, 18-hole course with four sets of tee boxes. The public Fairway Hills Golf Club features great greens, with 18 holes and regulation par 70, while nearby Ellicott City has 54 holes at Turf Valley Resort.

For whimsy, the Sports Park on Harper’s Ferry Road has miniature golf, along with batting cages, skateboard facilities and many other offerings.

But golf is just the beginning.

Columbia is a do-it-yourself kind of place, and if the original planned community lacked something, it didn’t for long. Both Lake Elkhorn and Wilde Lake, at 37 and 22 acres respectively, are man-made. Surrounded by Lake Elkhorn Park and a two-mile path, the former is stocked each spring with bass and trout. The latter has a slightly shorter path.

Both lakes, plus 27-acre Lake Kittamaqundi, were built by the Columbia Association. Kittamaqundi offers boat and canoe rentals, a pier and a public launch along its west shore.

Keeping with its founders’ vision for a community that had easy access to everything, the city has centers for ice skating, climbing, swimming, tennis and horse riding. Columbia has no fewer than 23 outdoor pools.

The Columbia Swim Center on Wincopin Circle has lap swimming, water slides and a sauna. Open all year, Earth Treks Climbing Center is the East Coast’s largest such indoor facility, with overhands, chimneys, slabs, cracks and a cave. For those who prefer climbing outdoors, Earth Treks offers a full guide service and access to expeditions to premier destinations such as South America and Mount Everest.

Soccer is a serious sport here, and the Soccer Association of Columbia/Howard County has at least 6,000 players, 500 teams and 1,000 adult volunteers each season. Its former members, both men and women, are stars on college, pro and Olympic teams.

Combined with Howard County, the area has more than 200 miles of walking, biking and hiking trails, including some that wind along the Patapsco River.

No matter if you’re a golf enthusiast or outdoor adventurer, Columbia offers plenty of places to play.