Goldens really are great dogs. But if you do get one, definitely do some breeder homework and spend the extra $$$ for a quality bred golden.
Only reason I say that is because Goldens are prone to hip, and other health related problems. So a quality breeder will most likely have the puppy's pre-screened for this kind of thing.
Do a search on the AKC website for your area, and I'm sure you'll come up with some good results:
http://www.akc.org/breeds/breederinf...der_search.cfm