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Hurtle to Myrtle


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January 2005

More on BBQs

Long weekend getaways

For an upscale taste of Myrtle Beach, hurry down to the South Strand

By SHANE SHARP

While Caledonia, True Blue and TPC are the South Strand's biggest stars, there are older, more affordable courses you shouldn't overlook.

The Willard Byrd-designed Litchfield Country Club on Pawleys Island, one of the original eight courses on the Grand Strand, is an old-school stretch of narrow fairways, sharp doglegs and small greens. At the 424-yard 11th, the fairway's sharp left turn and a shoebox-size green make four feel like a birdie. Litchfield finishes with a sweeping 406-yarder with a lagoon threatening drives and approach shots.

In 1985, Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort asked South Carolina native Tom Jackson to design a white-knuckle, championship-caliber course. Today, River Club is still one of the area's better tests. Hazards--water, sand or both--appear on all 18 holes. The layout plays much harder than its 6,677 yards would suggest. Golfers from up north will feel at home on the slick, A-1 bentgrass greens--a novelty in the Carolina Lowcountry.

owl play: the Heritage's 14thBeth Perkins

Two other '80s designs are worth a visit. In 1985, developer Larry Young set out to create one of the South Strand's most scenic tracks on 600 acres along the Waccamaw River. Defying the decade's "more is better" theme, he sprinkled the Heritage Club with bunkers and mounding, but let its 300-year-old live oaks and black lagoons play starring roles. For his greens, Young made like a 1980s-vintage Jack Nicklaus and built some of the Southeast's most severely sloping surfaces. Architecture buffs ripped them as crazily severe, and a decade later Young smoothed them out.

In 1988, the developers of Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club--which lies just a pitching wedge south of Heritage on the Atlantic side of U.S. 17--were looking for a big name to anchor their resort. They brought in Nicklaus, who was then known for creating courses only scratch golfers could love. With a 146 slope from the back tees, the Golden Bear's 7,026-yard layout at Pawleys Plantation will never be mistaken for a gentle resort course, but it's far more playable than some of his other '80s tracks. From the 6,127-yard White Egret tees (130 slope, 70.8 course rating), it's fair and even fun.

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Pawleys' popularity--more than 40,000 golfers visit each year--ushered in a golf course building boom that continued until 2000 and produced Caledonia, True Blue and the TPC of Myrtle Beach. That surge also brought some lesser-known courses worth exploring.

Willbrook Plantation is a 6,722-yard 1988 Dan Maples design draped over the rolling terrain of two old rice plantations. History lovers enjoy the markers detailing the property's rich traditions; golfers appreciate the elevated tee boxes and gently breaking greens.

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