Early spring fling in Myrtle Beach

By Steve Gordon

Living in SE Pennsylvania I expect winter golf to be hit and miss and this year it has been more miss. It has been more rain than snow but temperatures haven’t given up many playing days. Given that situation, it doesn’t play well for an avid golfer so I decided on an early March trek to Myrtle Beach. It gets me on the course and it gets me in and out of town before the onrush of an overly busy early spring.

With 99 courses in the Myrtle Beach area the choices are varied. This trip took me to community based venues at Sandpiper Bay (where I started my week) and Aberdeen Country Club (where I ended my week), the high end Thistle Golf Club, the popular Sea Trail courses and the highly acclaimed Glen Dornoch and Arcadian Shores layouts.

The first day out after not playing for a couple months is always interesting. I proceeded to play my first 18 holes with one ball not counting the opening tee shot I topped off the first tee into a small pond. That is always a bonus.

I actually played respectable overall taking my 13.7 GHIN handicap index and my 72-year-old bones to the gold tees. While I still hit the ball OK, those forward tees are there for a reason. Also another thing to consider is playing at sea level you lose something like 10% in distance. Add to that overly wet conditions with the area taking on over 100 inches of rain recently, there would be no roll taking potentially 30 or more yards of roll off tee shots for starters not to mention no running the ball through wet approach areas in front of the greens.

Sandpiper Bay was a player friendly 27-hole layout with new Bermuda greens that have grown in very well. It was a good place to start the week with my longtime playing partner who I traveled with. The clubhouse was spacious and casual and General Manager Tim Tilma explained, this facility has a niche of its own being part of a residential community while also able to handle larger groups of golfers.

While there was water throughout the course, as with most courses in the area, the course did not put have long forced carries over it. The course was in good shape getting ready for the season. Also the holes were not compressed by trees and unplayable area to penalize players. Another nice touch was the offer of an additional nine holes as available for 10 bucks.

Sandpiper Bay 9th hole.

The second day was a visit to Glen Dornoch. This Clyde Johnson design opened in 1997 and has been a favorite stop on the Grand Strand. A feature is the double green servicing the 9^th and 18^th holes from opposite directions and both hard on the Intra Coastal Waterway.

  

This is not be a course for the faint of heart as it requires some very precise shot making on several holes. I cite the par four 16^th hole that calls for an accurate, but not long, tee shot to the end of the fairway and then a challenging 150 yards downhill to a green complex that does not forgive a wayward approach shot. I would also cite the 18^th hole and you just have to see that one for yourself.

View of Intra Coastal Waterway behind 8th green at Glen Dornoch.

Our third day found us at Arcadian Shores, an old favorite and a course once ranked on a top 100 list. A severe overnight series of thunder storms put this in doubt as we sat in the clubhouse watching the weather. By noon it cleared and we were off, cart path only that was a theme for the week, and the dormant Bermuda framing the holes was memorable.

This was the first solo design from noted architect Rees Jones and set him on a career that gained him the nickname as The Open Doctor for his work tweaking and setting up US Open courses for the USGA. The course shows features that would highlight many of his later designs with playing angles and challenging players to hit risk reward shots where failure put you in places you don’t want to be. That said the course gives options away from trouble spots but they give you a longer or tougher shot to the green.

Approach shot on 13th hole at Arcadian Shores.

 The agenda for the week continued at the once private Thistle Golf Club. Visiting this 27-hole facility for the first time we were fortunate to be able to play all three nines. Overall Thistle does not look like many other courses in the area. It is mostly open but water is prevalent being present on 23 or the 27 holes. While it isn’t all in front of you and you can play around it, there are a handful of holes it will be in your face. Add that to greens that were lightning fast with contours. Putting was fun.

Getting into a groove with four consecutive pars in the middle of the MacKay nine, the 7^th hole ate my lunch. Off the tee there is a challenging forced carry over wetlands funneled between trees to a fairway that took a 90 degree turn to the left. From there a long second shot is required to have a mid to short iron over wetlands to the green. There were some breather holes out there but this wasn’t one of them.

Tee shot on par 5 seventh hold on MacKay nine at Thistle.

The week was coming to a close as on our fifth day we took the drive up to Sea Trails Golf Club. This facility is home to three tracks names Maples, Jones and Byrd for the designers. Not having played golf for months the muscles were getting like jelly. Thank goodness for the hot tub at the hotel.

The clubs were loaded and we were pointed in the direction of the first hole of a very playable but challenging Willard Byrd design. While a number of the courses in the area are built on similar terrain these golf course architects have a way of making their creations their own and Mr. Byrd didn’t disappoint.

There was some water, some trees, dogleg holes that went both ways, a long par 5 and a gator sunning itself near the cart path on the short reachable par 5 final hole. It seemed not to be interested in us and we weren’t too interested to test that and walk toward it and flip his tail to say hello as one tour pro did once caught on TV.

View from back tee on par four 14th hole on Byrd course at Sea Trail.

After Sea Trail and another relaxing soak in the hot tub the bags were packed. In the morning we’d have some breakfast and head north making a pit stop at the Aberdeen Golf Club before hitting the highway.

Tom Jackson put in 27-holes on this low land layout that goes underwater from time to time when the area gets the brunt of hurricanes. Originally an 18-hole residential layout called Buck Creek, ownership changed a few years back and Jackson returned to add nine holes and the name changed.

We started on the Meadows course which was the nine added to the original 18. For a couple of tired players it was just what the doctor ordered and fitting for a residential community golf course. It was no pushover however.  

At the turn we set out on the Woodland nine to continue our round. It was like being on a different golf course and everything the pro shop attendant said it would be. This was a set of holes as challenging as any of the holes we played throughout the week. They not only required a lot of solid shots they called for some smart thinking on how to play them. It was a fitting end to a great week of golf in Myrtle Beach.

Par 3 fourth hole on Woodlands nine at Aberdeen CC.