![]() ![]() The course calls to mind such historic venues as Pinehurst No. One of two Pawleys Island masterpieces by visionary architect Mike Strantz, True Blue is one of the gems of the southern Grand Strand, known as the Waccamaw Golf Trail. Do not be surprised to see folks sitting in the rocking chairs just above the putting surface, perhaps placing bets on how the hole will turn out for you and your group. And after one’s round, it is typical to linger, drink in hand, on the clubhouse’s wraparound porch, overlooking the attractive par four 18th hole, which requires the approach shot carry the corner of a lake. Its Champion Bermuda greens are always in terrific shape and with the longest tees playing to around 6,500 yards, the course is challenging without being overly punishing. In springtime, Caledonia is particularly spectacular, with thousands of annual flowers blooming and colorful shrubs adorning the grounds while also remaining largely out-of play. Instead, Caledonia sets up like an arboretum that happens to house a golf course as well. The course, laid out intimately across 110 acres, is a “core golf” experience, where players appreciate the absence of houses or condos that can clutter up the view down the fairway. The incomparable journey of playing Caledonia begins as one drives down the course’s entrance road, lined with decades-old live oaks that resemble the approach to an old Southern plantation house. In nearly 20 years, it has been one of the absolute favorite golf courses on the Grand Strand and consistently ranks as one of the top public-accessible courses in the South by every major golf publication. ![]() Opened in 1994, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club was Mike Strantz’s first solo course design. “You’ve got to hit a lot of different shots and any time you can challenge yourself, it’s a good thing.” “It’s a great golf course and it’s always in great shape,” said PGA Tour star Dustin Johnson, who calls TPC Myrtle Beach his home course. Featuring a near-island green that is surrounded by water on three sides, the 193-yard hole is reminiscent of its famed counterpart at Sawgrass. The par 5 18th hole has a creek the dissects the fairway and the round concludes on a peninsula green, forcing a risk-reward decision on the second shot. It’s a spectacular design, highlighted by one the most dramatic finishing holes on the Myrtle Beach golf scene. The layout has accumulated accolades with good reason. Golf Digest ranks TPC Myrtle Beach among America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses and it earned 5 stars in the magazine’s Places to Play guide, making it one of fewer than 20 courses nationwide to earn the honor. The course opened in time to host 1999 Senior PGA Tour Championship, an event won by Tom Watson, and it has been among the Grand Strand’s most prominent layouts ever since. TPC Myrtle Beach was built with the idea that it would be among the nation’s finest courses, and the Tom Fazio design has certainly fulfilled its promise. The TPC brand is one of the strongest in the golf travel industry, and it’s Myrtle Beach offering is one of the reasons for its sterling reputation. When everything is taken into account, Tidewater is one of the best public courses in America, providing the type of round that players will carry with them long after they’ve left Myrtle Beach The inland holes are outstanding as well, especially the 354-yard 15th hole, which is a great par 4. Tidewater didn’t earn Top 100 public courses honors from Golf Digest and Golf Magazine based strictly on views. Nine of Tidewater’s 18 holes play along the Inlet or Intracoastal. There are few views that equal looking out into the Atlantic from the 13th green. ![]() The fourth hole, a dogleg left that follows the natural contours of Cherry Grove is one of the best par 4s in the area, and the par 5 13th hole might be the best of all. The par 3 third and 12th holes, which play along Cherry Grove Inlet, are devilish little holes that offer majestic views and require a delicate a touch. The layout has an embarrassment of riches. Tidewater is, arguably, the most scenic layout on the East Coast, playing along the Intracoastal Waterway and Cherry Grove Inlet, in addition to offering a distant view of the Atlantic Ocean. Tidewater burst onto the national golf travel scene as the first layout to win Best New Course honors from both Golf Digest and Golf Magazine, and it remains one of the nation’s premier courses. ![]()
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