IMPECCABLE BY Design WITH MORE THAN 350 GOLF COURSES, SOUTH CAROLINA BOASTS PLENTY OF OPTIONS DESIGNED BY SOME OF THE WORLD’S BEST ARCHITECTS, ENSURING MEMORABLE, CHALLENGING AND FUN PLAY FOR YOUR NEXT GOLF GETAWAY. BY PERRY BAKER JACK NICKLAUS A world-class golfer, Nicklaus’ course designs are legendary. South Carolina has several Nicklaus designs, both private and public, and they are difficult. Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club in Pawleys Island was built in 1988 and offers a stern test with six back nine holes that run along the tidal marsh. The course’s most memorable hole is the short (90 yards) Par 3 13th hole with its tiny peninsula green. The course underwent a complete renovation in 2023, contracting with Nicklaus Design Group to restore playability to Jack’s original ideas. May River Golf Course at Palmetto Bluff , just outside of Bluffton, is considered Jack’s premier design effort in South Carolina. Opened in 2005, the course winds through moss-draped live oak trees, through marsh and along the May River. At 7,171 yards, the course offers golfers a difficult test, requiring accurate drives and a great eye around the green complexes. PETE DYE AND PB DYE Pete Dye left a remarkable legacy in South Carolina’s golf landscape, with numerous notable courses including The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort , which is on every golfer’s wish list. And it should be. Host to the 1991 Ryder Cup, as well as the PGA Championships in 2012 and 2021, Dye massaged this two-mile stretch of island coastline into a supreme test of golf. Despite generous fairways and landing areas, no other course in the country offers such a demanding second shot — especially with those coastal breezes. (And whatever you do, listen to your caddie’s advice around the greens.) Harbour Town Golf Links at The Sea Pines Resort on Hilton Head Island is considered one of the most difficult tests of shot making on the PGA Tour. Live oaks and towering pine trees are seemingly a factor on every shot, and its collection of Par 3s may be the most challenging on the PGA Tour. Pete’s son, PB Dye, also a notable architect, created the Moorland Course at Legends Golf & Resort in Myrtle Beach, a difficult, somewhat controversial design, using large areas of natural vegetation, sand, water and waste areas and a “target golf” approach tee to green. From left to right: Harbour Town Golf Links at The Sea Pines Resort, Hilton Head Island; Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club, Pawleys Island 18
South Carolina Vacation Guide SC 2025: Page 18
