Golfweek magazine has unveiled its annual ranking of the “Top 100 Best Courses You Can Play in the U.S.” and a trio of Myrtle Beach layouts earned a spot on the prestigious list.
Golfweek ranked the famed Dunes Golf & Beach Club the 50th best public course in America and the Robert Trent Jones Sr. classic was followed by Caledonia Golf & Fish Club (No. 62) and True Blue Golf Club (No. 95), a pair of Mike Strantz gems.
Even more impressive than three top 100 courses was Myrtle Beach’s dominance of Golfweek’s list of the “Best Courses You Can Play,” a ranking of the top public layouts in each state. The Myrtle Beach area is home to nine of golf-rich South Carolina’s top 15 public courses, according to Golfweek.
Joining the Dunes Club (No. 3), Caledonia (No. 5) and True Blue (No. 6) on the list of the Palmetto’s State’s best are Tidewater Golf Club (No. 7), Heritage Club (No. 8), Moorland at Legends Resort (No. 11), Dye Course at Barefoot Resort (No. 12), King’s North at Myrtle Beach National (No. 13) and TPC Myrtle Beach (No. 14).
“The Dunes Club, Caledonia and True Blue are absolutely worthy of being ranked among America’s top 100 public courses, and we are equally excited to have Golfweek rank nine Myrtle Beach layouts among South Carolina’s top 15 public courses,” said Bill Golden, CEO of Golf Tourism Solutions. “Myrtle Beach is America’s most popular destination, and Golfweek’s rankings are further affirmation of the quality and depth of the area’s course offerings.”
A consensus top 100 layout, the Dunes Club led Myrtle Beach’s meteoric rise from sleepy beach town to international golf destination. Home to “Alligator Alley,” a three-hole stretch that culminates with the par 5 13th hole known as “Waterloo,” the course has hosted the U.S. Women’s Open, the Senior PGA Tour Championship and numerous other high profile events.
Caledonia was the late Mike Strantz’ first solo design and it rocketed him to stardom. Playing amidst hundreds of sprawling live oak trees and South Carolina’s stunning lowcountry landscape, Caledonia is equal parts art and architecture, wowing players with beauty and challenge.
True Blue, also a Strantz course, is a more contemporary design, challenging players with massive fairways, sprawling waste bunkers, and some of the area’s largest greens. Everything at True Blue is big, most importantly the fun.
While courses like Tidewater, Barefoot’s Dye Club, TPC Myrtle Beach and Heritage didn’t crack this year’s top 100 list, they lead a cavalcade of Myrtle Beach courses that have previously been ranked among the nation’s best courses and have the potential to be again.
