COURSE REVIEW
Heritage Club still one of South Strand's best: Plantation style layout, stately clubhouse lend to charmPAWLEYS PLANTATION, S.C. (April 5, 2004) -- The typical scene at the Heritage Club pro shop counter goes something like this: Golfers, fresh off a plane or long drive from the great white north, exchange some pleasantries with head professional Kurt Zolbe. They tell him how relieved they are to have made it to the balmy confines of the Lowcountry. They let him know they're yearning to tee it up on the venerable South Strand course. They take a quick look around and rave about the antebellum clubhouse, easily one of the stateliest edifices in the entire Grand Strand. Invariably, there's a wily vet who's played Heritage before who reminds the first-timers to soak up the historical vibe of the vintage, circa 1840 structure. Zolbe smiles to himself and bids them all an enjoyable round. Truth is, Heritage Club's stately manor has about as much to do with pre-Civil War America as the Callaway and Titleist clubs sitting to the left of the counter. The plantation style house was erected, along with the golf course, back in 1986. That's right, 19. "We've even had some older gentlemen swear they can remember sleeping in here when they were on hunting trips as kids," Zolbe says. Those guilty of this egregious architectural error are to be forgiven. The clubhouse, the golf course, and the entire essence of the Heritage Club smacks of a time well before this one. Many of the Spanish Moss draped live oaks that line the fairways are over 250 years old. The 600-acre property straddles two former rice and indigo plantations -- True Blue and Midway; the area between holes four and five was the gateway between the two. A small cemetery just off the fourth green serves as the final resting place for Captain William Vaux and his infant son, who died from Malaria. "It just feels like it's been here forever," says a starter in a thick, New York accent. "The course just sort of sits out there like it belongs." No two ways about it -- Heritage was minimalist golf course design before minimalism was cool. And with good reason -- the 7,040-yard, par-71 layout was crafted by Myrtle Beach developer Larry Young. Young, who splits his time between Scotland and South Carolina, has always been a student of the game. A golf course architect, however, he is not. "We went to (golf course architect) Dan Maples about doing a routing, but he was really busy after the success he had with Marsh Harbor and Oyster Bay," says Danny Young, Larry's son and president of Barefoot and Legends Golf. "My dad just wanted him to take one look at this property to get him interested but he said he couldn't even make the site visits." So the elder Young went at it alone, routing holes around protected wetlands and along the Waccamaw River, and sprinkling bunkers here and there. An interesting thing happened when he got to doing the greens, though. Taking a page out of Jack Nicklaus' mid-80s design manual, Young wrought some of the most severely slopping putting surfaces in the Southeast. "If you think they are tough today, you should have seen them before," says Danny. That is, before D. Young and maverick architect Mike Strantz redesigned the greens in the mid 90s. Strantz -- who'd established a relationship with the Youngs doing the Parkland Course at the Legends complex -- was laying out the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club just across the way. He and Young were chilling in a golf cart on Heritage's par-3 13th when they decided the course could use some tweaking. "We just sat there and thought that something was missing," Young says. "We took the bunker out up front and lowered the green three feet. We also redid 18. It was a double green connected by about 12 feet of putting surface. If you were on one side and the pin on the other, you needed a wedge to get over."
Aside from the greens, most of Larry Young's original work remains in place. Heritage's 7,000-yard back tees play to a slope of 142, making it one of the toughest tests in the Grand Strand. The member's version of the course plays nearly 1,000 yards shorter, and creates a totally different golf experience. Case in point beings holes 13, 14 and 18. Thirteen -- 235-yards from the back tees and all carry -- is arguably the brashest one-shotter in town. From the whites it's a long iron with less carry and plenty of room to bail long and right. Fourteen is the most demanding hole on the course from the cranks, playing to 440 yards and requiring a tee shot over water to a landing area the width of a thong. The forced carry is removed from the white tees and the hole is a full 100 yards shorter. As for 18, it is a true three-shot hole from the gold tees, where it plays to 530 yards. From 490-yard white tees, however, it's a good risk/reward par-5 that rewards a good tee shot with an earnest decision. The VerdictConditions: Golfers used to bentgrass greens tend to complain about the Bermuda at the Heritage Club. These are the same people who complain that their coffee is too hot. As of this playing, 17 of 18 greens were in near perfect shape, with just one straggling a bit due to excess shade (there's a lot of that around Heritage). As for speed, they were rolling at least two shakes quicker on the Stimp than Oyster Bay. The rest of the course was in sublime condition. Be sure and call for aerification schedules. Service: Heritage consistently ranks among the top four or five courses along the Grand Strand for service. You'll be taken care of from car to cart to car. The only shortcoming in this department isn't so much service, as logistics. The parking lot, clubhouse, practice range and first tee are shoe horned into a narrow area and no carts are allowed on the range. Heritage overcomes the situation with frequent shuttle service to and from the parking lot and range. Value: With rates in the $100 to $130 range in season, Heritage can't be considered a value course. What you get for your money, though, is comparable if not better than Pawleys Island, True Blue and in one golf writer's opinion, Caledonia. Design: Again, this will totally depend upon which tees you play from. Heritage is a collection of 18 memorable holes, but not 18 great ones. The 10th is an ill conceived, double dogleg par-5 that rewards a long, straight drive with a plumb spot in the weeds. The par-4 5th is Heritage's only real "weak" hole, as it really doesn't bring anything to the table other than a way to get from four to six. But Heritage more than makes up for it with a handful of stunners like the aforementioned 13th, 14th and 18th holes, as well as the par-4 15th, one of the best driving holes in town.
Where to EatThe Litchfield Beach Fish House the little seafood joint on the east side of Highway 17 with the fish coming out of the roof, is a favorite among locals. Grouper, Snapper and Flounder are the house specialties, and Litchfield serves it up blackened, fried or broiled. Bob Mimms has owned the place for close to twenty years, and you can only imagine how much things have changed in his little sliver of Pawleys Island. One thing, however, has been as steady and stable as one of the large fishing boats that heads out from the Inlet each day - Mimms way of doing seafood. Stay and PlayCarolina Golf Travel offers one, two and three bedroom golf villas at True Blue Golf Plantation. This Myrtle Beach stay and play mainstay will also fix you up with a custom golf package that includes a variety of courses around the Strand. Call 866-409-2177 for more information. |
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And while it may be hard to believe, Strantz and Young also toned down
the locally famous green on the 365-yard par-4 12th. The putting surface
measures 53 yards deep, 28 yards wide and features over five feet of
elevation change spread among four quadrants. Before the alterations,
a golfer putting from the back left would be visible from the chest
up. These days, golfers' belts are readily recognizable.
Glen Dornoch