MYRTLE BEACH FEATURE

Best in Show: Focus
on Myrtle Beach Greens

MYRTLE BEACH (Jan. 16, 2002) - They can make or break your golf trip to Myrtle Beach, and their condition is completely out of your control.

Golf greens are a quintessential trademark by which all golf courses are ultimately judged. And based on popular opinion, visitors to the Grand Strand want them true, fast, and in immaculate condition, even if they're going to three-putt them.

Who can blame them?

After a three-hour flight from Michigan or New York, and hundreds of dollars spent on a golf package, golfers visiting the Grand Strand have a right to except some excellent putting surfaces.

So which Myrtle Beach courses are the best bets for finding the sweetest dancefloors?

"Honestly, the best greens I play on a regular basis are out at Kings North," says Waterway Hills head professional Christa Bodensteiner. "They are in real good shape and they are bent grass and they roll really well."

Bodensteiner, who plays at least once a week, is also a big fan of the greens at all the Wild Wing Plantation courses, but warns that rumors about green conditions can often be anecdotal at best.

"The greens that I always hear about are the Heritage Club," she says. "But I think that is because of the elephant burial ground out there. Whenever I have been out there, the greens are not in that good of condition. But so in so many instances, this is because the hundreds of players that go through a course each day don't repair their ball marks."

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"I would say we have some of the best, and I say that objectively," he says. "Ours are in great shape, but so are Tiger's Eye's and Crow Creeks'. Of course, you can never go wrong at Wild Wing. That place is in tip top condition year around."

For Steve Gullette, head professional at the Meadowlands Golf Club in Calabash, N.C., two Brunswick County courses come to mind.

"When I think of great greens, I think of Tiger's Eye and Magnolia Greens Plantation (pictured)," he says. "I love bentgrass greens because I love fast greens."

For most players and pros, the word "bentgrass" is the essential ingredient for an enjoyable golf outing. Bentgrass greens are smooth, can be cut ridiculously short, and typically roll as "true" as the fellas from the popular Budweiser commercial.

But does a golf course have to have the magical, but costly to maintain bentgrass putting surfaces to compete in the ultra competitive Myrtle Beach golf market?

"I think bentgrass helps, but the newer Bermuda is getting close," Bodensteiner says. "Players like them because there is no grain. If it were not for the upkeep, most courses would desire them."

Harper feels strongly that turf science is progressing rapidly enough on the side of Bermuda that courses can forego the higher maintenance bentgrass and still provide golfers with quality putting surfaces.

The Tradition Golf Club in Pawleys Island is often cited as having some of the best greens in the south Strand. The grass of choice at this Ron Garl designed layout just happens to be Bermuda.

"To be honest, we have as good as Bermuda grass greens as anyone," says head professional Robert Spangler. "I like them because they are much more durable than bentgrass. On a consistent basis, the Reserve, Debordieu and Wachesaw (Plantation) have the best greens around here. But they are private and they don't see the rounds that the rest of us do."

Some upscale daily fee courses are starting to see the advantages of the new strands of Bermuda grass. True Blue, regularly recognized as one of the state's top courses, replaced its bentgrass greens with the popular Tiff Eagle Bermuda grass developed at the University of Georgia.

Farmstead, a new Willard Byrd designed course from the owners of Meadowlands, installed the Tiff Eagle turf as well. The course just opened for play three months ago, but already the greens are in excellent condition.

Yet, some courses stand by the need for pristine bentgrass greens. Both Tidewater and the River Club completed green renovations in the past year, with the River Club actually replacing its Bermuda grass with A-1 bentgrass.

"We are lucky here because we can spread play over our three courses," says Nate Dewitt, head professional at the River Club. "We have Litchfield and Willbrook. We just wanted to do something to set the River Club apart, and we can keep the rounds down to do it."

If you are a green aficionado, make sure you call ahead to the courses you wish to play and inquire about the type of grass used on the greens. More importantly, remember to ask about any routine maintenance that may be taking place during your stay, such as aerification, verti-cutting, or top dressing. Most maintenance is conducted in the fall season, when Bermuda grass greens are overseeded with Poa-Triv grass for the winter.

Safe Bets for Great Greens

Wild Wing Plantation
Ocean Ridge Plantation
Kings North
River Club
Magnolia Greens Plantation
Rivers Edge
Farmstead
The Tradition Club
Caledonia Golf and Fish Club
True Blue
Grande Dunes