Founders Club on Pawleys Island, South Carolina

The Founders Club golf course on Pawleys Island opened Feb. 1, 2008.

The new course replaces Sea Gull, one of the oldest golf courses in Myrtle Beach, having been built in 1966. The routing of the course remains the same, and only a handful of holes have different pars than they used to, but architect Thomas Walker's sculpting of mounds and bunkers give it a much wider, dramatic canvas.

One of the holes widened the most was the par-5 12th, which now features a two-tiered double fairway, split by moguls with bunkers dotted within them. Take the left-hand route and you have a shot at going for the wide, elevated green in two shots, which is guarded by a solid 60-70 yards of carry over a pond.

There are a few other greens guarded by water in front, including the 18th: one of the more narrow holes off the tee, capped by a tricky short iron over water to a multi-tiered green in front of the brand new, Lowcountry-style clubhouse.