Golf Courses Up and Down the Grand Strand Earn Awards

In an area with such a large volume of golf courses as Myrtle Beach, there are bound to be some awards earned for the “best of the best” layouts from time to time. And indeed, every year, a number of Grand Strand layouts earn recognition from various golf and travel publications.

But the recent round of awards to be handed out among Myrtle Beach’s premier golf courses indicates that the state of the area golf industry has never been better. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest recent wins.

Perhaps the single biggest distinction earned by any Myrtle Beach-area golf facility came at Barefoot Resort, which was named North American Golf Resort of the Year by the International Association of Golf Tour Operators (IAGTO). Dave Genevro, Barefoot’s general manager, accepted the award at a conference held by IAGTO in Mallorca, Spain.

In addition to the honor bestowed on Barefoot, a number of other Myrtle Beach-area courses earned spots in Golfweek’s prestigious “Best Resort Courses” rankings. The Dunes Golf & Beach Club, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and True Blue Golf Club respectively earned the 24th, 27th and 63rd positions on the list, cementing their reputations as not just the some of best courses on the Grand Strand, but some of the best golf experiences in America.

Six other area golf courses made Golfweek’s “Next 100 Resort Courses” list: the Moorland Course at Legends Resort (#116), King’s North at Myrtle Beach National (#120), the Dye Club at Barefoot Resort (#142), Grande Dunes Resort Club (#149), the Love Course at Barefoot Resort (#193) and the Fazio Course at Barefoot Resort (#194).

The fun thing about rankings is that they’re subjective. While all golfers agree that these courses deserve a high level of distinction, if you were to poll 100 highly experienced, avid golfers among Myrtle Beach visitors and residents, you’d probably hear about a dozen or more other courses that they believe deserve to make these lists — including courses like Leopard’s Chase and Tiger’s Eye all the way on the northern end of the Grand Strand, down to TPC Myrtle Beach, Prestwick, Heritage Club and Pawleys Plantation on the south end. That’s what brings golfers back to Myrtle Beach year after year: seemingly endless possibilities for a great golf vacation.