Tiger's Eye - New Tim Cate Course Springs on North Strand

By Shane Sharp,
Contributing Writer

SUNSET BEACH, N.c - Isn't it a little bit sadistic? There are over one hundred courses in the geographic anomaly often referred to as the Grand Strand, and yet we are as giddy as small town residents receiving their first real golf course when a new golfing venue opens in Myrtle Beach.

The new course that we are all so excited about is Tiger's Eye - a much anticipated Tim Cate designed layout that with its opening on April 1, 2000 completed the "feline-I-fication" of Ocean Ridge Plantation in Brunswick County, North Carolina.

That being said, let's make it clear that locals and tourists get gaga over new courses in the Grand Strand for two entirely different reasons.

For Carolina crackers, it is time to celebrate the opening of yet another high-end course that will lure them Yankees and their money away from the more affordable courses we like to play every week.

For them Yankees, and for other visitors to Golf Capital of the World, the opening of Tiger's Eye means yet another expensive course that shows up on the "surcharge" side of their bargain golf package.

There are thousands of savvy golfers that lace 'em up every season in Myrtle Beach, but for every student of the game there are five players who don't really care where they play, as long as it costs them over one hundred bucks - no doubt a bizarre study in price elasticity.

But locals and tourists aside, the opening of Tiger's Eye may mean more to golf writers, critics, the chambers of commerce, Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday, and golf purists than anyone else. The aforementioned list may not have much in common, but the one common thread that binds these stakeholders is the desire to see the Grand Strand's golfing reputation raised well beyond "Golfing K-Mart by the Sea".

And much to the chagrin of the bargain golfer, the only thing that is going to raise the bar from K-mart to Saks Fifth Avenue is the development of high-end daily fee golf.

"Tiger's Eye is different than anything else in Myrtle Beach," said Ocean Ridge Director of Golf Tom Plankers. "The property has elevation changes of over sixty feet. Lots of earth was moved to give the effect of being in the foothills of North Carolina. [Tim] Cate did not use any wooden bulk heading materials whatsoever. He used Coquina boulders which are native to the area."

While the elevation changes at Tiger's Eye may not be discernable for players from the west or the mountains of North Carolina or Virginia, they do provide a little bit of drama for coastal folk. What Tiger's Eye really brings to the golfing table is a layout that is more Pinehurst "esque", with its rolling fairways, lack of water, and familiar pine trees than it is Myrtle Beach.

"Tiger's Eye is a traditional style course with a temporary flair to it," says designer Tim Cate. "There are large grassy bunker areas next to the greens. Mounding was not needed on the course, as we used grassy bunkers and nice sized greens instead."

Reminiscent of Cate's Players Club design at St. James Plantation, Tiger's Eye features vast waste bunkers complete with gnarly, abbreviated hardwoods lodged in the middle of the hazards. But the course's long, rolling fairways and mature beyond its years conditions smack of the traditional influences of Cate's mentor Willard Byrd.

If you've ever been to Ocean Ridge Plantation, you know that the property is neither on the ocean or a ridge, which translates into a somewhat mundane setting. Unlike its feline siblings, Lion's Paw and Panther's Run, Tiger's Eye is acutely cognizant of this terra-shortcoming, and does its best to provide players with some breathtaking moments.

The first hole, which plays 377-yards from the tips and 313-yards from the whites, is not a hard par if you keep the ball down the right side of the fairway and avoid the water along the left side. But from whatever tee box you choose, the hole is deceptively long and even intimidating from the racks.

The par-4, fourth hole may be one of the more interesting two-shoters at Tiger's Eye, and may remind many player's of the "Gambler" at King's North. The hole features double fairways, and in classic risk/reward fashion, choosing to carry the two hundred plus yards of water to the left could lead to an easy birdie, while opting for the easier tee shot to the right and the longer approach brings bogey into play.

Tiger's Eye, despite its safe, dry location a few miles from the coast, is sneaky wet. Water is not only in play on twelve of the eighteen holes, it can make or break your round. Nowhere is this more evident than the par-3, 165-yard No. 11 hole, which for all intensive purposes sports an island green.

Cate's latest contribution to Grand Strand golf should shape up to be a real thinking man's course - a layout that will call for prudent course management and precise shot making. Of course, good old-fashioned luck, a cold beer and good karma couldn't hurt either.

A round of golf at Tiger's Eye will cost you $110 until the end of May, and then $105 until the summer season begins and rates drop to a reasonable $65. Translation? Grand Strand visitors will get their money's worth at Ocean Ridge's crown jewel course, and locals can simply wait until the 90-degree dog days of summer to check out the spectacle that is Tiger's Eye.

Course Information

360 Ocean Ridge Parkway SW
Sunset Beach, NC 28469
8002331801

Recognition

MyrtlebeachGolf.com Most Anticipated Course of 2000

TravelGolf.com Rating System

A - Tour Style - bring your camera
B - Solid Birdie Effort
C - Par---rty Time
D - Three Jack
F - Double Bogey