Throughout my trip, the service was pretty good. The only time I felt a little like the Invisible Man was at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club, a semiprivate course designed by Robert Trent Jones. Built in 1948, it's the second-oldest club in Myrtle Beach and is widely considered one of the area's best. I loved the course, but I could sense the staff had a much stronger connection with the club's members than with the public. On the famous 545-yard 13th hole, Waterloo, I skipped a couple of shots into the pond and finished with an 8. I renamed the hole Waterglue.
The TPC of Myrtle Beach is a stark contrast to the Dunes Club in terms of service but equal in golf quality. Designed by Tom Fazio, it's a former site of the Senior Tour Championship and the area's only course to earn the maximum five stars, according to Golf Digest's Best Places to Play reader ratings. It's also home to the ridiculously long, young tour professional Dustin Johnson, who finished fourth in driving distance in 2008 with an average of 309.7 yards. Locals say he reaches the 538-yard 18th hole with driver, 8-iron. That's almost four 8-irons for me.
By trip's end, I had played four courses on Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Public Courses. All six were 4½ stars or more. The cost? Myrtle Beach Golf Desk (golfdesk.com) quoted me a price for the same six courses in peak season (April) plus four nights in a two-bedroom condo at the Barefoot Resort Golf Villas for $1,099 per person. Warren Buffett once said, "Price is what you pay. Value is what you get." Buffett, who is a golfer, would love Myrtle Beach.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
A STEAK FROM A SHARK
In the middle of Myrtle, go to Greg Norman's steakhouse
for the dark wood, high ceilings, open kitchen, big plates,
fine wines and a tender slab
of beef (right).
TIPS FROM A BLOWFISH
Singer Darius Rucker of Hootie & the Blowfish, a South Carolina native, is a huge Myrtle Beach fan. His favorite courses: Caledonia, John Daly's Wicked Stick and Barefoot Resort's Dye course, where he has an annual pro-am to raise money for junior golfers.
A COURSE BY A KING
King's North at Myrtle Beach National is an Arnold Palmer design with some good holes but some quirky details: greenside bunkers on the 12th hole shaped like an S and a C for South Carolina and 42 bunkers from tee to green on the 395-yard finishing hole.
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