Written by: Matt

I was recently invited to play a round at True Blue golf course in Pawley's Island, about 45-50 minutes from The Caravelle, and I jumped at the opportunity to play.  True Blue is a Mike Strantz design, who is also the late designer of Caledonia Golf and Fish Club.  While Strantz was clearly a talented course architect who designed these awesome layouts that were both ranked as top 100 public courses in America by Golf Digest, the two designs couldn't be more different.  Caledonia has a real plantation style feel to it, with the entrance lined with beautiful centuries old live oaks leading to the stately clubhouse and the 18th hole of the golf course actually ending adjacent to a former rice field.  True Blue  on the other hand has a more modern design feel to it with a lot of sand and a very challenging layout.

True Blue opened in 1998 and immediately picked up the nickname "Heaven and Hell".  "Heaven" because of the sheer beauty of the golf course and the 18 wonderfully laid out holes, and "Hell" because of the difficulty of the course and the 18 not so wonderfully laid out holes.  Despite winning numerous awards for being a great golf course, it was determined that True Blue might be TOO difficult of a course and it underwent a renovation to lighten the blow of some of the more ferocious holes.  Some of the changes made included reducing the carry on approach shots and tee shots and enlarging a couple greens, while the greens were also completely overhauled, giving True Blue some of the finest greens on the Grand Strand.

What you will find with True Blue is many holes with wide fairways, yet strategically placed hazards that don't let you bite off more than you can chew on the tee box.  The greens are generally fairly large, though very undulating which leaves even the four foot testers with some twists and turns.  If your irons are not sharp during your round, then you can expect to be left in some interesting places along side the greens, with situations where keeping the ball on the green at all is your only objective.  All told while the course is very challenging, there is opportunity to post a decent number at the end of the round.  As an 8-ish handicap, I have posted anywhere from an 80 to a 95 out there, and last week shot 84 after falling apart on the last three holes.

Both True Blue and Caledonia are two of the finest courses in the Myrtle Beach area.  While Caledonia is a stunning piece of property with a gorgeous golf course, I would recommend True Blue to golfers who want a more challenging round at a top notch layout.  The bottom line is that you can't lose with either course.

Your friendly Myrtle Beach Golf Director had a busy weekend of playing golf.

The morning after a couple ginger ales at our first golf reception of the fall (runs every Thursday through 11/20) at 2001 Nightclub and a phone call for a ride home, my life long golfing buddy, Brad and I battled the elements at Man O' War on an overcast and windy Friday morning. We teed off a little earlier then usual at 8:00 but even with the cart path only rule for the day, we still spun around in a shade over 3 hours.

I started off with an earlier morning triple bogey 8 on the 503 par 5 first and was cursing Linda's name for the final drink of the night before. After a missed green, bad chip and a rotten putt, I caught a little spark by making a 10 footer for bogey. Par at 3, birdie at 4 and pars at 5 and 6 had me really thinking that that triple on the 1st could cost me a round in the 30's. Then I stood on the tee box of a monster. The Par 5 8th is about 560 yards from the whites and were staring down about a 20 mph wind dead in our face. I don't know what happened, but I think I let the hole get in my head a little bit. I doubled the 8th and tripled the 9th to finish with a 44. Not bad with an 8 and 2 7's.

I am thinking I left my golf game back on the 7th after I blade a drives on the 10th and 11th, with the one on 11 leading to a drop and a double bogey.  I found it again for par at 12, but after a quad 9 on the 13th, I was ready to cancel my afternoon tee time. Same can be said for the drop leading to double bogey at the island green par 4 14th. I love hitting great tee shots and then shanking iron shots into short par 4's, don't you? I make par at the island green par 3 15th realize even with the bad holes, all I need is a birdie and a couple pars to keep my score in the 80's. Wouldn't you know it, I crush a drive on the 16th and knock one close, watch Brad hit a house with his second shot, and laugh when I make the birdie putt. I bogey the 17th and now I have to birdie 18 for that 89.

The 18th is a very nice hole, but it doesn't fit my fade. I hit a nice draw with the wind at my back and come just short of the bunker that protects the right side. Now I have a chance to get home in two which rarely happens. I catch a little too much of a 5 wood, but still get home. Looking back, I should have hit the hybrid 4, but I wanted to make sure I got to the green. Now I have a down hill 40 footer for eagle. In my haste, I forget to figure the wind now stronger in my face and leave the eagle putt about 5 feet short. I did step up and finish it birdie off for a hard earned 45 for a total of 89. A 9, an 8 and 2 7's and shoot and 89? I can live with that.

If you have a chance this fall, check out the course. They are going to overseed the course this fall, but will not go cart path only like most of the other courses. Since they will overseed the entire course (greens, fairways, rough and tee boxes), they can allow the carts to roam. The recent rain (thanks Hanna!) has all the ponds to their normal levels and makes the course visually intimidating. Just remember, it doesn't come into play as much as you think. When it does, just pretend it is blue rippling grass!!

Off to lunch!!

Chad

Two of the most exciting times I can think of to play golf are (in no particular order) are the following:

Golf playing friends in Myrtle Beach

Having new clubs in the bag

I had the privilege of playing the Thistle Golf Club in Sunset Beach just the other day. My friends Harry, Cathy and their son Tyler, were in Myrtle Beach for a 5 night vacation from mid-Michigan (and yes they stayed here at the Caravelle). With so much for their family to do, we only had time for 1 round so I wanted to make it some place special. That and I were looking forward to seeing The Thistle's brand new clubhouse. I wasn't let down and my friends were greatly impressed.

We played the North to West combination of this 27 whole gem. I knew they had aerated their greens about two weeks before we played, but they were in great shape. A little slower then I remembered, but still, I have no excuse as to why I three putted the first 3 holes. Bogey, triple, double is no way to start a round. I calmed down after the first three holes and still scraped around a **.  Harry was loving life after shooting 42 with a double on the Par 5 ninth, my friend Brad was okay with his score and Cathy was ready for a drink.

We scooted over grab a couple adult beverages where we finally got our first glimpse of the new pro shop. Unbelievable.  A HUGE outdoor seating area complete with fireplace for those cool mornings. A 62 inch Plasma TV on one wall, a couple 50 inch plasmas on the others. High ceilings, ceiling to floor windows with a great view of the course, hand crafted window frames and probably the best stocked bar I have ever seen at a golf course. After the round, I got a little tour of the entire clubhouse and let me tell you, it might be the best on the Strand. The guys grab a couple a piece and the bartender makes Cathy 'something fruity' and we headed back out.

I finally got my head out of my butt on the 11th. Well, not really. However, three bad shots and one great putt still makes par! The hardest thing about a 3 week layoff is getting that touch back around the green. I was greenside in regulation on the next 4 holes and the best I could make was bogey. Poor chipping and bad lag putting means I need to spend sometime on the practice green. Although Harry didn't score as well on the back, he couldn't stop raving about the course. Cathy couldn't help but to rave about her drink and how 'pretty' the course was. Brad couldn't stop raving about how well he hit his irons.

On days like this, scores are about as important as what color boxers you have on. We had a little skins game going on, but that is more for bragging rights. Playing with some friends that I only get to see a couple times a year beats any score I could put up. Overall, The Thistle is one of the classiest places around. The whole atmosphere make you not want to leave.

For those of you who have not played the Thistle, you have been missing out on one of the best kept secrets in the area. For those of you that have played, head back and check out the new pro shop. I would the 'Legendary' Head Pro Gene Weldon and the First Assistant Rob for having us out for a great day.

Until next time,

Chad

I got the opportunity to play the Fazio Course at Barefoot located just across the waterway from Barefoot Landing on the northern end of Myrtle Beach.  I was at an event with the International Golf Tour Operators that were visiting here from around the world.  The participants in this group were represented from countries like Canada, India, Dominican Republic, Sweden, Germany and many more.  I played with some players from Germany and Dominican Republic and what a treat it was.

The experience was made that much better as I played pretty decently shooting a 78 with really no putting stroke all day.  The course was in great shape.  For those of you that have not had the lucky experience to play it I would highly recommend it.

It is a course that can play very long (tips are 7000 yds we played from 6800) with areas that can be difficult.  But playing it from the proper tees it is a pleasure.  The one thing I can always say about the course is that the condition of the course is always exceptional.  Collars are tight, fairways are generally consistent and the greens are true and large.

I would highly recommend played Barefoot Fazio if you get the chance.  The price range depending on season are generally mid-high to high but worth it.