Barefoot Courses in Myrtle Beach

[damnorcross]

Got a group of 4 guys, we're thinking about playing all 4 Barefoot courses. My question is, with 2 of the guys being 15 handicaps, will they still have fun? I don't want them to walk off after playing 36 holes and be so frustrated that they want to quit. I'm hoping the courses aren't overly tough, so they'll still have fun. Thanks in advance.

[johnnylongball]

They are not overly tough. Due to double teeing, pace of play is guaranteed to be poor and give them plenty of time to think about their next shot before having to hit.

[G Ham]

Dye course will be the only one that might be over their head. The other 3 are all playable for most skill levels. The Dye is more visually intimidating than it actually is but still plays the toughest for me and most people I know.

[atlanta golfer]

I played the Dye course with my Dad last week while on vacation in the area. Since I'm a club corp ONE member it was just $25 for me which is a great deal off the normal $85 rate for morning play. My Dad and I both thoroughly enjoyed the Dye course. We had a tee time at 7:30 am and there was no one in front of or behind us for almost the entire round which was a real treat. Greens were rolling very nicely and all the conditioning was outstanding. I had read comments about people being frustrated with this course, but it is all about the tees you play. DO NOT follow the guidance on the scorecard which has people as high as 15 handicap index playing from the blue tees. I played the member tees which are at 6000 yards - my index is 8.2. My Dad who is 82 years old played the forward tees at 5000 yards. I ended up shooting an 84 which included several double bogies, but also had a lot of pars, a birdie, and a number of birdie putts.

Yes you will be in a lot of sand. The fairway traps / waste areas are actually pretty easy as they are somewhat packed and you can just pick the ball off them. The greenside traps are tougher. This is where I got into trouble. But Dye gives you bail out areas at almost every green. Plus there is a gps on every cart that shows you everything. The gps also gives you very good advice as to what to do off the tee box.

You also will find some holes much harder than others. On many holes from the member tees you will have a short iron or full wedge in to the green from your drive, assuming about a 240 yard drive. But on a few other holes, for example #9, your second shot will be a fairway wood into the green with water on the right.

Now, if your buddies normally shoot over 100, this might not be the course for them. But other than that, I would go there for sure. I also was very impressed with all the services ... really first rate.

[damnorcross]

Thanks for all the info, I just booked us to play all 4 courses. Will make sure the higher handicaps choose their tees wisely on the Dye course.

[Mags]

I haven't played the Norman course but as others have said, the Dye is by far the most challenging of the other 3. I think your higher caps will actually be fine playing the white tees on all courses (they're all around 6000 yards from those tees, Norman a bit shorter so if your guys want a little more challenge let them play the 6400yd tees there) but yes, especially on the Dye don't bite off more than you can chew. Really the only thing I didn't like about the Dye were the bunkers. Waste areas were fine but the actual bunkers had rocks in them. Stay clear if you value your wedges, haha. Fazio is pretty typical of his designs and very picturesque. Love was probably my favorite as he really does a great job of not having all the holes play similarly to each other. From the 6500 yard tees I played from, the par 4's range from 280 up to 440 yards (and those are actually right back to back). Have fun