SC Golf Ratings Panel Names Its Top 50 Courses
For more than a decade, the 120-plus membership of the South Carolina Golf Course Ratings Panel has voted each year on the best golf courses the state has to offer. In odd-numbered years, the panel selects the top 30 courses anyone can play – an invaluable guide for out-of-state visitors packing their golf bags and residents looking to enjoy courses other than their home turf.
In even-numbered years, the panel expands the list to the top 50 courses, both public and private. The Top 30 You Can Play may be more useful for newcomers and visitors to South Carolina, but the Top 50 is the creme de la creme, and players with ties to local residents may find ways to try out even the most exclusive layouts.
For 2020, the list offers two categories – one for Modern (1980 to present) and Classic (Pre-1980). The list includes both public and private courses, so look for the designation with each entry.
The Top 50 SC golf “Modern” courses:
1. Kiawah Island Resort – Ocean Course (public)
2. Congaree Golf Club (private)
3. May River Golf Club (Palmetto Bluff) (public)
4. Sage Valley Golf Club (Graniteville) (private)
5. Secession Golf Club (Beaufort) (private)
6. Kiawah Island Club – Cassique Course (private)
7. Long Cove Club (Hilton Head) (private)
8. Cherokee Plantation (Yemasee) (private)
9. Caledonia Golf & Fish Club (Pawleys Island) (Public)
10. Bulls Bay Golf Club (Awendaw) (private)
11. Chechessee Creek Club (Okatie) (private)
12. Colleton River Plantation – Nicklaus Course (private)
13. Kiawah Island Club – River Course (private)
14. Colleton River Plantation – Dye Course (private)
15. Old Tabby Links (Spring Island) (private)
16. Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards (Sunset) (private)
17. Cliffs at Mountain Park (private)
18. Musgrove Mill Golf Club (Clinton) (private)
19. The Golf Club at Briar’s Creek (Johns Island) (private)
20. Wachesaw Plantation (Murrells Inlet) (private)
21.Haig Point Club (Daufauskie Island) (private)
22. Belfair Golf Club – East Course (Bluffton) (private)
23. Cliffs at Glassy (Landrum) (private)
24. Grande Dunes Resort Course (Myrtle Beach) (public)
25. Belfair Golf Club – West Course (Bluffton) (private)
26. The Reserve at Lake Keowee (Sunset) (private)
27. Debordieu Club (Georgetown) (private)
28. Kiawah Island Resort – Cougar Point Course (public)
29. Dataw Island Club – Cotton Dike Course (private)
30. Tidewater Golf Club & Plantation (Little River) (private)
31. True Blue Golf Club (Pawleys Island) (public)
32. TPC Myrtle Beach (Murrells Inlet) (public)
33. Daniel Island Club – Beresford Creek Course (private)
34. Dataw Island Club – Morgan River Course (private)
35. Cliffs Valley (Travelers Rest) (private)
36. Thornblade Club (Greer) (private)
37. Daniel Island Club – Ralston Creek Course (private)
38. Sea Pines Resort – Atlantic Dunes (Hilton Head) (public)
39. Cliffs at Keowee Springs (private)
40. Kiawah Island Resort – Turtle Point Course (public)
41. Kiawah Island Resort – Osprey Point Course (public)
42. Sea Pines Resort – Heron Point by Pete Dye (public)
43. Prestwick Country Club (Myrtle Beach) (public)
44. Berkeley Hall – North Course (Bluffton) (private)
45. Wexford Plantation (Hilton Head) (private)
46. Callawassie Island Club (private)
47. Barefoot Resort – Dye Course (public)
48. Cliffs at Keowee Falls (private)
49. Grande Dunes Members Club (Myrtle Beach) (public)
50. The Legends Resort – Heathland (Myrtle Beach) (public)
The Top 50 SC golf “Classic” courses (Pre-1980):
1. Sea Pines Resort – Harbour Town Golf Links (Hilton Head) (public)
2. Yeamans Hall Club (Hanahan) (private)
3. Palmetto Golf Club (Aiken) (private)
4. Greenville Country Club – Chanticleer Course (private)
5. The Dunes Golf & Beach Club (Myrtle Beach) (public)
6. Country Club of Charleston (private)
7. Aiken Golf Club (public)
8. Camden Country Club (private)
9. Orangeburg Country Club (public)
10. Wild Dunes Resort – Links Course (Isle of Palms) (public)
11. Surf Golf & Beach Club (N Myrtle Beach) (private)
12. Furman University Golf Course (Greenville) (public)
13. Country Club of Spartanburg (private)
14. Forest Lake CLub (Columbia) (private)
15. Greenville Country Club – Riverside Course (private)
16. King’s North at Myrtle Beach National (public)
17. Florence Country Club (private)
18. Pine Lakes Country Club (public)
19. Columbia Country Club (private)
20. Palmetto Dunes Resort – RT Jones Course (public)