Best public golf in South Carolina.

SC · Hilton Head Island · Resort · Par 71

Pete Dye's tight, tree-lined classic at Sea Pines hosts the RBC Heritage every April. The closing hole plays straight at the iconic red-and-white lighthouse over Calibogue Sound.

SC · Bluffton · Resort · Par 72

Jack Nicklaus laid this eco-friendly course through ancient oaks and tidal marsh at a Montage resort between Savannah and Hilton Head. Pure Lowcountry serenity, available to resort guests.

SC · Kiawah Island · Resort · Par 72

Site of the 2012 and 2021 PGA Championships, every hole on this Pete Dye masterpiece offers an ocean view and a stiff sea breeze. Walking-only with caddies for the full bucket-list experience.

SC · Pawleys Island · Public · Par 70

Mike Strantz built a short, strategic stunner on an old rice plantation, with a clubhouse approach under a canopy of live oaks. The par-3-heavy closing stretch finishes right by the porch.

SC · Kiawah Island · Resort · Par 72

Gary Player's design hugs the Kiawah River with sweeping marsh vistas and tidal-creek carries. A scenic, fair test to round out a Kiawah golf trip.

SC · Kiawah Island · Resort · Par 72

Tom Fazio wove four natural lakes and fingers of saltmarsh through dense maritime forest. The most playable and picturesque of Kiawah's resort courses for most golfers.

SC · Hilton Head Island · Resort · Par 72

Arthur Hills routed this one over rolling sand ridges and around tidal lagoons. The most scenic and varied of the Palmetto Dunes trio.

SC · Hilton Head Island · Resort · Par 70

The only par-70 of the three Palmetto Dunes courses and the stoutest, with no parallel fairways. A shotmaker's course among the pines.

SC · Hilton Head Island · Resort · Par 72

The classic Hilton Head resort course, best known for the par-5 10th that opens to the Atlantic. Lagoon-laced and forgiving off the tee.

SC · Kiawah Island · Resort · Par 72

Jack Nicklaus blends inland oaks on the front with three stunning oceanfront holes on the back. A gentler, gorgeous alternative to the brutal Ocean Course next door.

SC · Isle of Palms · Resort · Par 72

Tom Fazio's debut solo design, finishing with two holes hard against the Atlantic on Isle of Palms. The closing stretch is among the most photographed in the Lowcountry.

SC · North Myrtle Beach · Resort · Par 71

A classic Fazio parkland layout with elevated greens and plenty of strategic options. The most traditional of the Barefoot four and a Myrtle Beach favorite.

SC · North Myrtle Beach · Resort · Par 72

Davis Love III built crumbling plantation-ruin replicas into the course for a unique, atmospheric round. One of four big-name designs at Myrtle Beach's premier golf resort.

SC · North Myrtle Beach · Resort · Par 72

Greg Norman's links-leaning design opens up bump-and-run options and finishes along the Intracoastal Waterway. Wide and fun with the Shark's hands-on, natural style.

SC · Myrtle Beach · Resort · Par 72

A roomy resort course set high above the Intracoastal Waterway, with several holes playing along the bluff. One of the better walks on the Grand Strand.

SC · Pawleys Island · Public · Par 71

An elegant Pawleys Island course entered down a dramatic avenue of moss-draped oaks. Big greens and an old rice-plantation setting make it a Strand favorite.

SC · Pawleys Island · Semi-private · Par 72

A Jack Nicklaus design winding through Lowcountry marsh and live oaks near Pawleys Island. The back-nine holes along the salt marsh are the signature stretch.

SC · Myrtle Beach · Public · Par 71

The oldest course in Myrtle Beach, opened in 1927 and lovingly restored. The clubhouse Bloody Marys at the turn are a tradition older than the Strand's golf boom it started.

SC · North Myrtle Beach · Public · Par 72

One of the few Myrtle Beach courses with genuine ocean and saltmarsh views, perched on a peninsula between the Intracoastal and Cherry Grove inlet. Several holes feel more like Pebble Beach than the Grand Strand.

SC · Murrells Inlet · Resort · Par 72

A Tom Fazio design that briefly hosted a Senior Tour event, now a polished public flagship for the area. Big, well-bunkered, and a notch above the Myrtle Beach daily-fee pack.

SC · Pawleys Island · Public · Par 72

Caledonia's wilder sister course, also by Mike Strantz, sprawls across big sandy waste areas and massive greens. Width off the tee, drama around the greens, and great value.

SC · Isle of Palms · Resort · Par 70

The resort's second Fazio layout plays along the Intracoastal and tidal marsh. Tighter and more strategic than its oceanfront sibling.

SC · Mount Pleasant · Public · Par 72

A breezy course on the harbor in Mount Pleasant, with Charleston skyline and Ravenel Bridge views. Wind off the water is the main defense.

SC · Hollywood · Public · Par 72

A friendly Charleston-area daily-fee with three holes along the Intracoastal at the turn. A longtime local value just south of town.

SC · Murrells Inlet · Public · Par 72

A Clyde Johnston design that hosted an LPGA Tour event for years, set among the oaks of Murrells Inlet. Smart, playable, and a longtime value pick.