@dch1950 Painted, dormant bermuda is a great surface -- it's better than anything they can get from overseed. The only reason to overseed is because you think customers will be unhappy if it's not green, growing grass, but I think most golfers would prefer to have a high quality, uniform green than one that just has green grass on it.
This may be a sacrilegious comment, but I was disappointed playing Caledonia for the first time in January 2022. I wanted to play it because of the rave reviews the course has received for years.
The design was interesting, and there were some challenging holes. The 18th was the most unique. Overall, I expected much more of a golf course given the reviews. Fairways were ok but had many soggy areas. The 6 greens with green wood pulp didn’t help! Would have been nice if they told me about the greens when I checked in and paid the full price of $150+
Granted, the drive looks like a mini-Augusta, the clubhouse is quaint, and the setting is pretty.
I scored very well, but felt a big letdown.
This may be a sacrilegious comment, but I was disappointed playing Caledonia for the first time in January 2022. I wanted to play it because of the rave reviews the course has received for years.
The design was interesting, and there were some challenging holes. The 18th was the most unique. Overall, I expected much more of a golf course given the reviews. Fairways were ok but had many soggy areas. The 6 greens with green wood pulp didn’t help! Would have been nice if they told me about the greens when I checked in and paid the full price of $150+
Granted, the drive looks like a mini-Augusta, the clubhouse is quaint, and the setting is pretty.
I scored very well, but felt a big letdown.
You had really bad luck, unfortunately. It sounds like it's currently in the worst shape it's ever been for some reason; every time I've played there it's been immaculate.
I'd definitely encourage you to try to get back there and play again sometime when the conditions are back to normal. It's probably the best public course in Myrtle Beach.
The Carolinas Golf Association was supposed to have an event there in January and they actually moved it -- I'm sure due to the conditions. I still wonder what in the world happened because the course is normally so excellent.
@stormy Current green issues aside, sometimes a course simply can not live up to the hype. I had the very same experience with Tidewater. Sure there are nice marsh views, sure the course is nice, but it simply did not live up to my expectations based on the reviews.
@stormy Current green issues aside, sometimes a course simply can not live up to the hype. I had the very same experience with Tidewater. Sure there are nice marsh views, sure the course is nice, but it simply did not live up to my expectations based on the reviews.
It's definitely easy to come away underwhelmed because of expectations. If everyone is telling you something is the best ever and it's not quite that, you'll likely end up liking it less than you would if you went in with no expectations at all.
I don't think Tidewater or Caledonia are two of the best courses in the country, but I do think they may be the two best public courses in Myrtle Beach. At worst they're both top 5 IMO.
Myrtlewood Palmetto may be in that category for me -- I think a lot of people really like it, but I wasn't impressed at all. I think PineHills is a much better course just at Myrtlewood, and there are probably 25+ courses that are better in the whole MB area.
@uncgolf very true. Sometimes the exaggerated reviews and higher green fees hurt the experiences. I had the same underwhelming feeling playing Pebble Beach.
I will Caledonia another try next winter, but there are so many other nice courses around Myrtle Beach I want to try. So, I am glad I joined this forum. Wish I was aware of it in December.
The 6 greens with green wood pulp didn’t help! Would have been nice if they told me about the greens when I checked in and paid the full price of $150+
Granted, the drive looks like a mini-Augusta, the clubhouse is quaint, and the setting is pretty.
I scored very well, but felt a big letdown.
Caledonia's winter price had been $99. The premium courses have really
raised rates for 2022 and climbing with dynamic rates.
Please describe the bad greens in more detail. Were they bad areas or
the entire green?
I heard that they used a bad/wrong chemical.
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@stormy I've been out at Pebble Beach but never played it -- several people I know who have played it say that the ocean holes are incredible but the inland holes are really not very good, so it's almost like two separate courses. And I know the pace of play is abysmal, which I also think can significantly affect someone's opinion. If you're out on a course for 6 hours because you're waiting for 5 minutes on every shot, it's hard to have a great time.
@artmbgolf The bad greens had some lumpy material looked that like saw dust on the entire surfaces. They were blue green colored and the ball skidded. No way to putt on them seriously.
Sounds like it could have been fertilizer. I'm sure they want to get the grass back for the spring.
Regardless, it's very bad form from their management to continue charging the same high prices when nearly half of the greens are bad, and especially not to warn customers about it.
@uncgolf Don’t get me wrong - pebble is not a bad course. It has several great holes along the ocean. The point is that it is not worth the $$$$ and it’s continuous rating of #1 course that public can play. Locally, Spyglass Hill is a much better course for less than half the price, and so is Spanish Bay.
Agree with your assessment of Pine Hills and Palmetto. Pine Hills is more interesting to me. Palmetto is fine, 18 is a fantastic finishing hole, but Pine Hills has more character and variety.
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Agree with your assessment of Pine Hills and Palmetto. Pine Hills is more interesting to me. Palmetto is fine, 18 is a fantastic finishing hole, but Pine Hills has more character and variety.
We have a PK sighting
The Amber Alert can now be turned off
JW, that post was truely brilliant! LOL!
So I've been a little busy, but played West, Borth, and Caledonia a couple weeks ago.
Good to see you are back in the swing of things UGP ⛳️
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