Last fall our group was scheduled to play Kings North on October 5th. When I saw our playing schedule I called our group leader and told him he might want to switch courses because KN (front nine) had been closed all year due to replacing the greens and building some new tees. It reopened on October 1. I thought that it would be a miracle if the course would really be ready to play by the 5th.
The group leader called the course directly and someone convinced him that KN would be in "pristine" condition and we would really enjoy the round. He believed them and kept KN on our schedule. By the way, since I stopped being group leader last year, the new guys in charge stopped using Brian's services.
When we arrived on the 5th the clubhouse area was in it's usual madhouse state. I have never understood why someone thought that staging players & carts for three courses out of one area was a good idea.
The starter told us that there was a little work still being done on the course and sent us on our way. Here is what we found:
1. There was still major work being done to the front nine. They were still adding sand on most of the holes. We had to play around the work, no one moved out of the way. There were front-loaders passing by frequently. #7 had no teeing area, it was just a huge pile of sand. A tee marker was out in the fairway and it made the hole a 211 yard par 4.
2. Even the holes that were completed had condition issues. Some of the greens appeared to have grass coverage problems.
The real problem was that the course was not honest with our group. By the end of the day 16 golfers vowed never to go back to KN.
This is one of the reasons I did not post my usual trip report. I know that Kings North is a favorite on this site. If their management had been honest we could have switched to one of the other KN properties and had a cheaper, more pleasant experience.
I don't know when, or even if, I will get to MB again. I certainly hope I have a couple more trips in me. Thanks for reading.
I played KN Oct 12. The 7th tee was open then, the left waste area wasn't
done yet, the 8th tee was new sod. I thought the rest was fine.
However it was just me. I would have been worried to bring my group that
close to reopening.
Usually when I have played renovated courses in Oct, they had opened around
Sept 1, so they were complete.
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Hello Tadpole,
Coincidentally, I our group of 8 was in the exact same situation for the exact same day.
I am the group leader and wasn't aware of the course remodel until after we had booked the October 5th KN round.
I was hesitant about playing there once I heard of the course construction, reached out to our package provider and asked to be updated if conditions weren't up to standard. I didn't hear anything back so I called to course the 3rd week of September for a condition update.
I was told everything was almost completed and the course will be in pristine condition. As you know, it was far from it and obviously just how you described. We had two friends of ours that lived in the Charlotte North Carolina region drive down to myrtle for the KN Friday golf round. They charged them $185 to play, needless to say that after the round, they were pissed that they paid that rate.
We have played KN multiple times in the past 20 years, after the experience, the cost of a course construction round and the employees saying "pristine" left a bad experience that I wont forget anytime soon.
Complete BS!
~Golface~
$185 is an insane price for King's North even if it was pristine. And I like King's North!
It's just not that good a golf course. There are only a handful of courses in MB I'd ever even consider paying $185 to play. I know I've said it here before, but I struggle to see how MB golf can survive at that price point. The guys from Charlotte could take a shorter drive to Pinehurst and play Mid Pines/Pine Needles/Southern Pines for roughly $250 each in the fall, and they are all much, much better courses than King's North.
Maybe 185$ is for the two players? It is not clear in the post of Golface. If it is $185 for each player King’s North does feel steep, even for peak season. It’s a fun course with some unique holes, but at that price, it’s hard to justify—especially with so many other options in the area.
I completely get the concern about Myrtle Beach golf at these price points. With places like Pinehurst offering a superior experience for a similar cost, I wouldn’t be surprised if more golfers start looking elsewhere.
''It's just golf, let's have fun''
@s333h I apologize if I didn’t make myself clear….yes, the $185 was per person which also closely resembled our rate in the package. It was absolutely ridiculous.
maybe it is MB peak season for the October 5th tee time but the rate was completely unjustified for the current conditions.
it was horrible in my opinion.
Dynamic rates in spring and fall peak season are pushing FGI
rates at their better courses well over $200. Some have even hit $300.
I booked my spring group early, but am now looking at tee times for my
extra days. What amazes me is that the premium courses are very busy,
at least in the AM. The rates are not stopping golfers yet.
Possibly the 3 day premium trip is gradually replacing the week long budget trip.
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