This is the best value in Myrtle Beach
Written: Jun 16 '02 (Updated Jun 18 '02)
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Pros: The best value in Myrtle Beach
Cons: Can crush mediocre golfers
The Bottom Line: Be sure to try this course out if you are in Myrtle Beach.
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| aashtech's Full Review: Belle Terre Golf Course - Championship Course |
Belle Terre has two golf courses. I have played the Championship layout three times over the past two years and absolutely love it. This place is well-designed, fun to play, well paced, and an absolute steal if you play the afternoon at $20 (including carts.) I cannot understand why the course is priced so low, although there is highway construction that has made it a little more complicated to get in via a service road. Check their website (http://www.belleterre.com) to get the specifics. But when you drive in the entrance sweeps ahead of you, winding you past a large practice green and small lake with a lighted fountain. A friendly staff attends the bag drop area and the layout puts you right next to the cart stand and clubhouse. We recently came in for an afternoon round and a tournament group was just winding down their post-game meal, but it was apparent that the clubhouse could handle a large group easily. There is lots of parking and each cart includes a small cooler.
We were a small group of eight and they slotted us in without any difficulty. The starter ticket is only printed, though, after everyone has paid, so the last guy presented that and we were off. Eight holes feature water, five have huge waste bunkers, and sand is part of every hole and dominant on many. The fairways are well kept and full of undulating terrain. The greens are very fast. I recommend that you consider the slope rating here, and set your players on the proper tees. Good play is rewarded, but poor play is punished. The first tee is a straight ahead par four at just over 400 yards. This is a midrange handicap hole (8) and is not difficult as long as you stay in the middle. The fairway is raised up so that each side slopes into the woods. The green rises up away from you and drops off quickly behind. There is no need to use the driver, as accuracy is preferred over length.
Number two is a par three, just under 200 yards; almost every one is carry across water. There was a car parked at the tee box, so that must have been a tournament prize. That fact pulled us to the longest line across water. I just hit the front edge and rolled back away from the green, but did not get wet. On and two putts for bogey was fine with me, since the others in my foursome found either water or sand and high scores. I like the next hole, and it gives you an idea of some of the more interesting tee shots you will face here. Protected heather and wetlands in front of you, with a minimum of 170 yard carry. Those same wetlands follow the entire contour along the right-hand side of this left-to-right dogleg with a few additional sand traps along your approach. This is a par five, so the course starts nicely with a 4-3-5.
The fourth hole is another model you see often on this course, with six similar layouts. It clocks in at about 350, but standing on the tee, looking at a narrow fairway that bends right-to-left around a large lake, the hole looks at least 400 yards away. Wayward left shots enter a large serpentine trap. The fifth is a par three, and indicative of how hard each par three is. You tee off across water to a narrow green. The hole bends right to left severely. Miss wide left for water, light left for a deep sand trap, or right for wasteland. Long is wet, too. The flag is about 170 yards away, the green is narrow, and the wind is always swirling, since you are high above the water line. After that challenge, we move on to a par four at about 350 (looks like 450) that sweeps narrowly right-to-left around the water. I can't play well enough to reach this green in two, so I opted for shorter clubs and scored well. The next hole, a par five, features a beautiful driving area. Let the big dog out here, although water lurks all along the left side and woods menace the right. Still, it is open enough that a smooth stroke puts you in good shape. Only the middle of the fairway offers a flat-footed stance, as moguls predominate the edges. You will approach back across the water to a longish green. On our afternoon, the flag was all the way at the back, so we used the entire surface—all uphill. The next two holes are dogleg par fours. I particularly like the ninth, which requires a good tee shot and great second shot to make points.
The tenth is not near the clubhouse, so you just keep playing. This is a strange little hole, dominated with a long snaky sand trap that owns the entire right side and surrounds the front of the green. The shortest distance is over (or more likely through) that hazard, so avoid the temptation and stay left. From there, the approach is not a painful one, and you can score well. The green here is big and friendly.
The eleventh was my only birdie hole, a par five that demands a long tee shot over that wetlands. The tee shot must be long and straight, as the left is wet, the right is out-of-bounds, and short is lost. You need a full 175 to carry this. Once over, your next shot must run though (or over) eleven sand traps. Water is on the left. That fact caused me to pull it right and I had a blind approach shot, a little over 100 yards away. Fortunately, I stuck the ball within two feet of the hole. The twelfth and thirteenth are straight-ahead par fours. The fourteenth is a short par three, but there is no place to land but the green. You must carry all heather (any ball hit here is lost.) The fifteenth is another water-sweeper (this time right to left.) It is a short par four, but plays long. The seventeenth is the hardest par three at almost 200 yards, all of it carry. I was to able to hit (but not hold) the green, and bogeyed from just off the back. The closing hole is the hardest on the course and it takes a big drive to get the fairway. The hole is pretty much straight ahead (and long) for the first three-fourths of it, before bending right to a narrow, elevated green surrounded by sand traps. I luckily chipped in from behind the green (another blind shot) to save par.
I haven't played the Skins course, as it is named, which is a par three. The scorecard illustrates the nine holes and lists a front and back tee, showing a difference of twenty or thirty yards, generally. If anyone gets out there, please review that part of the course. I will try to visit again soon and play that section. However, the Champions course is so much fun, that has kept me from branching out.
Just the facts
Belle Terre
4073 Hwy 501
Myrtle Beach, SC 29579
(800) 340-0072
Par: 72 (18 holes) Championship Course
Tee / Distance / Rating / Slope
Men’s Black / 7013 / 74.3 / 133
Men’s Blue / 6672 / 72.4 / 129
Men’s White / 6368 / 71.0 / 126
Men’s Gold / 5880 / 68.6 / 117
Women’s Gold / 5880 / 74.2 / 131
Women’s Red / 5049 / 69.6 / 120
Par: 29 (9 holes) Skins Course
Tee / Distance
Front / 1597
Back / 1384
Amenities include driving range, chipping areas, putting greens, and practice bunkers with a well-stocked clubhouse and pro-shop.
Recommended:
Yes
Green Fees Paid (US$): 20
Speed of Play (typical weekend): 3 to 4 Hours
Look Out For: Water
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Epinions.com ID:
aashtech
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Member: Steve
Location: Raleigh, NC
Reviews written: 108
Trusted by: 43 members
About Me:
Hack golfer and passable poker player.
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