Dunes Golf & Beach Club

The Dunes Club is where Myrtle Beach golf began. Robert Trent Jones Sr. designed it in 1949 on oceanfront land north of what was then a small resort town, and the course has earned the top ranking among Myrtle Beach layouts from Golf Digest, Golf Magazine, and Golfweek. It has hosted multiple PGA Tour events, including iterations of the old Greater Greensboro Open in the 1970s and 1980s. None of which would matter if the course itself had not aged well. It has, beautifully.

You're playing 7,165 yards, par 72, slope 148 from the championship tees. The routing moves through coastal dunes, maritime forest, and along Singleton Swash, a tidal creek that comes into play on several holes. The terrain provides enough natural movement to make the architecture feel embedded in the landscape rather than imposed on it.

The most celebrated hole is "Waterloo," the par-5 13th, which doglegs sharply left around Singleton Swash. The aggressive line shortens the hole significantly but requires carrying over 200 yards of tidal marsh; the conservative play right leaves a long third to a green that slopes toward the water. It's a strategic puzzle that holds up after repeated play. Beyond that, Jones's greens are large, gently shaped, and reward iron play that finds the correct quadrant. Simply hitting the green is rarely enough.

For serious golfers visiting Myrtle Beach, the Dunes Club occupies a category of its own. It does not offer resort amenities or package-deal pricing. What it offers is a round on a course that has earned its reputation across 75 years, designed by one of the most important architects of the 20th century, maintained to a standard that honours the original intent. For the right player, it's worth every dollar and every phone call required to secure a tee time.