Heron Point by Pete Dye

Heron Point is the Pete Dye redesign that opened in 2007, replacing George Cobb's Sea Marsh course at Sea Pines on Hilton Head Island. Dye first built at Sea Pines in 1969 with Harbour Town. When he returned nearly four decades later, the assignment was different: deliver a complete redesign that carries his signature fingerprints while accommodating a broader range of players than Harbour Town typically does.

The accommodation comes through the tee options. Six sets of tees stretch from 5,500 to 7,035 yards, which lets the same course test a scratch player from the back and welcome a casual resort player from the forward positions. From the tournament tees, the rating climbs to 75.2 with a slope of 141. Par is 72. From the middle tees, the numbers moderate meaningfully. This flexibility is one of Heron Point's practical advantages, particularly for groups with mixed handicaps.

Dye's design instincts are present throughout: railroad ties reinforcing bunker edges, greens with pronounced contours that create distinct pin positions from round to round, and visual intimidation that exceeds the actual difficulty when you select the correct tee. The routing moves through mature trees and open Lowcountry wetland, with several holes offering sight lines across the marshland that give the course a sense of space unusual for a layout within a residential plantation.

Where Harbour Town demands precision on every swing, Heron Point gives you more room to breathe off the tee and protects par with its green complexes. The strategic challenge shifts toward the approach and the short game.

The middle ground in the Sea Pines trio: more demanding than Atlantic Dunes, more forgiving than Harbour Town, and connected by design provenance to one of the most important names in American golf architecture.