Myrtle Beach lures Canadian golfers with courses open year-round
- For most golf enthusiasts in Canada, the playing season is just not long enough. You have to put the clubs away just when your game is coming together - and early in the year, when the fairways of your local course are hidden beneath a blanket of snow, all you can do is watch golf on TV.
But many Canucks are choosing to make golf part of their vacation plans to warmer places, including Myrtle Beach, which offers golf 12 months of the year.
Known to many as the golf capital of the world, Myrtle Beach boasts 101 public golf courses (with two more to open in 2009) and nearly 50 miniature golf courses, making it a premier destination for golfers of all ages.
"This year we're seeing a tremendous influx of Canadians ... with the value of the Canadian dollar being so much better," said Kent Chismar, head professional at the Eagle Nest Golf Club in Myrtle Beach.
"A lot of people come down in November or December and stay three or four months," he said. "They'll buy 40 or 50 rounds."
Opened in 1971, Eagle Nest is one of the oldest courses in the area.
Since then the region has attracted the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Pete Dye, Arnold Palmer and Tom Fazio to design new courses, including 10 of the top 100 public courses in the United States.
With so many courses to choose from, there's virtually no limit on the variety of style, difficulty or scenery.
Just heading from one hole to the next can offer views of lush fairways, mature stands of pine, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Intracoastal Waterway.
But don't expect beach weather year-round.
Air temperatures in January average just 13 degrees Celsius and don't hit the 20s on a consistent basis until March, so if you're escaping the snow at home you need to bring along a warm sweater.
While the area has grown to include attractions for the whole family, many golfers make their first visit to Myrtle Beach as part of a "guys' getaway."
"I came down with my son and some friends," said Malcolm MacTavish of Sundridge, Ont., when asked about his first visit to golf at Myrtle Beach. "We got a package deal where you got accommodations and so many games."
On that trip he tried to play a variety of courses, but on a recent trip he was with a group of couples who were playing just a few of their favourites.
For Ross McFarlane of Toronto it has become an annual event.
"We have a lot of friends who come here, about 10 or 12 couples," he said. "We've been coming for three or four years to this area for a week or two, or this time it's a month."
"As well, the shopping is great, and there are three or four shows worth seeing ... and that's a positive," he added.
It's not uncommon to see an abundance of Canadian licence plates in course parking lots, as well as at hotels and restaurants.
Almost 800,000 Canadians visit South Carolina each year, and the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce wants to increase that number.
It hosts events for Canadians each March, and this year will spend more than $500,000 to advertise in Canada. Previously it hadn't spent more than $80,000.
"We're constantly on the phone with Canadians ... and this year we hear the frustration in their voices that they just have to get out of there, away from the snow," said Jim Fite, director of golf sales at MyrtleBeachGolf.com.
With so many courses and accommodations to choose from, Fite recommends booking a package that combines both.
As an example: two golfers, arriving on a Sunday in mid-April, could book a package that includes an oceanfront room for four nights, breakfast each day and four rounds of golf, including carts, for US$411 each. The package includes rounds at Blackmoor, Eagle Nest, Myrtle Beach National West and Possum Trot, and prices vary depending on the courses you choose.
There are other packages available to suit your length of stay and the time of year you plan to visit.
"Myrtle Beach doesn't take a back seat to any destination when it comes to the quality of the golf, and obviously it's the golf capital of the world for one big reason: we have so many golf courses and such good quality golf," Fite said.
One final recommendation - use guidebooks and the Internet to research your accommodations. Most of the newer hotels and resorts offer a lot of luxuries and are well maintained, while some of the older properties haven't aged well. Prices range widely, depending on the season and whether you want a room or condo with an ocean view.
-
If you go . . .
www.visitmyrtlebeach.com
www.golfholiday.com
www.myrtlebeachgolf.com
www.myrtlebeachlovesCanada.com
Copyright © 2008 The Canadian Press, All Rights Reserved.
COMMENT ON THE STORY
Please note by clicking on "Post Comment" you acknowledge that you have read the Terms of Service and the comment you are posting is in compliance with such terms. Be polite. Inappropriate posts may be removed by the moderator. Send us your feedback.
Sundridge, ON Forum
