Legendary Australian golfer Greg Norman is planning to open golf academies world-wide, with the headquarters of his east-coast U.S. office right here in Barefoot Landing. Called The Greg Norman Champions Golf Academy, the schools will develop over time, but here the first of his golf schools opened earlier this year at Long Bay Club. As both golfer and businessman, Norman feels comfortable with the level of golf interest and courses here along the Grand Strand. Recently he appeared in person at Barefoot Landing to announce this venture: "Myrtle Beach is a great place," Norman said. "I was involved in golf course design and construction here at Barefoot Resort, I have a restaurant right across the [Intracoastal Waterway], so it's a perfect location for me. I've got some good friends up here and good people up here." While Greg Norman will take an active role in planning the general golf curriculum of the academy, he will leave the actual teaching to others.
[www.TheSunNews.com, 08.20.2010]

A Jack Nicklaus-designed course, Pawleys Plantation first opened in 1988. Now, Myrtle Beach National has acquired Pawleys Plantation from its original owner Les Morris, thereby giving the largest golf course management/ownership group on the Grand Strand operation of 14 Strand courses, including 3 27-hole facilities, plus a marketing arrangement with the TPC of Myrtle Beach. (The second largest course management company on the Strand is Burroughs & Chapin Co. which owns and/or manages 10 of the Strand's approximately 100 courses.) Pawleys Plantation has been rated in the top 25 courses of South Carolina by Golf Magazine, Golf World and the South Carolina Golf Course Ratings Panel, plus the course is the site of the Ritson-Sole Golf School. Myrtle Beach National also owns and operates 3 courses at Myrtle Beach National Golf Club, Aberdeen Country Club, Waterway Hills Golf Club, Long Bay Club, Litchfield Country Club, River Club, and Willbrook Plantation, with management contracts linked to Blackmoor, Wachesaw Plantation East, Wild Wing Plantation, and Tradition Club.
[www.TheSunNews.com, 08.20.2010]

Extra Rounds

Golf Tips

  • Those "explosion" shots out of bunkers look dramatic on TV, but many times the lie of the ball and the angle of sand it is sitting on make all this high-powered effort unnecessary. Sometimes if the bank of the trap is low and you have enough green to work with, just a simple chip shot with a clean contact of the ball will get the job done.

  • In the sand shot, do not use more than 60 percent power on the swing, and only swing the club head as high as your right shoulder.

  • To get out of a bunker on the green-side, leave the club face open for a higher trajectory and at the swing take a thin layer of sand. Try to splash the sand toward the target. The ball will follow.

  • If you have consistent problems using your clubs correctly on any shot, maybe the problem is not you at all but the poor fit of the clubs to you. Ask our Golf Department agent for a lead on finding a club fitter while you are here in the Grand Strand.

Golf Quotes
  • The harder you work, the luckier you get. [Gary Player]

  • The older I get, the better I used to be. [Lee Trevino]

  • Discipline and concentration are a matter of being interested. [Tom Kite]

  • Golf teaches you how to behave. [Jack Nicklaus]

  • The more you practice, the better. But in any case, practice more than you play. [Babe Didrikson Zaharias]

  • Aside from her skill with her clubs, Miss Collette typified all that the word "sportsmanship" stands for. [Bobby Jones about Glenna Collette Vare, American Hall of Fame golfing champion in the 1920's]
Noteworthy Golf Comments

"I have been organizing a MB golf trips for the last 20 -25 years. We usually have 20 – 24 golfers each year, most from the Chicago area. We date back to the pre- Grande Shores days when it was the Days Inn. We have stayed at the Grande Shores (formerly Days Inn) every year except for two… We plan to be back at Grande Shores next year and many years to come. We love its location on the beach and its central location to courses both north and south of MB. Numerous restaurants are close by, many within walking distance of Grande Shores. The place is always clean and service very good. Brian Hanselman [Director of the Golf Department at Myrtle Beach Seaside Resorts] has taken impeccable care of all our golfing needs… All in all it is a great place for a kick-off to our golf season."

[Quotation from Myrtle Beach Seaside Resorts golf guest Arendt, 06.01.2010.]
Golf Events 2010:
  • August 30 – September 3.  PGA Tour Superstore World Am Handicap Championship.  Four rounds of net stroke tournament play on a different Grand Strand course each day.  Flights assigned by handicap in six divisions with prizes in each flight.  Details at www.WorldAmGolf.com or 800.833.8798.

  • September 7.  Ocean Ridge Championship at Lions Paw, Ocean Ridge Plantation in Ocean Isle, NC.  Details at 800.233.1801 .

  • September 11.  Rally for the Cure® Golf Tournament.  Held at the Eagle Nest Golf Club, this tournament supports the Susan G. Koman Rally for the Cure® working hard to spread awareness about health and breast cancer in support of Susan G. Komen for Cure®.  Registration available online or directly with the Myrtle Beach Golf Authority Rally organization.  Details at 888.272.7263. 

  • September 29-30.  Rally for the Cure® Golf Tournament.  Held at Sandpiper Bay Golf and Country Club.  This 18-hole shot-gun start tournament and fund raising event for the Susan G. Koman Rally for the Cure® includes a cocktail reception and auction held at the Sandpiper Bay Golf Clubhouse on September 29th from 5 PM – 8 PM.  Then the tournament takes place on September 30th with registration at 7:30 AM including breakfast, a putting contest, the golf tournament, and a 12:30 luncheon.  For details contact peggy@atmc.net or call 910.579.1163.

  • October 7-10.  Fourteenth Annual Carolina Couples Classic at Litchfield Beach and Golf  Resort.  Entry fee is $595 includes gifts, prizes, golf round, welcome reception, cocktail party, lunch on Friday and Saturday, and awards’ night party on Saturday.  For details call 1.888.714.5935 or go online to www.CarolinaCouplesGolf.com.

  • November 7-12.  National Law Enforcement Offers Memorial Golf Classic.  Open to any golfer in support of a great cause, entries are limited to the first 1,200 applicants.  Ask about the “kids play free” deal.  Details at http://www.nleomf.org/ or 843.249.2129.

  • November 25-27.  George Holliday Junior Tournament.  Three championship rounds played Thanksgiving weekend and limited to 420 players.  Young players are encouraged to book early.  Details through Michael Burnside at 800.882.2614.
Featured Packages for Individuals and Golf Groups
No matter where in the world you are, we can help you book tee times, easily and simply. Go online to www.ttimesonly.com or call 877.238.1975 for your golf tee times.  For those in a hurry to book last-minute tee times without accommodations, see our web site www.48hourteetimes.com.
  • Here is a golf special that you will love! Save money and play great courses with the Cats 4 Round Golf Package. Play the following 4 courses for one low rate: Panther's Run, Lion's Paw, Tiger's Eye, and Leopard's Chase at the Ocean Ridge Plantation in Ocean Isle, NC, just over the SC/NC border. Play between September 30 - October 31, 2010, for a rate as low as $97*per person, per day. Click here for more details.

  • Get special discounted rates on any Myrtle Beach National Golf Course. Play between September 30 – November 28, 2010, on courses that include Aberdeen, Blackmoor, Long Bay Club, River Club, South Creek at Myrtle Beach National, Litchfield Country Club, West Course at Myrtle Beach National, Waterway Hills, Wachesaw East, Willbrook Plantation, TPC, Tradition Club, Wild Wing Avocet, and King's North at Myrtle Beach National. You must book this package by September 30, 2010, at 1.877.792.6470. Click here for more details.