Brunswick Beauties: Six Compelling Designs for Your North Strand Golf Experience

Looking to play top 100 caliber courses while enjoying a relaxed atmosphere? If so, a trip just across the state line to Brunswick County, N.C., needs to be at the top of your list.

From the quiet charm of Calabash, a small fishing town with a surplus of outstanding golf courses, to the coastal beauty of Shallotte, Brunswick County offers a refuge from the hustle and bustle of modern life.

In addition to serenity, the area delivers memorable golf and here is a look at some of Brunswick’s best courses.

Ocean Ridge Plantation is home to the four Big Cats – Lion’s Paw, Panther’s Run, Tiger’s Eye and Leopard’s Chase – and it is one of the Grand Strand’s most popular multi-course properties. Architect Tim Cate co-designed Lion’s Paw, the first cat in the pride, with Willard Byrd, and he claims solo credit for the remaining three courses, each of which opened to increasing acclaim.

Panther’s Run continues to be a favorite of group leaders, but it was the opening of Tiger’s Eye in 2000 that attracted national attention to the property. Featuring generous fairways, waste bunkers and locally harvested coquina boulders, Tiger’s Eye earned a spot on Golf Digest’s list of “America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses.”

Leopard’s Chase is the youngest member of the pride, opening to rave reviews in 2007, and the layout was ranked among the best new public courses in America by Golf Digest and Golf Magazine, further raising Ocean Ridge’s profile. Following a greens renovation project that included the installation of TifEagle bermudagrass in the summer of 2023, Leopard’s Chase is in better shape than it has been in years.

Lockwood Folly Country Club is one of the area’s hidden gems, showcasing the coastal beauty golfers love about a trip to the area. Working with a memorable piece of property, Byrd carved out a 4-star layout featuring holes along the Lockwood Folly River. The course is close enough to the Atlantic Ocean for players to hear the pounding surf, adding to the ambiance at a layout that is worth the drive.

An Arnold Palmer design, Rivers Edge is on every short list of the Grand Strand’s prettiest golf courses, highlighted by seven holes that play along the Shallotte River. Another layout that was ranked among Golf Digest’s 100 greatest public courses, the par 5 ninth hole, known as “Arnie’s Revenge,” is one of the region’s most recognizable challenges.

Options are aplenty on a Myrtle Beach golf trip, and smart group leaders don’t overlook Brunswick County.