The best of the three courses at the sea pines resort is harbour town golf links, which was designed by pete and alice dye and jack nicklaus. Heron point and atlantic dunes, the resort's other two courses, all score highly in our south carolina best in state rankings.

Harbour town first opened for play in 1969 and has been in the top echelon of resort golf ever since, staging the annual heritage classic (now known as the rbc heritage). The fairways are lined by pine trees and the course is set out on reasonably level terrain. The smallish greens are in good shape and haven't been tampered with in any way.

Harbour town is sure to last in the imagination for years thanks to a fantastic closing door. The 18th hole is a tough par four that plays 478 yards from the back tees. A strong drive along the lighthouse's line will take you to the landing area, which juts out into calibogue sound. The lighthouse in harbour town reminds us of a jollier version of the other popular lighthouse in scotland, which is situated at the glamorous turnberry resort.

âĢľharbour town hold a special spot in my heart, because it gave an impressionable 10-year-old an passion in design,âĢĿ tom doak wrote in the confidential guide to golf courses. Few other courses put such a emphasis on straight hitting off the tee and direct iron shots to narrow greens, and it is rightly popular as a turning point in the evolution of american golf design, and it remains one of the favorite courses on tour. There are also many outstanding strategic holes as well as endearing features such as the v-shaped 9th tee, the boarded bunker in front of the 13th green, the world's first waste bunker alongside the 16th, and the two famous finishing holes. Because of the qualities it lacks, the course appears to slip in the rankings, but maybe we should rely more on the stuff it does have.