Review: Caledonia Golf & Fish Club (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at Caledonia, go here to see the front.

The tenth hole is the final par 5 on the course, playing 550 yards to a fairly generous fairway with the entrance road right and a bunker left that only longer hitters really need to concern themselves with. It's the second shot here that's important; a massive waste bunker right of the fairway dominates the last 150 yards, forcing a decision on how you want to play this hole. For long hitters looking to hit the green in two, the waste bunker must be fully carried, as the very small green is tucked behind the sand, though with enough fairway around it to make the long fairway wood approach actually possible. For most golfers, the choice is how close to lay up to the bunker, as the closer you get, the more green you'll have to work with on the third. Play all the way out left – and the fairway in the lay-up area is extremely wide, so you can go pretty far – and the angle will be almost impossible for your third, as the green is extremely narrow and has two smaller bunkers immediately left. 

The tenth hole.

Approaching the tenth green (right side, behind the bunker).

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole isn't quite a Redan, but it does have some of the Redan's playing characteristics. At 165 yards, it's a lot shorter than typical Redans, but the angled green is in full effect here, tucked behind a stream, with a pond (or maybe part of the river inlet, I'm not 100% sure either way) looming just left. The left-hand hole location we saw for our round is one you really don't want to challenge. Much better to aim at the center of the green and let the central ridge run the ball down toward the hole. Even if you don't get that friendly roll, it's obviously much smarter to play safe and accept the long putt, or even short chip. That's a lot more better than a ball in the water. 

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a mid-length par 4 playing over the last portion of the river inlet to a fairway that bends from left to right around a pair of large bunkers and some very tall pines. Using driver here is a questionable choice, as you run out of fairway pretty quickly on the left side, and skirting the right tree line obviously comes with its own risks. A 3 wood is plenty, and will leave you with a short iron or wedge into a narrow, hourglass-shaped green with several small bunkers around it. 

The twelfth hole.

Approaching the twelfth green.

The twelfth green.

If the tee shot on the thirteenth hole was just a little more interesting, this would be the best hole on the course. It's not even a mindless drive, as you have to avoid the left side to avoid being blocked out by trees while keeping the ball from going too far into the trees beyond the sharp dogleg on this 400-yard par 4. Unfortunately, while it's something you do need to think about, it's still not an exciting drive. A 3 wood up the right side of this very wide fairway is all you need. 

The story changes dramatically when you turn the corner, however, and you're confronted by a veritable island green sitting in a moat of sand, with just a narrow 10-yard strip of fairway in front connecting the green to the rest of the hole. It's a fairly small green, and while it's not as undulating as some of the others at Caledonia, it definitely isn't flat. Also, with the river inlet in the background, the view heading down toward the green isn't bad either. Even with the relatively mundane drive, this is still a really good, memorable hole.

The thirteenth hole.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is a 415-yard par 4 that plays directly alongside the river inlet for its entire length, though interestingly, you really don't want to play down the left side along the water. There are a couple of reasons for this, but the main one is a large live oak sitting about 75 yards from the green right along the edge of the water. Any shot that strays too far left but doesn't go in the water (say, if you end up in one of the three bunkers bordering the water) will be blocked out completely by that tree. It's far better to play conservatively down the right side; this leaves a longer shot but you'll have a clearer view of the narrow, multi-tiered green. That's not an easy iron shot, as there's a deep bunker front right and, of course, water left, but that's better than having no shot at the green at all.

The fourteenth hole.

The fourteenth green.

The fifteenth hole is the longest par 4 at Caledonia by a wide margin, coming in at just over 460 yards. The hole bends left significantly, with a large bunker in the corner of the dogleg that has to be challenged if you want to use anything less than a long iron on the second shot. In addition, playing out right means a pair of bunkers 20 yards short of the green become something you need to worry about. Successfully skirt along the left fairway bunker, and the second shot becomes relatively easy, as the green is nestled in a shallow punchbowl; there are also no bunkers directly abutting the green. So while it's not an easy hole, the fifteenth isn't as tough as its length may lead you to believe.

The fifteenth hole.

The fifteenth green.

The Mike Strantz courses I've played have all struggled to stick the closing stretch, and while Caledonia has the best of the three, the sixteenth hole is definitely my least favorite hole on the course. The drive of this 415-yard par 4 is fine, if a bit simple. There are multiple bunkers right and one on the left side almost exactly where you'd want to aim to avoid the aforementioned right-hand bunkers, but the only important thing is to be on the fairway for your second shot. A solid drive will leave a short iron over a pond (the only definitively artificial water hazard on the course) to a smallish green that's pretty much devoid of the interesting internal contours the other greens at Caledonia has had. This is the only hole on the course that feels like a generic Myrtle Beach hole, and I'm just not a big fan of it.

The sixteenth hole.

Approaching the sixteenth green.

The sixteenth green.

The seventeenth hole, happily, is a much better and more fun hole than the sixteenth. It's a mid-length par 3 at 175 yards, and much like the thirteenth, this green is basically an island in a sea of sand. A waste bunker surrounds 90% of this green, even curling around the back. There is a small tongue of fairway in front, but it's almost comically dominated by a little pot bunker that really defines the entire green. It really does make this green stand out from the thirteenth, despite the fact they're both presenting essentially the same challenge. You really do not want to be in that little pot bunker, but it's right there, guarding the center of the green, the exact place you want to aim to avoid the gigantic waste bunker. I don't think it's the best hole on the course, but I like it a lot, and it works well as a penultimate hole.

The seventeenth hole.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is precisely what you'd expect from a closing hole at a Mike Strantz course. Seriously, it's almost exactly the same as the eighteenth at Royal New Kent and True Blue. The only point in this hole's favor is that the water is at least natural; the Waccamaw River runs down the right side, and the river inlet that influenced so many holes before this one meets the river here, splitting the green from the fairway. 

Oddly enough, I think this hole would work a lot better if it were 50 yards longer. At 380 yards, it's hardly overbearing length-wise, and the tee shot especially is nowhere as climactic as you'd like it to be. You have to hit an awkward fairway wood or long iron aimed out away from the water; this easily clears the narrowest part of the fairway, where a pair of bunkers about 200 yards away tightens things up, and gets you into fairway that's 40-50 yards wide. Move the tee back, and suddenly you have to hit driver to access that wider portion of fairway. If you're not willing to risk that, then you're going to have a full long iron for the second shot, and that's really not something you want. Alas, unless they went out and built a tee in the marsh like Atlantic City did with the fourteenth and sixteenth holes, we're stuck with the awkward tee shot.

At the very least, the second shot is a lot of fun and quite scenic, as the green is framed by both a very nice-looking clubhouse and a long view of the river. There are also four small bunkers around the green, which is massive and filled with little bumps and ridges to make putting interesting. I definitely wouldn't call this a good hole, but it does at least fit in better than the closing holes at the other Mike Strantz courses I've played.

The eighteenth hole.

Approaching the eighteenth green.

The eighteenth green.

It's pretty obvious that Caledonia is an excellent golf course, one that I like quite a lot and genuinely enjoyed playing. It's a lot of fun, most of the holes present fun strategic challenges, and despite the tall trees closely framing basically every hole, you never really feel hemmed in. And that's saying something coming from a guy who struggles immensely with driver accuracy. The routing's not perfect, but considering the limited size of the property, it does pretty well, and you certainly always feel connected to the rest of the course. The start is a little slow, and I think I've said plenty about the last hole, but I particularly enjoyed 7, 13, and 17, and I think Caledonia earns a spot in my personal top 10 favorite courses. Eighth, if you're curious. 

All that said, is a round here worth the $200 price tag? Uh, no. I mean, if you've got the money to throw around, by all means, but I literally cannot physically bring myself to tell you people out there that a round at Caledonia represents good value. For example, the golf courses that place ninth and seventh on my personal top 10 list are Jeffersonville and Copake, both of which can be played for under $50. And then there's Leatherstocking and George Wright (third and second): Leatherstocking tops out at $150, which is expensive but still significantly less than Caledonia, and you can literally play George Wright three times for less than a single round at Caledonia. And they're both superior golf courses, at least in my humble opinion. Golf.com even agrees with me on George Wright; that's ranked 59th while Caledonia's down at 84th.

Ultimately, I think my opinion of Caledonia generally mirrors my opinion of Myrtle Beach: It's fine once, maybe twice, but after this second, longer trip, I've seen and played every worthwhile golf course Myrtle Beach has to offer, and I'm not really interested in going back and seeing any more. It's overpriced, overcrowded, and doesn't really appeal to the sort of golfer I am. Caledonia is a fine golf course, but it's also absurdly overpriced and incredibly overcrowded, and in the end I don't think it's worth seeing again. 

Beer of the Week

The beer: Johann Buys A Broat

Brewed by: Aslin Beer Company, Alexandria, Virginia

Description (from Untappd): "Johann Buys a Broat is a Double India Pale Ale that is fermented on our house yeast which produces peach and mango esters. Johann is solely hopped with Citra and fermented on Pineapple & Mandarin Orange. This beer has a huge creamy mouthfeel due to the oats and Madagascar vanilla beans, which round out the beer and give it a Pineapple & Orange creamsicle feel."

Would I buy it again? I think this is one of those beers that technically is very good but just isn't quite for me. Pineapple and beer go together very well, in my opinion, but orange and beer? Maybe not quite so much. The initial taste is quite good, but there's a tartness at the end that I didn't care for as much. But beyond that, this beer tastes pretty much exactly as advertised, so if that sounds like a good thing, by all means go for it. Personally though, I'm going to pass on this in the future.

A History Of How 'Band Geeks' Became Spongebob's Most Important Episode

On July 17, 1999, millions of people sat down in front of their TVs to watch a new cartoon on Nickelodeon, unaware that they were witnessing the birth of a cartoon icon on the level of Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse, and the Simpsons. Spongebob Squarepants took the world by storm, and to this day 25 years later, new episodes of the show are still being made.

Credit: Nickelodeon

While we could certainly talk at length about how Nickelodeon has exploited the image of everyone's favorite sea sponge in the name of short-term profits, particularly after the death of show creator Stephen Hillenberg, we're going to focus on something happier today to commemorate 25 years of Spongebob. Something a little more iconic.

'Band Geeks' may not be your favorite episode of Spongebob, but it is mine, and I don't think anyone could reasonably argue that it isn't the most important episode of the show. It's certainly the one that dwells most prominently in the public consciousness. And while the all-important humor is on point the entire way through (go ahead, name a funnier episode of Spongebob), the key to 'Band Geeks' is the buildup to Spongebob and friends coming together and performing a rock ballad for the ages, stunning Squilliam Fancyson from band class and giving Squidward that sweet, sweet victory.

And it's the history of that song, 'Sweet Victory,' that this article focuses on. It's not a song that appears on any record of note, nor is it sung by a guy most people have heard of. David Glen Eisley isn't a complete nobody in the music world, but if you can name the song that he sung that appeared in the Billboard Top 100, I'd be very impressed.

(It's 'Call to the Heart' by the band Giuffria, if you're curious.)

Point being, 'Sweet Victory' has the humblest of humble origin stories: It was recorded as part of an 1998 album called 'American Games,' which was a collection of generic songs aimed to capture the feel of sporting events. These were songs that were meant to be licensed by studios for use as background music over sporting events filmed for TV and/or movies. It was written and performed for a paycheck, and not a particularly large one at that. Not exactly a glamorous birth.

Credit: Nickelodeon

Fast forward a couple years to 2001, and the Spongebob writing team needed a song. 'Band Geeks' was always going to culminate in a song of some sort, but their only guidance from the episode's script was "they perform an amazing marching band song." But after listening to numerous marching band songs, the team settled on 'Sweet Victory,' since hearing a meek yellow sponge singing a anthemic rock ballad was just so much funnier than any classic marching band song could ever be.

The rest, as they say, is history. 'Band Geeks' became an instant classic, the best episode of the series. 'Sweet Victory' became a song embedded into an entire generation of kid's head, to the point where it showed up at the 2024 Super Bowl, complete with new animation. But rather than continue to summarize just how iconic this episode is, we'll end here with one last fun tidbit of information. Did you know that David Glen Eisley has only performed 'Sweet Victory' live once? And that it was at a party hosted by Kelsey Grammer? I've watched 'Frasier' and 'Cheers' multiple times, so I thought that was a very odd and funny coincidence. Of all the people to have this song played at a party, it's Frasier Crane. 

Review: Caledonia Golf & Fish Club (Part 1)

For a place so strongly associated with golf, Myrtle Beach is surprisingly light on nationally ranked golf courses. True Blue, Moorland, Heathland, and the Dye course at Barefoot are all among the top 20 public courses in South Carolina, according to Golfweek, but none manage to crack a national ranking of public golf courses. There are only two courses on the entirety of the Grand Strand that do so (specifically I'm looking at Golf.com, easily the best list among the major golf publications), and the higher ranked of the two, The Dunes, is only playable if you're staying at a couple specific resorts. Including it on a list of publicly accessible golf courses is dubious, in my personal opinion.

And so, that makes Caledonia Golf & Fish Club the only truly accessible top 100 golf course in the Myrtle Beach area. Located on a pretty snug property alongside the marshes of the Waccamaw River – and right across the road from True Blue – Caledonia is Mike Strantz's first solo design, and right away, it's very different to True Blue and Royal New Kent. The routing is more intimate and the design far more classical and old school; even the scenery feels distinct from True Blue. But here's the big question: Does Caledonia deserve its reputation? Is it as good as the magazines make it out to be? Is it worth the nearly $200 price tag? Let's find out. 

The first hole is not a particularly difficult opener, but it's also not an easy one. It's not long, just 375 yards, and the playing corridor is reasonably wide, but there's O.B. on both sides – houses right and the course's entrance road left – and there are several bunkers scattered around the landing area, eating into the fairway from both sides. Basically, no matter what club you use on the tee shot, you'll have some hazard to think about. But again, it's a pretty wide fairway, so a solid 3 wood should do just fine, and you'll be left with a wedge or short iron second shot into the green, which is medium sized and protected by two bunkers, one on each side.

The first hole. The picture from the tee got absolutely fried by the rising sun. Not the ideal routing choice, having the first hole head east.

The first green. Fun fact, this green is less than 200 yards from the sixteenth at True Blue. I'd never have guessed without looking at a map, the two holes feel very different. 

The second hole is the longest hole at Caledonia, playing just over 570 yards along the property's eastern side. The O.B. right isn't a huge factor, as the fairway is once again quite wide, but it is there. More pressing is a large bunker right along with a group of small trees in front of it; hit a weak slice, and you can easily find your second shot blocked out by those trees. The small bunker left of the fairway is a good place to aim, as it's out of range for all but the longest hitters. 

The second shot, provided you've hit your drive into a good position, can either be pretty simple or quite difficult, depending on how aggressive you want to be. Want to leave yourself a hundred-yard wedge third? Then the fairway's open and inviting. Go further than that, and bunkers and trees narrow the fairway significantly. The green is also wider than it is deep, which is fine if you're approaching it with a full wedge, but less so if you're in that awkward 50-yard range or fully going for the green in two.

The second hole.

Approaching the second green.

The second green.

The third hole is a medium-length par 3, and a fairly memorable one at that. The green is on the larger side, but that's mostly because it's 50 yards long; that X axis is a lot smaller than the Y axis. The green's also got a very large amount of back-to-front tilt, which admittedly was less of an issue for our round there, as the hole was cut in the back. Then, of course, there's the matter of the sand. There's a lot of it, and the bunkering renders this green a virtual island. Miss this green on either side, and you're going to have a delicate bunker shot with very little green to work with and the threat of another bunker shot awaiting you on the opposite side. If bunker play isn't your strong point, you can rack up a big number on this hole.

The third hole.

The fourth hole is, when you get right down to it, a pretty simple strategic mid-length par 4. The ideal tee shot should hug the right side of the fairway, flirting with the enormous waste bunker running alongside. This gives you the best angle into the green for the second shot; bail out left toward the safer part of the fairway, and the approach will be impeded by trees and sand, not to mention the green being a shallower target. It's really the scale of the waste bunker that makes this hole stand out; it's easy to say you should favor the right side, but when you're looking at a bunker that's 250 yards long, actually committing to that shot isn't so easy.

The fourth hole.

Approaching the fourth green.

The fourth green.

The fifth hole is just under 420 yards, and while it's not a bad hole, it's pretty far from being a good one. There are two fairway bunkers cutting in from the right side, forcing you to either confront them or risk the second shot being blocked out by trees. It's a fine enough challenge, but the last hole literally asked the same question, but in a much more memorable way. Also, this green isn't as interesting as the last one; it's slightly elevated and quite shallow, but there aren't any bunkers around it. This is definitely the weakest hole on the front nine, maybe even the whole course.

The fifth hole.

Approaching the fifth green.

The fifth green.

The sixth hole is a shortish, 160-yard par 3, and this is the first time we've gotten a really memorable, exciting green at Caledonia. The others were all fine and interesting enough, but this one really stands out. It's long and thin, like the third, but it heaves and dips multiple times, essentially breaking the green up into multiple mini-greens. Also unlike the third, there's a fair amount of space to miss the green right, so it's also a friendlier hole to the higher handicappers/poor bunker players. And to be honest, I just like the look of this hole, I think it sits on the land very naturally.

The sixth hole.

The seventh hole is a mid-length par 4 playing alongside an inlet of the Waccamaw River, which reaches deep into the heart of the property. Obviously, with water running down the entire left side, you're going to be tempted to bail out right, but doing so means you'll have to more directly contend with a group of live oaks jutting halfway across the fairway about 50 yards short of the green. These trees aren't an impassable hazard; it's possible to go over, under, or even around if you can hit a big cut. Also, the green is very large, perhaps even the largest on the course, and nestled in a shallow punchbowl; even if you do hit the tree and drop straight down, recovery isn't difficult. Of course, a more aggressive drive, flirting with the river, will give you a much better and more direct line at the green. In the end, the strategy isn't revolutionary, but the hole presents that strategy in a memorable, unique fashion, which I think makes this one of the course's best holes.

The seventh hole.

Approaching the seventh green.

The seventh green.

The eighth hole is the shortest of Caledonia's three par 5s at 530 yards, doglegging hard right around a line of four small cross bunkers. If you cut the corner, you should be close enough to the green to go for it in two, though whether you will want to is another question. The eighth green isn't exactly an inviting target, as an arm of the river cuts it off from the rest of the hole; in addition, the green is two tiered, with sand both right and long. Unless you're really confident in your long irons/fairway woods, caution is definitely the way to go on the second shot. Just leave yourself a reasonably full wedge third, and the water shouldn't give you too much trouble.

The eighth hole.

Approaching the eighth green.

The eighth green.

On the previous two Mike Strantz courses I've played, there's been an awkwardly placed par 3 that poorly meshes into the overall routing of the course, and the ninth hole here at Caledonia continues the streak. In this case, after playing the eighth, you head out a hundred or so yards to this tee, turn 90 degrees right to play this hole, then immediately head back in the direction you just came from to reach the tenth tee, which is right next to the eighth green. Then there's the matter of ninth's length, or lack thereof. The scorecard lists this hole at 120 yards, which is ... optimistic. It may not even be 100 yards, particularly when the hole's cut in the front of this very wide but very shallow green. That shallowness and lack of length, combined with the numerous bunkers both in front and behind the green, combine to make this a surprisingly tricky green to hit. You need precise distance control, which is tough if you're not hitting a full wedge off the tee. 

The ninth is a solid hole, honestly, just oddly placed, dangling out at the corner of the property. At least with Caledonia, the odd routing is understandable, considering how cramped the site is. I'll give this one a pass.

The ninth hole.

That's it for this week, next week we'll take a look at the back nine.

Beer of the Week

The beer: Parrots of the Caribbean Stout

Brewed by: Kings County Brewers Collective, Brooklyn, New York

Description (from the can): "Pours jet black in the glass with a mocha colored head. Notes of palm sugar, English toffee, black treacle. Medium body, dry finish. Approachable and balanced. Not all beer is gold, mate."

Would I buy it again? The taste is quite similar to a Guinness, but since it's not nitrogenized, I actually like it better. It's definitely on the drier side, but not too much so. This isn't exactly a beer for the middle of summer, but I still enjoyed drinking it. And it's about time I reviewed something that isn't a wheat beer. 

Plus, I love the name. You can always win me over with a good pun. I'm not sure I'll be able to find this again, but if I can and it's a more appropriate season, I'd definitely buy this again.

Beer of the Week

The beer: Pineapple Kölsch

The brewery: Desperate Times Brewery, Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Description (from Untappd): "A clean, crisp beer with soft malt and hop character flavored with pineapple."

Would I buy it again? The description really does nail everything that this beer is about. It's got the maltiness of a kölsch and the pleasant fruitiness of the pineapple in excellent balance with each other. It is easy to drink, and I'd be happy to buy it again.

Review: True Blue Golf Club (Part 2)

It's time to check out the back nine at True Blue, go here to see the front.

The tenth hole isn't quite as gigantic as the first in terms of length, but when it comes to sheer area of fairway, I'm not sure there's a hole outside St. Andrews that can match this one. It's not too often a fairway that starts out 50 yards wide gets wider, but that's precisely what happens here. Beyond 250 yards or so, once you clear the massive waste bunker, the fairway nearly doubles in width. And while it tempting to utilize the entirety of this enormous fairway, you have to keep in mind that this is a 600-yard par 5 that doglegs sharply right. Play safely out to the left and you'll have a very, very long second shot, potentially even bringing a line of diagonal cross bunkers about 150-200 yards out. You're better off challenging the trees and bunkering in the corner of the dogleg; do that, followed by a solid lay-up to the left side of the fairway, and you'll have a relatively simple wedge third. The green is angled from left to right and is quite narrow, placed between two large bunkers.

The tenth hole.

Approaching the tenth green.

The tenth green.

The eleventh hole is a solid if not particularly revolutionary mid-length par 3. The green is alone in a sea of sand and is tilted fairly significantly from back to front. It's a perfectly reasonable hole, but definitely the least noteworthy of True Blue's five par 3s.

The eleventh hole.

The eleventh green.

The twelfth hole is a mid-length par 4 bending slightly right around a long waste bunker. There's a lot of room left, but if you take this safer route, you'll have a longer second shot playing over a massive bunker. Take the aggressive route, and you won't have to carry that greenside bunker. The green is fairly narrow and sloped pretty significantly from back to front.

The twelfth hole.

The twelfth green.

The thirteenth hole is about the same length as the previous hole and also plays to a very wide fairway. However, a large chunk of that fairway is blind from the tee, so many golfers will be drawn out right, potentially catching the corner of a bunker that eats into the fairway in the landing area. There's more room left than it looks, and so long as you carry the waste bunker, you'll get a big bounce toward the middle of the fairway. However, if you do find the sand on either side, there's a good chance you won't be able to get to the green in two, as more sand fronts the green. No bouncing shots up into this one. The green itself is fairly flat, so if you do hit a solid drive, this hole becomes a good birdie opportunity.

The thirteenth hole.

Approaching the thirteenth green.

The thirteenth green.

The fourteenth hole is more than a little reminiscent of the twelfth hole at Royal New Kent, though I definitely wouldn't call it a copy. This hole is 160 yards, 65 yards shorter than its cousin up north, and the green is angled so that the long axis is perpendicular with the line of play. So, this green ends up being 50-60 yards wide and 10-20 yards deep. But both greens also have significant bunkering all around, and funnily enough, both represent hiccups in the routing. The tee here is quite close to the fifteenth tee, and the hole is pointed in precisely the opposite direction of the next hole. I think even the thirteenth green is closer to the fifteenth tee than this green. 

Of course, with this hole having such a wildly shaped green, you would expect the contours within it to be equally extreme. And you'd basically be correct. This is not an easy green to putt, especially if you have to make your way through the narrow section connecting the two larger portions of the green. You can easily end up with a hundred-foot putt traversing several different breaks. Three putting is a massive threat. So, in the end, I do like this hole a lot, I just wish it felt more connected with the rest of the routing. 

The fourteenth hole.

The fifteenth hole is, in the same spirit as the first and tenth, a massive, sprawling par 5 playing just over 600 yards. The fairway meanders back and forth around enormous waste bunkers lining both sides of this hole, providing endlessly interesting little nooks and crannies and angles. It's both easy to hit this fairway and extremely difficult to find the best line. The same goes for the second shot, through there is less sand if you lay up down the right side. The green is shallow, wide, and elevated above the surrounding fairway, especially if you approach from the right. Getting a 50-yard pitch to stop on this green requires precision, so you may be better off leaving a full 100-yard wedge for the third.

The fifteenth hole.

The fifteenth green.

The sixteenth hole plays 210 yards with water all along the right side, along with a long and tall beach-style bunker that actually wraps all the way around the large, heavily undulating green. I honestly do like it as an individual hole, but we haven't seen water at True Blue since the fourth, so this feels a little incongruous. Also, while this hole is good, the sixteenth heralds a rather weak finish.

The sixteenth hole.

The seventeenth hole is a long, 450-yard par 4 that can technically play straight if you play boldly along the water line into a section of fairway jutting out into the lake. However, while this does shorten the hole, the angle is actually worse than if you play safely out left. Sure, playing safely leaves you a longer second, but the water is much less directly in your line. Just be careful of a small nook about 250 yards out where the sand angles into the fairway, and you'll be fine. The green here is pretty large and forgiving, not having any huge slopes or breaks to it. If you hit the green in regulation, you should make a par.

The seventeenth hole.

The seventeenth green.

The eighteenth hole is slightly shorter than the last hole at 435 yards, but it plays essentially the same. Water left, wide fairway in the middle, waste bunker right. This time though, the green isn't quite so pedestrian. Two large ridges dominate the right half of the green, meaning that approach shots that miss right – the obvious place to bail out – will have incredibly delicate chip shots to a green running away with water beyond. It's honestly better to just be aggressive and play right for the flag here.

The eighteenth green. Somehow, despite standing on the tee for several minutes, I didn't take a picture from there. There was water and sand involved.

Overall, I found True Blue to be a pretty good golf course, but not quite at the level of Royal New Kent. The massive waste bunkers do their best, and they are very effective hazards, but this course is just at a disadvantage when it comes to topography. Also, the finish is worse here, since True Blue has two mediocre, water-filled long par 4s to end the round instead of just one. True Blue does have the advantage of possessing a routing one might feasibly walk, but since this is still Myrtle Beach, I'm sure very few people, if any, walk this course. I also think True Blue has a very strong set of par 5s. The first, tenth, and fifteenth holes are simply colossi on an epic scale, the fourth is of course the fascinating fishhook, and the ninth possesses some really cool greenside bunkering.

True Blue does have another weakness, compared with Royal New Kent, and that's price. Royal New Kent wasn't exactly a bargain, yet a round there is half the price of one here. True Blue costs over $150 per person, and that's simply way too much for what it offers. I think this course falls into the category of "I'm glad I played it, but I'm not really interested in paying to play it again."