Ocean Course

The Ocean Course is deservedly rated in the World Top 100 and has hosted no fewer than five USPGA Tournaments and is also the venue of the 2012 US PGA Championship. It’s tough but well worth the ego-bashing. It’s beautiful, there are several challenges on every hole and, off the back or even the middle tees, it’s long. Our advice is to swallow your pride, play off the forward tees and take a hip flask for your nerves! What a course. The front nine is a little inland but the waste bunkers and thin greens offer little hope. The back nine is a true links layout with narrower fairways, smaller bunkers and larger greens. Play Matchplay, listen to your caddie and just have fun. A great golfing experience.

Turtle Point

Designed by Jack Nicklaus, Turtle Point is a favourite of better players (who’ve had enough punishment on the Ocean Course!) With narrow fairway corridors, small greens and strategically-placed water hazards, the course calls for intelligent play. It’s quite long too so a decent short game is needed when your woods let you down. The best “play” is to read the hole’s design and hit to the right landing areas to get the best angles into the greens. Our favourite holes are on the back nine – particularly the stretch along the ocean. The clubhouse is super and the hearty food ideal for a post round “game analysis”.

Oak Point

Located about ten minutes’ drive from the resort gates (complimentary transfers), Oak Point deserves to be far more played than it is. It’s a lovely, quite British (apart from the gatorfilled ponds and lakes!) course with rolling fairways, tall oaks and smallish greens. Built on a former tomato and indigo plantation and overlooking the Kiawah River and Haulover Creek, there is an abundance of wildlife to enjoy so remember your camera. The ability to put the ball on the right side of the fairway is very important at Oak Point. It’s a friendly round of golf at terrific value so include a couple of rounds here to keep your holiday within budget. The simple clubhouse is a delight and you can enjoy the grill or just sup a beer on the creekview terrace.

Osprey Point

Originally designed as a members only course, any decent golfer can now enjoy this low-country gem. The elegant clubhouse is one of the finest in the region and we consider the design to be No.2 after the Ocean Course. Osprey is very pretty, involves some quite frightening drives and offers a great variety of design taking in natural lakes, saltwater marsh, thick forest and beautiful flora. Off the back tees, some of the tee-shots – even on the Par three’s – are mouth-wateringly nerve-wracking but you come off the course, whatever your result, with a smile.

Cougar Point

Designed by Gary Player, this is a super course with attractive propositions lined up on every hole – driver or play safe, over the water or around it, go for the flag or just the green?... The Par-fours are where you make or break your card as some are short and “birdieable” and others are very tough. The Par-fives are generally quite generous once you’ve got a good drive away but the Par-threes are where you can walk away with no points as the greens are usually raised and very wellprotected. As with all the courses at Kiawah Island, Cougar Point was recently awarded a nearperfect score in Golf Digest’s “Best Places to Play” readers’ poll.We’re great fans of Gary Player courses and this one lives up to his high standards.

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