Trick or Treat: Myrtle Beach’s 5 Most Frightening Shots

Halloween, the night of fright is upon us, making it the ideal time to take a look at five of the Myrtle Beach golf scene’s scariest shots. These aren’t your garden variety forced carries. These are challenges that tighten the collar on your shirt, cause your mouth to dry, and make your hands sweat.

– At the top of our list is Myrtle Beach’s ultimate trick or treat hole – No. 13 at Pawleys Plantation. This par 3 is listed at 113 yards (all distances from white/most common tees), but it never plays that long. The reality is you will be facing an approximately 75-yard shot to a peninsula green that provides 18 yards of grass if you want your ball to remain dry. When the wind is factored in, it might be safer to have dinner with Michael Myers. (Top photo)

– Heritage Club offers one of Myrtle Beach’s sternest tests and the tee shot on No. 14 is the round’s most frightening. The dogleg left par 4 plays 381 yards and your tee shot has to cross water. Play too conservatively and you can hit it thru the fairway, challenge too much of the water and you get wet. Good luck.

– The approach on Glen Dornoch’s 16th hole will give you nightmares. You are looking at approximately 170 yards off a downhill lie to a green that is 14 yards wide Glen Dornoch Waterway Links in the middle. Throw in sand and the marshy waters of the Intracoastal Waterway surrounding the putting surface and you have knee-knocking shot. (pictured right)

– When a hole’s name is “Waterloo,” you know there is much to fear. For many, the tee shot on the Dunes Club’s par 5 13th hole is the scary one, but you can play away from Lake Singleton initially. On the second shot, golfers can’t avoid a lake that has haunted many a player. If you want a manageable approach to one of the area’s most demanding greens, you have to confront Lake Singleton on your second swing. Deciding how much of the water to attack is a frightening prospect, one that could determine the fate of your round.

– At 200 yards, the 12th hole at Burning Ridge is among the area’s longest par 3s and the fact that 180 yards are required to carry water makes it a terrifying challenge for mid to high handicappers. There is nowhere to hide. (pictured right)