Prestwick Country Club leaves a strong impression from the opening tee shot to the final putt. Named the 2025 South Carolina Golf Course of the Year by the South Carolina Golf Course Owners Association, the Pete and P.B. Dye design blends bold visuals, strategic challenge, and consistently excellent conditions. Among its many standout moments, three holes in particular showcase Prestwick at its best — and they’re sure to stick with you long after the round.
(All distances are from the most commonly played white tees)
No. 5 — 164 yards, Par 3
The view on Prestwick’s fifth is a bit intimidating. Water hugs the entire left side and creeps into the front of a dramatic two-tiered green—one so severe that PGA
General Manager Jay Smith jokes, “I think there is an elephant in the green.” The miss is safely to the right (if you avoid the bunker), but if your ball ends up on the wrong tier, brace yourself for a treacherous putt.
It’s a hole that’s as pretty as it is perilous: visually striking, packed with character, and full of just enough danger to make you want to play it again. (5th pictured right)
No. 9 — 486 yards, Par 5
If you love a hole that blends intimidation with postcard-worthy beauty, Prestwick’s ninth sits near the top of the list. A lake stretches from the tee all the way to the base of the clubhouse, commanding your attention and shaping every decision. The smart play is down the right side, though mounding just off the fairway demands precision. (Out of bounds lurks if you’re too far right)
Reaching the putting surface in two is no easy feat. The bunkering is unforgiving, and even a perfectly struck fairway wood or hybrid has to land soft to avoid the trouble and movement surrounding the green. For most players, a smart layup to a comfortable yardage is the safer—and smarter—play. As Smith puts it, “It’s a wonderful hole; really pretty. It can be birdied.”
It’s an ideal finishing hole for the outward nine—challenging, strategic, and undeniably scenic. (9th top photo)
No. 17 — 499 yards, Par 5
The penultimate hole at Prestwick is the one that keeps players honest—and sometimes awake at night. A creek snakes up the left side of a fairway that narrows the
farther you advance, before finally cutting across directly in front of the green. Every shot brings a decision, and not one of those decisions is stress-free.
Then comes the green, full of movement and capable of rejecting anything less than a confident stroke. Smith’s advice is simple: “Just make 5 or 6 and go onto the next hole. Take your medicine and don’t try to get cute.”
No. 17 is Prestwick at its most demanding—strategic, punishing, and unforgettable. (17th pictured right)
Photos for this feature from MyrtleBeachGolfTrips Instagram Account
