Blackmoor Golf Club Review

Gary Player has played and designed golf courses all around the world, but there's only one Gary Player Signature Course on the Grand Strand - Blackmoor Golf Club. Designed to be challenging, yet fair, Blackmoor features well-groomed fairways and greens and modest elevation changes, primarily through moving earth. The course was built on the historic Longwood Plantation, which runs parallel to the Waccamaw River.

Blackmoor Golf Club plays 6,614 yards from the back tees, with a course rating of 71.1 and a slope of 126. Blackmoor is also a favorite of female visitors to the Myrtle Beach area and plays 4,807 yards. Play from the yardage that best suits your game and you're sure to have a good time.

This Gary Player signature course takes advantage of the natural terrain as well as beautiful vistas, producing a combination of shot varieties, which adds to your enjoyment no matter how good or bad you're playing. Marshes, wetlands and/or water come into play on about half the holes and the green complexes are well protected with either sand or grass bunkers and swales. With all of the thought Player put into this course, he has made it challenging for low handicappers and enjoyable for high handicappers.

Easily the most memorable hole on the golf course is Number 8, a par 4 that plays 347 yards from the White tees - much shorter with Option B. "A Tale of Two Fairways" would be an appropriate name for this hole. The conventional, aka wider fairway is to the left, making this a dogleg right. You can leave driver in the bag with this route and hit a 3-wood or hybrid off the tee. That should leave a moderate chip shot into the green.

Option B is for the gambler in you. Number 8 gives you an option to go directly at the green, up a narrow alleyway which plays about 270 yards. Be warned, hit it straight or pay the price. Either way, you end up at a gently undulating green protected with bunkers left - or behind the green - depending on your route. Executed correctly, Option B could help you pick up a shot on the field.

The par 3, Number 4 is by no means the longest par 3 on the course -it's a mere 130 yards - but at the same time this scenic hole is definitely no pushover. With a little bit of intimidation from the pond in front and the long, narrow bunker left of the green, this hole will get you thinking. It also has one of the deepest greens on the course, so proper club selection is essential.

Number 10, the only dogleg left at Blackmoor, is also handicapped as the hardest hole on the course. Favor the left side of the fairway on this 365-yard hole par 4; a well-placed shot of about 230 yards will leave an approach of less than 140 to a kidney shaped green that is well protected by bunkers. This is one of those holes where brains are better than brawn. A back left pin position is best attacked from the front right as the green is very shallow back there. A challenging hole that can be tamed with two well thought shots.

Even without the old slave cemetery that runs down the left side of this hole and dates back to the 1800's, Number 13 (478 yards from the White Tees) would still be a good hole. Add in the cemetery and good becomes great! Calling this a dogleg right doesn't do it justice; it's more like a 45° right turn. A long fade off the tee goes a long way in lessening the burden on your second shot, where, depending on your length off the tee, you'll have a decision to make. Anyone with a clear shot at the green needs to go for it; there's not a lot of trouble around the green other than a bunker on the right side and trees on the left if you're way off. The green slopes from back right to front left, so do your best to keep the ball below the hole.

Blackmoor also has an excellent practice area with a full length driving range where you can hit every club in the bag to your heart's content, and a putting green. The clubhouse features a well-stocked pro shop with all of your favorite logoed Blackmoor gear and a grill and bar that serves all of your favorite libations and clubhouse food. The burgers are unbelievable.

There's nothing not to like at Blackmoor Golf Club. From the moment you pull up to the bag drop to the last drink you order at the Grill, Blackmoor's staff is friendly and courteous. General Manager Bob Zuercher has been at Blackmoor for 30 years and has ridden the roller coaster of Myrtle Beach golf. He is to be commended for having a great staff and for making an enjoyable golf experience that much more enjoyable. It's no wonder the Myrtle Beach Golf Course Owners Association has seen fit to name Blackmoor "Myrtle Beach Golf Course of the Year".

Half of the holes at Blackmoor are doglegs and will require not only proper club selection but also good placement if you want to score well. Many greens are elevated and require you to fly it on the green as opposed to running it on. All of the greens roll fast and true. If you're looking for an enjoyable round with some great people, you need to consider playing Blackmoor Golf Club on your next visit to Myrtle Beach. For more information on Blackmoor Golf Club or to book your next round, visit www..waccamawgolftrail.com/courses/show/blackmoor/