Whether Ryder Cup Captain Davis Love III wins or loses at Hazeltine in September, he'll have something to smile about shortly after. His newest golf course design, Atlantic Dunes, is set to open Oct. 3 at The Sea Pines Resort in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.
Love is certainly familiar with Sea Pines, having won the RBC Heritage five times. His success certainly led to a level of comfort when applying for the gig, and his design will go up against the two Pete Dye-designed golf courses at Sea Pines.
Atlantic Dunes promises to be not only an entirely different experience than the course it's replacing, formerly The Ocean, but also a much different style than the resort's two other plays. While Dye's Harbour Town and Heron Point Courses are mostly narrow, dog-legging target golf, Atlantic Dunes will be more wide open with big waste areas and will offer chances for the driver to get a little wobbly without too much damage.
For Sea Pines, this completes their total overhaul of the golf product, a commitment made shortly after the Goodwin family's Riverstone Group purchased the property in 2006. It began with Dye's redesign of Sea Marsh into Heron Point and was followed by two brand new clubhouses and a golf academy. Then, last summer, Harbour Town was reseeded wall-to-wall and opened just prior to the Ocean Course going under the knife.
Sea Pines is celebrating the opening of Atlantic Dunes and their now revamped golf product in its entirety with a Villa Golf Package that offers rooms and a round of golf for as low as $154. A la carte tee times will also be available online for all three Sea Pines golf courses.
