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Lion's Paw at Ocean Ridge Plantation
Rating Snapshot
About
Lion's Paw Golf Links is an open, hilly course that treats the golfer to spectacular views of a beautiful creek valley and its adjoining wetlands. A wild and untamed layout, Lion's Paw features deep sugar white sand bunkers and MiniVerde greens.
A stunning 23,000 square foot clubhouse serves both Lion's Paw and Panther's Run golf courses and offers residents and visitors the perfect place to ready themselves for the upcoming challenge on the links. Designed with a safari theme, the clubhouse includes a full-service pro shop, a snack bar and Tamers Restaurant and Lounge, an elegant dining room serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Lion's Paw has been described as Willard Byrd's finest work. Part wild, part rustic and quiet, this magnificent course presents a lion's share of adventure and breathtaking scenery.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 72 | 7003 yards | 74.0 | 132 |
| White | 72 | 6457 yards | 71.3 | 128 |
| Gold | 72 | 5872 yards | 67.5 | 118 |
| Gold (W) | 72 | 5872 yards | 71.0 | 126 |
| Red (W) | 72 | 5363 yards | 69.0 | 121 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue M: 73.5/137 | 417 | 517 | 204 | 428 | 415 | 228 | 402 | 520 | 386 | 3517 | 400 | 202 | 383 | 527 | 418 | 445 | 384 | 185 | 542 | 3486 | 7003 |
| White M: 71.0/131 | 387 | 477 | 178 | 385 | 399 | 175 | 364 | 495 | 352 | 3212 | 375 | 188 | 372 | 493 | 396 | 408 | 353 | 154 | 506 | 3245 | 6457 |
| White/Gold M: 69.2/126 | 351 | 477 | 128 | 385 | 366 | 136 | 364 | 495 | 352 | 3054 | 375 | 172 | 322 | 493 | 393 | 382 | 353 | 131 | 506 | 3127 | 6181 |
| Gold M: 67.3/115 W: 72.7/133 | 351 | 433 | 128 | 361 | 366 | 136 | 332 | 478 | 336 | 2921 | 349 | 172 | 322 | 431 | 393 | 382 | 319 | 131 | 457 | 2956 | 5877 |
| Red M: 64.2/108 W: 68.8/124 | 335 | 416 | 108 | 326 | 353 | 125 | 303 | 455 | 305 | 2726 | 307 | 110 | 300 | 413 | 321 | 366 | 286 | 121 | 406 | 2630 | 5356 |
| Handicap | 1 | 15 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 4 | 6 | 16 | 18 | 12 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 36 | 72 |
| Handicap (W) | 1 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 13 | 11 | 2 | 18 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 4 | 16 | 6 | 14 |
Hot Deals at Lions Paw
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Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
Bar, Grill, RestaurantAccolades
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Golf Advisor: Top 25 Most Improved U.S. Golf Courses (2021 #16)
Reviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by logancriss on 04/13/2026
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Photo submitted by logancriss on 04/13/2026
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Photo submitted by logancriss on 04/13/2026
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72 year-old with good swing form! Photo submitted by PKStamm2418 on 01/18/2026
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Carlos was a great welcoming committee Photo submitted by james9852821 on 10/14/2025
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Photo submitted by u000007843074 on 06/13/2025
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Photo submitted by u000007843074 on 06/13/2025
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Photo submitted by u000007843074 on 06/13/2025
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Photo submitted by Richard1399167 on 05/16/2021
Needs Work
Greens were in so, so shape. Sand traps were horrible. No sand and hard packed. Several had standing water. You could tell they had no work done too then for a while.
Well worth the money!
From the outset we had an excellent outing. The staff were excellent and very understanding when we had a player not show for our reservation. We were among the first few groups out and the pace was great. Things slowed down briefly but the course ranger made a correction and it picked back up.
The only complaint of the day was that the sand traps were so dry and hard they weren’t playable. In years passed we’ve spent twice this to play the Big Cat courses, for the money this exceeded expectation.
We had a 4 some in front of us ( we were a 2 some ) that were playing screwy games the entire time and would not allow us to go around them. Very poor management that doesn’t send starters out to check on the pace of play
Thank you for your feedback on your recent round at Lion's Paw. We do have a course marshal on duty for each day at all of the Big Cats courses (Barring any unforeseen circumstances) and I did confirm that we definitely did have a marshal on duty on the day you played, but it sounds like he did not do a very good job of communicating with your group. Based on our tee sheet, we were very busy that day and it's likely there was no open space beyond the group in front of you, but, even if so, that certainly should have been communicated to your group. We apologize it took longer than you expected to play, but this can sometimes be the case, especially on a busy day with mostly foursomes on the course. I have passed your feedback along to our golf director and asked that he review with all course marshals the importance of maintaining good communication with our guests, especially on a very busy day. Thank you and again, we apologize for the inconvenience.
Super Slow Greens
Greens needed to be mowed or rolled. Very slow compared to surrounding courses.
Thank you for taking the time to review your recent visit to Lion's Paw. We apologize you did not catch us at our very best. The heavy rains of the past couple of weeks have hampered some of our maintenance efforts. (Summer Rates reflect this fact) But we are committed to taking whatever steps possible to offer our guests a fun and memorable golf experience. We hope you will visit us again soon and see our continued progress.
Good value
When searching for a tee time in the area most courses were $75 to $100 for an am tee time. While the course isn’t in as good shape as it was several years ago it’s still a quality layout. Greens were in good shape as well.
Thank you very much for the nice Four Star review of Lion's Paw. Please be sure to check out the other three Big Cats courses as well..
Needs investment
Played with a threesome and we had a really good time. The layout was really fun but it’s a shame the owners don’t care for the course. Wouldn’t blame others if they stayed away until there was more care to the course.
Also, one of the starters was rude. Not knowing they had a guy who loads the cart with clubs, we arrived at the starter after checking in and said we would just take the front two carts. He said, laughing, “you’re not going to take a cart.” When I said “what do you mean we’re not taking the carts,” he asked if we checked in and said one of the guys would take the clubs and walk 10 feet from us to put it in the cart. The three of us thought the comment was rude. Other than that, the staff was very kind.
Main takeaway: It was fun. Wouldn’t pay $60 to play in the current shape.
Thank you very much for the nice Four Star review. We really appreciate it and we hope you will visit us again soon.
Excellent golf outing
Other than the course being a little dry and hard the whole experience was excellent. It’s worth trying.
Thank you very much for the nice Four Star review. Now that the area-wide drought that has plagued us for most of the spring seems to finally be breaking, the courses are greening up quickly and will continue to improve as we move forward. We hope you will visit us again soon and see our progress and improvement.
Thank you for taking the time to review your visit to Lion's Paw. We apologize we were unable to meet your expectations on this visit. The course is definitely a little off color right now as we transition from winter rye to warm weather bermuda and the lack of rain in our area certainly hasn't helped. But we are working hard daily to continue to offer our guests a fun and memorable golf experience. We hope you will visit us again in the future and see our continued progress.
Awesome for beginners
I thought this was going to be way to much for myself playing as a beginner. It proved to be challenging but also very open for my driver to be used. Bang for the buck was great and I can’t wait to get back there.
Thank you for the very nice Four Star review of Lion's Paw. it is definitely a fun course, but with enough "bite" for more experienced golfers, if they want to take on the back tee boxes. We hope you will come check out the other three Big Cats courses as well.
Lions Paw is a Pro Level Course
Upon entering, the staff was friendly and helpful., Excellent layout but could use more watering. Greens were quite fast but true.. Every hole very challenging.
Thank you for taking the time to review your recent round on Lion's Paw. We agree, it is an excellent layout. You are also correct in that we could use some more rain! In addition, this is the transition time between winter rye and warm weather bermuda grass n the fairways, tees, etc and we have sprayed out the rye grass to help speed this transition along. Therefore the courses will be a little more off color for a few days and then begin the rapid green-up for the rest of the year, until winter dormancy comes again. WE hope you will come visit us again soon and see our continued progress.
Course has lost it's lustre, sadly.
Greens were full of growing weed tufts. Some of the fairways were dried up & patchy, and lacked consistency.
Sand traps were short of rakes.
Cart paths were very rough in many spots.
Only play this golf course at a steep discount.
Thank you for taking the time to review your visit to Lion's Paw. We apologize we were not able to meet your expectations on this visit. The cool weather poa annua has been treated and is dying out quickly now. It will be completely gone soon. We actually just put out a significant number of new rakes, so that issue has been addressed as well. Finally, we are in the process of an extensive cart path repair program for Lion's Paw and Panther's Run that will make a significant difference in the overall experience of playing these two courses. We hope you will visit us again and see our continued progress.
Fun time at Lion's Paw
First I have to thank the guys in the clubhouse who got me out early so I could play ahead of two large groups since I was playing as a solo. The cart attendant was also extremely helpful. I have always had a great experience with all of the staff at the Big Cats courses and believe that goes a long way to making it a great day. Doesn't cost anything to be nice and these guys were all super friendly.
The course itself was in very good shape overall. There is still some winter weeds on the greens, but that did not detract from a great day. Very fun course and challenging layout. Will definitely come back!
Thank you very much for the nice Four Star review of Lion's Paw. We agree, this original Big Cat is in very good condition and getting even better daily now that the weather has warned up. Any lingering winter weeds have been treated aggressively and will be completely gone very soon. We hope you will come visit us again soon and see our continued progress.
Great course
The staff was very accommodating, first time playing Lion's Paw., gave helpful tips. I will definietely play this course again. Given a few more weeks and the course shou.d be in great shape. Just enough of a challenge. But not so difficult that you get frustrated. Enjoyed
my round,
Thank you for the nice Four Star review of Lion's Paw. We truly appreciate your patronage and your feedback. Be sure to check out the other three Big Cats courses as well! Thanks again.
Fair value
We enjoyed the course. Pace and conditions were good.
Thank you…
Thank you for the nice four star review of Lion's Paw. We are so glad you enjoyed your recent visit. Be sure to check out the other three Big Cats courses as well. Thanks again.
Lion's Paw golf
Interesting layout with challenges. Course well maintained and generally in good shape. Greens are quick and subtle.
Definitely a course to play.
Thank you for the nice Four star review. We agree, Lion's Paw is a unique and fun layout and we are working hard every day to provide nice playing conditions for all our guests. We hope you will come visit us again soon!
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Thank you very much for the nice Four Star review of Lion's Paw. We truly appreciate your patronage and feedback. We are happy to hear you enjoyed your round! The heavy rains of the past couple of weeks definitely impacted the sand traps during your visit, but we are hard at work getting them back to normal and they should be in very good condition going forward. Thanks again and we hope you will come visit us again soon.