Thistle Golf Club - MacKay Course

The facilities are top notch and there is no shortage of helpful “old golf guys in purple shirts” hanging around to assist you. The course was in great shape. Tee boxes were well groomed. Fairways were in great shape, never had a bad lie. The greens rolled true and the speed was perfect for my game. I’d play here four times a week if I had the time and money. No regrets choosing this track.

Great resort course. Excellent conditionsz. Generally wide open for driving but challenging approach shots

Thistle is one of the nicest courses in Brunswick County. It seems a little pricy to me considering some of the courses around it are almost as nice and in as good a shape and are appropriately priced. With that being said the layout, Tee Boxes, Fairways & Greens were terrific. Pace of play was great. Bag-Drop personnel, Starter and Pro shop personnel were top notch. Will definitely be back.

Gorgeous course, thankfully came about 2.5 weeks after they aerated and the greens were great! Fast though! Only negative response I have was that we almost felt rushed to match their pace of play; even when the group ahead would still be on the green it would turn yellow as if it was our fault. Overall absolutely satisfied with my round! Hope to play again next summer.

Played Stewart and then Mackay. Truly a fun course but a second time around reminded me how challenging the track is. But despite the challenge, something to respect is that regardless where your ball lies, you're not having to move it or alter your lie due to course conditions, even after 3" of rain in the last 2 days. I don't recall feeling any soft spots, even in the rough. A few select bunkers had standing water (perhaps 2 total), but all the ones I hit in did not have standing water and were well-playable. Greens, despite seeming to have been punched within the last week or two, were recovering incredibly well and were starting to roll at a level proportionate to the cost of the round. Would really love to play the course with greens dialed up for tournament play to truly appreciate the contours. Staff were friendly, pace was great. I think we finished our round in 4 hours or less, which is great for a 3 some all with mid to high handicappers. Fun to putt on bermuda having been used to bentgrass for a long time, especially immaculate bermuda. I'll be back again.

Awesome course layout. Greens were either aerated or not cut/rolled that day, which made putting almost a waste of time. Bunkers are fun, most tee boxes in good shape except those in the shade. Staff was as rude as others had indicated. Standing in the area of the bag drop it was confusing when I was supposed to get in a golf cart and one person in particular yelled at me for taking a cart to the marshall, which admittedly I did do but only after being 15 minutes late on my tee time and nobody having given me instructions on how to start my round. Chipping area was very cheap. Driving range was trying to be fantastic but I'm guessing this place gets used and abused all the time. Anyway, remove the rude staff, and put more time into the driving range and chipping area (perhaps half as much attention as they did into the practice putting area), and you have an amazing course.

Even after a tropical storm had dumped lots of rain the days prior the course was still in great shape. Kudos to the maintenance staff. Other courses within a couple miles were horrible.

Amazing course. Truly a great track. Wish I could have done all 3 courses!

Excellent course in prime condition. It’s a difficult test with a lot of water and forced carries. My guess is that older golfers with less than 180 off the tee may not enjoy it so much. But great staff and good value otherwise.

Just played here Saturday for Father’s Day with my dad. They paired us up with another nice Tucson father and son the dad was 80 years old. Now I’ve played this course five times, and this was the most expensive round by far at 120$ a man. I don’t mind paying extra for this course because it is kind of the nicest courses in the area. The reason I’m giving it a one star review, and never going back is the way we were treated by the Rangers on the opening nine. After the second hole we were told to pick up our pace, no big deal. After the fourth hole we were told again to pick up our pace. In the middle of the fairway on the 5th hole we were told for a third time that we needed to play faster because the group ahead of us was now opening up an entire hole. When I told the Ranger that the group behind us hasn’t had to wait all day, he said that didn’t matter because we were backing up the rest of the course. After we finished the seventh hole the Ranger came up to us again and said if we didn’t pick up our pace that we would have to skip nine and play it again at the end of the round. We ended up playing the front nine in two hours and 15 minutes and the entire round in four hours and 30 minutes. If you’ve ever played golf in the Myrtle Beach area in the middle of the summer when it’s 90° outside you know that a 4 1/2 hour round is a rare blessing. Imagine how much faster we could have played if we hadn’t been told to speed up on four separate occasions in the span of seven holes. there is absolutely no excuse for that Ranger to abuse his power and ruin our day of golf. When you pay 120$/man for a round of golf you want to enjoy your time on the course, not be harassed by the staff. My father and I, and the two men they paired us with will NEVER go back to Thistle.

My brothers and dad were here for vacation and wanted a relaxing round of golf. Unfortunately we did not get that. First off the address on the app took us to the wrong place about 10 minutes down the road. When we told the course we were gonna just make it on time the starter met us with hostility instead of understanding. We had a group of three and two and we’re told if we were anywhere near each other the ranger would immediately kick us off the course. We were told the rules differently by almost every member of staff. We were interrupted about 5 times throughout our round with a new staff member telling us something different about us all wanting to play. No one was consistent. Except for an unpleasant attitude. We overheard staff mentioning “they haven’t done anything yet so we can’t kick them out” as if they were looking for a reason to get rid of us. It’s unfortunate because the course was nice. Wish the staff would match.

The course was fair and challenging. Need to play it a couple of times to have a better understanding of the course.

5 Star everything. The staff was very friendly. The cart attendant from London, UK could not have worked harder to get us out just as a shotgun came in. The starter was polite, hilarious, and obviously loved his job. The course ws in great condition, very scenic, and tough but fair. Best golf experience I have had in MB area!

Course in great shape. Bag staff very helpful for first time players

From the moment you pull into the entrance at Thistle you know it was worth the price of admission (probably even more) A gorgeous drive seeing some of what the course has to offer and it’s pristine fairways, bunkers, and greens line the path to an incredible clubhouse and restaurant. A convenient club drop and incredibly friendly and helpful staff from curb to curb will make this one of the best rounds you will play all year. The practice facilities are top notch and well thought out. The courses are well designed, well maintained, well thought out and executed. From someone who has made the mistake of taking the bargain round and being disappointed… don’t. Just don’t. Play here. In an area where you can hit a mid iron and land on a golf course, Thistle soars above the rest. They set the bar high for Resort Golf.