True Blue Golf Resort

Mike Strantz is a very polarizing architect. Caledonia isn't as imaginative as Tobacco Road, however, it is quirkier than its sister course across the street, True Blue. I'm a fan of Strantz's work. From the moment you drive in through a tunnel of century-old oaks dripping Spanish moss and lay eyes on the antebellum style clubhouse, you just know this is going to be different. There is no driving range here. You must allow for plenty of time to head across the street and use the range at True Blue if you want to hit balls. What Caledonia has, however, is a really cool pitch and putt area with about three holes that really gets your short game tuned up. The course itself eases you in with a rather docile par-4 opener and a gentle par-5 second. The par-3 third yields a green that is extremely deep, allowing for pin placements that can require up to four different clubs. This course has a lowcountry feel, but adds expansive sandy waste areas. Don't just blindly step off into them either, as evidenced by the par-4 7th, where several gators were sunbathing. Take advantage of the reachable par-5 8th, 92-yard par-3 ninth and another reachable par 5 on 10. These are all great birdie opportunities. The 18th is a solid finishing hole. A water hazard narrows the fairway as you move from right to left, so favor the left side. I wouldn't recommend driver off the tee for better players, and you can use as little as a 5-iron that will leave no more than ~150 yards in, depending on the pin placement. This is a memorable approach with the marsh on the right, water in front of the green and the clubhouse backing it. In closing, Caledonia is a must-play in the Myrtle Beach area. It will only continue to rise among the ranks of the Top 100 public courses in America.

Was eager to see how True Blue stacked up to its sister course, Caledonia. First of all, put your ego aside and play the correct tees. Just because you play the blues at home doesn't mean you should blindly play them away from home. I chose the white tees, which were the middle set, but played 6,300 yards. That is the first difference you will notice between the two Strantz courses - True Blue is much longer. It is also more open than Caledonia. waste areas dominate the landscape, but I never encountered any real trouble playing out of them. The collection of par 3s at True Blue are the course's strength, in my opinion. Best tip I can give after playing? Like most courses, be aware of the grain of the greens at all times. Down-grain putts were very slippery, leading to five 3-putts on the day?!?! The course is very scoreable, however, as long as you keep your tee shots in play. I think the par-4 17th is the most underrated hole on the course. The 18th gets a lot of pub, but you are hitting wedges or 9 irons into 18 in most cases. No. 17 was a solid 3-wood and 6 iron over the hazard to a back pin. Exhilarating shot! Staff was extremely friendly and helpful. Great 19th hole from the veranda of the clubhouse. Finally, I have played three Strantz courses, the two here and Tobacco Road. I must say True Blue was the least "Strantziest" course of the three. While there were tastes of the imagination of Strantz at TB, I found it much subtler than the other two.

I'd like to start by saying I think this is a great course. The views are unbelievable. The greens roll nicely. The fairways are nice and the course layout is great. The staff is also very friendly. My experience unfortunately was ruined by the group of 12 golfers playing as 3 foursomes in front of us. In my opinion a round of golf should never take longer than around 4 hours. Because of the 12 golfers in front of us we were out there for more than 5 hours. We consistently waited for at least 10 to 15 minutes on every tee box. At one point the marshal showed up and told us that they were kicking the groups in front of in the butt because they were holding up the course. The group in front of them was about 3 holes ahead which is ridiculous. After he told us that, the round actually seemed to get slower. I'm just sad that it was my first experience on what many people consider the nicest public course in SC and it was marred by slow play. We spent a lot of money here between golf, apparel, and a plaque and it's a huge disappointment. I'd like to go back but I'm really nervous to try it again after this experience.

Play the Barefoot courses and Calendonia along with True Blue. True Blue was head and shoulders above the rest! On a 1-10 rating; True Blue was a 9.25. We will be back to play here!

My group played Caledonia on our way out of Myrtle Beach following the Myrtle Beach World Am.

I think their rate is high but since some had not played there, I wanted to get it off their "to be played" list in MB.

The staff for the most part was friendly and helpful with one exception at the bag drop. Everyone else was fine.

The course was very wet so it was cart path only but that was to be expected. To be as wet as it was, the course was in very good condition. If the bunkers had been just a bit better, I would have rated course conditions as excellent.

The greens were smooth and quick. They held well when hitting shots into them. Greens here are large so you need to hit the ball in the right quadrant on the greens or you will have a long day putting.

Fairways and tee boxes were nice.

We ate after the round in the grill and the food was very good. I had a bacon cheeseburger.

This place was beautiful. Fairways and greens were perfection. Not overly long. The par 4's were driver and short/mid iron for most of the group. Par 3's were a challenge especially the famous 9th. This is a course worth putting on the list. It was 90 with high humidity in the Carolina Sun and I would have played 36 if I could have.

Course was good, but golf boards made it an amazing experience. Worth the extra $29.

I also loved the waste bunkers!

Would play again any day

I enjoyed my round there, this was my first time playing in MB. I had extremely high expectations probably to high. Course is great condition with very forgiving tee shots we played from the Blue. Nice views and some nice approach shots with water in play. The greens looked nice but were rather slow and inconsistent. I think its a 100 dollar course not a $150+ track. I played the Witch the next day and paid 70 bucks which i almost liked even more then True Blue. Next time I would save the 150 and play another course at the 100 dollar level.

We rode on the golf boards. What a trip. it was fun skateboarding the course and playing golf . we had a blast. Course is terrific too. Would play it again and again.

Beautiful golf course
Smooth greens
Fairways roll well
Bring your camera - you will see at least a few gators sunbathing by the water hazards

Good fairways
Greens roll really well
Many waste bunkers
Visually intimidating, but you can play very well here
You're not going to hit every green or fairway, so plan your misses accordingly

This course is amazing... Its loaded with waste bunkers which are a lot easier to hit out of then bunkers. The layout and visual on the holes are great. Challenging course but not crazy. As always middle of Fairway drives and you can score well. If you have never played the course I recommend using a GPS that has targets or a yardage book... There are quite a few holes where you can play smart and leave driver in the bag and also score well. Fantastic shape and greens were speedy. I can't really give an actual fair rating for pace as it was cart path only due to rain previous day but still enjoyed this 5hr round. I actually like this course better then Caledonia. It's all a matter of preference though as they both are beauty's. Can't wait to play again.

This is an unbelievable course.. Just a gem and I can tell why it's the #1 course in Myrtle Beach. It's a true gem. Great holes and well laid out. Challenging greens and approach shots. Can't wait to come back. Only complaint was the sand traps were hard and compacted wet sand.... This place is to special to have bunkers like that... I know it got a lot of rain but courses much lower tiered then this have great bunkers so Caledonia so definitely have great bunkers. Other then that this course is world class.

Loved the course. The drive in begins the day for you. That row with both golf holes on each side feels like you're driving into an old school country club that sticks to the old standards of golf. The day was unbelievable from the chowder being made right on the course to the gators scattered throughout the course. A true original country club that gives you a great feel that you can't find at many other places.

Very enjoyable at day at one of the better courses on Pawleys Island. The course was in great shape & my playing companion and I were paired up with a really nice father & son from NC.

The bag drop staff, the golf shop staff & the restaurant staff were all very friendly and gave great service. However, the starter seemed a bit grumpy and was not very welcoming. Later in the round he turned into a ranger and was wasn't any friendlier. I also noticed he spent a good amount of time hunting for balls in one of the wetlands behind us. He didn't wreck our day or anything like that but having played Caledonia the week before where the staff was just plain awesome I thought we would have the same experience across the board.

Anyway, if you are in the area this one still remains a must play & is still my third favorite on Pawleys. For the record; Caledonia is king in my book and Heritage just nips True Blue for 2nd place.

I love his course and have since the first time I played it!

I called before booking to check on the greens and overall condition of the course. The very polite and friendly staff member who I spoke with said the greens were "immaculate".. they told the truth. I have played golf for 35 years and have be very lucky to play some dream courses, the greens today were as good as anything I've putted on. The overall condition of the course was very impressive; beautifully maintained fairways (that the ball sits up on) and evenly cut rough that's just long enough to make you think about what the ball is going to do when it comes out. Every hole was a joy to play!

The staff was attentive, friendly & extremely polite. This is public access golf at it's best, and truly great golf experience!

In my opinion Pawleys Island is the best part of the 'Grand Strand', and Caledonia is the best of the bunch. If you come to town be sure to play True Blue, Heritage & Pawleys Plantation as well! Those 3 along with Caledonia will make a truly memorable golf trip!

First off, I have played this course for the past 10 years so I'm very familiar with it. I completely understand that its been a difficult winter in the coastal south, and this has hindered the course conditions, but don't charge an arm and a leg to play. Overall the course is very well manicured and maintained around the edges. But the fairways have been in very poor condition over the past two years. In fact, we noticed today that even if you pick the ball clean on your second shots in the fairway you end up with mud all over you. The tee boxes and fairways are painted green to cover the muddy conditions. The greens are actually in good shape and very firm. The staff was very friendly. Overall, not worth coming back to play at these prices.

I know Caledonia and True Blue are sister courses but True Blue is a step down from Caledonia. Still a fun course with plenty of risk/reward shots. Holes 3/4/18 could be some of the hardest holes I have played. Lots of water on the par-3's, but a good test of golf! Not for the beginner golfer though. I would also recommend moving up your normal tees. This course can play VERY long. The driving range is nice and open and it doesn't have mats (which I loved). Limited scenery compared to Caledonia, but overall a good course and it really was in great condition!

This place is everything you would want in a golf club! You drive into a perfectly manicured entrance to a long, narrow, Magnolia-tree-lined road towards the clubhouse. Almost feels like driving down Magnolia Drive at Augusta National. The clubhouse is a renovated plantation house and has incredible views of the 18th green. The people are first-class and make you feel very welcome. There is no driving range but the practice facility MORE than makes up for that. You can hit almost 100yd shots out there. Greens rolled absolutely perfectly (even at the end of Feb). Everything is overseeded in the colder months which makes it nice to play on green grass. The 150yd markers are creatively made as huge birdhouses so it gives it a very natural feel. Loved this place!