Man O ’ War ’ s island green on No . 15 . |
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GOING MYSTICAL Claude Pardue put all his faith in Dan Maples , more than any other multi-course owner up and down the Grand Strand . Yes , Maples has other designs here , but the commitment between this owner and this designer is evident .
Pardue hired the famed course architect to lay out his three local courses — The Wizard , The Witch and Man O ’ War — and he ’ s sold Maples ’ worth to everyday golf every step of the way . Making sure they ’ re paying dividends is the best road forward for players and the courses alike .
Over the span of the last two years , the Mystical Trio have dropped some coin into a vast array of improvements .
“( Visiting golfers ) can expect the layouts that they ’ d been since we built all three golf courses , but what they really can expect , now , is the best-conditioned courses anywhere around here ,” Pardue said . “ And , it doesn ’ t matter whether they ’ re private or public , these three golf courses are in spectacular shape .”
The three courses were overseeded wallto-wall to promote winter play . However , that seasonal boost was nothing compared to what they did for the long term .
All 140-plus bunkers on the three courses were upgraded to an ultra-rich white sand that boosted aesthetics , as well as playability . Significant drainage upgrades were made to a large swath of turf that
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No . 8 at Palmetto .
tends to get its fair share of rain . All those wood bridges and cart paths were touched up . And the bentgrass greens on The Wizard and Man O ’ War that have become increasingly uncommon remained .
“ A lot of drainage work is what started this ,” Pardue said . “ As golf courses get old , they get drain pockets in areas that are problems with drainage , so we repaired all of those , so that the grasses could be in perfect shape . We ’ ve done a lot of cart path work , and all of it told , we spent a little over $ 600,000 .”
A chunk of that money went to clubhouse improvements , meaning that postround drink at any of the three will be a little more comfortable .
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TIME NOT FORGOTTEN Shaftesbury Glen Golf & Fish Club and Myrtlewood Golf Club don ’ t share ownership groups . Nor are they affiliated with the Mystical courses . But what they do share was a mindset of getting better with age .
In recent years , Shaftesbury and the Myrtlewood duo of PineHills and Palmetto have undergone major facelifts . It didn ’ t matter that Shaftesbury is considered one of the area ’ s newer courses ( it opened in 2000 ) or that the other two are at least twice as old . Making sure they were viable for years to come — not what they had already accomplished — was a priority .
And again , that meant updated looks that players would appreciate .
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COURTESY OF THE COURSES |