Myrtle Beach is a grand buffet of golf. But as it is with most buffets, there are options that taste good and are good for you, and then there are the other kinds. And so it is with Myrtle Beach golf, despite the "equality" of choice the golf vacation marketeers tend to ascribe to all the local courses. If Caledonia Golf & FIsh Club is not the best of all 100 layouts between Georgetown, SC, and Southport, NC, I have not played the better one yet (and I estimate I've played 60% or more since 1970).
The green on the par 5 8th at Caledonia is two-tiered; don't be on the back when the pin is up front.
Caledonia is an old hunting and fishing preserve, and the fish club still persists at the end of the long, live-oak-draped drive into the property. Caledonia is not a golf community, as the only two or three homes that abut the course -- and they are mostly hidden behind trees -- are in the adjacent Ricefields neighborhood. But the club can boast an intimately sized clubhouse that serves outstanding lunches. Best of all, you can live within five minutes of Caledonia and join the club on an annual basis for $1,900 and play as much as you'd like there and at its almost-as-good companion across the road, True Blue Golf Club. For those who can arrange to play two or three times a week throughout the year, there are few better bargains in golf. (Note: During peak seasons, you'll have to plan your rounds in advance so as not to be shut out by the package players who flock to Caledonia and pay upwards of $200 for the privilege.)
The approach over the water at #18 can make or break a round...and cause a bit of embarrassment if the porch behind the green is crowded with spectators.
