Arrowhead Country Club near the Freestyle Music Park in Myrtle Beach is a roller coaster ride of its own
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. - Getting to Arrowhead Country Club from the heart of Myrtle Beach requires a quick drive on Highway 501 over the Intracoastal Waterway and past the entrance to the Freestyle Music Park.
So if you have some thrill-seekers in your group, drop them off on the way, and you'll have the rest of the day for some exciting golf at Arrowhead.
Arrowhead C.C. is a Raymond Floyd Signature Course with collaboration from golf course architect Tom Jackson, a familiar name to the Grand Strand. Myrtle Beach regulars are going to find many similarities to his River Club design down in Litchfield. Both the River Club and Arrowhead are similar in that they offer generous fairways but heavily guarded bent grass greens. Considering it was built in 1994, the course is slightly on the short side, with no combination of nines stretching longer than 6,700 yards.
But what sets Arrowhead apart from the pack of Myrtle Beach golf courses is its tumbling fairways and heavy mounding, which make this course set on mostly flat terrain seem anything but. Its slope, at 139-41 depending on the nine combination, ranks among Myrtle Beach's upper echelon. While fairways are generous, approach shots demand your attention, as most green complexes have few places for a "good miss."
It may seem like a good idea to leave the driver in the bag on several holes, but other opportunities are simply too tempting to pass up. No. 2 on the exciting Waterway nine is a sharp dogleg left around a pond and is lined with trees. However, it's about a 290-yard carry from the back tees over the water and onto the green. With a little wind at your back, it's practically irresistible when you consider a lay-up down the fairway will result in a tricky, 120-yard shot over a bunker to the green.
If you don't notice the roller coaster fairways, you'll certainly notice the Intracoastal Waterway on a handful of holes. The Waterway nine is especially exciting, featuring the par-3 third hole, playing to 175 yards entirely over water to a small, island green.
The par-4 fifth hole, playing with the waterway to the left, is the most scenic of the holes on the nine, but also has the smallest fairway, guarded by bunkers on either side.
Arrowhead Country Club: The verdict
Arrowhead C.C. is a convenient option in Myrtle Beach, located just over the Intracoastal Waterway on Highway 501, and one of the better courses in the second tier of Grand Strand offerings. It stands out by offering a handful of Intracoastal Waterway holes (both Arrowhead's Cypress and Waterway nines feature Waterway holes, so any combination of nines will get you the waterway scenery).
July 15, 2008
Brandon Tucker, Senior Writer
Brandon Tucker is the Managing Editor for Golf Channel Courses & Travel. To date, his golf travels have taken him to over two dozen countries and over 500 golf courses worldwide. While he's played some of the most prestigious courses in the world, Tucker's favorite way to play the game is on a great muni in under three hours.
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Grant wrote on: May 30, 2012
Without a doubt, Arrowhead is the best conditioned course in Myrtle Beach. It has excellent strategy on all 3 nines. Don't let the yardage from the tips fool you. After living here for a few years and playing most courses, I know that Arrowhead offers the most complete golf experience. The clubhouse and restaurant are as well kept as the course. It should be on everyone's must play list.
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Elliot wrote on: Dec 24, 2008
Here is crime. Take a nice track and get Ray Floyd to redesign the approaches to the greens. Now you have a really nice track with all kinds of false fronts and swales that you can't see from the fairway. You need to hit greens. Classic Floyd...make sure that every approach shot from different directions require a different shot making and strategy. Floyd is a short game fanatic and it shows. Emphasis on skill and thinking.
Why a crime? 27 beautiful holes surrounded by the ugliest, most overbuilt construction and condos ever erected. Tons of it and more going up. Criminal. If this course were located in the pine forests or marshes like say the Legends courses or Kings North, it would be fantastic. Too damned bad.
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Bob King wrote on: Aug 13, 2008
Arrowhead is a great, under the radar course.
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mbgolfonesource.com wrote on: Jan 17, 2011
Bob, you do know a good course when you see it...what a great golfing experience Arrowhead is..
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