8 Myrtle Beach Golf Courses Designed by Open Championship Winners
The Open Championship is played thousands of miles from Myrtle Beach, but the Grand Strand has a powerful connection to golf’s oldest major. Eight courses in the Myrtle Beach area were designed by players who lifted the Claret Jug, giving visiting golfers the opportunity to experience the architectural ideas of four of the game’s greatest champions.
Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, and Jack Nicklaus combined to win 10 Open Championships. Their Myrtle Beach-area courses range from bold resort layouts and strategic woodland tests to riverfront, marshland, and Intracoastal Waterway designs.
No two courses on this list feel the same. Some reward aggressive decisions and heroic carries. Others demand precision, controlled approaches, and a willingness to accept that the architect may know exactly where your favorite miss lives.
Which Myrtle Beach Courses Were Designed by Open Champions? Quick Answer
Eight Myrtle Beach-area golf courses were designed by Open Championship winners: Barefoot Resort’s Norman Course by Greg Norman; King’s North, SouthCreek, West Course, and Rivers Edge by Arnold Palmer; Blackmoor Golf Club by Gary Player; and Long Bay Club and Pawleys Plantation by Jack Nicklaus.
Myrtle Beach golf courses designed by Open Championship winners include Barefoot Norman, King’s North, SouthCreek, West Course, Rivers Edge, Blackmoor, Long Bay Club, and Pawleys Plantation. Their architects are Greg Norman, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, and Jack Nicklaus.
Greg Norman
“The Shark” won The Open in 1986 and 1993. His only Myrtle Beach resort design opened at Barefoot Resort in 2000.
Barefoot Resort Norman Course Greg Norman
Barefoot Resort Norman Course Waterway Views
Greg Norman design · Par 72 · Opened 2000 · North Myrtle Beach
Barefoot Resort’s Norman Course is Greg Norman’s only Myrtle Beach resort design. The layout uses just 60 acres of mowable turf, with broad areas of sand framing many fairways and greens to create a distinctive visual style.
The course is known for allowing golfers to use the ground around the greens. Bump-and-run shots, creative recoveries, and strategic angles are part of the experience, reflecting Norman’s background playing firm courses around the world.
Seven holes play along the Intracoastal Waterway, giving the course one of the most memorable settings at Barefoot Resort. The par-3 10th is a particularly scenic introduction to the waterway stretch.
Arnold Palmer
Palmer won consecutive Open Championships in 1961 and 1962. His decision to return to The Open helped restore the championship’s prominence among American golfers.
Myrtle Beach National King’s North Arnold Palmer
Myrtle Beach National King’s North Risk and Reward
Arnold Palmer design · Par 72 · Opened 1973 · Renovated layout
King’s North is the best-known of Arnold Palmer’s three layouts at Myrtle Beach National. Originally opened in 1973, the course was extensively redesigned in 1996 and has remained one of the most requested rounds in Myrtle Beach.
Its signature hole is the par-5 sixth, appropriately named “The Gambler.” Golfers can follow the conventional route or challenge an alternate island fairway that creates a shorter path toward the green.
King’s North is full of visual drama, water, bold bunkering, and strategic decisions. It is the Palmer course for groups that want memorable holes and plenty to discuss after the round.
Myrtle Beach National SouthCreek Arnold Palmer
Myrtle Beach National SouthCreek Precision Golf
Arnold Palmer design · Par 72 · Opened 1975 · Hardwood forest and wetlands
SouthCreek presents a different side of Arnold Palmer’s design style. At 6,416 yards from the back tees, it is not built around overwhelming length. Instead, the course rewards placement, accuracy, and thoughtful club selection.
Hardwood forest, wetlands, doglegs, and smaller targets shape the round. Golfers who keep the ball in position can find scoring opportunities, while careless approaches can turn an apparently manageable hole into a crooked number.
SouthCreek is an excellent complement to King’s North because the two courses test different skills while sharing the convenience of the Myrtle Beach National facility.
Myrtle Beach National West Course Arnold Palmer
Myrtle Beach National West Course Classic Carolina
Arnold Palmer and Francis Duane design · Par 72 · Opened 1973
West Course is a traditional Carolina layout that winds through mature pine forest. Arnold Palmer and Francis Duane shaped a course defined by doglegs, fairway bunkers, natural hazards, and tree-lined corridors.
Compared with the visual fireworks at King’s North, West Course has a quieter rhythm. The challenge comes from choosing the proper position from the tee and leaving comfortable angles into the greens.
The course is generally approachable for a broad range of handicaps, making it a useful opening round, departure-day round, or confidence-restoring stop after one of the area’s more punishing layouts.
Rivers Edge Golf Club Arnold Palmer
Rivers Edge Golf Club Riverfront Golf
Arnold Palmer signature design · Shallotte, North Carolina · Coastal scenery
Rivers Edge sits across the state line in Shallotte, North Carolina, approximately 30 minutes north of Myrtle Beach. The course occupies one of the most dramatic pieces of property in the region.
Seven holes play along the Shallotte River, where marsh grasses, bluffs, elevation changes, and broad coastal views create a memorable closing stretch. Palmer used the natural movement of the land rather than flattening it into a conventional resort course.
Rivers Edge is a strong choice for golfers staying in North Myrtle Beach, Sunset Beach, or the Brunswick Islands. It also pairs naturally with other northern courses for a scenic coastal itinerary.
Gary Player
Gary Player won The Open in 1959, 1968, and 1974, becoming the only golfer since World War II to win the championship in three different decades.
Blackmoor Golf Club Gary Player
Blackmoor Golf Club Gary Player’s Local Design
Gary Player design · Par 72 · Opened 1990 · Murrells Inlet
Blackmoor is the only Gary Player signature course in the Myrtle Beach area. Located on the historic Longwood Plantation property near the Waccamaw River, the course uses natural elevation changes and mature vegetation to create an enjoyable strategic test.
Four-hundred-year-old oak trees and tall pines frame many holes, while the routing moves across rolling terrain that is unusual for the immediate coastal area.
One of Blackmoor’s most memorable features is the short par-4 eighth, where golfers can attempt an aggressive tee shot over the trees or follow the safer route around the dogleg. It is a compact dose of Player’s strategic philosophy: choose the risk, then live with the receipt.
Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus won The Open in 1966, 1970, and 1978. His two Myrtle Beach-area designs are among the most demanding and visually distinctive courses on the Grand Strand.
Long Bay Club Jack Nicklaus
Long Bay Club The Golden Bear Test
Jack Nicklaus design · Par 72 · Opened 1989 · Bold bunkering
Long Bay Club is considered one of the more demanding courses in the Myrtle Beach area. Jack Nicklaus shaped a visually forceful layout filled with large mounds, deep bunkers, water hazards, and challenging green complexes.
Approach play is especially important. The proper section of the fairway often provides a much more manageable angle, while misses near the greens can leave awkward recoveries from sand, slopes, or tightly mown areas.
Long Bay is ideal for golfers who enjoy a championship-style test and want to see Nicklaus’ architectural fingerprints in their most unapologetic form.
Pawleys Plantation Jack Nicklaus
Pawleys Plantation Lowcountry Marsh
Jack Nicklaus design · Par 72 · Opened 1988 · Pawleys Island
Pawleys Plantation combines Jack Nicklaus’ strategic design style with one of the most beautiful Lowcountry settings on the Grand Strand. Moss-draped oak trees, creeks, and tidal marsh shape the experience.
The front nine moves through wooded terrain before the course opens dramatically into the marsh. Six holes on the back nine interact with the wetlands, creating exposed approach shots, narrow targets, and constantly changing wind conditions.
Pawleys Plantation can feel different from one round to the next because the wind, tides, and angles continually alter the visual picture. It is a course that rewards discipline, especially when the marsh begins whispering ambitious suggestions.
How to Build an Open Champions Golf Trip Trip Planning
Playing all eight courses in one visit would create a memorable marathon, but most groups will be better served by selecting three to five courses based on where they are staying.
- For a North Myrtle Beach trip: Pair Barefoot Norman, Rivers Edge, and Long Bay Club.
- For a central Myrtle Beach trip: Play King’s North, SouthCreek, and West Course from one convenient facility.
- For a South Strand trip: Combine Blackmoor and Pawleys Plantation with other Murrells Inlet and Pawleys Island favorites.
- For maximum variety: Build a four-round lineup featuring Barefoot Norman, King’s North, Blackmoor, and Pawleys Plantation.
🏆 Open Champions Course Cheat Sheet
These eight courses offer more than famous names on a scorecard. Each one reflects a different architectural philosophy shaped by a golfer who conquered links golf and lifted the Claret Jug. Together, they can form one of the most varied golf itineraries available in Myrtle Beach.
Build Your Open Champions Golf Trip
Tell our Golfmasters your dates, group size, lodging preferences, budget, and favorite courses. We’ll help build a custom Myrtle Beach golf package around the Open champions’ designs that fit your trip.
Because playing a champion’s design is the closest most of us will get to lifting the Claret Jug without being politely escorted away from it.
Course information and images: Details were sourced from the official MyrtleBeachGolf.com course pages for Barefoot Resort Norman, King’s North, SouthCreek, West Course, Rivers Edge, Blackmoor, Long Bay Club, and Pawleys Plantation. Open Championship records were checked against The Open’s official player histories.