The Ocean Course

The Ocean Course stands today as one of Pete Dye’s‚ most sublime designs, as challenging as it is alluring. It is only the fourth course to host each of the PGA of America's major championships. The course is known for having more seaside holes than any other course in the Northern hemisphere, and its coastal cottage-style clubhouse shares equally inspiring ocean views.
 
Named by Golf Digest as “America’s Toughest Resort Course,” in 2008, it plays along 7,296 yards, plus 600 yards more for those who play from the championship tees. With views along two and one-half miles of Atlantic Ocean, its no wonder The Ocean Course was chosen as a key location for the film “The Legend of Bagger Vance.” It is one of only 17 “5-star” courses in North America in Golf Digest's “Best Places to Play” reader’s poll and GOLF Magazine has rated it #3 in its “Top 100 Courses You Can Play” list.
 
The course was originally designed to sit lower and behind the dunes. But Dye’s wife, Alice (a superb golfer and designer at times with Pete), suggested raising the entire course to allow players unobstructed views of the dramatic Atlantic surf from every hole. The upside of the decision was awe-inspiring views combining with the salty air and pounding of the waves. The downside for some players was that brisk sea breezes added greatly to the challenge of the course. Probably no other golf course in the world outside the United Kingdom and Ireland is affected as much by the wind.
 
Dye says he always thought a golfer should be able to look down on the surf from the 18th green. So when he made several course improvements to The Ocean Course in 2002, he made sure golfers were able to do just that. Today, the feeling of serenity and seclusion that comes from playing on raised greens with spectacular views along an undeveloped stretch of Atlantic Ocean is unmatched in American golf.