Tidewater’s Longest Par 5 Is As Scenic As It Is Challenging

CHERRY GROVE, S.C. -- Tidewater Golf Club is home to four of the Myrtle Beach area’s 10 prettiest holes - numbers 3, 4, 12 and 13 - which makes it easy for challenges that might be regarded as “signature holes” on other courses to be overlooked.

A prime example being the par 5 16th, which begins an unforgettable closing stretch that brings the Intracoastal Waterway back into play and offers players a potential chance at birdie. Playing 521 yards from the white tees (a meaty 560 from the tips), the 16th hole certainly isn’t short, but it doesn’t play as long as the scorecard suggests.

Golfers that hit a generous fairway will find the rest of the hole playing downhill, which substantially shortens that 521 yards. Even more impressive is the scenery from the top of the fairway, where players can enjoy an elevated view of the Intracoastal Waterway running behind the green.

Players can’t let the view distract them from the task at hand. The biggest threat on the hole’s second shot are bunkers along the right side of the fairway, but it takes a less than stellar swing to find the sand.

The 16th’s large green has bunkers on both sides, but it’s open in front, allowing players to run the ball onto the putting surface. Tidewater presents a stern test of golf, so there is no such thing as an easy hole, but assuming two decent shots, a manageable approach and a birdie putt should await.

Golfers are well served to take advantage of No. 16 because the 17th is a long par 3 (177 yards) that plays back up the hill, and the 18th, a dogleg left defended by the marshy waters of the Intracoastal, is on the short list of the Myrtle Beach’s area’s most daunting finishing holes.

The 16th is a hole would be a signature challenge at many courses, but on a layout of Tidewater’s caliber, it’s “just” one of many unforgettable holes.