Litchfield Country Club

The golf

Sixty years of play sit behind this one. Willard Byrd laid out Litchfield Country Club in 1966 at Pawleys Island, and it remains a traditional parkland course in a part of the Strand that feels a long way from the resort strip. The scorecard is inviting rather than intimidating: par 72 over 6,692 yards with a slope of 131 and a difficulty rating of easy. Tif Eagle greens finish the holes. Practice facilities cover a driving range, putting green and chipping green. One reviewer described the parkland setting as outstanding, and did so in the same breath as reporting a hole in one, which says something about how the course rewards a good day.

The reviews describe a course people enjoy while being clear-eyed about its condition. Across 322 reviews the average is 3.70. The distribution is unusual in that four stars is the most common rating at 134, ahead of 73 five-star reviews, which is the profile of a course that satisfies more often than it thrills. Behind that sit 72 three-star, 30 two-star and 13 one-star ratings. Golfers write about enjoying the round, posting personal best scores, and looking forward to coming back, and several call it an outstanding club.

The criticism concentrates almost entirely on the greens. The harshest reviews call them unplayable and express surprise at their poor condition, and one reviewer rated the course the worst they played on their trip. Overall course condition is described by others as below average. Slow play also appears in the review language, and one golfer noted the course being very crowded on the day they played, though they credited the staff with managing it well. Staff is the most consistently praised element across the whole review body, with particular mention of accommodating golfers through weather problems. The picture that emerges is a likeable old course with a service culture running ahead of its agronomy, and a layout that has held its shape since 1966 even when the putting surfaces have not.