Golf will meet luxury when the PGA Championship comes to Kiawah Island's Ocean Course

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. - When the developers of Kiawah Island Golf Resort gave golf course architect Pete Dye a 2 1/2-mile strip of sandy beachside property more than 20 years ago and asked him to create a golf course, Dye did more than build 18 holes.

Dye created a spectacular golf course, one that hugs the Atlantic Ocean as it wanders around and through lagoons and dunes, while also giving the resort an international calling card. With five golf courses, the luxurious Sanctuary hotel and more than 10 miles of hard-packed beaches, Kiawah Island Golf Resort is one of the world's finest golf and beach destinations.

If there is a question about the Kiawah experience, it's this:

Could it be any better?

Unlike virtually everything else at the resort, it's one place where there is no easy answer.

What began in 1991 with the now-legendary Ryder Cup matches in the so-called "War by the Shore" comes full circle in August when golf's best will play the PGA Championship on Dye's Ocean Course. It will be the first major championship played in South Carolina, and while most of the television attention will focus on Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and others as they contend with the wind and other challenges at the Ocean Course, the resort will serve as a grand stage to viewers in more than 200 countries.

At Kiawah Island Golf Resort, the game is as much a part of the island life as the Spanish moss hanging from the live oaks. Even for non-golfers, the courses that dot the property provide the kind of scenery that causes bikers to stop on the paved paths to admire the view.

On a recent late-winter day, a bald eagle could be seen landing on the edge of a fairway on the Osprey Point golf course, pausing to watch golfers passing by. There are bobcats, fox and gators around, too.

And there are the sun8rises and sunsets that paint the courses and beaches in their emerging and dying light. Because Kiawah runs east to west, it's one of the rare spots on the East Coast where it's possible to watch the sun come up over the water and, at the end of a long day, watch it set over the ocean as well.

That's the kind of special place Kiawah Island Golf Resort is.

For golfers, Kiawah Island Golf Resort is like an overstuffed buffet table.

Want meat?

There's the Ocean Course, as demanding a challenge as there is when the ocean breeze blows.

Want something else hearty?

There's the Jack Nicklaus-designed Turtle Point Course, which hugs the Atlantic in spots.

Want a little of everything?

There's Tom Fazio's Osprey Point course, with its wide fairways, receptive greens and Lowcountry charm.

In all, the resort has five courses, including Cougar Point and Oak Point, which is located just outside the resort gates.

"There's variety, and if your interest is golf, you'll get different experiences at each course," says Roger Warren, president of Kiawah Island Golf Resort.

It's the Ocean Course, though, that gets the most attention because there's nothing else quite like it along the Atlantic. From the moment it debuted as the site of the 1991 Ryder Cup matches, it's been on the must-play list of a multitude of golfers who want to see if they can handle its many challenges.

There's a badge of honor element to playing the Ocean Course, especially if you make a birdie or two or finish the watery par-3 17th hole with the same ball you started with on the tee.

Playing the Ocean Course is part golf, part experience. With the Atlantic within view from virtually every hole, it's the essence of seaside golf. The course has been softened in spots, slightly reducing its unforgiving nature around the edges, but it's still ferocious. It ranks fourth in Golf Digest magazine's list of public courses in the United States.

Source: http://www.modbee.com/2012/03/12/2108776/golf-will-meet-luxury-when-the.html

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