MYRTLE BEACH, South Carolina — Believe it or not, there are some good things coming out of this horrible pandemic that has negatively impacted the U.S. for the last nine months. It created a bigger demand for golf nation-wide — play is up over 20 percent, according to the National Golf Foundation —  and the pandemic resulted in some positive changes to the game as well.

Justin Binke, director of marketing for Founders Group International, has witnessed it first hand, as Myrtle Beach has retained its title as “Golf Capital of the World’’ and FGI has the area’s most established group of courses, loyalty programs and reservation services.

FGI has acquired 21 courses in the area since 2014.  They include TPC Myrtle Beach and Grande Dunes, both former honorees as Course of the Year by the National Golf Course Owners Association,  and Pine Lakes Country Club, where the MB golf boom began. Pine Lakes was the first club to open there, in 1927, and its founder was Robert White, the first president of the PGA of America.

All the good years, though, were threatened by the pandemic.

“Granted these have been unfortunate times,’’ said Binke, “but golf has been an out for people who want to get out of the house, get some exercise and play the game that we all love.  They feel safe coming to a golf course, and we’ve seen a rise in local golf.’’

Binke also oversees two of the area’s most popular package companies – MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com and MBN.com. They’ve been key to keeping golf strong in an area where it’s always been that way.

“We’ve made sure our websites are up to date,’’ said Binke.  “We have everything golfers are looking to do.  We have specials, lodging and great golf courses all there for people to come to see, and we’ve taken the proper protocols to keep everyone safe. We’ve also tried to be the resource for not only golf packages, but for all things golf in Myrtle Beach.’’

On the playing side, there have been two big positives. FGI was quick to point out that walking would be allowed at all its courses.  Not many golf destinations allow that, but the declaration was helpful at the FGI facilities.

“We’ve seen a rise in people wanting to walk, be outside and enjoy great weather this summer,’’ said Binke.  “We’ll continue to allow walking if people choose to do so.’’

Most players continue to ride, and the MB walkers must provide their own push-carts or carry their own bags. Still, walking is an option that should be offered at more destinations. The argument that it slows down play is bogus.

Actually, some  protocols put in place because of the pandemic have speeded up play – like not allowing rakes in bunkers, keeping flagsticks inserted in raised cups (so golfers don’t have to reach in to retrieve their balls) and dispensing with sand bottles in carts to repair divots. Those are measures that could be retained once the pandemic restrictions are lifted. At least they’re worth considering.

“We have seen an increase in speed of play, and that beneficial to us all,’’ said Binke

Our latest visit to the “Golf Capital of the World’’ enabled us to see how things were working at three of the FGI courses. The answer? Everything was just fine at Grande Dunes, the King’s North course at Myrtle Beach National and TPC Myrtle Beach.

King’s North was really something special. Over the years I’ve played an estimated 30 courses in the Myrtle Beach area and King’s North is now my favorite after playing my first round there. (Of course, I’ll have to play the other 70 or so to provide a definitive answer – and I hope I’ll be able to do that).

Arnold Palmer designed all three of the courses at Myrtle Beach National, with help from Francis Duane. King’s North, which opened in 1973 but was re-designed by Palmer in 1996, has some special touches.  An island green at No. 3 is one. The bunkers on that hole also are a tribute to the state of South Carolina (they form an “SC”) and No. 18 has an astonishing 43 bunkers all by itself. They don’t impact play all that much, though.

The most interesting special feature at King’s North is “The Gambler’’ at the par-5 sixth hole. You’ve got a variety of playing options on this risk-reward hole, and it merits its claim as “The Most Unique Par 5 in All of Golf.’’

King’s North and TPC Myrtle Beach are both good walking courses, Grande Dunes not so much. The TPC layout, a Tom Fazio design with consulting help from Lanny Wadkins, opened in 1999. It includes the Dustin Johnson Golf Academy and many of DJ’s trophies are on display in the clubhouse. Grande Dunes, a Roger Rulewich design, opened in 2001 and offers great views of the Intracoastal Waterway.

POWELLS POINT, N.C. – Golf has been played around the Outer Banks of North Carolina since 1988 but its development was a slow one. Nags Head Links was the first to open,  and The Sound Links, The Pointe, Currituck, Carolina Club, Kilmarlic, The Pines and Scotch Hall Preserve all were taking players by 2008.

Those courses all had their followings among residents and visitors to the area, which divides the Atlantic Ocean from the Currituck Sound. The problem was keeping those players there. There wasn’t enough lodging geared to golfers.

That shortcoming was alleviated only recently when the Kilmarlic Club Cottages were built. There’s 18 of them, all named after former Masters champions. Each has two bedrooms and two baths plus a full kitchen, living room and back deck that includes a gas grill. Thirteen surround a lighted 5,000 square foot putting green and five are set near a small pond.

There’s also a four-hole short course, called The Killie.  Its holes range from 27 to 40 yards.

Bryan Sullivan, co-owner of Kilmarlic Resort and Club, saw a definite uptick in play after the cottages were completed in April of 2019.  The construction of all of them took 14 months. The pandemic forced a slow start to the 2020 season, but Sullivan reports “our best June, July, August and September we’ve ever had’’ since then.

“(The cottages) were a big investment,’’ said Sullivan, “but I always felt fairly confident we could get the golf rentals.  The big question was whether we could get the summertime family rentals.  As it’s turned out, those rentals have been a big hit and a big surprise.’’

It wasn’t just the golf that made them work. Other attractions – notably a water park within walking distance and the always popular Wright Brothers historic air flight museum and monument in Kitty Hawk – brought in families, too. So did the availability of watersports.

“As I like to tell guests, you can have your toes in the ocean in 10 minutes from here,’’ said Sullivan.  “After the first six cottages were completed and we saw the reaction to them, we knew we had it. It was a home run for us.’’

The Kilmarlic course, recognized as one of the best in not only the Outer Banks but state-wide as well, is certainly an attraction. As site of the North Carolina Open in 2004 and 2009, it’s no secret to golfers.  It’s also been the annual site of the OBX Intercollegiate, hosted by Old Dominion. At the 2019 staging of that event Michael O’Brien, of St. Joseph’s of Pennsylvania, shot a course record 61.

Sullivan, who played on both the PGA and Canadian pro tours, had shared the old record of 63, his hot round coming in the North Carolina Open.  He’s been at Kilmarlic from its beginning, when Tom Steele designed the course. Steele, a landscape architect from Virginia, designed only one other course – Nansemond River in Suffolk, VA. It opened in 1999.

Though not well known in golf architecture, Steele created a course that’s not long (6,615 yards from the back tees) and has no real signature hole.

He had 605 acres have maritime forests and wetlands wo work with and  Sullivan likes the par-5 ninth as his favorite hole.

High grass in front of most of the tees creates the illusion that the holes are longer than they really area. The par-3s are all easy on the eye and present a variety of challenges.  The par-5s all have a risk-reward look.

The course’s name came from a ship from Kilmarnock, Scotland, that sank off the shores of the Outer Banks in the mid-1600s. Apparently the ship was filled with whiskey and the area residents enjoyed a big celebration after confiscating it.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:  www.PlayOBXGolf.com

WILLIAMSBURG, Michigan – This is one of those golf feel-good stories that you don’t see often enough.

It focuses on LochenHeath Golf Club in northern Michigan, on the outskirts of Traverse City.  LochenHeath is a course that once was closed, but has since been rescued thanks to some extraordinary efforts by a few club members and some dedicated employes. Now they have one of the best public courses in this golf-rich state.

The course, designed by the well-respected Steve Smyers, has a beautiful site above East Grand Traverse Bay. Built on what had been a 300-acre cherry orchard, LochenHeath opened as a public course in 2002, went private in 2004 and then reverted to a daily fee operation in 2008. The end result of those maneuvers led to bankruptcy and a shutdown that lasted over two years

Eleven members brought the club out of foreclosure in the spring of 2011, but they did more than that. Their passion for the project made all the difference.

“Really quite a story,’’ recounted general manager Kevin O’Brien.  “The members didn’t sit by during the shutdown.  They came out and kept the course alive – mowing, weeding bunkers, whatever they could do.’’

At one point the grass in the fairways was knee-high, and one of the bunkers required 65 man-hours of hand labor for it to survive.

Joe Ettawagiac, who had been the assistant superintendent, was brought back as the head man and another former employee, chef Joseph George, was also re-hired.  In May of 2011 those involved held a celebratory reopening.

O’Brien, who joined the effort in 2013, had worked at some other good places in Michigan.  He was in charge at the 36-hole Tullymore Resort, in Stanwood, for 20 years. While O’Brien was there architect Jim Engh created the resort’s  namesake course that was judged America’s Best New Public and Resort Course after its opening in 2002.  St. Ives, the resort’s older course, is considered one of the best for women.

After Tullymore O’Brien went to True North, in Harbor Springs.  It also had a course designed by Engh. O’Brien was there for two years until LochenHeath came calling.

“The members wanted to transition back to private, something I had done at True North,’’ said O’Brien, “but here it’s different.  It’ll take nine or 10 years. We figured it’d be a long process.’’

For now O’Brien  describes LochenHeath as “a private club that invites limited outside play.’’

While the recruitment of more members may take some time, the product doesn’t seem a hard sell. Smyers, once the president of the Golf Course Architects of America, took on a site that had 85 feet of elevation changes.  That was a good start for him to make something good, and he did.

“The conditioning and golf course views are exceptional,” said O’Brien, “and there’s great movement to the land.”

More recently two spatious cottages have been built to attract national members. The outdoor practice area is also state-of-the-art and simulators are available for use indoors.

This is one of those courses that must be played from the proper set of tees to fit a player’s talent level. If that commonsense practice is followed you’ll find LochenHeath challenging, but – more than anything —  a lot of fun. If you don’t follow that guideline you won’t appreciate what LochenHeath offers.

The course measures 7,287 yards from the back tees, where the rating is 77.2 and the slope 150.  LochenHeath measures only 5,031 from the front markers, and there are seven sets of tees.

Best hole may be No. 7, a downhill par-5.  At 579 yards from the tips, it’s the longest  on the course and – with a 70-foot elevation drop – it’s the No. 1 handicap hole.  That finishing stretch, though, can break your heart.

Last of the par-3s is No. 15 which requires an uphill tee shot to a green that slopes sharply back to front. Keeping your ball from running off the front and into a deep ravine is no easy task. Then comes two of the toughest par-4s on the layout and the finisher is a tight par-5 that demands a straight tee shot.  Long hitters might be able to reach the green in two shots if the tee shot is a good one.

A PGA Tour player, Ryan Brehm, holds the course record with a 65 — and he’s also a LochenHeath member.

ROSCOMMON, Michigan – There was never a doubt that Forest Dunes had one of the very best golf courses in Michigan, if not the entire United States. Tom Weiskopf designed it in 2002 – the same year that Golf Digest named it Best New Course in the U.S.

That started a rivalry with nearby Arcadia Bluffs for the best public course in Michigan, and it’s been ongoing. Arcadia added a second course last year, but Forest Dunes’ first 18-holer remains on the best in the U.S. lists by Golf Digest, Golf Magazine and Golfweek.

No facility, however, can keep up with the expansion that Forest Dunes owner Lew Thompson, an Arkansas trucking magnate, has engineered over that last five years.

The well-received Weiskopf design brought players to this small town, but not enough of them. Lodging was needed to keep them there, and now – between a lodge, villas and nine homes scattered around the property — there are 130 beds on the 1,300-acre site.

Golfers could play more by signing up for stay-and-play packages, but then there was just that one course. That was a drawback.

Thompson’s answer was to hire of Michigan architect Tom Doak for the creation of The Loop – arguably the most unique golf course in the country.  It plays clock-wise (as the Black course)  one day and counter-clock-wise (as the Red) the next. The Loop opened in 2016 as a walking-only layout, but now carts are allowed and rounds  have increased.

Still, that wasn’t enough.

“We’ve seen, as a destination facility, that stays are getting extended a night or two,’’ said Don Helinski, Forest Dunes’ director of operations.  “But people aren’t interested in golfing themselves to death by playing 36 holes a day. They also want to get together with the people they’re with and hang out.’’

So more building was necessary.  On Aug. 1 the new 10-hole Short Course opened, its holes ranging from 65 to 150 yards.

“We’re a pure golf facility,’’ said Helinski.  “WE have no pool, no spa, no nightlife.  We need these things to keep our people entertained.’’

The Short Course has done that.  Such layouts are becoming more and more popular, and Forest Dunes’ version is somewhat of a cross between The Cradle, at Pinehurst, and Mountain Top, the Gary Player-design in the Branson, Mo., area.  Forest Dunes’ short course is more challenging than The Cradle but not as testy as Mountain Top.  Like The Cradle, the Short Course starts and finishes near an outdoor bar and that adds to the fun atmosphere of playing there.

“These courses throw out the stuffiness and standardness of golf,’’ said Helinski.  “Who says a course has to have nine or 18 holes? Who says you have to measure yourself against par? Just go out and have fun. That’s why we’re calling it a Short Course rather than a par-3 course.  It’s not about a cumulative score.  It’s all about the games you can play.’’

Helinski says the average time for a round is 1 hour 15 minutes.  Groups of up to eight are allowed to play together and the fee per adult round is $39. Children 15 and under play free if accompanied by an adult.

Some players wear flip-flops, some play barefoot.  Some carry three clubs, while others take a full bag and ride in a cart. Some play the course with just one club (one even did it with a putter when we were there). Regardless of how you play, the Short Course provides a good introduction to golf for people of all ages.

Unlike the Weiskopf and Doak courses, the Short Course didn’t have a big-name designer. Keith Rhebb and Riley Johns were co-designers.  They had designed a similar course in Winter Park, FL., where Rhebb lives.  Johns, from Canada, worked with Doak in the creation of The Loop.

“You don’t get the chance to get super creative when designing courses,’’ said Rhebb, “but with the Short Course we really had the opportunity to have some fun with it.  Lew wanted it to be fun and always engaging, and we were able to express that in the design.’’

The Short Course went up fast. Construction took just 81 days from the time the first shovel went into the ground until seeding. It also was only two weeks between the time the first phone call was made to start the project until the start of construction.

Having the Short Course up and running also brought more attention to Forest  Dunes’ two-acre, 18-hole HillTop Putting Course.  It has some undulation and is spiced up with native grasses and pine trees.  Tee markers and scorecards are part of the ambiance. We’ve been to Forest Dunes four times and didn’t know the putting course, which opened three years ago, was there.  Now you can’t miss it.

Amazingly, Thompson most likely isn’t done building yet.

“We have enough property north of the current courses to expand the property and develop another course,’’ said Helinski.  “Several top architects have said the land for it is the best on the property, but that would also mean an investment for more lodging and other facilities.’’

Given the aggressive approach Thompson has taken to develop the property, don’t be surprised if the the building of the next course isn’t too far off.

TOLEDO, Ohio – Arthur Hills designed more than 200 golf courses and renovated more than 150 in his long career as a course architect. Few modern day architects have come even close to those numbers.

Hills, now 90 and officially retired, spends most of his time on the east coast of Florida now but his work is being honored in the area that was his long-time home base.  Hills, working with long-time partner Steve Forrest, was based in the Toledo area and now Ohio Golf Journal publisher Fred Altvater and several club operators are developing the Arthur Hills Golf Trail.

The Trail was officially launched at the Toledo Golf Show in 2019. Pandemic issues slowed its takeoff but Altvater sees bigger days ahead. Based on the work Hills has done world-wide there’s no question he deserves his own Trail.

In addition to his American designs – the best-known of which may be Half Moon Bay in California — Hills has designed courses in Portugal, Croatia, Sweden, Mexico and Norway.

Several years ago the Pete Dye Golf Trail started on a small scale with seven courses in the late architect’s native Indiana.  Hills is Dye’s contemporary, and his trail has a similar beginning.  Altvater has lined up five courses for starters.

They include three layouts in southeast Michigan —  The Legacy by Arthur Hills, in Ottawa Hills, and Stonebridge Golf Club and Leslie Park, in Ann Arbor – and two in northwest Ohio – Stone Ridge, in Bowling Green, and Maumee Bay State Park, on the shores of Lake Erie in the town of  Oregon.

“There’s probably 10-12 good Arthur Hills designs in the Toledo area,’’ said Altvater.  “Down the road we hope to have them involved as well, but these are within 45 minutes of Toledo and have great lodging and fantastic places to eat nearby as well.’’

Altvater is also banking on other nearby attractions, like a world-class zoo and botanical gardens, to entice visitors.

Hills’ footprint in the area touches far more destinations than are represented on the present trail.  He designed nine courses in Ohio and another 17 in Michigan.  The Michigan layouts include one of his very best – the Arthur Hills Course at Boyne Highlands Resort in Harbor Springs – and 27-hole Bay Harbor, a masterpiece overlooking Little Traverse Bay.

The first course Hills created was in Toledo —  Brandywine, in 1967, and he did renovation work at, among others, the historic Inverness Club in that city. He has degrees from Michigan, Michigan State and the University of Toledo, so Hills is indeed a native son of both states.

As for the five Trail courses, the toughest is Stone Ridge – the home course of the Bowling Green University golf teams and just a long tee shot from the edge of the campus. The bunkering there is one of Hills’ finest works, and the course is surrounded by rolling hills and dissected by small creeks and water hazards.

Stonebridge may be the most beautiful of the Trail layouts, with the extremely well-conditioned course blending in well with an array of pleasant homesites.  Leslie Park started as a Larry Packard design in 1967 before Hills performed major renovation work 28 years later. Leslie Park has been selected as the best municipal course in Michigan by Golf Digest.

Most enticing of the lot, though, is Maumee Bay because it offers so much more than golf.  With camping and watersports readily available, the park is ideal for family activities.  The on-site lodging is also well situated, just a short walk from the golf course.

“Arthur’s hand has touched a lot of golf courses around the area,’’ said Altvater.  “He’s a very popular designer in this part of the world, and I’m amazed at the great golf here that nobody knows about.  We can put custom-made packages together and, for double occupancy and 18 holes a day, we can do it for about $100.  And replay rounds can be less than $25.’’

For more information check out www.arthurhillsgolftrail.com or contact Altvater at fred@back9report.com.