Course Discourse: Belfair West

By Joel Zuckerman

ne of the major reasons golfers flock to the Lowcountry is to experience the beauty of our courses. Granted, there are no spectacular elevation changes or mountain vistas, and outside of Daufuskie Island, the final holes at Harbour Town and just a few other examples, ocean-side holes are at a premium as well. What we do have in abundance is marshland, ancient stands of gnarled oaks, lush love grass and sparkling lagoons. To my mind, no course exemplifies the seductive beauty of this area better than the original West course at Belfair Plantation.

Assessing the region’s finest courses is no easy task, but somebody’s got to try. Haig Point is more spectacular, the Nicklaus course at Colleton River is a better traditional test of golf, Secession is the best walking course, and Harbour Town has the legacy, but there’s no prettier golf course then the original Tom Fazio design at Belfair. The subtle beauty of Belfair begins with the ever-present scalloped, landscaped bunkering. Virtually every hole is framed by these flowing, soft shouldered beauties, many containing shrubs, small trees and clumps of love grass. Needless to say, one’s perspective changes quickly when forced to actually extricate a wayward shot from one. However from the outside looking in, these hazards are less of a nightmare and more of a visual reverie.

The middle tees at Belfair’s west course play just over 6600 yards, and carry a solid slope rating of 131. Fazio keeps things interesting at every turn, and offers a beautiful balance of golf holes; some delicate and some daunting. Selecting the cutest hole on the premises is not unlike trying to pick the prettiest girl at the Miss America pageant; there are plenty of viable options, and no real wrong answer. #6 is a definite candidate; a 360 yard par 4 with two distinct greens. A recent visit found the flagstick located at the dangerous right side green, barely the size of a tennis court, fortified by bunkers and fronted by a lagoon. It’s one of the slipperiest short irons you’ll hit all day. Big hitters will make birdie more often than not on the 464-yard par 5 seventh hole. The rest of us will have to lay it up, and then wedge over the water to a severely angled green. The par five thirteenth and short hole that follows offer the best views of the Colleton River this side of Colleton River Plantation. Just keep your head down long enough to steer it away from the waste area and the marsh, and you’ll do fine. The 16th is a tiny diamond of a par 3, the penultimate hole is less than 350 yards but can easily deface the scorecard, and as you head for home, don’t look for a welcome mat. At almost 440 yards and with a substantial marsh to carry, a green in regulation here is worth noting. Most folks will smack a fairway wood down the fairway, hoping a deft chip and an accurate putt will put a four on the card.

Conditioning, as is to be expected, is excellent at Belfair. The greens, mostly large and undulating, are quite speedy. The fairways have more levels than a parking garage, but because the rolling terrain is so steep, it’s rare to encounter a severely pitched lie. My single quibble, so often the case here in the land of cart ball, is that the significant commute between the twelfth and thirteenth, not to mention the return trip to the par 3 sixteenth, make walking impractical at best. A shame, really. A course this lovely and serene is a pleasure under any circumstances, but can best be appreciated while ambling.

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