Seaside Course, Sea Island Golf Club, St Simon's Island

Course Review: Seaside Course, Sea Island Golf Club, St Simon's Island

Next week the PGA Tour returns to American soil for the McGladrey Classic, hosted by Sea Island Golf Club. This week's course review takes a look at this scenic island golf club and its signature Seaside course.

Sea Island Golf Club forms part of a larger leisure development on St Simon's Island, off the coast of Georgia in the American Southeast. The club offers three courses to visiting golfers and permanent residents, with the Seaside course and its sister Plantation and Retreat courses providing 54 holes of entertaining golf in excellent weather most months of the year.

The Seaside course was designed by Harry S. Colt and Charles Alison, and first opened in 1929. Seventy years later, the course received its current layout in a 1999 redesign by Tom Fazio, and has become a popular destination for leisure golfers and pros alike.

Golfers visiting Sea Island in search of a challenging round should definitely take the opportunity to play the Seaside course, which requires accuracy and great recovery skills with its traditional links layout. The course is moderately bunkered, with each hole featuring its own unique mix of bunkers that are strategically placed to create a challenging round of golf. The greens are difficult to read at times, requiring an accurate and conservative putting strategy.

Many holes on the Seaside course play uphill from tee to green, with fairways that undulate – sometimes dramatically. The rough often includes sea sand, which means that balls which land out of regulation will need to be played out of a virtual bunker – often with plants and grasses which obstruct the ball and make recovery shots difficult.

The Seaside course is not open to the public, but golfers who book their accommodation at Sea Island may book tee times in advance. For more information, please visit the club's website.

GolfWeather
Editorial