Harbour Town Golf Links (Review and Photo Tour)

[Benjamin Litman]

For a last-minute getaway, we went to Hilton Head this past weekend--my first exposure to the Lowcountry. I was quite taken by the landscape, especially the centuries-old trees that dot (and serve as logos for) most of the courses. With the help of old GCA posts and recent private exchanges with GCAers in the know (thank you all for your advice and assistance), I created an itinerary that allowed us to play some of the best in the area: Harbour Town, Heron Point, May River, and Belfair East. I took many photos and plan to roll out reviews/photo tours in the coming weeks. I'll start with the first course we played and the one we were fortunate enough to view daily from our hotel room: Harbour Town Golf Links.

Speaking of that view, it makes you want to play golf. The driving range is the most quaint range I've ever seen, and the one that most makes me want to hit balls. And the new clubhouse, though a monstrosity no doubt built with the PGA Tour event in mind (it opens in early April), grows on you.

Harbour Town Golf Links, 1st Tee/9th Green/Driving Range/10th Tee and Fairway (viewed from the Inn at Harbour Town)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Driving Range (located between the 9th and 10th holes)


Harbour Town Golf Links, New Clubhouse (with temporary pro shop on the right)


Harbour Town Golf Links, New Clubhouse (at sunset)


On our first two days, the sun was shining, but it was cold, so none of the Sea Pines courses opened. Disappointed (if the sun's out, and the wind is down, I'll play in 20-degree weather), I figured a good substitute would be a camera-clicking late-afternoon walk through the famed tree-lined fairways of Harbour Town without another golfer or person in sight. I walked the front nine on Thursday afternoon and the back nine of Friday afternoon. Because the course was closed, no flags were in the cups, but I don't think their absence detracts from the pictures--and, at least, is made up for by the light and the absence of other people. In a few instances, I've supplemented my tour with pictures taken from the day (Saturday) we actually played the course.

A lot has been written about Harbour Town, so I'll keep my comments to a minimum. I was shocked at how wide the course is (it was also much greener/better-conditioned than the other courses we played, but I chalk that up to preparation for the Tour event). People have said that the narrow view from the tee down the 1st fairway is a harbinger of things to come, but I actually thought the opposite: the 1st fairway is by far the narrowest on the course (and it's not actually that narrow, as the trees give way to open spaces left and especially right after 175 yards or so). Every tee shot that follows feels much more open than the 1st one. (The two other tee shots I would classify as narrow--9 and 13--are rightly so, as they are short par-4s that require only an iron off the tee.) I typically hate road crossings and visible houses on courses, but neither--and there are many of both--bothered me at Harbour Town. In fact, I was surprised at how enchantingly beautiful the course is--the towering pines lining many fairways reminding me somewhat of what I see at Augusta on TV every year (minus, among other things, the elevation changes). I especially liked the tree-dotted waste areas on the corners of numerous fairways; they are not only pleasing to the eye, but playable. People say that the greens, though distinctively small, are flat and boring, but the green complexes as a whole (comprising the greens, their shapes, the surrounding bunkers, and, of course, the many overhanging trees) are some of the best in the world. The course's principal design features--u-shaped greens with intruding knobs/fringes and hidden bunkers--are very distinctive and very repetitive (for better or worse, I'm still not sure). To me, the course's tightness exists not off the tee but in the approaches to the greens, as many greens have either two low/wide trees or one tall/narrow tree guarding the front. Those green-guarding trees, and the u-shaped greens, are the course's main defenses to scoring--and what some people might deem unfair. But seeming unfairness on the first playing should yield to strategy on the second and subsequent playings, as those defenses simply ask the player to think and, as at any great course, optimize angles of attack. In no way did I feel that the course truly begins after the tee shot on 16 (16, to me, is overrated as a hole) or even back at 13 (though I concede that the stretch from 13-18 is the best on the course). The front nine is also a delight to play, with the stretch from 4-8 rivaling 13-18 for enjoyment and variety. In short, count me a fan and someone who can't wait to return and play Harbour Town many more times.

Harbour Town Golf Links, Front Nine

Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 1 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 1 (fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 1 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 2 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 2 (left fairway bunker)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 2 (green) [N.B.: The mounds on the left obscure a bunker, as seen in the next picture.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 2 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 2 (glorious oak tree behind green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 3 (green) [N.B.: Dye did a masterful job varying bunker complexes on the course. At this green complex alone, you can see two of the principal varieties: one large continuous bunker at the front left, and multiple small, close-but-separated bunkers at the back right.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 4 (tee) [N.B.: This par-3 is essentially the mirror image of the more-famous 14th, with the canal creating a hazard short and left of the green as opposed to short and right.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 4 (green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 4 (green, looking backward toward the tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 5 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 5 (fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 5 (left fairway bunker/cart path) [N.B.: Both at Harbour Town and at Heron Point, Dye fused cart paths and bunkers, an approach I had never seen before and one I, as a hater of conspicuous cart paths, greatly appreciated.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 5 (right fairway donut bunker)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 5 (right upper fairway bunker, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 6 (left fairway waste area) [N.B.: These fairway-corner, tree-dotted waste areas are found throughout the course and are both nice to look at and fun to play out of.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 7 (tee) [N.B.: This hole has two trees that guard the front entrance to the green--a design feature that shows up on several other holes.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 7 (green/moat bunker)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 7 (green/moat bunker, looking backward toward the tee, with the trees guarding the front-left and front-right corners of the green evident)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 8 (tee) [N.B.: This hole is the par-4 equivalent of the par-5 15th in both appearance and strategy (both dogleg left with water guarding the left side from the turn in the fairway to the green); both are great holes.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 8 (fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 8 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 9 (tee) [N.B.: This dead-straight hole, which is appropriately somewhat narrow off the tee given its shortness, is "made" by its crazy green complex, replete with a u-shaped green, three blind, tiered sliver bunkers filling in the gap in the "u" at the back, and a narrow, also u-shaped fronting bunker.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 9 (fairway, with the new clubhouse in the background)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 9 (green, looking backward down the fairway, with the three tiered bunkers filling the gap in the u-shaped green now visible)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Back Nine

Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 10 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 10 (fairway) [N.B.: Here, a stand of trees on the right, as opposed to the typical one or two trees, blocks an approach from the right.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 10 (green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 11 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 11 (fairway, with another tree-dotted waste area on the left side)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 11 (right greenside bunkers)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 11 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 12 (fairway, looking backward toward the tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 12 (green, looking backward down the fairway) [N.B.: Note yet another u-shaped green.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13 (fairway, looking backward toward the tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13 (fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13 (green/moat bunker, viewed from the front right)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13 (green/moat bunker, viewed from the right)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13/14 (the 14th tee and hole are to the left)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 13 (green, viewed from 14th tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 14 (back/pro tee) [N.B.: What makes the hole so much harder from back here, apart from the increased length, is the inability to see the vertical drop down to the green--and thereby gauge depth--as well as you can from the regular tee box.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 14 (regular tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 14 (diagonal canal in front of green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 14 (green) [N.B.: As this picture makes clear, there is plenty of room to miss left or even short of this green.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 15 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 15 (fairway) [N.B.: The resemblance of this hole to the par-4 8th is evident in this picture.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 15 (end of fairway/green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 15 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 16 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 16 (left fairway bunker and center fairway tree)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 16 (green, with 17--and the setting sun--in the distance)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 16 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (back-left tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (tee at sunset)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (right greenside sliver bunker)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (left greenside bunker)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 17 (steep "Boo Weekley" slope at back of green)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (tee)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (left side of fairway, with a carry straight over the marsh) [N.B.: The visuals of the approach, again over the marsh--at least when playing from the peninsula that protrudes into the marsh and forms the left side of the fairway--are not unlike the visuals of the tee shot.]


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (the famed lighthouse seen through the reeds)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (green, looking backward down the fairway)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (looking left at sunset over the Calibogue Sound)


Harbour Town Golf Links, Hole 18 (looking left at sunset over the Calibogue Sound)

[Mac Plumart]

Benjamin...

Thank you!

I think that Harbour Town is an absolute gem in many ways.  Not the least of which is how the maintenance meld fits perfectly with the design of the course.  In fact, many of your photos highlight this fact.  Check out the tree line in your photos.  Tree limbs trimmed way up the trunk, makes hitting out of their a real option.  Underbrush removed, again makes recovery from the trees do-able and finding your ball is not a problem. 

Given that Harbour Town is tight in many places, these maintenance practices are vital for the course's playability.  And they are totally spot on there!

[Wade Whitehead]

That eighth hole is as tough as you'll find.

WW

[Josh Tarble]

Benjamin,

Thank you for pulling all these photos together.  Harbour Town is one of my favorite golf courses anywhere.  As Mac mentions, the maintenance meld is perfection.  The course is tight but at no point does it feel claustrophobic.  My favorite part of the course is the playability for lesser players and the challenge for better players. 

The first couple times I played it was with a group of single digit handicaps and we had a blast playing it from the tips.  I recently played it with my grandfather, wife and brother-in-law, all very different handicaps.  They were able to get around very easily, while I was still struggling.  It was one of my most memorable golf experiences.  I just love the place.

[Peter Pallotta]

Beautiful work, Ben. I've been looking recently at courses like Mid-Pines and Pine Needles and so looking at Harbour Town was struck once again by how well Mr. Dye can 'transmute' architectural principles and visual aesthetics from an ideal and traditional setting/site to one that is neither traditional nor ideal.
Peter

[Daniel Jones]

Absolutely great stuff, Benjamin. Then again...I've come to expect that from your reviews! Had considered Harbour Town for an outing with my brother earlier this year and opted for Sawgrass instead. Pretty sure I wouldn't have made that choice had this been around back then! Looking forward to hearing more about your trip.

[Matt Kardash]

Looking at the photos I was reminded of a recent Pete Dye interview where he said Alice doesn't let him build bathtub bunkers anymore because they are hard to get in and out. Harbour Town, being an old Dye design, has its fair share.

[Thomas Dai]

Very impressive photo tour. A different course perspective to watching the annual tournament on TV.

I find playing in and out of shadow and bright light can be quite difficult, being rather confusing on the eye especially when it comes to putting and judging less than full shots into and around greens and there certainly seems to be a significant shadow and bright light effect here.

Does the course suffer from an maintenance issues from having so many trees so close to trees/greens/fairways?

atb

[Benjamin Litman]

As always, many thanks to everyone for the kind comments. A few responses:

Tree limbs trimmed way up the trunk, makes hitting out of their a real option.  Underbrush removed, again makes recovery from the trees do-able and finding your ball is not a problem.

As Mac mentions, the maintenance meld is perfection.  The course is tight but at no point does it feel claustrophobic.  My favorite part of the course is the playability for lesser players and the challenge for better players.

These are very astute points, Mac and Josh. I, too, found Harbour Town to be very playable for precisely the reasons you state, although, as described in my review, I actually didn't find the course to be that tight or narrow in the first place. Like the trimmed trunks and cleared underbrush, the tree-dotted waste areas off the fairways also allow for recovery shots. I was pleasantly surprised when I realized that I hadn't lost a single ball.

I've been looking recently at courses like Mid-Pines and Pine Needles

Funny you should mention Mid Pines and Pine Needles, Peter. We almost went there instead of Hilton Head, but opted for the latter because the Pinehurst area called for even colder temperatures and snow. Have you been there? Or are you making plans for a future trip?

I find playing in and out of shadow and bright light can be quite difficult, being rather confusing on the eye especially when it comes to putting and judging less than full shots into and around greens and there certainly seems to be a significant shadow and bright light effect here.

Does the course suffer from an maintenance issues from having so many trees so close to trees/greens/fairways?

Thomas: Although the light and shadows were more pronounced than normal given the time I chose to walk the course (late afternoon/sunset), both play a significant factor in judging depth perception at Harbour Town at all times (except, perhaps, for noon). As for maintenance issues, I'm not sure, but I can imagine that the answer is yes. The trees also ensure that the course almost never plays firm and fast.

[Chris Mavros]

Gorgeous photos of a course that I enjoyed much more than I anticipated.  I also agree about the range; I actually spent an hour hitting balls there after my round just to soak up a little more of the place before heading out. 

[Ian Mackenzie]

I know I will catch some heat for this....

Played Harbor Town in 2005 and thought it was:

1. The most over-rated
2. Over-hyped
3. Over-priced
4. Mismanaged...

....golf course that I have ever played. Caveat: with the exception of the last three holes that I wish I had played.

Was there in October and teed off around 1:00 and the course was almost empty except for some slothful 4-ball with tour-weight bags who teed off right in front of us. We waited on them on every shot right up until the 16th tee when the skies opened up and hellish rains came down.

Twice, while on the course, I informed some dim-witted marshall that - as a 2-ball - we should be able to go through THE ONLY other group on the course. Anyway, logic and courtesy were snubbed in favor of entitlement and spite.

I did, however, get to spend a ton of time looking at the course. I know, I know...Dye's first masterpiece, blah, blah...but I bet if that course were to be built today, it would be widely panned. I was claustrophobic, there were few options AT ALL...anywhere except maybe 8,9 and 18. The tree walls on EVERY hole made hole-after-hole seem repetitve Sure, some cool green complexes. Maybe I'm just not a fan of Pete Dye as I think (almost) everything I have seen of his looks unnatural, forced and contrived.

I get that it puts a premium on accuracy and precision and control, especially off the tee. That's OK with me, I can adapt and hit low 3-wood stingers with draws and the occasional fade. But i just pity a higher hdcp player who pegs it there.

Don't get me wrong, it's a good course and one that I would gladly pay $100 to play. But $250 in 2005!! NFW! The resort is also very tired and perhaps that is part of its charm. My experience definitely soured me a bit, but that's also part of the personal ratings one assigns to ANY course played.

[JR Potts]

Nice photos and nice write-up.

I can't begin to fathom how many golf balls I would lose there....

[Marc Haring]

Kind of with you Ian.

It looks like hit every bleedin shot arrow straight and out the middle of the bat or it's misery.

However I will say that it is nice that the tour plays a course where the bombers don't dominate.

[Mark_Fine]

Benjamin,
Great stuff.  As I told you before you left, Harbour Town is a phenomenal design and one that the more you play it, the more you begin to appreciate its brilliance.  It is an architectural gem and anyone interested in design should see and study the place as it shows the wonderful variety that great golf courses can exhibit.  Typical of Dye's best you need to think your way around and some rounds can demand hitting every kind of shot you can possibly dream up.  

It is a precision shot makers course and takes thought and creativity to play it well.  It will frustrate a poorer golfer but it is playable for all but the highest handicappers.  Every hole is unique and has a different problem to solve.  Yes trees provide an important aspect of the strategy but one knows that going in.  Solid 7.5 to 8 on the Doak scale.  
Mark

[Keith Phillips]

Have never been so should remain silent...but you were really 'shocked at how wide the course is'?  I love to watch this course on TV but am constantly reminded how humbling this game...I'm an erratic 13 and, based solely on the photos, I can't even imagine how many balls I'd need and how high my score would be.  A great test for the pros but doesn't look like a lot of fun for me.

[Benjamin Litman]

Have never been so should remain silent...but you were really 'shocked at how wide the course is'?

Indeed I was, Keith. The "shock" came from the fact that all I had read about the course before playing it had to do with its narrowness. When I saw the course in person, I felt deceived, because I didn't experience narrowness or claustrophobia at all. Again, I'd classify only three tee shots (1, 9, and 13) as "narrow," and, of those, 1 actually opens up in the landing area (the trees on both sides end at around 175-200 yards), and 9 and 13, in my opinion, are appropriately narrow in that they are short par-4s that require only an iron off the tee. I think people confuse "tree-lined" with narrow, which of course isn't true (too many examples to list). As Mac and Josh pointed out, the trees have been trimmed well up the trunk and much of the underbrush has been cleared, so even off-line shots--and I hit my fair share during the round--are eminently playable. Because recoveries are allowed, the course is actually quite fun to play--for players of all levels (and I was playing with three high-handicappers). So, rest assured (you, too, JR) that you wouldn't actually lose many balls at all.

I think that's the consistent point of this thread: When you actually play the course (as opposed to read about it or watch it on TV), you realize that it's much wider and more playable than everyone says. I encourage you to experience it for yourself and let us know your thoughts.

Ian, I note your exception. But, even discounting that your negative review was largely the product of a bad experience (I appreciate how that can color one's view of a course--see, e.g., my comments about Pebble Beach), I'm not sure I get what you mean when you say that only 8,9, and 18 offered "options." How, in your view, do the other holes not offer options, and how, in your view, do 8 and 9 (I get 18) offer them? I actually thought those two holes demanded specific shots from the player.

Chris, I so wish I could have hit balls on the range when the course was closed our first two days. It was just sitting there, peopleless, begging me to come, but the administrators refused to open it. I did hit balls after my round, but by that point I was exhausted.

[Anthony_Nysse]

I always felt that playing HT was like trying to hit a ball through a cave. Such tight corridors and trees hanging over everywhere. Can't say I've ever heard "width" and HT used in the same breath.
  As for maintenance, the course is being regressed with Celebration this summer. A much more aggressive, shade tolerant grass.

[Mark_Fine]

Tony,
You are being way too harsh.  The problem with trees is they grow and I agree that some pruning and removal to restore original hole corridors would be beneficial, but there is still plenty of room to play golf. 

My favorite courses in the world are links courses so it might sound surprising that I enjoy Harbour Town.  Furthermore, I also spend a lot of time talking to club committees and boards about trees on older courses and how they have reduced or hindered strategy as well as eliminated width the was integral to angles of play and options in the original design.  But at Harbour Town, Pete designed the course with trees in mind.  They were not planted afterward by overzealous green committees who thought holes needed framing or tightening up.  Most of the trees at Harbour Town serve a purpose and require golfers to manage their way around the golf course as well as play a wide variety of shots/trajectories.  Frankly you have to do the same thing on links courses.  You can't just hit high fades or low draws or any one type of shot on a great links course and except to do well.  That is the beauty of links golf as you need to be creative and proficient at a wide range of shots.  The same goes for Harbour Town.  And while the obstacles might be different, the variety of the playing fields is what makes this game great.   

I still give the edge to Long Cove on the island but Habour Town is a gem! 

[Benjamin Litman]

Very well said, Mark. I couldn't agree more.

Tony, I never said Harbour Town is wide in absolute terms. All I've said is that it's much, much wider than I was led to believe, with plenty of room to maneuver the ball, and plenty of options to recover from poor shots. To give some context to what I mean, I hit a fade off the tee, and even on the holes where a draw off the tee is preferable, I never felt I couldn't get my fade in play because of "narrowness." Sure, I didn't have the preferred angle for my approach shot, but I could at least play a reasonable second shot.

I can name a good number of courses that I felt were more narrow and claustrophobic.

[Anthony_Nysse]

Town restrictions do make it much more difficult to remove trees. Many times, while at Long Cove, trimming and thinning was the most we could do without having to worry about issues.

[Matt MacIver]

As an 18 HC who sprays it everywhere I'll chime in: I lost far fewer balls than I expected. The course plays tight because the oaks pinch the fairway, but there is often 30 yards past them before OOB. I never have looked for a ball OOB or even close. Those trees make for fun recovery shots, so overall I like that aspect of the design. What I dislike is the small and mostly flat greens and surrounds; they probably "work" and are "fit" but I like rolling greens with windmills and clowns mouths. I won't pay full rack rate again but would gladly pay $100 and make it part of a regular rotation. Overall the GCA world is a better place with this course in it.

As I eventually say on all HT threads, the scar / bathtub bunker on #17 was the first of its kind I ever saw, a real eye opener for me on design.