Established 1974 Owned by CCA Financial Website kiawahresort.com | Type Resort Total holes 90 | |
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Location Kiawah Island, South Carolina, U.S. | ||
The Kiawah Island Golf Resort is a resort in Kiawah Island, South Carolina, southwest of Charleston. It opened in May 1976 and has five golf courses, most notably the Ocean Course, added in 1991.
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The Ocean Course has hosted major golf tournaments including the Ryder Cup in 1991, the World Cup in 1997 and 2003, and the PGA Championship in 2012. It also hosted the PGA Club Professional Championship in 2005 and the Senior PGA Championship in 2007. It will also host the PGA Championship in 2021.
Ocean Course
The Ocean Course is the most famous course at Kiawah Island, opened in 1991, it was designed by Pete and Alice Dye. The course was designed so that players have a view of the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean but also to expose golfers to the often-strong winds in the area. The Ocean Course has been consistently named as one of the best courses in the world by several publications such as Golf Digest and Golf Magazine as well as being named a "Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary" by Audubon International. As of 2010, the Ocean Course was rated 25th in Golf Digest's 100 Greatest Golf Courses in America.
The Ocean Course is a par 72 course and from the championship tees, it stretches to 7,873 yards (7,199 m) with a slope rating of 153 and a course rating of 79.7, the highest in the country, according to the United States Golf Association. Because of its large slopes, numerous bunkers, and challenging Bermuda grass, it was named the toughest course in America in 2010 by Golf Digest.
The Ocean Course was featured in the 2000 film The Legend of Bagger Vance. In October 2008, the Ocean Course became the first course to be available to play in the online video game that was developed by World Golf Tour. Helicopters equipped with cameras and GPS tracking devices were used to photograph and record the entire course to produce a geographically accurate simulation.
Turtle Point
The Turtle Point course was designed by Jack Nicklaus and has also received accolades from Golf Digest magazine. Turtle Point has hosted regional tournaments such as the Carolina Amateur.
The Turtle Point course is a par 72 course. From the tournament tees, it measures 7,061 yards (6,457 m) and has a slope rating of 74.2/141.
Osprey Point
The Osprey Point course at Kiawah Island was designed by Tom Fazio and is recognized as one of the "50 Best Golf Courses for Women" by Golf for Women magazine.
The Osprey point course is a par 72 course. It measures 6,932 yards (6,339 m) from the tournament tees, and it has a slope rating of 73.3/135.
Oak Point
Designed by Clyde Johnston, the Oak Point course was purchased by the Kiawah Island Resort in 1997. He designed the course on former plantation lands that grew tomato and indigo.
Oak Point plays to a par of 72, and it measures 6,701 yards (6,127 m) from the tournament tees with a slope rating of 72.4/137.
Cougar Point
The Cougar Point golf course was originally named Marsh Point, and Gary Player redesigned it in 1996. It is a par 72 course, and from the tournament tees it measures 6,875 yards (6,286 m). It has a slope rating of 74.0/138.
Tournaments held
Of the five golf courses at the Kiawah Island resort, only the Turtle Point course and the Ocean Course have held notable tournaments.
The Ocean Course first became well known in its first year when it hosted the 1991 Ryder Cup. The United States golf team defeated the Europe golf team 14½ – 13½. The windy Ocean Course made for difficult playing conditions, and the United States team only won when Bernhard Langer of Germany missed a six-foot (1.8 m) par-saving putt that would have defeated Hale Irwin, tied the overall score at 14-all, and retained the cup for Europe.
In 1996, the Ocean Course hosted a match on Shell's Wonderful World of Golf between Annika Sörenstam and Dottie Pepper.
The Ocean Course hosted the World Cup of Golf twice – in 1997 and in 2003. In 1997, Pádraig Harrington and Paul McGinley won the team title, with Colin Montgomerie winning the individual title. When the World Cup returned in 2003, Trevor Immelman and Rory Sabbatini won the team competition.
The PGA Club Professional Championship was played at the Ocean Course in 2005. Mike Small, the golf coach at the University of Illinois, won the event with a score of 289.
Most recently, the Senior PGA Championship was held at Kiawah Island's Ocean Course in May 2007. Denis Watson won his first golf tournament in twenty-three years, beating Eduardo Romero by two strokes.
The PGA Championship was played at the Ocean Course in 2012 with Rory McIlroy winning by a record eight strokes.
Note that the 2009 U.S. Mid-Amateur, although being played in Kiawah Island, was not held at this resort—it was instead hosted by The Kiawah Island Club, a private golf club on the island.
The PGA Championship will be played at the Ocean Course in 2021.