 GOLDEN BEAR at INDIGO RUN (843-689-2200)
Hilton Head Golf Course Review
Golden Bear (at Indigo Run) Hilton Head is a Jack Nicklaus designed championship course that combines elements of woodlands, water and sand to provide an interesting and relaxing round for all levels of golfers. The natural beautiful landscape makes the course worthy of play in itself, and the variety of holes that demand strategy and finesse as well as power, makes this one of the areas best golf values.
The layout meanders through the Indigo Run residential community while also offering areas of quiet seclusion. There are no overbearing holes, but each presents a fair test. There are some forced carries but nothing intimidating, even from the championship tee areas. The Pro Trac GPS that is standard on all carts (which also have rear weather covers) is very helpful not only with exact yardages from tee to pin, but also with hole diagrams and hazard locations. The tee boxes on par threes are also conveniently marked, and 100, 150 and 200 yard plates are posted on the cart paths. 150 yard stakes are also present on the fairways of all par fours and fives.
In total 51 soft sand bunkers are situated near the landing zones off the tee or greenside, and water hazards come into play in some shape or form on 12 holes. The fairways and rough were not over-seeded in 2009, and were quite brown on our late February visit. This did not affect playing conditions, however!
The Golden Bear is sister course to the Country Club of Hilton Head (located about 10 minutes away) and deals are available to play both courses. On property is a clubhouse with pro shop and restaurant/lounge serving a full lunch menu. Practice facilites include a targeted grass range plus putting/chipping green.
There are five sets of tees that play to distances and slopes measuring 7014 yards/132 slope, 6643 yards/128 slope, 6184 yards/122 slope, 5259 yards/115 slope for men and 124 for women, and 4974 yards with a 115 slope for ladies playing from the forward tees. The fairways here generally provide wide landing zones, and there also is plentiful recovery room greenside, if one can avoid the sand traps and gentle mounds that surround the outing surfaces.
Prices and reasonable and there is enough variety in hole design to make this an interesting round for the avid player as well as the beginner. For more info, visit our page for the course, with direct link to their website by clicking here.
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