Tradition opened in 1996 on Willbrook Road, just north of Pawleys Island, and it is one of very few Carolina courses by Ron Garl, an architect best known for his work in Florida. It is public, run by Founders Group International alongside Willbrook Plantation next door, and it was once named South Carolina Golf Course of the Year. The club pitches it as a creative but simple design built around good surfaces and protected greens.
Tradition Golf Club green fees and tee times.
Book through the club’s Tee Time Central page, linked from its website, or call 843-237-5041. The club promises its guaranteed best rates when you book direct but does not publish a rate card. For multi-course trips, Founders Group sells packages through MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com and a quick-quote form on the Tradition site. Kids aged 16 and under play free with a paying adult, one child per adult. Rental clubs are US$40 for 18 holes; reserve them by phone or add a note to an online booking.
The round, in perspective.
Tradition is a par 72 of 6,875 yards from the Black tees, with White at 6,313, Gold at 5,728 and Red at 5,189. MyrtleBeachGolf.com lists the back-tee slope at 147, among the highest on the Strand. A 2013 review picked out a fairway bunker on the first hole with a grass island and a second bunker inside it, back-to-back reachable par 5s at the ninth and tenth, and a par-3 15th played over water. The greens were rebuilt in 2018 with Sunday Bermudagrass, and large, undulating surfaces with marsh along some holes punish loose approaches. Fairways are wide enough for mid-handicappers from the forward tees, and the club’s course guide shows each hole from the blue tees.
Know before you go.
Kids
16 and under free with a paying adult, 1-to-1
Rental clubs
US$40 per set for 18 holes
Greens
Sunday Bermudagrass, installed 2018
Golf shop
843-237-5041
Make the trip work.
Arrive early enough to use the Mega Practice Complex, a warm-up area the club says has been copied at other courses around the country, with a large tee and putting green. The kids-play-free rule makes Tradition one of the cheaper family rounds on the South Strand. Because Willbrook shares the road and the operator, a 36-hole day across the two needs barely any driving. Tradition is part of the Hammock Coast Golf Trail, which groups the Pawleys Island and Georgetown County courses. It also sells local memberships and posts its tournaments and member events on the website, so check those dates before you fix a round.
Myrtle Beach International (MYR) is about 20 miles north; follow US 17 south through Murrells Inlet and Litchfield. The club is at 1027 Willbrook Road, Pawleys Island. Charleston (CHS) is roughly 75 miles south.
Golfbreaks pairs Tradition with Litchfield Beach & Golf Resort, a cluster of beachfront and villa lodging across US 17, and with River Club Villas on the 10th hole at River Club. Pawleys Island’s rental houses and the condos at Litchfield Beach are both within ten minutes. Litchfield’s golf desk, on (855) 253-5468, books rooms and rounds together, and its packages include a hot breakfast.
Make a trip of it.
Willbrook Plantation, a Dan Maples course on the same road, is the obvious match. Caledonia Golf & Fish Club and True Blue are a few miles south, and River Club is in between. TPC Myrtle Beach is north at Murrells Inlet. Off the course, Brookgreen Gardens, with its sculpture gardens and lowcountry zoo, is a short drive north on US 17.
Find your season.
Open all year, with spring and autumn busiest and winter quietest. The Sunday Bermuda greens are at their best from late spring into autumn.
Ron Garl, a Florida-based architect. The club calls it one of his only designs in the Carolinas, and it opened in 1996.
Can kids play free at Tradition Golf Club?
Yes. Kids aged 16 and under play free with a paying adult, on a one-to-one basis, according to the club.
Are Tradition and Willbrook run by the same company?
Yes. Both are members of Founders Group International, sit on the same road and book through the same Tee Time Central system, so a two-course day or a package with both is easy to arrange.
How hard is Tradition Golf Club?
From the Black tees it is 6,875 yards with a slope listed at 147 by MyrtleBeachGolf.com. Gold and Red tees, at 5,728 and 5,189 yards, make it far more manageable for higher handicaps.
Last checked 11 November 2026. This is an independent planning guide, not a first-hand review or a booking service. Check live availability, access, fees and travel details with the operator before booking. Airport suggestions are starting points for route planning.
