Kiawah Island Golf Resort is a resort in Kiawah Island, South Carolina, and located along 10 miles of pristine beach on a barrier island less than 30 miles southwest of Charleston. It opened in May 1976 and consistently ranks as one of the country’s top resorts. The resort is anchored by at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, a Forbes Five Star/AAA Five Diamond 255-room luxury hotel and spa. To provide ultimate lodging flexibility for families and groups, the resort also manages nearly 500 private villas and luxury homes ranging from one- to eight-bedroom.
Kiawah Island Golf Resort is home to five championship golf courses, most notably The Ocean Course, added in 1991.
The Ocean Course
The Ocean Course is the most famous course at Kiawah Island, and 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., 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 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 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. The Ocean Course was featured in the 2000 filmThe 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 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 from the tournament tees, and it has a slope rating of 73.3/135.
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 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. 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 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.
Scorecard
Activities
Tennis
For 11 of the past 13 years, has ranked the resort number-one in the world. Within steps of The Sanctuary, the Roy Barth Tennis Center features 22 courts, and is home to the for highly competitive junior players.
Recreation
The resort offers acclaimed recreation opportunities with outdoors and nature programs suited to all ages, interests and activity levels. Kamp Kiawah offers a range of age-appropriate opportunities from arts-and-crafts to an immersive junior naturalist program.
Dining
With more than a dozen distinctive restaurants ranging from refined white tablecloth multi-course culinary experiences to poolside cantinas, Kiawah Island chefs take full advantage of the ingredients provided by neighboring farms and fisheries.
Expansion
Beginning spring 2018, Kiawah Island Golf Resort launched a three-year development that includes a new clubhouse at Cougar Point Golf Course, a non-denominational chapel at The Sanctuary, the West Beach Village Conference Center, designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects, offering more than 23,000 square feet of pre-event and state-of-the-art meeting space, a new villa check-in facility in West Beach, four two-story, four-bedroom vacation cottages just steps from The Ocean Course Clubhouse with commanding views of this iconic golf course, and a complete renovation of Night Heron Park to double the existing program space of the Nature Center as well as a new activities pavilion, art center, fitness center and dining outlet.
