Best Golf Courses in South Carolina (2026)

TheGrint South Carolina golf course directory page on thegrint.com on an iPhone, beside a card showing the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island at No. 2 on the U.S. Public list

The best golf courses in South Carolina, according to golfers on TheGrint, are Secession Golf Club (98.1), the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island (97.7) and Congaree Golf Club (96.6). South Carolina has six courses on TheGrint's 2026 Top 100: the Ocean Course (No. 2) and Harbour Town Golf Links (No. 42) on the U.S. Public list, and four clubs on the U.S. Private list, led by Secession at No. 5.

This guide covers all six, the highly rated public courses just outside the Top 100, and how hard each one plays. Rankings come from golfers who played the courses, not a panel.

Every course links to its page in TheGrint's directory of 363 South Carolina golf courses, with the full scorecard for every set of tees.

What are the best golf courses in South Carolina?

The best golf courses in South Carolina are the six on TheGrint's 2026 Top 100, and they are also the six highest-rated courses in the state. Two are on the U.S. Public list:

Rank (U.S. Public)	Course	City	TheGrint Rating	Plays harder than
2	Kiawah Island Golf Resort: The Ocean Course	Johns Island	97.7	99%
42	Sea Pines: Harbour Town Golf Links	Hilton Head Island	94.6	99%

The other four are private clubs on the U.S. Private list:

Rank (U.S. Private)	Course	City	TheGrint Rating	Plays harder than
5	Secession Golf Club	Beaufort	98.1	99%
80	Congaree Golf Club	Ridgeland	96.6	99%
89	Sage Valley Golf Club	Graniteville	96.4	99%
92	The Tree Farm	Batesburg	96.4	99%

All six play harder than 99% of rated courses on TheGrint.

Where should you play golf in South Carolina?

South Carolina's top public golf sits on its barrier islands, and its top private clubs are in the Lowcountry and near Aiken.

Kiawah Island: the Ocean Course, plus the resort's Cougar Point, Turtle Point and Oak Point courses.
Hilton Head Island: Harbour Town Golf Links, Atlantic Dunes and Heron Point at Sea Pines. The Hilton Head area has the most courses of any South Carolina city in the directory, with 29.
Fripp Island: Ocean Creek and Ocean Point.
Myrtle Beach: 25 courses listed under Myrtle Beach itself, and more in the towns around it. Browse them on the state page.

Resort courses can have booking rules for guests, so check each course's page and the course itself before you plan around it.

What are the hidden gems in South Carolina golf?

These public and semi-private courses rate highly with golfers on TheGrint but aren't on the 2026 Top 100. Each ranks in the top 60 of the 330 well-reviewed courses in South Carolina:

Kiawah Island: Cougar Point (92.7): harder than 94% of rated courses.
Sea Pines: Atlantic Dunes (Hilton Head Island, 92.4): harder than 99%, the toughest on this list.
Fripp Island: Ocean Creek (91.9): harder than 71%, the easiest of these picks.
Sea Pines: Heron Point (Hilton Head Island, 91.6): harder than 96%.
Kiawah Island: Turtle Point (91.3): harder than 98%.
Kiawah Island: Oak Point (91.3): harder than 91%.

What is the hardest golf course in South Carolina?

All six of South Carolina's Top 100 courses, including the Ocean Course and Harbour Town, play harder than 99% of rated courses on TheGrint. Among the hidden gems, Atlantic Dunes also plays harder than 99%, and Turtle Point harder than 98%.

If you want a gentler round on the coast, Ocean Creek on Fripp Island plays harder than 71% of rated courses, the lowest of the picks above. For more, see the hardest golf courses golfers rank among the best, and check what tees to play before a hard course.

How are these golf courses ranked?

TheGrint Rating is a score out of 100 built from golfers' reviews and their head-to-head course rankings on TheGrint. TheGrint Top 100 uses those signals, including the Course Ranking Game, and gives more weight to golfers who have played more courses.

TheGrint Rating: golfers' ratings of the course, plus where it places in their personal rankings. It is not the Course Rating^™ that the USGA^® and authorized golf associations assign to each set of tees.
TheGrint Difficulty: how hard a course plays compared with every other rated course, based on the scores golfers log there.
Hidden gems: public and semi-private courses with a state rank, meaning enough golfer reviews to be ranked, that aren't on the 2026 Top 100.

How we counted: ratings, difficulty and state ranks come from TheGrint's South Carolina directory and course pages on October 26, 2026. Ratings update as golfers add reviews and rankings. For more on the lists, see how TheGrint Top 100 works.

How does TheGrint help you plan a South Carolina golf trip?

TheGrint has the scorecard, ratings and difficulty for every course before you go, and GPS and scoring when you get there.

Browse the state: all 363 South Carolina courses by city. Hilton Head has the most with 29, followed by Myrtle Beach with 25 and Bluffton with 14.
See the full lists: TheGrint's 2026 Top 100 U.S. Public list, the U.S. Private list and the rest of TheGrint Top 100.
Play and rank: free GPS on more than 40,000 courses, live scoring for your group, and the Course Ranking Game to rank each course you play.
Save it for later: add courses to your Bucket List.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best golf course in South Carolina?

Secession Golf Club in Beaufort is the best golf course in South Carolina according to golfers on TheGrint, with a TheGrint Rating of 98.1. It is a private club and No. 5 on TheGrint's 2026 Top 100 U.S. Private list. The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island (97.7) is next.

What is the best public golf course in South Carolina?

The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort is the best public golf course in South Carolina on TheGrint, with a TheGrint Rating of 97.7. It is No. 2 on TheGrint's 2026 Top 100 U.S. Public list. Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island is the state's other course on that list, at No. 42.

What are the best golf courses on Hilton Head Island?

Harbour Town Golf Links at Sea Pines is the best-rated course on Hilton Head Island on TheGrint, at 94.6, and No. 42 on the 2026 Top 100 U.S. Public list. Sea Pines' Atlantic Dunes (92.4) and Heron Point (91.6) are the next best-rated public options on the island.

How many golf courses are in South Carolina?

TheGrint's golf course directory lists 363 golf courses in South Carolina: 81 public, 168 semi-private and 114 private. Hilton Head has the most of any city with 29, followed by Myrtle Beach with 25 and Bluffton with 14. Each course page has a free scorecard for every set of tees.

What is the hardest golf course in South Carolina?

All six South Carolina courses on TheGrint's 2026 Top 100 play harder than 99% of rated courses: Secession, the Ocean Course, Congaree, Sage Valley, The Tree Farm and Harbour Town. Sea Pines' Atlantic Dunes, a public course on Hilton Head Island, also plays harder than 99%.

Plan your South Carolina round with TheGrint

Pick a course, check the scorecard and your tees, then keep score in TheGrint with free GPS distances and live scoring for your group. Rank the course when you're done to help shape next year's Top 100. Get started with TheGrint.