East Course a real bargain
By Alan Blondin
Myrtle Beach Golf Magazine
CONWAY - The Classic Golf Group management company has been proactive with improvements since it took over several courses in 2002.

The company recently focused on upgrading Burning Ridge Golf Club's East Course, and while the 1986 Gene Hamm design never will be considered one of the upscale courses on the Grand Strand, the work has turned it into one of the best bargains on the beach.

"They've turned this golf course into a very good value," said Richard Lee of Myrtle Beach, a PGA professional, former course owner and member of a foursome that reviewed the course in early March. "Classic Golf Group has done a real good job upgrading their facilities."

The 6,780-yard, par-72 layout features tree-lined fairways through established residential neighborhoods and holes protected by either water hazards or an abundance of bunkers.

The par-5s are generally short, par-3s are relatively long and have a pair of long forced carries, and par-4s vary between holes that require length and placement.

"The course has great variety," Richard said. "It's tastefully done and not too penal. It's very fair - not too terribly difficult but not too easy."

Richard and I were joined in the review foursome by Karen "Zippy" Zeip of Myrtle Beach, a retired schoolteacher who carries a 5 handicap, and Roger Dumas of Stratford, Ontario, Canada, an industrial supervisor who was on vacation and plays to a handicap near 36.

Richard played the back tees, Roger and I played the 6,216-yard white tees, and Zippy played a combination of the 5,724-yard gold tees and 4,524-yard red tees.

We saw an East Course that had its bunkers completely redone with new drainage and light white sand.

"The sand was really good, except I thought it was a little fluffy for fairway bunkers," Zippy said.

The course also has new yardage markers for sprinkler heads, signage, a starter's shack and thousands of plants and ornamental grasses. The clubhouse also received an upgrade with a new heating and air-conditioning unit, refurbished locker rooms, new tile, paint and furnishings.

"It's agronomically perfect," Richard said. "They don't have any weeds in the fairways or rough. You can tell they've done a lot of work out here. It's certainly an upgrade."

Patches of recently-laid sod in rough areas and around bunkers won't fully grow in until the Bermuda grass becomes active again at the end of spring. "When the sodding all grows in, it's going to show its true character," Richard said. "They've done an excellent job overseeding the tees, fairways and greens."

The East Course had its greens changed to TifEagle Bermudagrass a couple years ago, but we played on poa trivialis winter overseed that was plush, rolled true and was fairly quick over subtle undulations.

"When I finally got to them, I enjoyed the greens," Roger said. "They're not super-tough greens but they have enough character to them to make it interesting."

Our group considers the East Course's par-4s to be the strength of the layout. They're a mix of holes that require big drives and length, such as the third, 10th, 11th and 14th holes that measure between 400 and 450 yards, and short holes with a lot of character, including the fourth, sixth, eighth and 16th holes measuring between 343 and 384 yards.

The fourth hole measures 317 from the white and turns gradually to the right around a water hazard. The hole requires only a mid- to long-iron tee shot that avoids water on the right and a pair of bunkers on the left, and short iron approach to an elevated green that slopes to the water that fronts it.

The sixth hole is a severe dogleg left measuring just 323 from the white tees. There's a back fairway bunker at the bend and a multitude of bunkers along the inside of the bend and around the green. You see a lot of sand off the tee, but "you still have plenty of room to play it," Roger said. "It's very comfortable.

"... The fairways are very forgiving. It's a forgiving course, which I know I need, but it's honest. For snowbirds coming down here and starting out the year, it's a good course for that. It's fun to play."

The par-3s each measure at least 185 yards from the tips and stretch to 247. The length drops between 153 and 200 from the whites. "All of the par-3s are long," Richard said. "I would have enjoyed hitting shorter irons on one or two."

The 185-yard second hole has water behind the green and a pair of bunkers to the left of the green, the 209-yard fifth has a pair of bunkers front left and front right, and the 187-yard 17th requires a shot over water to a green protected by bunkers on all four sides.

The 247-yard 12th hole, which Richard played from about 235 yards, requires a carry nearly all the way to the green, with a small bailout area to the left, where a bunker also resides.

"I don't mind the distance, but there's no real place on the left to bail out. Not for this length of hole," Richard said. "It's okay to have a long hole, but the penalty should be length, not length and water."

The 12th also got the best of Roger. "That hole was brutal," he said. "It's a make or break hole over water."

The course has no true signature holes, though the second hole probably is as close as it comes. "It might be one of the drawbacks that they don't have any one hole that stands out," Roger said.

The par-5 first hole presents a challenge with a length of 571 yards from the blue and 546 from the white tees, and water crossing the fairway less than 100 yards from the green, but the other three par-5s present at least birdie opportunities. They measure between 481 and 529, and shorten to between 455 and 501 yards from the whites.

"The par-5s are probably a little short for good players," Richard said.

The seventh hole measures just 481 from the blue and 455 from the white and is a strong eagle possibility, turning left near the green with bunkers along the left to catch any attempt that comes up short.

The 484-yard 15th forces players to make a decision with water 20 yards from an elevated green - three of us reached the green in two - and the 529-yard 18th turns slightly to the left and has a trio of bunkers surrounding a green in the shadow of the clubhouse.

Zippy generally enjoyed the length of the gold tees compared to the red.

"This course is very lady-friendly," she said. "It's not too long, there aren't a lot of forced carries and the tee boxes are level, raised and kept up. Sometimes courses just throw them anywhere."

Zippy did suggest the course add course and slope ratings for women to the men's ratings from the white and gold tees.