You’re standing on the first tee at Caledonia. The air in Pawleys Island smells like ploughed earth and salt marshes. It’s quiet. Then you look at the little piece of card in your hand. Most people think the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard is just a list of distances and par values. It isn't. It’s a roadmap through a minefield designed by the late, great Mike Strantz. If you treat it like a standard muni card, you’re going to have a long, painful afternoon involving a lot of "reloading" from your bag.
The scorecard says it’s a par 70. That’s the first thing that trips people up. You see "70" and think, "Oh, it's short, I can overpower this place." That is exactly what Strantz wanted you to think. At just about 6,500 yards from the back "Pintail" tees, it looks digestible on paper. But paper doesn't account for the massive live oaks or the way the greens move like a stormy sea.
Reading between the lines of the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard
Let's get real about the numbers. The course rating from the back is 72.1 with a slope of 140. For a par 70, that is incredibly spicy. It means the course plays significantly harder than its raw yardage suggests. If you’re playing the Mallard tees (the whites, basically), you’re looking at 6,121 yards. Honestly, for most double-digit handicappers, that’s plenty of golf course.
The layout is unique because it features more par 3s and fewer par 5s than your average resort track. You’ve got four par 3s and two par 5s. This configuration means your short-iron game and your ability to lag putt are going to dictate your mood at the 19th hole.
The front nine grind
The journey starts with a par 4 that isn't too intimidating, but by the time you hit the par-3 3rd hole, the "Fish Club" part of the name starts to make sense. You’re hitting over water to a green that feels smaller than it actually is. The scorecard says it's 187 yards from the back, but depending on the wind coming off the Waccamaw River, it might play like a 210-yard beast or a soft 7-iron.
Then there’s the 9th. It’s a short par 4, only 371 yards. It looks like a birdie opportunity on the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard. It’s a lie. The green is nestled right up against the clubhouse porch where people are eating shrimp po' boys and watching you blade your wedge into the sand. The pressure is visceral.
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Those par 3s will ruin your week
Most courses have one "signature" par 3. Caledonia has four that all want to take your lunch money.
The 6th hole is a monster. It’s 202 yards. Water everywhere. If you look at the handicap ranking on the card, it’s often ranked as one of the toughest holes on the front side. You can’t miss short. You can’t really miss long. You basically have to hit the shot of your life just to record a four and move on with your dignity intact.
Then you have the 11th. It’s shorter, around 167 yards, but the bunkering is pure Strantz—deep, jagged, and intimidating. This is where the scorecard's "handicap" column starts to look like a series of cruel jokes.
Why the yardage is a distraction
Check the yardage for hole 13. It’s a par 4, 398 yards from the back. Sounds simple, right? But the hole drapes around a massive oak tree. If you hit a "good" drive down the center-left, you might find yourself blocked out entirely.
The Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard doesn't tell you about the shadows. Because the course is built on an old rice plantation, the canopy is dense. In the late afternoon, the light plays tricks on your depth perception. You’ll look at the yardage on the card, look at your GPS, and your brain will still tell you it’s 20 yards further than it is. Trust the card, not your eyes.
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The legendary 18th hole finish
If you haven't played here before, the 18th is going to stay with you. It’s a par 4, 383 yards. On the scorecard, it looks like a mid-range finisher. In reality, you have to carry a vast expanse of water to reach a green that sits directly below the clubhouse.
- The Drive: You need to find the fairway. Sounds obvious. But the landing area narrows the further you hit it.
- The Approach: This is the "theatre" of Myrtle Beach golf. There are usually dozens of people on the back deck of the clubhouse watching.
- The Green: It’s multi-tiered. If the pin is in the back and you’re on the front, three-putting is a very real, very embarrassing possibility.
The scorecard shows this as the #2 handicap hole on the back nine for a reason. It’s not about length; it’s about nerves.
Pro-Tips for your round
Don't just stare at the total yardage. Look at the individual hole handicaps. At Caledonia, the "easiest" holes (ranked 17 and 18) are often the ones where you get overconfident and make a triple.
- Club up on the par 3s: The wind is almost always moving more than you think.
- Ignore the "Par 70" ego trip: Play the tees that match your actual carry distance, not your "I hit it 300 once in 2012" distance.
- Watch the slope: A 140 slope is no joke. It means for every stroke your handicap is, the course adds about 1.4 strokes of actual difficulty.
The Fish Club Factor
Let’s talk about the "Fish Club" part of the name. It’s not just branding. The water hazards are everywhere. When you look at the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard, notice how many holes have a little water drop symbol or are bordered by blue on the map.
The 16th hole is a par 4 that plays 417 yards. It’s long. It’s straight. And it’s got water all along the right side. If you’re a slicer, this hole is your nightmare. The card says it’s the #4 handicap, but if the wind is blowing, it’s easily the hardest hole on the property.
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Managing your expectations
Golfers come to the Waccamaw Golf Trail expecting easy resort golf. Caledonia is not that. It’s "sculpted" golf. It’s art you can play in. But art can be prickly.
If you shoot your handicap here, you’ve played out of your mind. Honestly, most people should add three to four strokes to their usual score just to set a realistic goal. If you usually shoot 85, a 90 at Caledonia is a fantastic score. The green complexes are just too complex for most casual players to navigate without a few lip-outs.
Tactical takeaways for your next tee time
To actually conquer the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club scorecard, you need a strategy that involves leaving the driver in the bag more often than you'd like.
- Tee Selection: If your handicap is above 12, do not play the Pintail tees. You won't have fun, and the group behind you will hate you. The Mallard or Wood Duck tees are the "sweet spot" for most.
- Green Mapping: Use the pin sheet. Seriously. The scorecard gives you the yardage to the center, but these greens can be 40 yards deep. Being on the wrong tier is a guaranteed bogey.
- The "Strantz" Philosophy: Remember that Mike Strantz wanted to visually intimidate you. He uses big bunkers and mounds to make targets look smaller. Focus on the yardage on your card, pick your spot, and trust your swing.
When you finish and walk up those steps to the clubhouse, grab a drink and look back at the 18th. You’ll see exactly why that scorecard is a keepsake. It’s a record of a battle against one of the most beautiful, frustrating, and rewarding designs in the United States.
Next Steps for Your Round:
Download the digital version of the course layout before you arrive to study the forced carries. Check the local weather specifically for wind gusts in Pawleys Island, as the marshland can create "tunnels" that make the scorecard yardages play completely different from hour to hour. Finally, make sure you arrive at least 30 minutes early to practice your lag putting on the practice green—the speed and undulation there are a perfect match for what you'll face on the course.