Bud, CK4, Evan, and me try to plan a golf trip each year. We’ve done Scottsdale, Austin, Ft. Lauderdale, and this year we chose Charleston, SC, specifically Kiawah Island for golf. Kiawah Island maintains the prestigious Ocean Course and we elected to forgo the $750 dollar round for 3 of their other courses. This proved a wise decision and I’ll expand further at the end.

The flight only being an hour and half was a big bonus. Travel was simple and our 8am flight got us there early enough to make a 1pm tee time at Cougar Point. We set our birdie goal at 5.5 birdies for the 3 rounds of golf. Bud got us started with a birdie at 2, however, they wouldn’t come easy from that point on. Bud led the way with a 40 front before a rough 10 and 11 derailed the train. CK4 finding his ball across the bridge was an oddity on a long par 3. He also managed a 12 on a tough par 5 with a huge tree by the green. I carded a 2nd birdie on 17 which got us to our daily goal. The 18th was a cool closing hole that we all played well to cap the day. Full Scorecard. That evening, we took a boat cruise helmed by Captain Jack and Maggie before heading to a bar to watch the Pacers.

Day 2 began with a trip to Holey Bagels (I should have waited for CK4) and I quickly ate the full sausage egg and cheese. This was a sign from the gods that I was ready to play. Osprey Point was slightly nicer than Cougar Point. This is noticed by the size of the homes surrounding the course as well as the actual course. We saw our first gator on hole #2 which was pretty cool. Regarding this round, I played above my pay grade. I ended up shooting an 80 with 12 pars on the course. I even had two short putt misses at around 2 ft, and even had a chance on 18 for a plausible birdie, to break the number. Bud’s birdie on 18 was even more amazing after he hit his drive 30 yards on a long par 5. Chad and Evan ended up tying with some scorekeeping. Evan’s handicapped round was 76 so he was playing good golf. This was the only golf picture I took on the whole trip which I regret a bit. Full scorecard.

We got Duke’s for lunch which was the ultimate southern BBQ complete with all the wild (uber-healthy) personalities. I must mention Chad had 3 plates with rice overflowing from the sides. For dinner we went to a place called Red’s on Shem Creek which was mediocre and where Evan was brave enough to order the Oysters. Cool night spot though.

I can only speak for myself but I’m always feeling the final day. I consume about a dozen Miller Lights a day and they tend to catch up. This led to me only finishing half of the sausage, egg, and cheese at Holey Bagels which is a testament to my physical condition. At Oak Point, I hit my first drive 40 yards, somehow made par, and that was the highlight of my golf. CK4 and I were cartners which is always entertaining. His line of, “you have nothing to lose” on a 250 yard shot to a par 5 after hitting my tee shot OB was solid. The back 9 was slow and we were ready to call the trip at 18, which I may add was a fabulous hole (see below). Of the 3, Osprey was easily my favorite and the other two tied. Each round was about $270 which was expensive and slightly overpriced. The 12oz beers were $9 per pop to get an idea of pricing. Full scorecard.

The final night we did some bar hopping and ate dinner at Coast. “What are you, British” is a line I don’t want to forget. The flight the next day was at 7:30am and required an early night of watching Zach Morris is Trash. Quick observation, the days fly by when you jam 3 rounds of golf into the trip. There is little time for group activities and sleep is an after thought when you’re trying to make the most of the experience.

Proud as a peacock, I shot the best round of my life on the trip. An 80 on a course with a 72/133 slope was nothing to sneeze at. I lost zero balls that day and hit some nice shots while putting consistently. It’s always nice to put together a round on a trip like this. Always looking forward to the next one. If you read this and want to be a part the next, let me know.