Pros/Cons of being a member at Musgrove that lives in Gvl County from my experience.
Pros: awesome layout, tee-to-green condition is very good…greens are phenomenal, practice facility is amazing, gets less play than other courses in Gvl/Spbg Counties (although gets more than it did 2-3 yrs ago), very few club tournaments (which is my preference but could be a Con to some), price is really good for what you get out of the other pros I’ve listed
Cons: the drive…and it’s not just the time, it’s the miles; if you’re over a ~3-4 handicap you’re going to lose a metric shit ton of golf balls, it’s a very challenging walk (although I do it regularly), cant make tee times for the upcoming weekend until Wednesday unless you’re a fully McConnell member, aren’t any real “groups” to join out there…you have to make your own, bar/grill isn’t very active except for a few select times, it’s a terrible track to take clients/co-workers/etc. unless they’re a strong stick
All-in-all, I love being a member and would drop my other membership in Gvl County before I would drop Musgrove but you have to be a bit of a sicko to enjoy it. Unless you have a job where you have the flexibility to be down there some during the week and either have the game to handle the difficulty or the nerve to deal with losing balls, then you probably won’t enjoy it. But if you’re a golf sicko and love the challenge, can deal with the drive and are committed to going down regularly…you’ll love it.
I’m a bit of a night owl so if I’m going to play that weekend I usually book at 12 AM on Wednesday (Tuesday night) then I have no issue getting almost whatever I want and even if I wait until Wednesday morning to book, I can almost always get something before 10 AM on the weekends.
Solo rounds in the afternoon down at Musgrove are the best. Throw in some headphones to walk 18 by myself in about 2.5 hrs and see more turkeys/deer than people. Can’t beat it. But I’m in the same boat as you…the grill aspect isn’t a big deal for me. My kids are young so I’m not looking to hang around for multiple hours after a round.
They have a one-day Member-Member in April, a multi-day Member-Guest in in the early summer, Club Championship in October and then the Musgrove Invitational in November (but two members can’t play together). Then of course the SCGA Four-Ball is there in May but the course is only closed Weds-Thurs for that…tee times are available Fri-Sun.
If you end up joining, let me know and we’ll get out there.
Thanks for this info. I’m 90% going to do it because the Carolina Invitational category is such a good deal. Paying too much at HT and I feel guilty when I go to other places to play.
Lucky. I’ve been trying to book a preview round too. Dude just doesn’t respond very quickly so I book other places. I know this is the south but kind of makes me disinterested as a reflection of the support I’d receive as a member. Very common with these for profit clubs. No assessments is the trade off I guess. But membership directors are supposed to be selling me and it feels like I’m trying to buy something from him.
Yeah, took 8 days and a follow up to learn that weekend doesn’t work. Now we will see how long before I find out if any day Jul 2-6 works. I’ve been able to get out at Three Pines 3 times in the same amount of time.
But unequivocally, Musgrove is the top of everyone’s must play list so need to know if it’s worth the squeeze myself.
Got done with the preview round and it was as I expected and @CUTiger81 said, definitely pack extra balls. I didn’t play good or awful but lost a few on silly shots.
Conditions were pretty good. Some furry tee boxes and bare spots in greens but I’m guessing that’s the case in the summers.
Could use some tree pruning and some removal. Will also probably need a wedge with less bounce from the waste areas.
Did the drive back in 38 minutes. Overall think I will move forward with the application process barring any surprises in the details.
38 minutes isn’t too bad at all. Hope you enjoyed it.
Greens were aerated the day after Memorial Day and with the heat we’ve had, there are a couple spots that are a little bare. Really only on a few edges though and those will heal.
The waste areas are actually much better than they were a year ago, they’ve done a good job of getting more sand in them. Just have to use different technique, if you try to slide under it like a normal bunker shot, you’re toast. I try to square the club a little more than normal and feel like I’m trying to leave the clubhead in the sand to make sure it doesn’t bounce into the ball.
Will be in town for a couple days soon. Currently an active member of Northern Cal Roost, but potentially relocating to Savannah so swinging by Charleston as a detour.
Booking an early AM round for Charleston Muni on 6/30. Will grab spots for a few folks in case anyone here cares to join.
I am going to be in Folly Beach early July and wanted to get out and play a few mornings. Any course recommendations? Stono Ferry? I haven’t played in SC before. I wish I could spend time at Kiawah, but not this trip. Any feedback is appreciated.
Being at Folly, the closest course to play is the Charleston Muni, which I highly recommend. You will need to make a tee time exactly 7 days out though if you want to play because it fills up quick. Other good courses that are on the other side of the peninsula in Mt. Pleasant are Patriots Point (great views but pretty forgettable course), Wild Dunes (2 courses) on Isle of Palms, Charleston National (my favorite besides the Muni), RiverTowne (tons of water) and Dunes West. There are other courses in N. Charleston but since I live in Mt. Pleasant I typically just play the ones I mentioned above.
@CTFigueroa wants you to spend some serious time in the car and visit him on the Mt. P side of the peninsula.
He did point out the Muni though, which will be your closest. Stono Ferry would probably be the next best for you. I play it a few times a year and it’s a good low country track. If you need a third close, it would be Shadowmoss. I can’t speak to it since I’ve never played but it’ll be the closest to Folly.
As a quick aside- has anyone played the Muni lately or know what is going on there? A friend sent us pictures of the 10th green and I couldn’t believe it. It looks like they lost a good portion of the green? I understand it has been dry here, but I pretty sad when I saw it. Hopefully they can fix it soon
10th green is dead around the edges. Maybe cause its mostly in the shade, not sure tho. But that’s the only one. Course is in great shape right now honestly, has finally softened up (a little).
