Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course
1 Sanctuary Beach Dr, Kiawah Island, SC 29455, USA
Tap a hole for its details · gold dots = bunkers, blue = water · the Wind and Elevation buttons color each hole by today’s wind and by climb · OpenStreetMap
The lay of the land.
How the course above sets up: its routing, character, and what to expect.
Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course is an 18-hole golf course in Kiawah Island, SC, playing 5,327–7,820 yards from 7 sets of tees (slope 125–155, course rating up to 79.1).
It's a flat walk, roughly 118 feet of total climb over 18 holes.
Expect 68 bunkers, with water on 11 holes; the back nine plays tougher.
The word on the course.
How golfers talk about it, summarized from public reviews. Their opinions, not our scoring.
One of the toughest public courses in America and a true bucket-list round, a Pete Dye layout perched on the dunes where wind can swing club selection by many clubs on a single hole. The consensus is that it punishes missed greens as much as missed tee shots, and somehow still exceeds expectations.
Consistently praised
- Pete Dye routing and dunescape unlike anything else in the country.
- Wind that turns the same hole into a different problem every round, plus PGA Championship and Ryder Cup history that lives on the property.
Worth knowing
- Brutal around the greens; even good ball-strikers can post big numbers in wind.
Golfers recommend
- Take a caddie or yardage book and trust the lines; nothing looks like it plays.
- Aim for the fat side of every green and accept the long putt.
Tee fit & expected score.
Set your handicap for the right tees, a realistic score, and the holes where you'll get a stroke.
Play the Kiawah tees, 6202 yds
How to play it
- Card-wreckers at #4, #6, #9, #10, #12, #13, #15, #18. Bogey is fine here; don't compound mistakes.
- 8 par 4s over 440 yds, a course that rewards length off the tee.
Tagged scorecard.
Per-hole tags for hazards, length, and scoring chances from your selected tee.
| Hole | Par | Yds | SI | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1• | 4 | 395 | 15 | Birdie |
| 2•• | 5 | 557 | 3 | Tough |
| 3•• | 4 | 390 | 9 | |
| 4•• | 4 | 479 | 1 | Long 4Tough |
| 5• | 3 | 214 | 11 | Long 3 |
| 6• | 4 | 480 | 13 | Long 4 |
| 7•• | 5 | 579 | 7 | |
| 8• | 3 | 197 | 17 | |
| 9•• | 4 | 499 | 5 | Long 4 |
| Out | 36 | 3790 | ||
| 10• | 4 | 447 | 16 | Long 4Birdie |
| 11•• | 5 | 593 | 8 | |
| 12•• | 4 | 486 | 10 | Long 4 |
| 13•• | 4 | 497 | 2 | Long 4Tough |
| 14• | 3 | 238 | 14 | Long 3 |
| 15• | 4 | 444 | 18 | Long 4Birdie |
| 16•• | 5 | 603 | 4 | |
| 17• | 3 | 221 | 12 | Long 3 |
| 18•• | 4 | 501 | 6 | Long 4 |
| In | 36 | 4030 | ||
All tees & ratings
| Tee | Yards | Rating | Slope | Par |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | 7820 | 79.1 | 155 | 72 |
| Tournament | 7356 | 76.8 | 153 | 72 |
| Ocean | 6779 | 73.9 | 148 | 72 |
| Dye | 6453 | 72.4 | 139 | 72 |
| Kiawah | 6202 | 71.1 | 134 | 72 |
| Governors | 5859 | 69.1 | 132 | 72 |
| Carolina | 5327 | 66.4 | 125 | 72 |
Conditions & terrain.
Today's wind by hole, the climbs and drops, and a seven-day playability outlook.
Wind today
Climbs & drops
Tee→green elevation change, estimated from terrain.
7-day outlook
Best window this week: Sat 05-30 · 89/100
Where the trouble is.
Sand and water by hole, plotted from OpenStreetMap.
Most bunkered: #1 (11) · #2 (7) · #10 (7) · #5 (5). Water on 11 holes: #1, #2, #3, #5, #6, #8, #9, #10, #13, #14, #18.
Frequently asked.
- How long is Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course?
- Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course plays 5,327–7,820 yards across 7 sets of tees, to a par of 72 from the back tees.
- How difficult is Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course?
- Its slope rating ranges 125–155, with a course rating up to 79.1. The back nine plays tougher.
- Which tees should I play at Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course?
- A mid-handicap golfer (around 15) best fits the Kiawah tees at 6,202 yards. Match your own driver distance or handicap with the tee selector on this page.
- Is Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course walkable?
- It's a flat walk, with roughly 118 feet of total elevation change over 18 holes.
- How many bunkers does Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course have?
- Kiawah Island Golf Resort · Ocean Course has 68 bunkers, and water comes into play on 12 holes.
Nearby & similar.
Other courses within reach, and the closest matches by difficulty and length.