Congaree Golf Club

Tom Fazio's firm, sandy, walking-only course in the South Carolina Lowcountry, run as a charity-driven club with just two members and a youth foundation.

Dan Friedkin and the late Bob McNair founded Congaree on former plantation land in the Lowcountry near Ridgeland. It opened in 2018 and was Golf Digest's best new private course that year, with an unusual setup: the two founders are the only members, and invited 'ambassadors' support the Congaree Foundation, which funds education, job training and golf programs for young people in the region.

Tom Fazio worked in a different style from most of his courses. Sand-capped fairways play firm, big sandy waste areas cross the holes, greens sit open in front with closely mown runoffs, and discs replace tee markers. There are no cart paths, so everyone walks. The finish is four par 4s, ending with an approach over water and sand to a narrow green. The course hosted the 2021 Palmetto Championship, won by Garrick Higgo, and the 2022 CJ Cup. Bermuda greens and the absence of carts keep it closer in feel to a sandbelt course than a typical Lowcountry layout.

Holes to know

8

Par 4

Weaves between two big sandy waste areas to the green; the club's signature hole.

18

Par 4

Ends a run of four par 4s with an approach over water and sand to a narrow green.

Championships

• Palmetto Championship (PGA Tour) 2021
• CJ Cup (PGA Tour) 2022