Closed since January, this north Grand Strand golf course is set to reopen in November
Brick Landing Plantation Golf Club will soon reopen with a new identity.
A group of residents in the Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, community formed a company that has entered into a lease-to-buy agreement and plans to reopen the course to the public on Nov. 9 following a soft opening for members and investors on Nov. 4. It has been closed since January.
The golf course has been renamed The Links at Brick Landing and the name of the restaurant in the clubhouse, which is being operated by the owners of the Purple Onion in Shallotte, N.C., has been changed from The View to Seabreeze Bar & Restaurant at Brick Landing.
The ownership group is formed as Community Partners Golf LLC, and includes founders Ken McGill, Walt Maharay, Rick Coltharp, Gene Bonstein and Bill Fredericks.
“It’s an exciting time,” McGill said. “We’ve gotten a lot of interest from the community and a lot of compliments for it, feeling that we’re a part of saving the ambiance of the community and nature of the community.”
The Links at Brick Landing has become a true community project, as more than 50 homeowners have invested a minimum of $5,000 per share in the LLC over the past couple months to become partners and infuse some money into the course.
The ownership group is accepting investors and course members from outside the community and area as well, and the owners will market to outside play.
“We’re optimistic we’ll get the members and residents to support the course, but also ultimately we expect to be able to make a case for package play and outside trips as that industry regrows itself,” McGill said.
The course has been overseeded for the winter, and the management group plans to renovate the greens next summer.
Brick Landing Plantation Golf Club is a scenic Mike Brazeal design along the Intracoastal Waterway that opened in 1987 and also includes a grand 11,000-square-foot clubhouse near the waterway’s banks.
Community Partners Golf LLC is purchasing the course from three other residents who purchased it in January in the hopes of saving it from redevelopment. McGill expects the purchase to close in mid-November. “We leased it so we could be operating on the course and getting it ready,” he said.
Russ Baltzer, a master POA board member for about the past eight years and commercial architect based in North Myrtle Beach, and two partners formed Swan Partners LLC and purchased the 125-acre course in January for $1.2 million.
Former owner Larry Doyle, who purchased Brick Landing in 2011, closed it on Jan. 1 to avoid losing money on its operation this past winter and was courting offers. The course has had a rocky run with multiple ownership changes and previous closures that the resident owners hope to stabilize.
Memberships are available at a variety of levels from Full Memberships (no green or cart fees) to Social Memberships (limited number of free golf days, gift certificates and other discounts).
Trey Maughan is the head pro. He has nearly a decade in the golf business and came from Kansas City, Missouri, where he was recruited by Maharay, who has a residence in the K.C. area.
The course’s renovations have been overseen by Steve Martin, a regional agronomist for East Coast Golf Management, and Scott Santee has been hired as the superintendent. Santee had been managing The First Tee of the Coastal Carolinas’ Cinghiale Creek facility in Shallotte, and has the use of new John Deere maintenance equipment.
Dozens of residents spent a day picking weeds to expedite the recovery process, and members have also created committees for marketing, memberships, etc.
“It’s been a lot of work for not only our core group but with community involvement,” McGill said.
A grand reopening celebration is being delayed as a precaution against the spread of the coronavirus.
CCU’s Gray wins
Coastal Carolina junior Tyler Gray earned his first collegiate win on Oct. 13, finishing in a three-way tie for first at 4-under 140 at the Intercollegiate at the Grove hosted by Middle Tennessee at The Grove Club in College Grove, Tennessee.
A 4-under 68 in the first round is the best round at CCU for Gray (6-2, 185-pound), of Lugoff and Sumter Academy, who won the 2019 South Carolina Amateur last August.
“I am super proud of Tyler. That’s a huge accomplishment on a really good golf course,” head coach Jim Garren told the CCU sports information staff. “He’s really turning into a very solid player and a leader for this team.”
Senior Zack Taylor tied for fifth at 2-under 142, closing with five birdies over his final nine holes. Coastal finished fourth overall at 1-over 577, four shots behind Middle Tennessee and also behind fellow Sun Belt Conference members Louisiana-Monroe and Appalachian State.
The Chants closed out their truncated three-tournament fall campaign last week with a 12th-place finish in an event hosted by North Texas at the tough Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas. The best individual finish by a Chant was 40th. The Chants shot a 75-over 939 and tournament champion Oklahoma State shot a 16-over 880. “We have to get tougher plain and simple,” Garren said.
CCU women add 3
Coastal women’s golf coach Katie Quinney has added three players to the 2020-21 roster: freshmen Maika Llarena of Puebla, Mexico and Nicole Abelar of the Philippines, as well as sophomore Madilyn Zimmerman of Johns Creek, Ga.
Llarena and Zimmerman are on campus now and Abelar is expected to arrive for the second semester in January.
Abelar has impressive finishes in world junior events including third place at both the 2016 IJGA World Stars of Junior Golf and 2018 Philippine Junior Amateur Open. She also won the Canluban Amateur Open in the Philippines in both 2018 and 2019. Zimmerman joins the team from the CCU PGA Golf Management program.
“Last year, she showed a tremendous ability to manage time, make great grades, and continue to improve her golf game,” Quinney said in a release.
The CCU women are playing a limited fall schedule with team members playing as individuals.
Holliday Junior upcoming
The 52nd George Holliday Memorial Junior Tournament will be played Nov. 26-28 on Myrtle Beach National Golf Club’s three courses and is now accepting entries.
The 54-hole Thanksgiving holiday tournament is open to golfers who are 18 years or younger and still in high school as of Nov. 26, and the field is limited to 160 players. The divisions are boys ages 10-11, 12-13, 14-15 and 16-18, and girls 10-12, 13-14 and 15-18, and the entry fee of $185 includes a welcome gift, and lunch and range balls on tournament days.
The reigning overall champs are UNC Wilmington signee Walker Isley of Oak Island, N.C. (boys) and St. James High junior Adrian Anderson of Murrells Inlet (girls). Lucas Glover, D.J. Trahan and Kristy McPherson are among past participants who have reached the PGA or LPGA tours.
DJ Junior dates set
The sixth Dustin Johnson World Junior Golf Championship Presented by Fujikura will be played March 5-7, 2021 at TPC Myrtle Beach. The tournament attracts many of the top juniors in not only the region but the world.
The world’s No. 1 golfer and tournament namesake intimated he would be at the event, Tweeting he was looking forward to meeting all of the participants in March.
Players interested in competing in the invitational can apply until Jan. 7 at the event’s website at WorldJuniorGolfChampionship.com. The field for the 54-hole stroke-play event is limited to 90 players and a qualifier will likely be held locally as the event nears.
Mentors on tap
The third annual Mentor Challenge, a fundraiser organized by North Myrtle Beach native and former Golf Channel personality Kelly Tilghman, will be held Saturday at Tidewater Golf Club and has been accepting entries.
The tournament benefits junior golf through the Gene’s Dream Foundation and The First Tee of the Coastal Carolinas. The four-person scramble event is $150 per player. Each player will receive their own cart and there will be tee times rather than a shotgun start as safeguards against spread of the coronavirus.
Players will receive a gift bag valued at about $300 that includes Sports Beats Bluetooth Earphones, a Puma golf hat, a one-month subscription to Short Par 4 golf apparel, Bridgestone golf balls, a Myrtle Beach Golf Trail Membership, and more. The top six finishers will receive prizes that include Cobra drivers and golf bags.
Tilghman helped create the foundation, Mentor Challenge and Mentor Cup, a nine-hole event that pairs a junior and mentor, to honor Weldon, a longtime Myrtle Beach PGA professional who mentored her.
Events have been scaled down this year because of COVID-19, however. For more information go to MentorCup.com.
Tilghman said the Gene’s Dream Foundation donated $10,000 to The First Tee of the Coastal Carolinas this summer with the hope of adding more this fall if possible. The foundation is joining forces in 2021 with Family Golf Week, which includes the National Father & Son Team Classic and Parent-Child tournament and was canceled this year because of the coronavirus.
Christmas Child tournament
D.G. Golf Management, which owns and operates the Man O’ War, The Witch, and The Wizard golf courses, is hosting the annual Christmas Child Golf Tournament on Dec. 19 at the neighboring Man O’ War and Wizard courses.
Proceeds support the funding of several projects throughout the year to provide clothing, events and joy to children in need through the Pardue Children in Need fund, including new shoes to hundreds of children at Christmas, a Christmas show at the Alabama Theatre, a spring road trip to Carowinds, water park and Family Kingdom outings, Coastal Carolina sports tickets, and a monthly movie at the Sea Mist resort.
An entry fee of $65 includes lunch and prizes for the top 16 teams. Raffle tickets and mulligan packages will be for sale. The event has a 10 a.m. shotgun start. Tournament organizers are seeking donations and sponsorships. Contact Man O’ War head pro Randy Broughton at 843-236-8000 or Randy.Broughton@mysticalgolf.com for more information.
This story was originally published October 27, 2020 at 6:12 AM.
