Best for: The single must-play of any Myrtle trip and the round your group will still be talking about in the car home. At 6,526 yards it is short enough that mid- and high-handicaps stay engaged while the greens and angles keep good players honest.

Insider tip: It is a par 70 at 6,526 yards, so leave the driver in the bag on half the holes and play to your numbers. Strantz built enormous, severely contoured greens on a small property, and the miss is almost always short and right of the flag rather than long. Budget an extra hour after the round for a beer on the clubhouse porch watching groups finish 18; it is the best hangout in Myrtle Beach golf.

Best for: Big hitters and anyone who wants Strantz at full volume. At 7,126 yards from the tips with wide corridors and dramatic sand, it rewards aggression in a way Caledonia does not.

Insider tip: Play it a set of tees forward from what your ego suggests. The waste areas are playable, you can ground your club, and the real defense is the green complexes rather than the length. Most groups play Caledonia first for the beauty, but playing True Blue first and finishing at Caledonia builds to a better ending.

Best for: The history round. Groups who want a genuine classic, a caddie-quality club experience, and the story of having played Waterloo.

Insider tip: The wind off the ocean is the whole examination here, and it swings direction between morning and afternoon, so a morning tee time plays like a different golf course. On 13 the sensible line is short and right of the water in two, then a wedge in; the heroic line ruins more scorecards than it saves. Pay the caddie or take a forecaddie if offered.

Best for: Groups who want a tournament-conditioned championship test without paying Dunes money. Also the best-conditioned course on this list on an average day.

Insider tip: This is the course where your handicap gets exposed, because unlike the Strantz layouts there is nowhere quirky to hide. Play it early in the trip while your group is still counting every stroke honestly. The practice facility is the best in the area, so arrive an hour early and use it as the range day for the whole week.

Best for: The best scenery-per-dollar round in Myrtle Beach and a good pick for a mixed-skill group, since the views carry the day even when the scores do not.

Insider tip: The bluff holes are exposed and the wind off the marsh is stronger than it looks from the tee, so take an extra club on the water holes and aim to miss on the safe side. If you are staying in Pawleys Island this is a 60-plus-minute drive north, so pair it with a north-end night rather than making it a round trip.