The Avocet Course at Wild Wing, designed by Jeff Brauer and three-time major champion Larry Nelson, is one of Myrtle Beach’s most criminally underrated golf courses.

Located just miles from the beach along Highway 501, the main thoroughfare into the area, Wild Wing hides in plain sight. Avocet is a course worth seeking out to include on your next golf trip and here are five reasons you need to add it to your itinerary.

– Let’s start with when you can play. Avocet is one of the few area courses that single tee throughout the day, meaning you can tee off any time. If you and the boys know you are going to be singing the night away at Crocodile Rocks and don’t want to get up too early, you can book at 10:30 a.m. tee time. It’s a nice incentive.

– You will always remember the par 4 14th hole (top photo), which plays just 265 yards from the white tees. There is a difference between a short par 4 and a drivable one, and many players have a legit chance to reach Avocet’s 14th green. It’s not easy, especially with the mounding surrounding the putting surface, but it’s absolutely doable and for us average players, the possibility of an eagle putt is exhilarating.

– From split fairways and double greens to dramatic mounding and swales, Avocet is a funhouse ride. At alternating times the layout is thrilling, anxiety inducing and always fun. This is a design golfers talk about and your group certainly will too.

– A significant part of Avocet’s charm is the challenge it provides on and around the greens. The putting surfaces are undulating and the surrounding sand and swales offer the opportunity for creative recovery shots players relish. Avocet is a course that rewards imagination and that only adds to the enjoyment.

– Did we mention Wild Wing is also home to the 9-hole Hummingbird course, opening up the possibility of playing 27 holes? The par 34 layout is the perfect way to cap a day for groups that aren’t ready to quit after 18.

The conditioning, creativity and fun make Avocet a course you need to play.