Myrtle Beach Celebrates Its 75th with Cake and... Presumably... Golf

A vintage postcard shows Pine Lakes Club House                                                      via Travel Belles 

"The city of Myrtle Beach will celebrate its 75th birthday with cake, punch and refreshments at 1 p.m. Tuesday before the City Council meeting.  ~ The public is invited to attend the celebration, held in council chambers at the Ted. C. Collins Law Enforcement Center, 1101 N. Oak St. People who also have March 12 birthdays are invited to celebrate with the city."

From the time the coastal South Carolina town of Myrtle Beach was incorporated in 1938, and throughout the remainder of the 20th century, it developed into a tourist destination that today hosts nearly 15 million visitors annually. Its expansive beaches and mild climate have made it a highly desirable destination for snowbirds, spring breakers and vacationing families.  Not to mention golfers.

Myrtle Beach Golf - Vintage Postcard       via CardCow

In fact, this seaside resort is often referred to as the "Golf Capital of the World" and with over 100 courses, the sheer variety of golf experiences on offer can make your Myrtle Beach golf trip seem like a global golf holiday.  As if to reinforce this perception there's even one course, the International World Tour Golf Links, that replicates 27 of the planet's most renown golf holes, allowing an armchair golf traveler to play a bit of Valderrama and a touch of Royal Melbourne in the same round... while also getting a taste of St. Andrew's Old Course and living the universal Amen Corner fantasy.

Myrtle Beach, like many coastal resort areas, has had to deal with the occasional damaging storm... as well as the changing demands of consumers. In the process some of its historical buildings and landmarks were torn down to accommodate modern visitors more interested in convenient condos and  massive water parks than quaint pavilions and grand old beach hotels.

However, the encouraging thing... as this milestone birthday celebration gets underway... is that the benefits of historic preservation in Myrtle Beach now seem clear to a growing number of its citizens, seasonal visitors, architects and elected officials. Projects like the restoration of the Myrtle Beach Train Depot have won awards and attracted national attention making the future of remaining historical structures more secure.

As a history buff... and an avid recreational golfer... this makes Myrtle Beach quite compelling to me... which is probably a good thing because my husband has been visiting the town... and many of its golf courses... with increasing frequency these past couple of years, and is now talking seriously about spending winters on the South Carolina coast... or even relocating there altogether.  Of course he's a nomadic Frenchman who's lived all over the globe,  while my coastal Connecticut roots are deep, but the prospects of year round golf and walks on the beach in February sound very seductive to me right now so I'm actually considering the possibility of spending winter 2014 in Myrtle Beach.

In the meantime,  I'll wish the city a Happy Birthday and start making a list of the courses I want to play.