Green Fees in the Carolinas: What It Costs to Play in 2026

The short answer

Plan on anything from roughly 40 to over 650 US dollars for the green fee in 2026, because the Carolinas run from humble daily fee golf to several of the most coveted championship rounds in the country. At the value end, weekday and twilight rounds across Myrtle Beach and the wider region start near 40 to 100 dollars. The marquee resort courses, Tobacco Road and the Donald Ross pair of Pine Needles and Mid Pines in the Sandhills, the Barefoot Resort layouts and the top Myrtle Beach courses, sit in the middle, roughly 150 to 350 dollars depending on the course and the season. And at the top sit the icons: Pinehurst No. 2, host of the 2024 US Open, the Pete Dye Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, host of the 2012 and 2021 PGA Championships, and Harbour Town on Hilton Head, home of the RBC Heritage, each commanding roughly 400 to 650 dollars or more in peak season.

The crucial point is that the gate rate is rarely what golfers actually pay. Pinehurst, Kiawah and Myrtle Beach are all built on stay and play packages that bundle lodging, meals and a round a day at a blended price, and access to No. 2 and the Ocean Course is tied to staying on property. If you are coming for golf, the package is the unit to compare. The table below gives the indicative gate prices by tier across both states; the sections beneath explain the regions, the seasons and the package math.

The regions, and what they cost

Carolinas golf falls into a few distinct worlds. The North Carolina Sandhills around Pinehurst and Southern Pines is the historic heart, the cradle of American resort golf, where Pinehurst Resort alone fields ten full courses plus the Cradle short course and where No. 2 carries the weight of US Open history. This is the most prestigious and most sought after golf in the two states, supported by independent gems such as Mike Strantz's wild Tobacco Road and the Donald Ross pair of Pine Needles and Mid Pines. The package economy here is strong, so the headline fees overstate what a planned trip costs.

South Carolina splits into two characters. Myrtle Beach and the Grand Strand is the value capital, with around a hundred courses and the most aggressive stay and play deals in the country, anchored by the four course Barefoot Resort and a long list of strong daily fee layouts. The Lowcountry, from Charleston and Kiawah Island down to Hilton Head, is the premium end, home to the Pete Dye Ocean Course at Kiawah and Harbour Town at Sea Pines, two of the most famous and most expensive rounds in American golf. A classic Carolinas trip pairs the Sandhills with either the value of Myrtle Beach or the prestige of the Lowcountry, depending on budget and taste.

How to spend, and how to save

If you play one premium round in North Carolina, make it Pinehurst No. 2; in South Carolina, the Kiawah Ocean Course or Harbour Town. Each is worth the top fee once in a golfing life. Beyond the icons, Tobacco Road is the most thrilling round in the Carolinas at a fraction of the price, the Ross duo of Pine Needles and Mid Pines deliver classic Sandhills golf and superb value, and Caledonia and True Blue near Pawleys Island are among the best value premium rounds in the country. Anchor a trip on one marquee splurge and fill the rest with strong signature and mid tier rounds.

To save, weight your golf toward summer or deep winter rather than peak spring and autumn, book afternoon and twilight tee times, and buy a stay and play package rather than paying at the gate. Myrtle Beach is built for exactly this, with packages that bundle lodging and a round a day at a blended price, while basing in the Pinehurst village or on Kiawah cuts drive times to almost nothing. A trip built around one icon and several package rounds is the sweet spot of quality and value across the Carolinas.