Persimmon Hill Golf Club

Persimmon Hill Golf Club is a Russell Breeden design that opened in 1962 and has become one of South Carolina's most architecturally-respected value-tier public rounds. Breeden is the most prolific Carolinas public-course architect of the 1960s-70s era (Carolina Club, The Pointe, dozens of North and South Carolina munis), and Persimmon Hill is considered one of his career-signature designs, a 6,925-yard par-72 layout with a 129 slope that plays significantly harder than its Saluda County rural setting suggests. The course's most-told feature is the 630-yard par-5 finishing hole, South Carolina's longest hole, which closes the round with a forced three-shot reckoning even for the longest hitters. Six spring-fed lakes come into play on five different holes, and the entire property is surrounded by water, which makes club selection and approach-angle strategy constant concerns throughout the round. For the Lake Murray / Columbia / Midlands SC trip visitor, Persimmon Hill is the can't-miss architectural round of the region, paired naturally with Cobblestone Park (Arnold Palmer, Blythewood) for a two-round Midlands SC package.