Kiawah Island course on Zagat’s Top 10 list

Kiawah Island Golf Resort's Ocean Course is listed among the nation’s Top 10 golf courses, according to the Zagat Survey, which on Wednesday released its 2007/08 Guide to America’s Top Golf Courses.

The guide covers 1,075 golf courses in the United States, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. The Zagat Survey is based on the experiences of 6,250 golfers who played 560,000 rounds of golf in the past 12 months.

The Ocean Course, which ranks No. 7 on this year’s list, won Zagat’s award for Best Instruction/Practice Facility. The golf course also ranked high in a number of other categories: outstanding accommodations (No.2); best pro shop (No. 3); best 19th hole (No.2); and environmentally friendly (No.2).

Every course in the Zagat guide is rated on a series of variables, including course, facilities, services and value. On average, each course in the guide was visited by at least one surveyor every day of the year.

Zagat’s statistics revealed that nearly 72% of U.S. golfers have been playing at least 10 years and play an average of 7.5 rounds per month. Nearly two-thirds have scheduled trips specifically so they could play a famous course and 70% say they are planning to take between one and three golf-oriented vacations in the next 12 months.

By Daily Journal Staff