If you have not been here, go.  If you haven’t been here in a few years, go again.
Berkeley Country Club at Exeter Plantation is located on OLD Highway 52 which runs parallel to New 52 between Goose Creek and Moncks Corner.  Just plug it into your GPS or bust out Map Quest.  You will find it’s an easy trip from North Charleston, Summerville, Goose Creek and Moncks Corner.  If you’re coming from further points, you will still find it an easy ride.  It seems long going out, if you don’t know where you are going, but the trip home will seem much shorter.

 

 

To give you an idea of the course, I will describe a few holes to you.  Hole number 1 is a par 4.  You can see it is a dog leg left, but there is a slight drop off toward the green at the turn.  Down the left is the driving range and OB.  The fairway opens up to the right and is lined with trees.  A well-hit shot down the left side will provide good results.  If you bail out right, it just makes the trip to the green a little longer.  Our approach shots to the green were between 130 and 160 yards, and everyone’s ball held the green nicely.
Hole number 5 is a par 3.  From the blue tees it is 202 yards.  There is water in front of the green, but as always it should not come into play.  There are trees down the right side and a bunker on the front left side and a smaller one on the right.  In order to  give you a proper sand report, I hit my ball into the green side bunker.  The sand in this and every bunker we played was excellent with near perfect fluff and depth.  These sand bunkers take away all of your excuses; if you come out badly, it is on you.
We found the teeing grounds to be in good condition as were the fairways.  The rough was cut to allow you a reasonable lie and the opportunity to make a good recovery shot.  One thing we found especially dramatic was the lack of houses surrounding the fairways.  There are OB markers along roads and property lines as well as protecting you from the temptation of wandering out into the driving range to find that miss-hit ball.  Some of the fairways run parallel to each other with a tree line to separate them.  This will allow you to find a miss hit ball and perhaps save a stroke here and there, but it is never any fun hitting from the wrong fairway.  The fairways and cart paths are marked with 200, 150 and 100 yard markers.  Plus there are bird houses on the side opposite the cart path at 150 yards.
We were impressed with the greens. They had a very good finish, and when we played in early May they were filled in very well.  While the greens had undulation and roll, they were not carnival-like.  With a good read, our ball would stay on path and give us a reasonable chance to make the putt.  With the exception of one or two greens, we found them able to hold your approach shots very well.
We played the front 9 from the blue tees and the back 9 from the white.  For the average golfer, stick with the white tees, and they will give you all you want.  Most dramatically, the blue tees will turn a challenging 150 yard par 3 into a 200 yard test of skill.
Beverage cart service is not provided during the week, but the bar and grill are right next to the number 10 tee box so load up before and at the turn and you will be fine.  The grill offers many menu options, and our food was prepared fresh and delicious.  Just as important, they do not think they are a resort course, and food and beverage prices are very reasonable.
For anyone who played this course just a few years ago, you will see that a lot of effort has gone into bringing this course’s condition to a new level.  This course may not be for everybody, but it is a course that everybody should play.  I am positive that there are folks out there who would find Berkeley Country Club a nice home away from home.  Not only is it a Country Club... it is a Club in the Country.  Berkeley Country Club is open to the public and very affordable.  Their staff will treat you like they are glad you are there, and because of their greens fees this is one of the very best golf values around.