On-site dining: In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, great golf and food are closer than you think

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. -- Sometimes, the 18 holes during a day on the golf course are all you need.

Clean fairways, a solid putting surface and a cart that won't die will do the trick. For others, what happens before and after a round is a must-have to complete the experience.

Myrtle Beach has long been known as an area with ample distractions. For some courses, though, there's no reason to go crazy looking for a bar or restaurant to chase the golf.

They may already be closer than you think. These Myrtle Beach-area golf course have on-site food-and-beverage operations that are tops on the Grand Strand.

When Pine Lakes Country Club, the oldest golf course on South Carolina's Grand Strand, refurbished its clubhouse, it wasn't simply adding to the company's already impressive wedding and private-event business.

It was attempting to ensure the Robert White Pub remained the centerpiece of a spectacular course and clubhouse for its golfing clientele. Consider the mission accomplished.

From a spot at the bar, a quick swivel of the high-back chairs give relaxing patrons a taste of the spot where Sports Illustrated was conceived a little more than 60 years ago. Just off to one side is the pro shop; to the other is the original ball room, still used for events galore.

In between sits the focal point that is Pine Lakes' renovated pub.

One of the largest clubhouses in and around Myrtle Beach is centrally located between the three primary Legends Golf and Resort courses, Moorland, Heathland and Parkland.

And Legends has proved that bigger is better when it comes to its bar and grill.

Let's put it this way: In addition to pub food and a diverse beer and cocktail selection, the room also holds a quick-fire pizza oven for those choosing to go that route. The U-shaped room wraps around an over-sized bar of the same design.

The set-up allows Legends' home site to maximize its play. Most rounds are packaged with breakfast, lunch and two drinks. It's a strategy that has worked in terms of the play sheet and one that often lends itself to an eventful bar scene during the peak seasons. Numerous flat-screen TVs adorn the walls, leading to plenty of available sports entertainment throughout the year.

A case can be made for River Oaks Golf Plantation owning a bar setting as relaxing as any in the Myrtle Beach area.

That's a coup of sorts, considering the ownership group was making the most of a less-than-stellar situation. With a relatively small clubhouse, the management decided to take advantage of some space behind the building.

It laid fresh concrete, added a stand-alone bar, a BBQ grill and plenty of umbrella-laden tables and chairs.

Now, the environment is the setting for some large post-round gatherings, especially for the numerous groups that play weekly shoot-outs on River Oaks' three nine-hole courses, Fox, Otter and Bear.

Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, a Pawleys Island property, isn't only home to one of the most prestigious Grand Strand golf courses.

Inside the Old South-style clubhouse sits a restaurant that for decades has been the meeting place of the facility's owners. Like the course, they spare no expense on making sure top-notch food and drink options are readily available.

There's ample seating inside and out -- the latter of which includes a view of the pond supplying water to the centuries-old rice plantation. In the comfort of a screened porch, onlookers can also spy views of the historic, par-4 18th which caps one of the finest rounds South Carolina has to offer.