Shell Landing

Getting To Know: Shell Landing Golf Club

An Insightful Interview With Kenny Hughes, CEO

By Brian Weis

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Kenny Hughes who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
The course is a Davis Love III Signature design that opened in 2000. It is located about a mile from the Gulf of Mexico, so the course has holes located along bayous, marsh grass and pine savannah. The proximity to the Gulf allows for sea breezes that keeps you cool in the summer and keep afternoon showers away. The course has wide fairways, large undulating greens and 64 sand bunkers. The greens are Tif-Eagle Bermuda with green speeds that average 9 on the stimp meter. Fairways are Tif-Sport that make the ball sit up like it's on a tee. The amenities include a beautiful clubhouse, large outdoor deck, showers facilities, two practice greens, greenside and fairway bunkers. The hitting area on the practice range is large and well manicured.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
I opened Shell Landing 12 years ago, and everyone tells me what a pretty layout we have. Shell Landing gives you the total golf experience without breaking the bank. The course has five sets of tees which makes it enjoyable for every level of player. The course stretches over a wide area which makes you feel one with nature. The area has deer, alligators, rabbits, fox and a variety of birds. The pine savannahs have an abundance of flowers that change with the seasons. The rates are affordable and range from $35 - $99 depending on the time of day and season. Finally, and the most important reason to play Shell Landing, is our southern hospitality. It is who we are, and we want you to enjoy yourself and come back again.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
All Bermuda greens have some level of grain in them. The grain at Shell Landing runs predominately to the Southeast which is the direction of the setting sun. The greens are also big, so you should practice long putts before you head to the first tee. The bunkers are deep; so if you hit into a fairway bunker, make sure you use enough loft to get out. Being close to the Gulf, the air is a little heavier. So use one more club if in doubt.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
When Shell Landing opened it received the honor of the 5th Best high end course to open in America for 2002 by Golf Digest. It also has a 4 star rating by Golf Digest and is in the top three courses you can play in Mississippi.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
The most photographed hole is #6 a 440 yard par 4. From the back tees it has a forced carry of 200 yards over marsh. To the left of the fairway is marsh, and the right is guarded by two deep bunkers. The green is on a peninsula that is surrounded by marsh. The right side of the green has a bunker and a bail out area for the faint of heart. The hole also runs due South towards the Gulf so the prevailing wind is usually in your face.

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
#16 par 5 521 yards from the back tees dog leg left. If you cut the corner just right, then you have a chance to get home in two. The fairway goes downhill around 250 yards from the tee. If you get it over "Sissy Ridge" it will roll another 30 yards. Then you have a great view of natural beauty. The green sits up and has run offs on every side. A large bunker guards the front and you must avoid at all cost. Hit your second shot out to the left and you will have a perfect angle into the green for your third shot.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
The Philly steak and cheese is the ticket with a cold Sam Adams from the keg. Sit back and watch what's on the two flat screen tvs, and reflect on the outstanding experience you just had.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Chris Smith shot 66 the first time he played the course. He had only one bogey on his card, and it was a three putt on the ninth hole. Chris was a member on the PGA Tour and was on vacation with his father and friends.

Steve Wilson also shot 66 in a tournament, and I was playing with him that day. Steve won the Mid Amateur in 2008 and was invited to play in the 2009 Masters. Steve is a local who is a top rated player in the state.

Lane Pippin, a club member, also shot 66 a few times and is an excellent player. He has won the Mississippi State Amateur once and the State Open twice in the past 10 years.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 72
Yardage: 7,024
Slope: 134
Rating: 73.8

More Information
Shell Landing Golf Club
3499 Shell Landing Blvd.
Gautier, Mississippi, 39553
228-497-5683
www.shelllanding.com

Revised: 11/28/2012 - Article Viewed 33,021 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the mastermind behind GolfTrips.com, a vast network of golf travel and directory sites covering everything from the rolling fairways of Wisconsin to the sunbaked desert layouts of Arizona. If there’s a golf destination worth visiting, chances are, Brian has written about it, played it, or at the very least, found a way to justify a "business trip" there.

As a card-carrying member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA), and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG), Brian has the credentials to prove that talking about golf is his full-time job. In 2016, his peers even handed him The Shaheen Cup, a prestigious award in golf travel writing—essentially the Masters green jacket for guys who don’t hit the range but still know where the best 19th holes are.

Brian’s love for golf goes way back. As a kid, he competed in junior and high school golf, only to realize that his dreams of a college golf scholarship had about the same odds as a 30-handicap making a hole-in-one. Instead, he took the more practical route—working on the West Bend Country Club grounds crew to fund his University of Wisconsin education. Little did he know that mowing greens and fixing divots would one day lead to a career writing about the best courses on the planet.

In 2004, Brian turned his golf passion into a business, launching GolfWisconsin.com. Three years later, he expanded his vision, and GolfTrips.com was born—a one-stop shop for golf travel junkies looking for their next tee time. Today, his empire spans all 50 states, and 20+ international destinations.

On the course, Brian is a weekend warrior who oscillates between a 5 and 9 handicap, depending on how much he's been traveling (or how generous he’s feeling with his scorecard). His signature move" A high, soft fade that his playing partners affectionately (or not-so-affectionately) call "The Weis Slice." But when he catches one clean, his 300+ yard drives remind everyone that while he may write about golf for a living, he can still send a ball into the next zip code with the best of them.

Whether he’s hunting down the best public courses, digging up hidden gems, or simply outdriving his buddies, Brian Weis is living proof that golf is more than a game—it’s a way of life.