Single-family homes here run roughly $390K to $690K as of July 2026, with townhomes and the smaller Park and Reserve sections starting near $150K. The beach at North Myrtle Beach is about 15 minutes down Highway 9. For golfers, the resume is hard to argue with: one of only two Nicklaus designs in the Myrtle Beach market, and the host course for the 2026 World Amateur Handicap Championship.
About Long Bay
Long Bay grew up around its golf course, and the course is the reason most buyers find it. Jack Nicklaus designed it as a Signature course, and it opened in 1988 off Highway 9 in the quiet inland stretch of Horry County between the North Strand beaches and the state line. Almost four decades later the community reads as established: mature trees, custom homes on lots of roughly a third of an acre and up, and a course that still ranks among the toughest and most recognizable on the Grand Strand.
Two holes carry the reputation. The par-4 10th, with its horseshoe of waste bunker wrapping an elevated fairway, is one of the most photographed holes in the Myrtle Beach market. The par-3 13th plays to a compact island green. Golf Digest’s “Places to Play” gives Long Bay 4.5 stars, and the club’s greens were rebuilt in Champion Bermuda in 2023, so the conditions match the pedigree. In 2026 the course hosts rounds of the World Amateur Handicap Championship, the largest single-site amateur tournament in the world, which says something about how the course is regarded locally.
The club is run by Founders Group International and operates as a semi-private course: public tee times are bookable, and residents can take golf or social memberships but don’t have to. Golf carts are allowed on community streets, so owners ride from their garage to their tee time. That optional structure matters for the monthly math. You are not buying into a mandatory country-club fee stack here, you are buying a home next to a course you can join if you want to.
The community has a few distinct sections. The main Long Bay section holds the larger custom homes, most between about 2,000 and 4,000 heated square feet with three or four bedrooms. The Park at Long Bay and The Reserve at Long Bay carry smaller, more affordable single-family homes, and The Villas at Long Bay is the townhome section. Screened porches and fairway views are common across the community; brick and Lowcountry-style exteriors show up throughout.
Long Bay real estate market
The figures below describe Long Bay as of July 2026 and are stamped accordingly. Real estate data moves; treat these as a snapshot for orientation, and ask Phil for the current week’s numbers in the community.
Jack Nicklaus Signature, opened 1988, par 72, about 7,000 yards
Single-family homes (main section)
Park, Reserve, and Villas sections
Typical size (main section)
about 2,000 to 4,000 sq ft, 3 to 4 bedrooms
roughly 1/3 acre and up in the main section
listings averaged around 148 days on market community-wide
The spread between sections is the story of this market. A townhome in the Villas and a 3,500-square-foot custom home backing the 10th fairway are different purchases that share the same course and the same address, so the right comparable depends on the section, not the community average. Course-side lots in the main section carry the premium. The Park and Reserve sections give buyers a lower-cost way into a Nicklaus-course neighborhood, and they tend to move on price and condition rather than golf frontage.
Schools serving Long Bay
Long Bay is served by Horry County Schools . Longs sits between two attendance areas, and the line runs through the community’s part of the county:
– The Loris attendance area: Daisy Elementary School, Loris Middle School, and Loris High School.
– The North Myrtle Beach attendance area: Riverside Elementary, North Myrtle Beach Middle, and North Myrtle Beach High.
Confirm the exact zone for any specific Long Bay address with Horry County Schools before you buy. The district’s attendance lookup settles it in a minute, and we check it as part of any offer we write here.
Amenities and Lifestyle
Life in Long Bay is organized around the course, the beach drive, and the Highway 9 corridor:
1. Long Bay Golf Club: the Nicklaus Signature course itself, with a pro shop, grill, practice range, and putting green at the clubhouse.
2. Community pool, clubhouse, and tennis: available through optional membership rather than bundled into dues.
3. The North Strand beaches: Cherry Grove Beach is about 9 miles southeast, and the center of North Myrtle Beach is roughly 15 minutes by car.
4. North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex: 160 acres of trails, playgrounds, a dog park, and an amphitheater at 150 Citizens Circle in Little River.
5. Everyday errands on Highway 9: a Food Lion sits at 110 Highway 9 East, with the bigger grocery and retail options (Publix, Walmart, Coastal North Town Center) toward North Myrtle Beach.
Dinner options in Longs itself are the kind locals argue about: Parkway Bistro at 2126 Highway 9 East does Italian and American, and Hwy Nine Grillhouse at 1800 Highway 9 covers the casual end. The waterfront restaurants of Little River are a short drive east. Buyers comparing inland golf communities usually tour Long Bay alongside Aberdeen and Tidewater Plantation, its nearest golf neighbors, before deciding.
HOA and community details
Long Bay has an HOA that local agents describe as reasonably priced, and the Villas townhomes carry their own association on top. Golf, pool, and tennis access are optional memberships rather than bundled costs, which keeps base dues down but means the all-in monthly number depends on what you join. Published dues figures are not reliable enough to print here. Confirm the current HOA amount, what it covers, and membership pricing for the specific section before writing an offer; we pull this from the listing and the association directly on every Long Bay deal.
Why buyers choose Long Bay
Long Bay is the move for a buyer who wants a serious golf course out the back door at inland prices. A Nicklaus Signature design, custom homes in the $400s to $600s, and townhomes starting near $150K is a combination the oceanfront cannot offer, and the 15-minute beach drive keeps the coast in easy reach. It is also, honestly, a golfer’s community first: if the course means nothing to you, nearby Colonial Charters or the value condos at Aberdeen may fit better. The full golf-community landscape across the Strand is mapped in the golf guide and the gated and golf communities guide.
Frequently asked questions about Long Bay
