Shell Landing Golf Club

Overview: Shell Landing Golf Club in Gautier is a Davis Love III Signature design shaped by the Mississippi Gulf Coast environment. The course lies about a mile from the Gulf of Mexico, and the routing moves among bayous, marsh grass and pine savannah rather than through a single uniform parkland setting. Wide fairways and large undulating greens give the layout a generous first impression, while deep bunkers, grain on the Bermuda greens and the coastal air add difficulty around the targets. The course’s character comes from the combination of open playing corridors and wetland edges, with the Gulf breeze influencing club selection and the preferred side of several holes.

History: Shell Landing opened in 2000 as a Davis Love III championship design. It quickly entered the national conversation for new public courses, receiving a high placement in Golf Digest’s 2002 Best New Upscale Public category and an architecture award from the magazine in 2007. The club also has a strong local ownership story: Kenny Hughes arrived when the course opened and, with a group of investors, acquired the facility and nearby Hickory Hill in 2012. The course’s identity has therefore developed through both its original Love design and the local team that sustained it.

Did You Know? The sixth hole measures 440 yards from the back tees and asks for a carry of about 200 yards over marsh. It is one of the clearest examples of Shell Landing’s coastal setting becoming a direct strategic decision rather than just background scenery.