Myrtle Beach Golf News

The Dunes Club and Grande Dunes Resort Club will host the 47th Annual PGA Professional National Championship, June 22-25, 2014. ¨

The tournament will bring a field of 312 PGA club professionals from across the country to compete over four rounds for the Walter Hagen Cup. The top 20 finishers will receive an invitation to compete in the 96th PGA Championship in August 2014, at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky.
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“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to welcome the country’s most skilled club professionals for their most prestigious annual event,” said Dunes Club PGA head professional Dennis Nicholl. “We have been fortunate to host a number of high-level professional and amateur golf tournaments in the past and are excited to serve The PGA of America.”
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The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, a 1948 masterpiece by Robert Trent Jones Sr. will be the primary host course for the event. It is has been rated among the best courses in America for decades. The Dunes Club has also hosted six Senior PGA Tour Championships, the U.S. Women’s Open, and the finals of the PGA Tour’s Q-School.

In order to prepare for the tournament in 2014, the Dunes Club will be undergoing renovations this coming summer headed up by noted architect Rees Jones, a son of Robert Trent Jones Sr.
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“Rees and his team spent two days at the club with our Greens Committee and superintendent, discussing the proposed renovations in his master plan for the course,” said Jack Bonner, president of the members of the Dunes Golf & Beach Club. 
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In order to accommodate the large field for the PGA Club Professional National Championship, a second course is always used for the first two days of play. When the Championship comes to Myrtle Beach, the Grande Dunes Resort Club, which has been ranked among America’s 100 Greatest Public Courses by Golf Digest, will receive that honor. 
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Instrumental to the process of securing the 2014 PGA Club Professional National Championship was National Golf Management president and PGA Professional Bob Mauragas, who was director of golf at Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Ga. when the six-course resort and community hosted the 2008 National Championship. 
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“The Myrtle Beach golf industry is one great big family and we know how to lean on each other for the good of that family,” said Mauragas. “National Golf Management is honored to participate in this great event along with The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, which will prove a terrific main host course. We are excited to have the opportunity to show off Grande Dunes Resort Club that week as well.”
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About The PGA of America

Since its founding in 1916, The PGA of America has maintained a twofold mission: to establish and elevate the standards of the profession and to grow interest and participation in the game of golf. By establishing and elevating the standards of the golf profession through world-class education, career services, marketing and research programs, The PGA enables its professionals to maximize their performance in their respective career paths and showcases them as experts in the game and in the multi-billion dollar golf industry. By creating and delivering world-class championships and innovative programs, The PGA of America elevates the public's interest in the game, the desire to play more golf, and ensures accessibility to the game for everyone, everywhere. As The PGA nears its centennial, the PGA brand represents the very best in golf.
 

Brad Redding, one of Golf Magazine's Top 100 Teachers and the director of instruction at Grande Dunes Golf Academy, shows you how to get out of a bunker. Hint, hit it fat!

More Video Golf Tips, Please!

Over the years we have accumulated many of your favorite Myrtle Beach golf stories, ranging from funny to moving. Below is a sampling of the stories and a link to read all of them. Thanks for sharing your Myrtle Beach golf memories.
The Best Day of My  Life – Natalie Morrow
It was the beginning of April 2006. I drove to Myrtle Beach by myself and friends were going to meet me there a few days later. I was jonesin’ for something golf after driving 11 hours and unpacking

The Pearl opened its East and West courses in 1987, helping usher in the golf boom on Myrtle Beach’s North Strand. Both courses were designed by Dan Maples and among the area’s most popular, attracting golfers with stunning views of the Calabash River and challenging golf.

Over time the Pearl lost some of its luster as age took a toll. Fortunately, the impact of age isn’t irreversible on a golf course, and the Pearl is undergoing a revitalization, led by new general manager Bryan Thomas, that is restoring the shine to the 36-hole facility.

The most significant phase of the project was the installation of new greens on both courses. The East Course installed new MiniVerde greens during the summer of 2011, and the West Course reopened with new A1/A4 bentgrass greens on December 26, 2012.

The new greens have been met with rave reviews by members and visiting golfers alike, providing putting surfaces that equal the quality of the layouts they accompany.

Both courses at the Pearl are highly regarded architecturally. The East Course earned 4 stars in Golf Digest’s prestigious Best Places to Play guide and the West Course garnered 4.5 stars.

While the new greens are the most… 

Myrtle Beach Golf Buzz host Blair O'Neal pays a visit to the area's first course, Pine Lakes Country Club. Blair takes you on a tour of the Granddaddy and gives you a look at the rennovation project that restored the layout to its rightful in the market.

(RELATED: Blair O'Neal Enjoys a Meal at Thoroughbreds)

(RELATED: Watch All Myrtle Beach Golf Buzz Videos)

Today we’re visiting Pine Lakes Country Club, Myrtle Beach’s oldest golf course that dates all the way back to the 1920’s. The ocean course layout features an 18-hole layout designed by Robert White, the first President of the PGA of America. Today, that course is respectfully nicknamed “The Granddaddy,” but it’s officially known as Pine Lakes Country Club. It possesses a rich history steeped in tradition, and also happens to be the location  where the idea of Sports Illustrated magazine was conceived.

I’m Blair O’Neal, your host of The Myrtle Beach Golf Buzz, presented by Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday. I’m here with Rick Shultz, the General Manager of Pine Lakes Country Club. I’m excited to be here because this was the very first golf course to be built here in Myrtle Beach. It was built in 1927, and kickstarted the Myrtle Beach area. In 2006, they closed the course for renovations, and reopened in 2009. It’s a traditional Scottish type golf course. One thing that’s unique about this golf facility is that there’s not a single home situated near the golf course, even though we’re right in the middle of Myrtle Beach. You won’t see anything but the historic trees, and just a great layout for any type of player. Putting is especially fun out here, because the greens are a good size and have a lot of undulations.

Another interesting fact about Pine Lakes is that it’s the birthplace of Sports Illustrated. In 1954, some executives from TIME, Inc. came down and created the concept to establish a magazine for sports, and Sports Illustrated was created. We’re fortunate to have one of the original first issues on display right here on site.

In 2009, following the course renovations, we established the Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Fame, so we have a historical record of the local Myrtle Beach residents who’ve made such a wonderful impact on the game of golf.

The Pearl recently installed new A1/A4 bentgrass greens on its highly regarded West Course, keeping the game’s premier putting surface on the 4.5-star layout.

With the new greens receiving rave reviews, we revisited the course and asked new general manager Bryan Thomas for the layout’s three best holes. As will become apparent, Thomas, ever the gambler, loves the par 5s on the West Course.

The Pearl, home to a pair of courses, has been a gem on the Myrtle Beach golf scene for 25 years, showcasing memorable views of the Calabash River and two enjoyable layouts. But every stone needs the occasional polish, and the Grand Strand’s favorite Pearl is in the midst of having its luster restored. Here are five things you need to know about the revitalization of the 36-hole facility.  – If you haven’t been, the Pearl, home to the East and West courses, enjoys an

Jack Nicklaus, golf’s greatest champion, is the architect of one of the Grand Strand’s most memorable courses, Pawleys Plantation. The back nine at Pawleys Plantation has five holes that play along a salt marsh, creating stunning visuals. The South Strand course is one of the area's best and most memorable. Come along as Blair O’Neal challenges Pawleys Plantation.

Matt Ginella is one of the foremost experts on golf travel. He was the long-time travel editor at Golf Digest and has toured the nation playing the best courses the game has to offer.

Now part of the Golf Channel team and a host of the Morning Drive, one of Ginella’s first features was a ranking of America’s top 40 public courses. As part of his rankings, Ginella took, among other things, quality of the golf course, playability for amateurs, and value into account, criteria

When Barefoot Resort opened its fairways in 2000, media from across the nation descended on Myrtle Beach to see the first facility to open four, high-end daily fee courses at the same time. The architects at Barefoot – Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, Greg Norman and Davis Love III – were among the game’s most prominent names. Dye, Fazio and Norman were renowned for the quality of their architecture, while Love was still a bit an unknown as a designer. 

Surf Golf & Beach Club is on nearly every Myrtle Beach insider’s list of the area’s best golf courses. It’s also the elite golf course that golfers are least likely to have played, but they will have the opportunity to change that in 2011.

Crown Park rests on the western edge of the Myrtle Beach golf scene, nestled quietly amongst the pine trees that are so familiar to the area’s inland courses. This layout isn’t mentioned among the Grand Strand’s high profile courses, and one of its trademark characteristics is its serenity.

Want to know how to draw or fade the ball off the tee, on command?

Classic Swing Golf School’s Ted Frick teaches you how to work your driver.

More Video Golf Tips, Please!

Myrtle Beach’s premier golf tournament has been awarded South Carolina’s most prestigious tourism award.

South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley presented the Golf.com World Amateur Handicap Championship with the Governor’s Cup, the Palmetto State’s most coveted award on Wednesday, January 30.

“Winning the Governor’s Cup is a tremendous honor,” said Jeff Monday, the World Am’s tournament director. “Tourism is vital to South Carolina and

The Love Course at Barefoot Resort has been among the most popular layouts on the Myrtle Beach golf scene since its opening in 2000. A creative design and superior conditions have kept players flocking to a course that has consistently been ranked among the nation’s top 100 public layouts. Before you tee it up on Davis Love’s most highly regarded course, here are five things you need to know: 1. Bring your driver and be prepared to wallop it. The fairways on the Love Course