In the Studio with Charlie Rymer: LPGA Instructor Meredith Kirk Discusses Women in Golf (Part 1)

Charlie Rymer:

Hi, and welcome in to the PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com Studios here in the Golf Capital of the World, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. And as always, I’m thrilled to see my pal Meredith Kirk, former Mrs. South Carolina, LPGA instructor and ambassador for golf here in Myrtle Beach. Meredith, it’s your first time into the studio. Welcome in!

Meredith Kirk:

This is amazing. Thank you so much for inviting me. It’s great to be here. I love your studio!

Charlie Rymer:

Oh, well, thank you. I work really hard on it, Meredith. Let’s talk golf here in Myrtle Beach. One of the things that I’m noticing as the last couple of years have transpired, one of the few really good things about the pandemic is it’s been very good for golf, getting more people out on the golf course. And I see more and more families out on the golf course. I see more couples. I see more young people. Is that what you’re seeing on golf courses here in Myrtle Beach?

Meredith Kirk:

Absolutely. I mean, since COVID hit, we were fortunate, we kept all of our courses open with really great protocol. There were so many people out playing golf, myself included, my family included. I love getting out on the golf course and walking and having that time with my own family and friends. My lessons increased during COVID. I had so many people calling me, particularly women, “Hey, I want to learn how to play golf.” And so it really changed everything. We’ve always had this issue in golf, how do we grow the game? We’ve been doing this for decades. How do we grow golf? And coincidentally, COVID was a game changer. Because of COVID, it really started growing the game. And so I think that is something that we’re still seeing now, and so many people coming into the game, which is great.

Charlie Rymer:

One of the things that we’ve traditionally seen in Myrtle Beach is it’s been a place for guys to take their buddy trips. Now more and more, I’m seeing the ladies taking the buddy trips, and that’s really refreshing to see.

Meredith Kirk:

Oh, it’s great. So many women are coming into the game. I mean, I’ve been an instructor since college, so 25 years now. There are more women playing golf now than ever, and more women getting group lessons in clinics and traveling on golf trips. And so, yes, I mean, when you go to our courses here in Myrtle Beach, it’s not just going to be the typical guys’ getaway golf trip. You will see women out there playing, doing the very thing. And then in addition, they’re going shopping afterward because we have so many great places to shop.

Charlie Rymer:

I understand that. But the cool thing for me, I’m a huge proponent of junior golf, having grown up in the state of South Carolina and golf provided for my education and career, and I love getting kids involved in golf, but if mom plays, dad plays, it’s more likely that the kids are going to play too.

Meredith Kirk:

Absolutely. They’re going to follow the leader. We did that with our boys. We have three boys being raised in this area. All of our boys know how to play golf. And we always did that as a family. In the afternoon, if the kids are sitting around and they’re bored and they’re tempted to go on electronics to fill their time, it was like, “You know what? Let’s go play nine holes. Let’s get out there.” And I’ve always said that being out on the golf course to me feels very much like that feeling of you’re in nature, you’re at a state park or something. I mean, I love going to state parks and hiking and getting out in nature, but, really, you’re getting that on the golf course. I mean, golf courses are beautiful. The nature, particularly in our area, I just love it. The wildlife that you get to see, it truly is an experience.

And I tell people, “Go out and experience golf. Forget keeping score. You don’t have to go keep score your first time. If you’re just getting into the game and you want to get out with your family, just go have fun. Just start hitting that white ball. Just tee it up and hit it. If you don’t like the shot, oh, well, pick it up, put it back on the ground and give it a shot again.” I think sometimes, maybe even as professionals, we put these high standards, “Well, you have to do this, and this is the protocol for this,” but I’m kind of moving away from that, saying, “Just get out there and try it. Don’t put a lot of pressure on yourself because then you’re going to have fun playing.”

Charlie Rymer:

Yeah, I love it. And your passion with golf is make people, especially new people to the game, especially ladies, comfortable when they come to a golf course for the first time. And whether you’re doing individual lessons, or clinics, or some of your great content that is available all over the web, that is really something that’s important to you is making people feel comfortable on that golf course, because it can be intimidating the first time you come to a golf course.

Meredith Kirk:

It can be intimidating. But what’s interesting about golf is it looks harder than it is. Once you know the fundamentals of the game, how to swing, just grip, posture, aim, alignment, understanding it’s rotational shot, when you learn the basics and you learn the basic rules of golf, it’s actually quite simple. It doesn’t have to be as complex as it may be for an elite player. So I think it’s just that initial intimidation of, “This is something unknown to me,” but it actually is really pretty easy to get into the game.