PGA Myrtle Beach Classic will tee off at The Dunes in May (AUDIO)

The Dunes Golf and Beach Club hosted media members, Monday, to share information about the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic. The Myrtle Beach Classic, scheduled for May 9-12, will be the first PGA Tour event held in the history of the Grand Strand, an area long associated with golf vacations and billed as the “Golf Capital of the World.”

PGA player and South Carolina native Jonathan Byrd was on hand to promote the event and share his thoughts on the course layout. “The topography is beautiful. Sculpted fairways, beautiful trees. A lot of raised greens, a lot of pretty tee shots into demanding second shots,” Byrd said. “Challenging bunkers both visually and when you get in them, into some greens that are sloping away and some tough hole locations. Very impressed with the length of the golf course and the demands on the second shots.”

Of course, Byrd knows of what he speaks, having been named the PGA Tour rookie of the year in 2002 and racking up five PGA victories following a stellar amateur career. Byrd was the first four-time first team All-ACC player in Clemson history, a first team All-American in 1999 and a member of the Walker Cup team.

Although this will be the first PGA Tour event held in the Myrtle Beach area, The Dunes has previously played host to high-profile events. Raymond Floyd, Hale Irwin and Gary McCord were among the notable players to lay claim to the PGA Champions Tour’s season-ending Charles Schwab Cup, held at the Dunes from 1994 to 1999. Twenty-one years earlier, the Dunes was the site of PGA TOUR Q-School Finals with Ben Crenshaw taking medalist honors.

In addition to the showcasing the Grand Strand, the Myrtle Beach Classic will benefit nine local charities including Help 4 Kids, which delivers food to 40 Horry County schools and feeds more than 3,000 children each week. Additional charities set to benefit include the Blue Star Mothers of Coastal Carolina, Boys and Girls Club of the Grand Strand, Champion Autism Network, Children’s Recovery Center, Classy Smiles, Helping Hand of Myrtle Beach, Project Golf and SOS Care.

Nearby TPC Myrtle Beach will play host to “The Q at Myrtle Beach,” March 4, a one-of-a-kind qualifying tournament with the winner receiving a sponsor exemption to the Myrtle Beach Classic. “The Q at Myrtle Beach” is an 18-hole shootout with a field of 16 players highlighted by eight of the game’s most prominent golf content creators.

Players with ties to the Palmetto State include: George Bryan (USC), Turk Pettit (USC), Scott Stevens (USC), Morgan Deneen (Coastal Carolina) and Matt Atkins (USC Aiken).

The Myrtle Beach Classic, featuring a purse of $3.9 million, will be broadcast worldwide on The Golf Channel and streaming through Peacock. Tickets can be purchased by visiting myrtlebeachclassic.com.

Darren Nelson — Tournament Director MB Classic