The Myrtle Beach World Amateur Handicap Championship of Golf - one of the most anticipated and swinging events of the year at The Beach - has over thirty-four hundred (3,400) entries that love competition and camaraderie of the sport. Since this is a handicap event, all ages and skill levels are encouraged and welcomed to join in this family event.
The more than sixty golf courses on the World Am roster are the pride of South Carolina and are among the best in the USA.
From Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, number twenty-seven in GOLF Magazine‘s 2014 “Top 100 You Can Play” to Myrtle Beach National and Carolina National, if you have never played golf on and around the Grand Strand, this is a great opportunity to see what this vacation destination has to offer golfers of every age and ability.
After a day on the links, participants converge onto the 19th Hole - an experience, I heard, that you have to see to believe...and so I did!
The 19th hole, also known as the largest golf tournament party, adjourns nightly after entrants have had their fill of birdies, bogeys and beautiful scenery playing golf on one of the host courses.
So, what happens when thousands of party-loving golfers from millennials to seniors converge during a week-long super-extravaganza event at possibly the largest ever 19th Hole in the World and in no other place than Myrtle Beach, a City known for its golf courses and fun, beachy atmosphere?
Aside from the delicious and plentiful food provided by local restaurants with a different menu nightly, live entertainment and the Dark and Stormy's, you get the camaraderie of golfers sharing their day's good and bad shots, an array of putting greens, driving booths and anything and everything designed to make this a golfer's after-hours paradise.
Lessons from Golf-Tec teaching pro Trent had me hitting straight and removing that annoying left pull by showing me a video of my golf swing right on his smartphone. Announcers WinMcMurry and John Maginnes were on hand to call the shots on a 50-yard par-3 and I didn't know whether to play the Golden Tee games that were lined up or to hit a few into the golf simulator - so many choices but luckily there is an entire week to enjoy the fun.
The best part of my experience, however, had to be chatting with the players, many of whom return year-after-year. I asked several folks if it was the golf or 19th hole that kept them coming back for more and, I was told, both were hard to beat!
Have you attended the Myrtle Beach World Am Handicap Championship? Which was your favorite golf course...or was it the 19th hole that took center stage? Voice your opinion on Twitter @Golf4Beginners and on our Golf for Beginners blog.
Thanks to Chris King - Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday