Tripping down the Tour Championship's memory lane

By Shane Sharp,
Contributing Writer

MURRELLS INLET, S.C. (Jan. 12, 2004) -- The Tournament Player's Club of Myrtle Beach should be a bitter ex-spouse. Its sudden divorce with the Senior Tour Championship in 2000 after one seemingly blissful year of marriage could have left a bad taste in the mouths of everyone involved with the course.

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Instead, forgive and forget is the mantra at this Tom Fazio designed layout in the South Strand.

"That's just the way the market is around here," says Nick Kuruc, the TPC's director of marketing. "The main industry here is tourism and you don't have any IBMs or Kodaks to sponsor a tournament."

That the TPC of Myrtle Beach is owned and operated by the PGA Tour certainly cushioned the blow of losing the prestigious tournament. The Tour purchased Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday's share of the property in 2001 and is now the sole proprietor.

"We aren't just in the tournament business," Kuruc is quick to point out. "We are in the business of serving the recreational golfer."

To that end, TPC offers up one of the Strand's most upscale daily fee golf experiences. The Fazio designed track commands a $185 green fee in the peak spring golf season -- among the highest in the area. The pro shop and clubhouse have earned national kudos and the food at the clubhouse grill (prepared by renowned chef David Mandarino) has developed a bit of a cult following among locals.

Food and gear alone don't equate to satisfied golfers, however. And that is where the TPC's expansive practice facilities and first rate Fazio designed course come into play.

When the TPC lured the Senior Tour Championship away from the Dunes Club, where it was held from 1994 through 1999, part of the draw was its expansive driving range, massive putting green and exclusive chipping and pitching areas. Kuruc is quick to point out, all of this is still available to local and traveling golfers.

"One thing that goes under appreciated are our practice facilities," he says. "We have about 12 acres all together including a back range where touring pros can hit from."

Because the TPC is owned by the Tour, all card-carrying members of the PGA, Champions, Nationwide and LPGA tours are part owners. Kuruc says Joe Inman of the Champions Tour recently stopped in to hit some balls and that a handful of Nationwide Tour players are regular visitors.

As for the golf course, local golf cognoscenti consider it to be among the top five in the Strand. The layout was Fazio's first public access design in these parts, coming online just before his course at Barefoot Resort. Champions Tour member-turned-CBS golf analyst Lanny Wadkins assisted Fazio in setting up the course for the Tour Championship and lower handicap players.

"Lanny was very involved from tee to green," Kuruc says. "A good example is the (par-4) 15th. Lanny is the one who wanted the tree on the right side (near the tee box.) It will change the tee shot when it (the tree) gets older."

For a relatively new course (1999), the TPC shows remarkable maturity. Its opening was delayed by a destructive tropical storm that ravished the property's thick strands of pines. But the maintenance staff has made up for lost time over the past four years by keeping the layout in top condition and adorning the surrounds with lush shrubs and flowers (note: see spring golf season).

As far as the playing surface, Fazio did an admirable job of combining championship and recreational elements. His designs are not known to be overly difficult, but the TPC can play as hard as any course on the Strand. A number of holes have forced carries off the tee and narrow landing areas that favor precision over power. The majority of approaches call for gutsy shots into heavily bunkered, slightly elevated green complexes. And the size and slope of the putting surfaces are dictated by the length and direction of the hole -- a key Fazio design component.

The notion is cliché by now, but choosing the correct set of tees will determine which flavor (championship or recreational) the TPC takes on. The layout tips out at 6,950 yards, but even the Senior circuit saw fit to tee it up from just over 6,800. Mid- to high-handicappers (a.k.a most golfers) are encouraged to play from the 6,193-yard blue tees while good sticks should feel right at home on the 6,600-yard golds.

"We tell players that if they choose the right set of tees they should shoot their handicap," Kuruc says.

Courses in the TPC network usually share two common attributes: stadium mounding and dramatic, make-or-break finishing stretches. The TPC Myrtle Beach is refreshingly devoid of excess mounding (great for crowds, not so great for viewing the surrounding beauty.) But the 16th, 17th and 18th holes fit right into the TPC mold and are arguably three of the strongest in the Strand.

Sixteen is a medium length par-4 (390 yards) that requires nearly 200 yards of carry over water from the tips. Seventeen is vintage TPC -- a 193-yard par-3 with an almost-island green. Eighteen, as they say around here, is where good rounds go to die. The 538-yard par-5 requires a precise drive that checks up short of a rambling creek. The lay-up shot must land in a sliver of fairway precariously routed through a lake (left) and a cluster of bunkers (right.) The green juts out into a lake that gobbles up more hooks than a hungry Bass.

For all their sheer brawn, the closing holes still aren't the most photogenic on the course. That title belongs to the front-nine stretch of three, four and five. Fazio unveils the 447-yard par-4 third from an elevated tee box with a 200-yard carry over wetlands. The hole is punctuated with a majestically elevated green guarded by two deep bunkers.

Number four is another long par-4 -- 452 yards from the back tees -- with a narrow landing area and just three bunkers on the entire hole. The 158-yard par-3 fifth, arguably the best one-shot hole on the course, requires a courageous carry over a large pond to a shallow, wide green.

The deft combination of challenge and beauty cry out for a professional golf event. According to Kuruc, course officials haven't given up on the notion.

"We were close in 2004 to getting the Nationwide Tour Championship," he says. "We are confident we can get something in 2005, either the Nationwide Tour Championship or a regular season event."

Another Champions Tour event may be out of reach, Kuruc concedes. Approximately $3 million in funding is typically required and at least on major sponsor would need to be procured. Nationwide Tour events, by comparison, require less than $1 million.

"There are some fantastic players on the Nationwide Tour and there's national coverage on the Golf Channel," Kuruc says.

Stay and play

Golf packages including the TPC of Myrtle Beach are available by clicking here, or by calling 866-409-2177. The course is located approximately 20 minutes south of downtown Myrtle Beach, so allow ample time for transit.

Dining out

A number of Grand Strand restaurants close for the winter, so be sure to call ahead. Nearby Murrells Inlet is the seafood capital of South Carolina and many of the eateries stay open through the winter months. Russell's Seafood Grill on the south end of the Inlet is a favorite with locals. Land lubbers will want to head south to T-Bones for the best ribs in town.

Off course

Check out the Original Hammock Shops (10880 Ocean Highway) in nearby Pawleys Island. The rustic shops house 22 shops ranging from women's fashions to Lowcountry novelties. The shops also claim to be the birthplace of -- you guessed it -- the hammock. The idea for the popular backyard bed came from native South Carolinian Joshua John Ward, a riverboat captain who ferried rice and supplies between the vast rice plantations and nearby Georgetown and Waverly Mills. Capt. Ward found the lumpy, grass-filled mattresses on his boat too hot for the sultry coastal summers, so he set about designing a softer, cooler bed that eventually became the hammock.

Fast fact

Tom Watson won the first and only playing of the Senior Tour Championship at the TPC in 2000.

Any opinions expressed above are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the management. The information in this story was accurate at the time of publication. All contact information, directions and prices should be confirmed directly with the golf course or resort before making reservations and/or travel plans.