The Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After the Masters Celebrity Pro-Am will have some new participants helping the band and organizers celebrate the 30th playing of the charity event.
Former New York Yankees All-Star and four-time World Series champion Bernie Williams has committed to participate in the 2026 event, according to tournament director Paul Graham.
Williams is also an accomplished jazz guitarist who was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award and will perform at the post-tournament concert at the House of Blues.
Other first-time participants include former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf, who was the No. 2 overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft and is now a motivational speaker and mentor, original Backstreet Boys members A.J. McLean and Brian Littrell – who will join regular participant Joey Fatone of rival boy band NSYNC – and Grammy Award-winning rapper, songwriter, producer and actor Big Daddy Kane in the concert.
The tournament will be played Monday, April 13 at the Barefoot Resort Dye Club. It pairs paying amateurs with professional golfers and celebrities and annually features a host of athletes, actors and musicians.
“It’s our 30th year and should be a lot of fun,” Graham said. “It’s hard with an event that has happened going on its 30th tournament to try to remain relevant. . . . It really makes you proud to be part of an event that has really become established. I think all the things we’re doing outside of just watching a golf tournament are working. It has just been in demand.
“It’s one of those things where I think that people for a while are like, ‘How long can this thing go on?’ ”
Pro golfers committed to play, according to Graham, include current or former PGA Tour members Luke List, Chesson Hadley, Chandler Blanchet, Robert Gamez, Woody Austin and Trace Crowe, and PGA Tour Champions winner Tim O’Neal.
The LPGA Tour is well represented in the tournament with 2026 U.S. Solheim Cup Team Captain Angela Stanford, assistant captain Kristy McPherson of Conway, eight-time LPGA Tour and two-time major champion Brittany Lincicome, and longtime tour member Brittany Altomare.
Tournament organizers are waiting to confirm more names, which will be announced in the coming weeks via HootieGolf.com.
A limited number of tournament spectator tickets are available for $30 plus fees through the House of Blues and Ticketmaster. Children 12 and under will be admitted free with a ticketed adult. Volunteer positions are largely full. Visit Hootiegolf.com for more information.
The three-day Hootie MAM event includes sponsor and VIP outings such as a welcome party on Saturday, April 11, silent auction and pairings party gala on April 12, and concert at the House of Blues following golf on April 13.
“We’ve had a lot of demand and a lot of incredibly good feedback,” Graham said. “This year it feels like more than I ever have before, I’m getting emails from people I don’t know at all who are asking 1, to participate, and 2, . . . they’re coming out of the woodwork to get VIP passes. That demand has been through the roof. And with Monday After the Masters I only have so much inventory I can do.”
Graham expects to tee off with 34 teams at $30,000 per foursome.
To celebrate the 30th playing, organizers will be giving away prize packs to 30 fans who will be randomly selected at the event. Additional details for the giveaway will be shared via the tournament’s social media channels in the coming weeks.
All general admission tickets must be picked up at Will Call, either prior to or on the day of the event.
The golf tournament has a 10 a.m. shotgun start and shuttles will leave the public parking area near the Alabama Theater at Barefoot Landing beginning at 9 a.m. Volunteer shuttles begin at 7 a.m.
Previous participants include Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer, Nancy Lopez, Dan Marino, Marcus Allen, Michael Waltrip, Anthony Anderson, Samuel L. Jackson, Craig Melvin and Ric Flair.
Proceeds from the MAM benefit the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation, which supports junior golf and educational initiatives for children in South Carolina, and has a fully-funded endowment.
Since its inception in 1995, the event has raised nearly $10 million for charity, according to organizers.
The driving force behind the tournament are the four members of Hootie & the Blowfish, who are members collectively of the Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Fame.
“You have to say a lot of it has to do with the band,” Graham said. “They have established themselves as such a stalwart for South Carolina and as a result too for Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach golf. We’ve just been accepted so well in Myrtle Beach it’s become a second home, and we’re so appreciative for the interest.”
