Sandesh Sharda’s creative vision for the International Club of Myrtle Beach is taking a unique turn.
In the form of a rare turn house.
A drive-through turn house that will be the first of its kind in the Myrtle Beach market, along with a connected convenience store, is being constructed and is expected to open sometime this fall.
Sharda has made several renovations to the property since he purchased the course in Murrells Inlet in 2023, and the latest is for players making their way from their first nine holes to their second nine.
“It’s trying to think of ways to draw excitement to a turn house, but it also brings something new, something different, a concept that makes sense when you put it all together,” said International Club general manager Corey Bowers. “If you’re making the turn, you’re going to be able to drive your golf cart right into the building. It’s no different than a NASCAR pit stop. You’re just going in and going out.”
A new concept
Among the turn house offerings will be an ice machine, hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, cold sandwiches, and a bar and bartender.
While golfers are in the turn house, the convenience store will be accessed through a door and will carry items for golfers as well as community members, including necessities such as milk, bread and snacks, and extras including a slush machine and ice cream.
The convenience store is expected to open daily prior to the drive-through turn house, which will have garage doors and be enclosed overnight.
The convenience store is in a former learning facility that was occupied by instructor Chuck Wike for many years.
“From a turn house standpoint it’s a very cool and fun concept,” Bowers said. “It also helps pace of play. One of our biggest struggles in the golf industry is keeping people moving at the turn.”
In addition to being unusual, the drive-through turn house is practical, and has a relational purpose tied to other features of the property.
It will keep playing golfers out of the clubhouse restaurant The Venue, which was created as part of a full renovation of the clubhouse in 2024.
“The setup of the design of the restaurant and clubhouse kind of lends itself into the turn house. It was kind of an altogether vision,” Bowers said. “The renovation of the clubhouse and building of The Venue, turning what was a typical snack bar at a golf course into a full-service restaurant, was part of that original vision.
“It’s really creating a full restaurant vibe, much different than most golf courses in the area. The vision of the turn house comes about because we can allow the restaurant to operate as a restaurant.”
The Venue’s kitchen currently remains open until 7:30 p.m. daily for golfers and community members, and its hours are expected to fluctuate seasonally.
The Venue has a full menu that includes pizza, handhelds, entrees and salads. There is also seating on a large back patio that was completed last fall and features umbrella-covered tables and a lounge area around a firepit.
The outdoor area features live entertainment two days per week currently on Wednesdays and Sundays, is used for other events, and is available for community events.
“This aligns with all the visions that I’ve always had of really trying to accommodate the food and beverage side of things along with the golf,” Bowers said. “The industry has been great at golf forever, but we really could never hone in on where these customers are going [after golf]. They’re going to breweries, they’re going to sports bars, they’re going to restaurants to get good food, so why would we let them out.”
The clubhouse renovations in 2024 also included a modern redesign of the entire interior, a redesigned golf shop and rebuilt restrooms, which all contribute to an elevated golf and social experience.
New face, new ideas
The reinvestment into the product at International Club is in keeping with Sharda’s philosophy since he entered the golf market in 2023 with three golf course purchases.
He also purchased Rivers Edge Golf Club in Shallotte, where he introduced valet parking and added a new fleet of golf carts with GPS service, and became the majority owner of the 54-hole Sea Trail Golf Resort in Sunset Beach, N.C., which has essentially been reinvented.
Further renovations at International Club, including to the golf course, a 6,850-yard, par-72 Willard Byrd design that opened in 2000, are planned in the next few years.
“It’s refreshing to have an owner who is involved enough to listen and work towards understanding our golf industry more, but then having the vision of high-end restaurants and working on efficient business,” Bowers said.
Sharda, a 30-year resident of the Washington, DC, area, founded and operated for two decades Miracle Systems, an IT services and consulting firm that contracted with numerous federal agencies including the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Air Force.
Services provided included program management, engineering services, financial consulting and information technology systems development including mobile apps, and the company had 600 employees when Sharda sold the company in March 2023, he said.
East Coast Golf Management operates International Club. It manages six layouts on the Grand Strand – all of Sharda’s in addition to Wachesaw Plantation East – and has a total of 23 courses in its Myrtle Beach Golf Trail marketing cooperative.
The additions at International Club are another example of course owners and operators in the Myrtle Beach market getting innovative this year, as International World Tour Golf Links is adding a technology range and Legends Golf Resort is adding a nine-hole par-3 course.
