Organizers and sponsors of the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic have expressed interest in making the tournament a standalone event on the PGA Tour after the initial four-year contract to be an opposite field event expires following the 2027 event.
The $4 million tournament has been played in the first full week in May concurrently with the $20 million Wells Fargo Championship and Truist Championship in its first two years.
The tournament, host course The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, the Myrtle Beach area, and the operation of the event got rave reviews and endorsements from numerous players interviewed during the week.
_ Winner Ryan Fox of New Zealand, who has eight international wins including four on the DP World Tour. He brought his wife and two young daughters to Myrtle Beach during the tournament in each of the past two years:
“Brought the family here both years. They love it. The beach and the pool and stuff like that, it’s just perfect for them. I think the general consensus from all the guys the last two years is they love the golf course, and I’m certainly one of those. . . . I know from last year everyone absolutely loved it. This year the guys that hadn’t played it before had heard good things, and it lived up to the expectations.
It’s always nice coming back to a golf course that you like, that you’ve got good memories of. Last year I did some fishing around the golf course. This year I did some fishing. Susan can attest to after the pro-am on Wednesday. Caught a couple of flounder. Just a nice relaxing week. I spent plenty of time with the kids on the beach and the water park and stuff like that. It’s amazing what being happy off the golf course can do for you on the golf course.”
_ Harry Higgs, who lost to Fox in a three-man playoff and has played in 134 PGA Tour events:
“It’s fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. There aren’t five tournaments on the PGA Tour better than this. I think the town and the golf course, everything that goes on here, I think it deserves a full-field event. It’s first class. There’s not five events on tour that I’ve played that are better than this. Everything included – golf course, people, fans, the treatment of idiots like me in here, food, locker room, everything. It’s been great. I’ve really enjoyed it. . . . I really enjoy this golf course. It’s really a ton of fun to play. It’s pretty rare. I don’t think I can give a single hole a hard time, and that’s pretty rare for all of us, but especially me.”
_ Carson Young, a Clemson alum and South Carolina native and resident who has played in 79 PGA Tour tournaments:
“I think this is honestly one of the better golf courses we play out here on tour. It’s probably in my top 10 for sure. I’ve talked to a lot of guys who have said the same thing. They’re surprised that this golf course is hosting an opposite field event just for how pure it is and how much fun it is to play. I think it’s an awesome golf course, and I was pleasantly surprised coming here last year to see how awesome this place is because I had never played here before.”
_ Seamus Power of Ireland, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour who has played in 200 tour events:
“[The course] is in great condition. A very good layout. Some of the best greens you’ll see, to be honest. All in all, I’m very, very impressed. Obviously being an opposite field event you’re not 100 percent sure, especially playing for the first time. It’s a really good test. You get firm, fast greens. You have good rough and a nice layout. I’m absolutely loving it.”
_ Bill Haas, a six-time PGA Tour winner who has played in nearly 500 tour events:
“I think every player raves about the course. The way they’ve run it, only being here for two years, is second to none. They deserve to be a full field event and get some of the better players to come here.”
_ Mackenzie Hughes, a two-time winner on tour who lost to Fox in the three-man playoff:
“I think everyone I’ve talked to this week has raved about the golf course. The guys love this golf course. This is my first time here, and I’ve had a great experience. I really enjoy the layout. Yeah, I definitely think it has the potential to be a full field, full strength event. I would love to see that. I think it’s definitely more than worthy, and I think guys would love coming here. A few guys [at the Truist Championship] in Philadelphia were asking me about the golf course. I’ve had nothing but great things to say. Yeah, maybe one day.”
_ Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark, who has played in 86 PGA Tour events and holds The Dunes Club course record of 10-under 61 shot in the final round of the 2024 Myrtle Beach Classic:
“I thought it was a really good week, and I enjoyed it last year. I looked forward to
coming back here. This year I have my family with me. So it’s nice. Just look outside. It’s beautiful with being on the ocean. I think the golf course is really good. It’s just a nice area. We had some good food and, yeah, just enjoyed the week.”
_ Andrew Putnam, a PGA Tour winner who has played in 227 tour events:
“I heard good things. Everybody who has played this tournament said how much they loved the course, so I was excited to come and check it out. It didn’t disappoint.”
