Opinion & Analysis

Masters Pro-Am, party held at Myrtle Beach

Published

13 years ago

Apr 18, 2013

After Sunday showed golf at its most competitive at the Masters, fast forward a day later to a spot about 200 miles east and you have a golf tournament whose environment could not be more different. It brings thousands of spectators and dozens of participants — many of them professional golfers and celebrities — together in the spirit of golfing camaraderie.

An eighth consecutive sellout crowd greeted at the Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After the Maters Celebrity Pro-Am field on Monday. During the event’s 19-year history, musician Darius Rucker and friends have helped raise more than $5 million for both the South Carolina Junior Golf Foundation and the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation, which focuses on broadening educational opportunities for South Carolina children.

The professional field traditionally consists of players native to the state of South Carolina, those with ties to the area and many others who simply enjoy stopping off in Myrtle Beach for a day’s wonderful event. South Carolina-bred professionals in the field for the 2013 edition included Dustin Johnson, D.J. Trahan, Tommy Gainey, Tommy Biershenk, Wesley Bryan, Kyle Thompson and Kevin Kisner. Other notable pros in the field included Jim Furyk, Davis Love III, John Daly, Chris DiMarco, Boo Weekley and LPGA great Nancy Lopez.

In all, 34 groups teed it up, consisting of one pro, one celebrity and four amateurs, playing a massive scramble format. Some 200 excited early-risers gathered at 6 a.m. at Myrtle Beach’s famous House of Blues to cheer on ESPN’s “Mike and Mike in the Morning,” who broadcasted its Monday show there.

The list of celebrities turned out to be as eclectic as the list of professionals, from musicians such as all members of Hootie & The Blowfish — including frontman Darius Rucker – Mark Quinones, Colt Ford, Edwin McCain and Pat Green to actors and comedians like Alphonso Ribeiro, Jackie Flynn and Gary Valentine, former professional athletes such as Jim McMahon, Wayne Gretzky, Johnny Damon, Grant Fuhr and Sterling Sharpe.

The team of Kevin Kisner, former “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” actor Alphonso Ribeiro and amateurs Brett Schmidt, Alan Weiss, Scott Detota and Greg Poulos took home the trophy at the Dye Club at Barefoot Resort in the 2013 Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After the Maters Celebrity Pro-Am. The 2014 tournament has the potential to be one of the biggest yet, as the event will celebrate its 20th anniversary when it returns to the Grand Strand.

Opinion & Analysis

AVL: My U.S. Amateur local qualifying experience

Published

4 days ago

Jun 5, 2026

Andrew Von Lossow

This past Monday, I played in the U.S. Amateur local qualifier at Rock Creek Country Club in Portland, Oregon. A full tee sheet from 7:30 a.m. to 1:55 p.m., the top 11 scores would make it to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying.

I teed off at 10:48 a.m.. With the 7:30 am tee time, you can get a feel for the leaders’ pace, and they were off and running on the challenging setup at Rock Creek.

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Getting to the highlight of the round on the par five 17th, a drive up the left side and 212 yards left to the front hole location. I took out a 5-iron with plans of middle of the green. The ball ended up 8 feet left of the hole, pin high. A slight downhill putt dropped in for an eagle 3 on the 17th. With the cut line looking to be anywhere from -2 to even par. This was the boost I had been waiting for all day.

With making par from the trees on 18, it was time to wait for a potential playoff with a posted score of one under par 71.

Three hours later, it was playoff time. 8 players for 6 spots. I made par on the playoff hole, which was good enough to advance to the U.S. Amateur final qualifying in July. USGA qualifiers sure deliver on all of the emotions in golf!

Club Junkie

Building my 2026 gamer WITB: Ranking the contenders and new putter projects – Club Junkie Podcast

Published

5 days ago

Jun 4, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

The annual What’s In The Bag build is underway, and on this episode of Club Junkie, Brian breaks down the clubs currently leading the race for a spot in his 2026 gamer setup. From drivers and fairway woods to irons, wedges, and shafts, he ranks the equipment that’s performing best and explains what’s separating the front runners from the rest of the field.

Brian also heads into the workshop to discuss several putter projects currently on the bench. From head options and shaft choices to build ideas and testing plans, he shares what he’s working on and which putters could become serious contenders for the bag this season.

If you’re a gear junkie who loves equipment testing, club building, and the never-ending pursuit of the perfect setup, this episode is for you.

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Club Junkie

Tour Edge Exotics mini driver review + TaylorMade Spider ZT Max first look – Club Junkie

Published

2 weeks ago

May 28, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of Club Junkie, I put the new Tour Edge Exotics Mini Driver to the test and break down the performance, forgiveness, distance, and where it fits compared to a traditional driver or strong fairway wood. If you have been curious about adding a mini driver to the bag, this one is worth a look.

I also dive into the new TaylorMade Spider ZT Max putter that was recently spotted and discuss the growing zero torque putter trend. Plus, there is a closer look at the new Project X Titan Yellow shaft showing up on the PGA Tour and what makes it different from other profiles currently out there.