For the first time on the PGA Tour, players will head to South Carolina for the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic.
Set to be played on the stunning Dunes Golf and Beach Club, the tournament made headlines earlier on in the year as it kept one spot open for famous golfing YouTube content creators. With sixteen of the best invited influencers invited to a special qualifying event, it was former pro George Bryan who received an invite and it will be fascinating to see how he fares this week.
The tournament will coincide with the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship and offers a chance for some of the lesser names on the PGA Tour the opportunity to get their hands on a lucrative prize and secure their PGA futures.
Ahead of what is bound to be a competitive week, here is everything you need to know about this new and exciting tournament.
The Course
Hosting the 135 man field this week is the picturesque Dunes Golf and Beach Club. Measuring at just a fraction over 7,300 yards, the course consists of three par fives, eleven par fours and four par threes.
A parkland style course, trees and lush rough surrounds most fairways and there is a water barrier on almost every hole for players to overcome. In order to win this week, a player will need to be deadly accurate off both the tee and with their irons.
The Favourites
Due to the fact that most of the PGA Tour’s best players will be teeing it up nearby at Quail Hollow, there is plenty of value that can be found at this year’s Myrtle Classic. Here are some of the players who will be hoping to have a successful week.
Erik Van Rooyen
Having earned a reputation for being one of the snappiest dressers on Tour, Erik Van Rooyen is a two time PGA Tour winner and will start this week as one of the most bet on players in the field.
A huge hitter, Van Rooyen has the ability to light up the course. A winner of the 2023 World Wide Technology Championship, Van Rooyen was unlucky not to have added to that title when finishing as the runner up at the 2024 Cognizant Classic.
Since that second place finish, it has been a mixed bag of results for the South African who has gone on to finish well down the field and miss two cuts in his last four tournaments.
Despite his indifferent form, he starts the week as one of the highest ranked players in the field and his chances have to be respected.
Ben Griffin
Ben Griffin is likely to be a name not known by most, but now in his fourth full season on the PGA Tour, the American will be hoping that this is the week where he can capture his first PGA Tour title.
Ranked 88 in the world, Griffin usually gives his backers a good run for their money and he has placed inside the top twenty in three of his last five tournament starts.
Whilst he won’t blow you away with his power, Griffin can be deadly accurate and expect him to find plenty of fairways and greens this week.
Matt Wallace
Once viewed as England’s next big thing, Matt Wallace has been able to enjoy a solid career which has seen him win titles in both Europe and the PGA Tour.
The winner of the 2023 Corrales Puntacana Championship, Wallace has largely suffered a frustrating 2024 season but seemed to have turned the corner when trying to defend his Puntacana title last week.
Finding himself in the reckoning once more, Wallace was able to finish fourth and will hope to take the confidence and momentum of that performance into this week.
Value options
As the tournament is so wide open, there are several players that offer some brilliant value.
Ryan Fox
Ryan Fox has won some big events on the DP World Tour and is a name that we are becoming used to seeing near the top of PGA leaderboards.
Although diminutive in size, Fox packs a mighty punch and can hit the ball a long way. Entering this week as the highest ranked player in the field, Fox has form to find having missed the cut in four of his last six starts.
Since transitioning onto the PGA Tour full time, Fox’s biggest issue has been that he hasn’t been able to string four good solid rounds together.
His highest finish on Tour this season has been 35th, and considering his talents that is hugely disappointing. With a lack of star names this week, everything looks set for Fox to have a big week and although a leap of faith is required, he could be worth chancing.
Andrew Novak
A veteran of the PGA Tour, Andrew Novak is one of those pros who goes about his work in a quiet fashion but is hugely talented.
Novak has had a consistent season and has been able to record three top ten finishes on Tour this year. Whilst those came at the start of the year, Novak knows what it takes to play good golf at this level.
He has made the cut in his last four tournaments and looks a good option to make the weekend. If he can find himself back to his best, he could massively outperform his current odds.
Long Shots
Golf tournaments like the Myrtle Beach Classic can throw up some unlikely winners and there are plenty of players in this week’s lineup who look capable of having a productive week at huge odds.
Scott Piercy
Scott Piercy is a three time winner on the PGA Tour and was once ranked as high as 25 in the world. A veteran of the Tour, injuries stalled his 2023 season and his 2024 season is yet to kick into gear.
Having missed the first four cuts of his season, he has made the weekend in each of his last four tournaments but as of yet he hasn’t finished inside the top 30.
Whilst he hasn’t been lighting up the course, Piercy looks to be slowly gaining some positive momentum and if he can bring some of his best golf to the course he could be on for having his best week of the season.
Patton Kizzire
One thing you may not know about Patton Kizzire is that statistically he is one of best putters on Tour, and if on song he can play a part in any tournament he tees it up in.
After starting his year well with a top twenty finish at the 2024 Sony Open, Kizzire then went on to miss the cut in his next six starts. Clearly struggling for form, Kizzire looks to have recently rediscovered his game and in his last two tournaments he has made the cut and finished inside the top 25.
With his game starting to trend in the right direction, he is another long shot that could play a major part in proceedings this weekend.
Jack Hartman
A keen golfer and huge fan of the game, Jack has been covering golf for the last five years. Bringing you all the latest coverage and news from the PGA, LIV, LPGA and DP World Tours, never before has golf been so popular and Jack can’t wait to bring all the excitement to his readers.
