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Together with the PGA Tour, Visit Myrtle Beach and The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, SPORTFIVE continues to grow the Myrtle Beach Classic into an event that delivers meaningful value for the Grand Strand community.
In this Success Story:
The Myrtle Beach Classic has quickly established itself as more than a stop on the PGA Tour calendar. In just three years, the tournament has become an important platform for SPORTFIVE and its partners to showcase Myrtle Beach as a premier golf destination while creating measurable economic and charitable impact throughout South Carolina’s Grand Strand.
Together with the PGA Tour, Visit Myrtle Beach and The Dunes Golf and Beach Club, SPORTFIVE recently welcomed local charitable organizations, community leaders, sponsors and other tournament stakeholders for the annual Charity Day. The event provided an opportunity to celebrate the tournament’s charitable impact and, more importantly, hear directly from the organizations putting those funds to work throughout Horry and Georgetown counties.
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Over the tournament’s first three years, the Myrtle Beach Classic has raised more than $600,000 for charities across the Grand Strand. This year’s Charity Day recognized eight organizations whose work spans youth development, education, healthcare access, autism and intellectual disability services, military family support, and community recreation.
The eight organizations recognized were:
Project Golf
Boys & Girls Club of the Grand Strand
SOS Care
Helping Hand Myrtle Beach
Help 4 Kids
Classy Smiles
Children’s Recovery Center
Blue Star Mothers of Coastal Carolina
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“Great golf is at the heart of the Myrtle Beach Classic, but what makes this tournament truly special is the impact it has beyond the course."
Mike Harmon, EVP of Golf at SPORTFIVE
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Representatives from each organization shared how tournament funding is helping their work in the community, putting a human face on the impact generated beyond the ropes. Attendees also had the opportunity to play The Dunes Golf and Beach Club following the program and connect during a post-round reception.
That community impact is matched by the tournament’s growing economic footprint. The 2026 Myrtle Beach Classic generated a preliminary economic impact of $19.5 million, up 23% from 2025, bringing the tournament’s total economic impact over its first three years to approximately $50.7 million. The event also continues to attract visitors to the region, with 72% of 2026 attendees traveling from outside the Myrtle Beach area, compared with 58% the previous year.
The tournament’s reach extends well beyond the Grand Strand. In 2026, the event reached 3.4 million television viewers across 18.6 hours of live Golf Channel coverage, while PGA Tour social channels generated 27.7 million views and more than 525,000 engagements. Digital advertising through PGATOUR.COM delivered more than 320,000 impressions, while content highlighting “The Q at Myrtle Beach” produced more than 2 million YouTube views.
The tournament is also entering its next chapter. Shortly after Charity Day, SPORTFIVE announced Steve Mays as the new Tournament Director of the Myrtle Beach Classic. With deep roots in the region and a career spent helping grow the game locally, Mays will lead an event that has already become an important part of both the PGA Tour calendar and the Grand Strand community.
The Myrtle Beach Classic is one of five professional golf tournaments SPORTFIVE currently operates in full capacity in the United States, alongside The American Express in La Quinta, California; the Puerto Rico Open; the ISCO Championship in Louisville, Kentucky; and the LECOM Suncoast Classic, a Korn Ferry Tour event in Bradenton, Florida.
For SPORTFIVE, the Myrtle Beach Classic demonstrates what successful event management can deliver: a world-class competition, meaningful opportunities for partners, national exposure for a destination, significant economic activity, and a lasting impact for the community that supports it.
