By Stan Olenik. Editor-Publisher. The Golf Club

Every year when the BMW Charity Pro-Am rolls into the Upstate, there is an element of the circus coming to town.

You know the routine. There will be celebrities, social media stars, autograph seekers and plenty of attention directed toward everything except the golf.

It may be a losing battle, but some of us still think the BMW is supposed to be a golf tournament, and the people carrying the scorecards ought to be the story.

This year the celebrity side of the tournament gets an upgrade with names like Bill Murray and Roger Clemens joining the festivities. They will draw crowds, create headlines and provide plenty of entertainment.

But once the photos are taken and the celebrity carts roll by, golf fans will find what they came to see.

The 2026 BMW Charity Pro-Am field includes nearly a dozen players with strong South Carolina ties. Some grew up in the state. Others played college golf here. Several are working their way back to the PGA Tour or recovering from an injury, while others are trying to establish themselves as the next generation of professionals.

For local golf fans, there will be plenty of familiar names to follow at both tournament courses.

Clemson’s golf program is particularly well represented.

Doc Redman arrives as one of the hottest players on the Korn Ferry Tour. The former U.S. Amateur champion has already collected two victories this season and could earn an immediate promotion to the PGA Tour with a third win. Redman has made every cut this year and appears to be rounding back into the form that once made him one of the game’s brightest young prospects.

Turk Pettit also brings an impressive resume. The former Clemson star won the NCAA individual championship in 2021 before turning professional. After spending time on LIV Golf, Pettit is back under the PGA Tour umbrella and working his way toward golf’s biggest stage. He enters the week coming off a top-10 finish in Raleigh.

Greenwood native Ben Martin remains one of South Carolina’s most accomplished professionals. A PGA Tour winner, Martin has battled injuries throughout his career but continues to compete at a high level while splitting time between PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour events.

Pendleton’s Carson Young has enjoyed success at every level. The two-time South Carolina Amateur champion won on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2022 and spent several seasons competing on the PGA Tour. Young already has three top-10 finishes on the Korn Ferry Tour this year.

Bryson Nimmer, another former Clemson standout, was ACC Player of the Year during his college career and won four collegiate tournaments. Last season he broke through with his first Korn Ferry Tour victory and continues to build momentum.

Kyle Cottam, also a former Tiger, is competing on a sponsor exemption. He made seven cuts in nine Korn Ferry starts last season and continues working toward full-time status.

South Carolina’s golf tradition is represented by Matt NeSmith. The former Gamecock remains the last USC player to win an SEC individual championship and has spent multiple seasons competing on both the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour.

Taylor Dickson, a former Winthrop standout, owns three Korn Ferry Tour victories, including one last season.

Daniel Azallion of Hilton Head earned his place in the field after advancing through Q-School. The former South Carolina Junior champion and Virginia Tech golfer will compete on a sponsor exemption.

For local fans, one of the most popular players in the field figures to be Boiling Springs native Trent Phillips.

The former Georgia All-American built one of the most decorated junior careers in South Carolina history before moving on to the SEC. Since turning professional in 2023, Phillips has consistently performed on the Korn Ferry Tour, making cuts and contending regularly while recording a tour victory.

The field also includes one of the sport’s most talked-about young players in Blades Brown.

While Brown has no direct local ties, golf fans in Spartanburg may remember his appearance in the Bobby Chapman Junior Championship at the Country Club of Spartanburg several years ago, when he challenged for the title before finishing third.

Still a teenager, Brown bypassed college golf and turned professional immediately after high school. The decision raised plenty of eyebrows at the time, but early results suggest he may be ahead of schedule. In seven starts this season he has already posted runner-up and third-place finishes and appears to be on a fast track toward the PGA Tour.

The celebrities will get their share of attention this week.

They always do.

But when the tournament starts and the scoreboards begin to matter, local golf fans will have no shortage of players worth following.

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