A review of the 2026 South Carolina High School Golf Championships
It was an opportunity for exceptional players to win medals as state champions and others to experience playing meaningful golf at the World Capital of Golf, Myrtle Beach
A state championship as an individual or as a team won anywhere is a significant accomplishment.
Winning at Myrtle Beach makes for a lifelong memory.
For generations, golf trips to the beach have been part of growing up for Carolina golfers. This spring, for the first time, that same feeling became part of the state high school championships as four classifications packed their clubs, loaded buses and headed to the self-proclaimed Golf Capital of the World.
Class 5A Division I played at Shaftesbury Glen, 5A Division II went to Hackler Course, Class 3A competed at Diamondback in Loris and Class 2A played at Arcadian Shores. The concept had been discussed for years, but finally came together through cooperation between the South Carolina Junior Golf Association, Myrtle Beach golf officials and leadership within the South Carolina High School Golf Coaches Association.
And if year one proved anything, it proved the idea has legs.
River Bluff coach Roger Smith, one of the coaches association leaders who helped push the project forward, said the destination feel immediately changed the atmosphere around the championships.
“This is something we had talked about for multiple years,” Smith said. “These kids play together all the time, they know each other and support each other. It was really cool seeing all the teams around each other and sharing the experience.”
The championships themselves ran smoothly enough that most coaches barely noticed this was the first attempt at pulling together something on this scale. Sure, there were small issues — practice rounds, app glitches, weather delays at one site — but nothing major enough to overshadow the larger success.
What separated Myrtle Beach from a normal state tournament was everything happening around the golf itself.
For many players and families able to stay an extra day, the PGA Tour event at The Dunes Club became part of the championship experience. Suddenly high school golfers weren’t just playing for state titles — they were standing inside the ropes watching professionals up close, hearing the different sound of Tour-level shots and learning what elite golf looks like in person.
And sometimes the line between junior golf and professional golf became surprisingly small.
One of the most talked-about moments of the week came when players from Boiling Springs wandered over near rising pro Blades Brown, the 19-year-old phenom already chasing a PGA Tour card. Brown wasn’t much older than the high school players following him around the course, which made the interaction feel less like meeting a distant celebrity and more like getting a glimpse of where their own dreams could lead.
At one point Brown even stopped to hold a short chipping contest with some of the players, turning what could have been a routine practice area moment into the kind of memory kids carry for years.
That type of access mattered.
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“This was so much fun for the boys and for all of us. I just hope we can play well enough next year to come back,” said Boiling Springs golf coach Brandon Hill.
“These kids got to see professional golfers hit bad shots too,” Smith said. “That was probably really, really good for them to see.”
The economic impact likely didn’t hurt either.
Simple math suggested success before anybody ever completed a formal study. Four championships meant dozens of teams, coaches, parents, grandparents and supporters filling hotel rooms during what local tourism officials describe as a traditionally slower Mother’s Day weekend. Restaurants, golf courses and shops all benefited from the added traffic.
But coaches seemed far more interested in what the trip meant for the players.
Smith said the overwhelming feedback from coaches was positive, with most hoping the championships continue and eventually expand to include all classifications and possibly the girls championships as well.
There is already discussion about growing the experience beyond golf itself.
Ideas floated during the week included a giant player gathering or banquet bringing every team together in one location before competition begins — something closer to a true championship festival atmosphere.
“It didn’t work out this year,” one coach said, “but hopefully that will be something we can add to the experience next year.”
That may ultimately become the next step.
Because what Myrtle Beach created this spring wasn’t simply a collection of golf tournaments spread across four courses.
For a few days, high school golf felt bigger. More connected. More visible.
And maybe, just maybe, a little more memorable.
