MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – The 38th annual PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com World Amateur Handicap Championship will begin accepting entries April 7. A 72-hole, net stroke play tournament, the World Am will be played Aug. 30 – Sept. 3 on 55 of Myrtle Beach’s best courses, and 3,000 players from across America are again expected to participate in golf’s largest single-site event.
Early entry into the tournament, which includes at least four rounds of golf, nightly admission to the World’s Largest 19th Hole and a gift bag, is $559 through June 3a $120 savings off the regular cost.
Players that register by May 6 will also be eligible to win one of more than 50 random drawing prizes, including offerings from GolfBuddy, Cleveland Golf, and Nexbelt.
The 2020 tournament was played without the World’s Largest 19th Hole, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but with the pace of vaccinations increasing, the World Am – known as the “Every Man’s Major” – is planning for golf’s greatest party to return to this year’s experience.
“We are so excited to open entries for the 2021 PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com World Amateur Handicap Championship, and as long as the nation’s fight with the Covid-19 pandemic continues to move in the right direction, we are looking forward to welcoming golfers back to the World’s Largest 19th Hole,” said tournament director Scott Tomasello. “The last year has been a difficult reminder to all of us that we need to appreciate what we have, and that certainly applies to the World Am and the camaraderie that surrounds the event. We look forward to the full return of golf’s greatest amateur tournament in 2021 and the opportunity to reunite with old friends and make new ones.”
While much of the 2021 tournament will look familiar to players, there will be two new women’s divisions. For the first time, there will be a women’s gross division, and the ladies, who previously had just one age group, will be split into two groups – 59 and under and 60 and older.
The World Am, which flights players based on age, gender and handicap, is open to all golfers 17 years of age and older.
The World Am flights players into nine divisions – men 49 and under, senior men (50-59), mid-senior men (60-69), super senior men (70-79), seasoned seniors (80+), women (59 and under), senior women (60+), the gross division, senior (50+) gross division, mid senior (60+) gross division and women’s gross division. There is also a “Just For Fun” flight, created for players who want to enjoy the World Am experience without the pressure of competition.
After four days of tournament play, all flight winners and ties advance to the World Championship Playoff, an 18-hole shootout that crowns the event’s winner.
While the competition is initially what lures players to the tournament, it’s only part of what keeps them coming back. At the heart of the World Am’s appeal is the camaraderie among its participants and much of that kinship is fostered at the World’s Largest 19th Hole.
Each night of the event, the 19th Hole overtakes all 120,000-square feet of the Myrtle Beach Convention Center, providing participants with free food and drinks, live entertainment, celebrity guest appearances, a golf expo and more. Among the big names that have appeared at the 19th Hole in recent years are David Feherty, Brandel Chamblee, Charlie Rymer and John Daly.
Players will also receive a gift bag that includes a polo, pullover, golf towel, logo’d hat, PGA Tour Superstore gift card and an assortment of other goodies valued cumulatively at $250.
For more information, please visit www.MyrtleBeachWorldAmateur.com.
