The guys used to fly down, when competition kept ticket prices lower. Now that would cost nearly $300, so most of them drive from Long Island. It takes 11½ hours.
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Organizer Dodd Amrhein, a retired Long Island policeman, used to bring his buddies to Myrtle in late October and early November. The off-season economics were great, but there were downsides: Temperatures dipped into the mid-30s, and the end of daylight saving time meant they had to get off the course by about 5 p.m. They shifted the event to mid-October a few years ago, and that made all the difference.
Amrhein and friends are a well-traveled bunch. He has led them on trips to Arizona, Palm Springs, Florida, Alabama and Ocean City, Md. Why keep coming back to Myrtle Beach every year?
"Tradition," he explains.
As well as these guys know their way around Myrtle by now -- Amrhein can't remember the last time he consulted a map of the area -- they're happy to let the golf packager at their resort book all their tee times. "Even after all these years, we don't know all the prices and all the deals," Amrhein says. The key thing is, he wants a mix of high-end and more modest courses. This helps keep the true golf nuts happy while controlling the costs.
Five of the seven courses on his most recent trip are among our 60 favorite Myrtle Beach courses. Importantly, none was more than 20 minutes from their resort. "Traffic has definitely increased over the years," Amrhein says. "It can be an hour and half from one course to another if you don't plan it right."
Thoroughbreds and Greg Norman's Australian Grille are two of the guys' favorite after-golf spots, though both tend to be pricey. On their most recent trip, they spent a lot of quality time at Bimini's Oyster Bar & Seafood Cafe. The big draw is a 99-cent "oyster shooter" made of a raw oyster, jalapeno pepper and beer. Says Amrhein: "They slam it on the bar, and you chug."
