Area Golf News

Hootie & The Blowfish Kick-Off 2008 Monday After The Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament With Sunday Night’s Live Auction

April 14, 2008, North Myrtle Beach, S.C. – The 2008 Hootie & The Blowfish Monday After The Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament kicked off Sunday night with a Live Auction and Pairings Party at the House of Blues. The Live Auction raises money for the Hootie & The Blowfish Foundation which supports the South Carolina Junior Golf Foundation and the educational needs of children in South Carolina. Combined with the tournament ticket sales, which sold out in advance for the third consecutive year, the 2008 donations total is expected to break 2007’s record of $456,000.

One of the most popular items up for bid at the Auction was the band’s first touring van, a 1993 Ford Econoline Conversion Van Explorer. Customized by West Coast Customs, the automotive restyling center that handled the conversions on MTV’s “Pimp My Ride,” the van was auctioned off for $90,000 to Myrtle Beach entrepreneur Joe Rice. In 2006, Rice and John Daly battled in the Live Auction for the van before Daly made the winning bid. Daly donated the van back to the Tournament this year to raise more money for the Hootie & The Blowfish Foundation.

 “What a great way to kick off this weekend’s event,” said Paul Graham, director of the Hootie & The Blowfish Monday After the Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Tournament. “Joe Rice wanted the van back in 2006 and was persistent in his bidding last night at the Live Auction. We look forward to a great golf tournament today and raising more money for the Hootie & The Blowfish Foundation.”

This is the sixth year that the Monday After The Masters has been held at the Dye Club at Barefoot Resort & Golf in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., and the field for past tournaments has included many of the biggest names in music, television and movies, sports and the professional golf world. Musicians from many different genres are scheduled to compete today, including R&B singer Javier; pop rock performer Edwin McCain; musician Branford Marsalis; Alter Bridge drummer Scott Phillips; country singers Steve Azar and Johnny Lee; singer/songwriter Samantha Cole; Andrew Copeland of Sister Hazel and Dan Tyminski of Union Station. Actors participating include Gary Valentine of “King of Queens”; Kevin Sorbo of “Hercules”; Comedian Jackie Flynn will make his first Monday After The Masters appearance. Cast members of the new GOLF CHANNEL golf reality show, Road Trip: Myrtle Beach, singer-songwriter Josh Kelley and Duramed FUTURES TOUR golfer Perry Swenson will also appear.

Former NFL players Dan Marino, Derek Anderson, Vencie Glenn, Jim McMahon, George Rogers, Gale Sayers, Sterling Sharpe, Kordell Stewart and NFL analyst Paul Maguire will compete, along with former Major League Baseball stars Ken Griffey, Sr., Chuck Finley, Eric Karros and Mickey Tettleton. The professional golf field is once again loaded with talent including Annika Sorenstam, Woody Austin, John Daly, Laura Davies, Josh Broadaway, Jason Caron, Kris Cox, Todd Demsey, Lee Elder, Nick Flanagan, Robert Gamez, Ryan Howison, Billy Kratzert, Mark Lye, Steve Marino, Jim McGovern, David Mobley, Tim O’Neal, D.A. Points, Larry Rinker, Lee Rinker, Mike Sposa, Kevin Streelman, Jim Thorpe, Marc Turnesa, and three-time world long drive champion Sean “The Beast” Fister will participate. Coastal Carolina University graduate and new PGA TOUR member Dustin Johnson and Clemson University graduate D.J. Trahan will provide the South Carolina state connections to the 2008 Monday After The Masters Tournament.

For fans who could not attend this year’s tournament in “The Golf Capital of the World,” GOLF CHANNEL will broadcast a highlight show in May with interviews and footage from the 2008 Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After The Masters Golf Celebrity Golf Tournament.

About the Hootie & The Blowfish Monday After The Masters Celebrity Golf Tournament
Recently named by Golf for Women Magazine as one of the most popular celebrity pro-am golf tournaments in the country, the Hootie & The Blowfish Monday After The Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament attracts thousands of people who enjoy the music of the two-time Grammy award winners as well as the friendly competition between the band and their celebrity and PGA professional friends. Over the past 13 years, the Monday After The Masters has donated more than $3.5 million to the Hootie & The Blowfish Foundation, which supports the educational needs of South Carolina and the South Carolina Junior Golf Foundation.

About Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday
Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday is a non-profit trade association of 77 championship golf courses, 104 golf package providers and five golf schools in the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina area. Founded in 1967, the organization has been and continues to be the driving force behind the growth of the Myrtle Beach area golf market. The originator of the “Stay and Play Package,” Golf Holiday provides non-biased information about the area accommodations and golf courses to assist golfers in making the most informed decisions when planning for their next vacation. Golf Holiday also hosts seven events and tournaments annually to help grow the game of golf and attract golfers to the Grand Strand during slower times of year. In addition to hosting the Hootie & the Blowfish Monday After The Masters Celebrity Pro-Am Golf Tournament each spring, Golf Holiday also manages the PGA TOUR Superstore World Amateur Handicap Championship – the world's largest on-site golf tournament, the Summer Family Golf Tournaments, the Spring and Fall Palmetto High School Golf Championships, the Veterans Golf Classic and the FDNY 9-11 Memorial Golf Outing. For more information, call Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday at 1-800-833-8798 or visit GolfHoliday.com.