A Story of a Golfer's Travels 

Hal Wallace and Tom Cooke

In 1997 a group of eight golfers from England contacted Long Bay to see if they could play at their course while vacationing in Myrtle Beach. They were interested in a one-day match and needed eight players from Long Bay to meet their challenge. When word spread, a team was quickly formed and plans were solidified. The tournament resulted in a win for England. It was so much fun that the teams made plans to do it again the next year.

In 1998 the Englishmen returned to Myrtle Beach for a two-day tournament, again playing at Long Bay. Again, they went home the winners.

In 1999, the Long Bay group traveled to England and played at the Dean Wood Golf Club in Wigan, England. Uh-oh…guess who won for the third straight year?

In 2000, the Irish joined in on the fun. Dr. Patrick Ryder, a doctor from Ireland who also practiced in England, had lost a child at a young age to a childhood disease. Dr Ryder sponsored the match and dedicated a cup in his child’s memory to be used in the tournament. They named the trophy the Transatlantic Ryder Cup. The Ryder Cup Organization was officially formed. This time, the English and Irish came to Myrtle Beach for the ever-growing rivalry. The three teams also anted up for an additional trophy in honor of the year and named it the Millennium Cup. Now the competition had grown to two separate tournaments…a three-way between England, Ireland and the United States with the winner taking the Millennium Cup; and another competition between the original English team and the United States team, the winner taking the Transatlantic Cup. It turned out to be a good year for the Americans…they kept both trophies!

The tradition continued, and the teams traveled back and forth. Some of the courses they’ve played are Portmarnock and the famous K Club in Dublin, Long Bay, Surf Club, and Heather Glen on the Grand Strand, and Dean Wood and Hillside in England. In most years since 2000, the United States has won. In fact, Tom Cooke and Hal Wallace, members of the team from Long Bay, joked, “It is a waste of time and money to ship the trophies back and forth, because we usually win!”

As competitive as these golfers are, the friendships that they’ve formed as a result of this lark in 1997 ease any pain of defeat. There is correspondence throughout the year. These are strong family friends now. There is talk of changing the venue in America to Las Vegas or Florida although no decision has been made yet. In these times of war and troubles across the globe, it is refreshing to hear a story that covers three countries that has turned out so nicely.

The Long Bay group heads out on August 7 to England to play at Southport and Ainsdale. They will join their wives in Rome the following week and take a few excursions before returning home on the 26th. We wish them the best and look forward to hearing from them upon their return!