Editor’s Note: George Bryan was given a sponsor’s exemption by the Myrtle Beach Classic after finishing runner-up in the qualifier.
Earlier this year, I wrote about what has to be the coolest idea we’ve seen for awarding a sponsor exemption into a PGA Tour event: a newly formed 16-player, 18-hole shootout among pros and YouTubers with a spot in the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic on the line.
“The Q at Myrtle Beach” was filmed in early March but the video wasn’t posted until this week. All the participants—including popular content creators like Grant Horvat, Peter Finch and Micah Morris—had to sign an NDA so the results wouldn’t get leaked before the video was published.
Here is a full breakdown of what happened in the qualifier.
A Great Idea With Poor Execution
I’m a huge fan of YouTube golf. We’ve seen professional golf ratings take a significant hit this year and I’m convinced some of that comes from a portion of golf lovers going to YouTube instead of sitting through arduous PGA Tour telecasts.
I’m also a fan of this qualifier concept. These exemptions are meant to drum up interest in the tournament rather than giving a spot to the most deserving player. This idea accomplishes that.
However, I would grade the final product at a C+. I had high hopes but was disappointed.
The production value was surprisingly low, especially given how half the field creates entertaining videos for a living. There was almost no commentary at all, the editing was choppy, camera work wonky and the whole show felt a little clunky. Given that the video comes in at well over two hours, that is tough.
The easiest fix possible is to hand the editing responsibilities over to the folks at Good Good or someone with more experience. Two other ideas: more player interviews during the round and cut out some of the unimportant shots.
The video could be shortened by a solid 45 minutes. They follow most of the golfers shot-by-shot for large chunks of the day but that wasn’t necessary to create compelling storylines.
On the positive side, I thought all of the characters involved were awesome. The player audio was outstanding. The qualifier has a dramatic ending, including a playoff. The course, TPC Myrtle Beach, showed plenty of teeth while not being overly difficult.
I am hoping they tighten and polish the video next year. There is a lot of upside if they do.
Qualifier Recap
We had an unsurprising winner for the qualifier as professional Matt Atkins took the top spot.
Atkins has made 157 starts on the Korn Ferry Tour, including a victory in 2017. He has made 26 PGA Tour starts, including when he Monday-qualified into the Mexico Open at Vidanta this year. He finished T38 in the RSM Classic last fall.
Atkins, 33, is a South Carolinian who will get to tee it up in his home state. Affectionately known as “Crashkins”, he came into the qualifier with the most experience of any player.
The qualifier unfolded roughly how one would guess. While some of the content creators hung around during the front nine, the best players rose to the top of the board as the round progressed.
The three main characters in the drama were Atkins, George Bryan of Bryan Bros. Golf and Tyler Watts, a 15-year-old phenom from South Carolina. They were playing together in the final foursome, which added to the stakes.
Bryan reached 4-under after stuffing his tee shot on the par-3 13th. However, he made a par on the easy par-5 14th to allow Atkins (4-under) and Watts (3-under) to gain ground.
When Watts made a bogey on No. 15, Bryan and Atkins headed to the 16th with a two-shot lead over the field.
Bryan appeared to have full control after Atkins made bogeys on 16 and 17, giving Bryan a two-shot advantage as he stood on the tee at the par-5 18th.
Watts and Atkins, both at 2-under, went for the green on the reachable par-5. Atkins pushed his second well right but safely into the fairway while Watts went into the water and made a bogey. Bryan went right and short of the green, leaving himself a delicate shot over a bunker with water behind the hole.
A par would have sealed it for Bryan but he pitched his third long into the water and made bogey. That gave Atkins the opportunity to convert a 10-foot birdie putt to force a playoff, which he made.
In the playoff, both players left themselves short wedge shots for their thirds. Atkins hit it to three feet and Bryan was around 12 feet. When Bryan missed, Atkins tapped in for birdie and the win.
Here is the final leaderboard:
Matt Atkins 69 (-3)*
George Bryan 69 (-3)
Tyler Watts 71 (-1)
Jay Card 72 (E)
Scott Stevens 72 (E)
Peter Finch 73 (+1)
Turk Pettit 73 (+1)
Morgan Deneen 74 (+2)
Ryan Wilkinson 76 (+4)
Dan Rapaport 76 (+4)
Jamie Wilson 77 (+5)
Luke Kwon 78 (+6)
Grant Horvat 79 (+7)
Fat Perez 81 (+9)
Cole Lantz 83 (+11)
Micah Morris 86 (+14)
Show Notes
I know there are a lot of people out there who are interested in specific personalities or players so I put together a few notes about some of the content creators. There are a couple of extra random notes as well.
Oh, no, Micah Morris. Not good. Morris, formerly of Good Good, immediately ejected with double bogeys on 2, 3, 4 and 5 enroute to an embarrassing 86. He was talking about shooting in the 60s prior to the round. It was a mixed showing for Barstool’s Dan Rapaport. He held his round together with duct tape early in the day, scrambling for pars on 3 and 4 before sticking his tee shot on the par-3 5th. He was 1-under at that point but it wouldn’t last. Rapaport struggled with a nasty case of banana hooks throughout the day and did well to shoot 76. Fat Perez falls out of contention quickly with bogeys on 3 and 4, eventually turning in 5-over 41. His reactions throughout the day are priceless. On the front nine, we get “Ew” and “you f—— clown” on repeat. By the back nine, he contemplates filling up his golf bag with beer. On the par-5 14th, he drains a long putt and gives us a Euro step. Thank you for your service, FP. Peter Finch, who plays well with a 1-over 73, gives my favorite quote of the entire video: “My preparation so far for this event in the UK has basically been sheltering indoors or in pubs.” He then says he has been going to gyms and stares at the weights before leaving without breaking a sweat. The amount of cursing (bleeps) and self-loathing among this 16-man crew is impressive. Morgan Deneen, a pro who has made three PGA Tour starts, makes Tyrrell Hatton look like a choir boy. Equally as impressive is the encouragement among the group. It’s a serious tournament but everyone is cheering on each other throughout the day. Grant Horvat, formerly of Good Good, struggled to a 79 but led the field in compliments. A big takeaway from this video is that Watts can really play. He is one of the top players in the American Junior Golf Association and has a lot of potential.Final Thoughts
I’m still betting on this concept making progress in future years. It’s a good idea.
As I write this, the video has been up for 24 hours and has 418,000 views and 2,000 comments. By the time you are reading this, it is undoubtedly over one million views.
People are interested in YouTube golf. Shootouts like this are fun, even if there isn’t a PGA Tour spot on the line. I applaud the tournament organizations for thinking outside the box to come up with something like this.
A few tweaks and this could be a home run. As of now, it’s a ground-rule double.
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