Power Rankings: ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic

After Scottie Scheffler won THE CJ Cup Byron Nelson by a season-most eight strokes on Sunday, you may already have thought about what he’ll do as an encore in his defense of his victory next year. However, what we don’t have to wait to witness is what Chris Gotterup will do in his return to the ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic. En route to his breakthrough victory on the PGA TOUR last year, he prevailed by six shots for what was the largest margin of victory of the season.

Gotterup is among 132 lacing it up at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club this week. A recap of how the course challenged in its debut, perks and more are detailed below.

Others to consider

• Adam Schenk ... Striking while his irons are hot after a T5 at TPC Craig Ranch. It ended a 0-for-6 skid, but he’s 91st in the FedExCup, thanks also to a strong start to the season. That was just after his second child was born, so there was reason to believe that the "Nappy Factor" was kicking in like it did in his career-best season (so far) of 2022-23.
• Antoine Rozner ... The Frenchman is 144th in the FedExCup in his rookie season and he’s making his debut at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club, but there’s something to be said of the fact that he’s cashed in nine consecutive starts. He’s also fresh off a career-best T13 at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson, where a third-round 63 was a career low. He ranked third in Total Driving and led the field in Greens in Regulation, so his ball-striking stands alone among the debutants.
• Alistair Docherty ... Seeking to replicate last year’s T2 after gaining entry via a sponsor exemption. It’s how he’s back in the field this week. The 31-year-old is in his third season on the Korn Ferry Tour and sits 24th on the points list with two top 10s among five top 25s. A year ago, he profiled best on approach, but he’s balanced the attack in 2025. Still, he could use the kind of putting that paced the field in total distance of tries converted. He connected 13 times from outside 10 feet but also ranked third inside that range with only three misses in 62 swings.
• Blades Brown ... The 17-year-old who eschewed a spot start at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson in favor of his pursuit for Special Temporary Membership on the Korn Ferry Tour has no such scheduling conflict this week because the developmental circuit is dark. He’s 1-for-4 on the PGA TOUR this season but debuted as an amateur at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club a year ago and finished T26. And while it’s no surprise that he’ll take his lumps as he finds his footing, he’s only a week removed from a co-runner-up finish at the Veritex Bank Championship.

The ONEflight Myrtle Beach is the third of five Additional Events this season. It’s contested concurrently with the Truist Championship outside Philadelphia, which is the sixth of eight Signature Events. All opportunities can enhance careers, just as Gotterup’s maiden victory in Myrtle Beach did last year, but golfers who don’t win don’t mind settling for other doors that open as a result of positive performances.

On cue, the ONEflight Myrtle Beach will launch the next phase of the Aon Swing 5 for entry into the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday on May 29-June 1. It’s the next Signature Event. The Charles Schwab Challenge in two weeks is the only other stop that will contribute to the conduit, so if there’s any fear of missing out on the elevated series, the commits in the Grand Strand control their own destiny beginning on Thursday.

As hard as it was to believe, the Dunes Golf and Beach Club established the precedent as the first-ever host of the PGA TOUR in Myrtle Beach. The par 71 (35-36) surrendered a scoring average of 69.849. As it concerns all par 71s, it was only a fraction of a stroke easier than TPC Scottsdale. But at 7,347 yards, the Dunes Golf and Beach Club is almost 100 yards longer than the annual host of the WM Phoenix Open, which also has a field of 132. Oddly, or even eerily, both courses totaled exactly 1,495 birdies and 73 double bogeys or worse.

Not surprisingly, due to its unfamiliarity, the toughest test at the Dunes Golf and Beach Club last year was getting the ball in the hole. The course was close to average in tee-to-green metrics but easily inside the hardest third in many methods of measuring putting, including putts per greens in regulation and converting greens in regulation into par breakers, ranking 15th of 47 in both.

Gotterup has little trouble in his runaway win at 22-under 262. He was second in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, T13 in GIR, third in Strokes Gained: Putting and second in converting GIR into par breakers (26-for-55). He also co-led the field with three hole-outs. How he attacked is not dissimilar to one pathway to success in an open qualifier; that is, 31 of the 70 who cashed squared fewer than his eight bogeys or worse, and he still won by six. The long hitter also co-led the field in par-5 scoring (4.00) with an eagle, 10 birdies and one par.

The thickest of the overseeded rough is up a quarter of an inch this year to 2¼ inches. Bermudagrass greens that are not overseeded are prepped to reach 12 feet via the Stimpmeter. We’ll see about that, though, as there is a reasonable chance for rain beginning on Wednesday and extending all the way through Sunday (and beyond). Daytime temps will rise well into the 70s until offshore breezes counter from the east and cool things off on the weekend.

As of early Tuesday, 60 in this week’s field competed here last year, so they have a sense for how they fared compared to what Gotterup was able to do, and where they need to improve. Whoever emerges with victory will collect 300 FedExCup points and exemptions into the 2026 editions of The Sentry and THE PLAYERS Championship. He’ll also be exempt as a winner on the PGA TOUR through 2027, but the immediate benefit will be a tee time at Quail Hollow Club for next week’s PGA Championship. Only 11 in the field currently are eligible.

ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE

PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton previews and recaps every tournament. Refer to the timing of his contributions below. He’s also active as @RobBoltonGolf on X where you can connect with him.

• MONDAY: Power Rankings (Truist)
• TUESDAY*: Power Rankings (Myrtle Beach); Fantasy Insider
• SUNDAY: Payouts and Points (Truist); Payouts and Points (Myrtle Beach); Qualifiers

*Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by PGA TOUR Superstore, which also publishes on Tuesday.