Profiles of “The Q”: Ben Kruper & Andrew Swanson
In today’s video profiles of each of this year’s 16 competitors in The Q at Myrtle Beach we learn more about “The Pause King,” Ben Kruper, while also profiling Clemson University’s Andrew Swanson, who last year received the NCAA’s “Elite 90 Award for Men’s Golf” in 2024. Check out their stories as this innovative event draws closer.
Play Golf Myrtle Beach and PGA TOUR Studios have partnered to present this one-of-a-kind competition for a spot to tee it up with the pros next month in the PGA TOUR’s 2025 ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic, May 8-11, 2025, at The Dunes Golf & Beach Club.
Featuring 16 players, including eight aspiring golf professionals and eight influential content creators, The Q at Myrtle Beach is an 18-hole, stroke-play competition that was played on March 3 at TPC Myrtle Beach. The winner will be revealed when the event airs on YouTube on May, 5, 2025, at noon ET.
Ben Kruper:
I’m excited to put myself in that situation, because I’ve always wanted to put myself in that situation before. Getting the opportunity to have a chance to qualify for a PGA TOUR event is a good feeling.
I grew up playing golf in Northern Virginia, and had a club in my hand since I was two years old, able to walk. I really fell in love with it when I was probably eight, started playing competitive golf a lot, and always wanted to be on the PGA TOUR, that was always my lifelong dream.
All eyes are on you, there’s 16 players, it’s a little different. Most of these Monday qualifiers, you go out there, there’s 100 guys competing for two spots or whatever, and you’ve got to go shoot a 65, but instead in The Q, there’s 16 golfers to beat, higher chance of that, but there’s also more eyeballs on you, I would say that’s what makes it different.
My name is Ben Kruper. I’m from Woodbridge, Virginia, and my home course is Piedmont Country Club in Haymarket. I mean, I’m going to set the standards high. I think I can shoot a 68.
Andrew Swanson:
Just the start of a PGA Tour event, which is huge. Especially with me being a senior this year, it’s kind of like my goal coming up once I graduate, pro golf.
My dad actually played two years of college golf, so he really wanted me to get into the game, so I started when I was five years old. I really loved the challenge with golf, it just changes every day. You don’t really know what you’re going to get. I love Clemson, and they provided me with an awesome opportunity to play college golf, get a lot of experience, and prepare myself for the next step.
When I found out I got into The Q, I was ecstatic. I played one Monday qualifier before, and the odds are like maybe 100 for three spots, for this qualifier being 16 for one, it’s like the best chance you can have to get into a PGA TOUR event.
My name is Andrew Swanson, and I’m from Bluffton, South Carolina, and my home course is Balfair Golf Club. I expect to shoot 67 in the qualifier.
