Rymer: My Biggest Takeaways from Playing 66 Myrtle Beach Golf Courses This Year

Though the “Breaking Par with Charlie Rymer” story continues, filming is now complete. And while we showcase each leg of the journey up to two times a week at PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com, Charlie’s taking a well-earned breather – and some time to reflect on the bigger picture of what his visits to 66 Grand Strand golf courses have meant to him.

By Charlie Rymer

It’s 91 miles from Wedgefield Country Club in Georgetown, SC to Lockwood Folly Country Club in Holden Beach, NC. I just played at 66 golf courses in that span. That’s one golf course every 1.38 miles. Sixty-six courses in a 91-mile stretch of some of the most beautiful coastal areas in the world. Tough job I have. It certainly hasn’t been a difficult commute.

I’ve been visiting Myrtle Beach on a regular basis for nearly a half century. And in that time I’ve played a LOT of golf courses here, but until this “Breaking Par” project I hadn’t played all of them. I feel like I’ve completed something really cool. It’s maybe not quite as satisfying as when I completed a 5k run (and yes, I ran the whole way and yes, that was many years ago). But I do feel a sense of accomplishment, and I very much appreciate the display of ball markers from all 66 courses I received as a gift from the folks at Golf Tourism Solutions (the parent company of PlayGolfMyrtleBeach.com). They even have the ball markers placed in the order I played the golf courses. That goes in a special place.

We kept score on this amazing 66-hole golf course. But it wasn’t about that. It wasn’t about that at all. I’m not sure what the tally is. I made some birdies and I made some bogeys. And I “may” have taken a mulligan or two on the early-morning shoots where I couldn’t warm up before we got going.

But this project was about the fact that I could make the journey. Not about how I performed. You see, I had a few days in the hospital last year dealing with complications from colon surgery related to the colon cancer that I wasn’t sure I was gonna see the end of. I had some days on chemo last year  that I wasn’t sure I wanted to see the end of. To go from those days to these days makes me appreciate every one of them irrationally.

I understand how blessed I am to tee the golf ball up every time I’m on a golf course. As I write this I just saw where we lost Tim Wakefield to cancer. He had an amazing career as a Major League Baseball pitcher. He was kind and generous. Had a big smile. He loved people and loved to laugh. Loved golf and was an excellent player. He was one year older than me. I’ve read where his wife also has cancer. I offer heartfelt prayers for the entire family.

That could have been me. It could have been you. It could have been any of us. This past year has changed the way I view life. I think of all the days I‘ve wasted being grumpy or lazy or wishing time would speed up so I could get through that day to the next one faster.

All days are precious. Don’t waste a single one of them. Spend as many days with friends and family and people you care about as you can. Do it in special places. In Myrtle Beach, we’ve got plenty of those special places. If you can’t do it here, do it somewhere else.

Three days ago I received reports from MD Anderson in Houston, Texas, showing that all their advanced testing indicates I am cancer-free. I’ll be teeing up a golf ball today with a smile on my face. I hope you will be, too.