Associated Press
Monday, November 6

MURRELLS INLET, S.C. -- For the first time in its seven years on South Carolina's Grand Strand, the IR Senior Tour Championship had wonderful weather.

It couldn't have come at a better time as tournament organizers attempt to convince corporate sponsor IR and the PGA that the Myrtle Beach area would continue to be a good home for the Senior Tour's season-ending event.

"We're fine with the golf course, and we really like being in Myrtle Beach. It has to do with sponsorship arrangements," said PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, who was at the TPC of Myrtle Beach on Sunday morning to greet the players.

"We're in discussions now," he said. "It's just unclear how all that's going to sort itself out. We need to have our schedule all cleaned up, hopefully by the Christmas holiday."

One consideration is the weather, which can vary wildly in November in South Carolina. This season was the first in which the weather remained nice during the event. In past years, temperatures have dropped as low as the 30s.

"The weather here does get a little on the iffy side," Finchem said. "Sponsors aren't looking to bring their customers to a place where they're not going to be guaranteed chamber of commerce weather."

The Senior Tour Championship has been in the Myrtle Beach area for the past seven years -- six at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club and this year at the Tournament Players Club of Myrtle Beach.

"We're not going to go down without a fight," said Mickey McCamish, executive director of Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday. "As the golf capital of the world, to not have a professional tournament -- we need that. We are certainly going to give it our extremely best shot. The tour is willing to listen to us."

IR, formerly Ingersoll-Rand, is undecided about sponsoring next year's event. It would be the company's third year of sponsorship.

"I have to meet with commissioner Finchem and some other folks, and I'm sure that will probably take the next couple months," said Herb Henkel, IR chief executive officer said. "Final decisions will be made and I'm sure announced in the next couple months."

Three options the tour is considering are: staying in Myrtle Beach, moving to another permanent site, possibly Dallas; or starting a rotation moving to different sites every couple years.

One of the keys for keeping the tournament in South Carolina is a title sponsor, said Vernie Dove, past chairman of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce.

"There's a strong effort to get a sponsor," he said. "Everybody would hate to see it leave."

However, the PGA Tour recently bought Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday's half ownership of the TPC course and now owns it outright. Tournament Players Clubs are built to stage tournaments.

Finchem said the course could get a Senior Tour event at another time in the season or a Buy.Com event -- Florence lost its event this year.

"We love this golf course and this setting," Finchem said. "If we were to move away from playing the Senior Tour Championship here, which is a possibility, we would look for something else to play here.

"We're delighted to have a club here now because we want to be part of the Myrtle Beach experience. We want to be part of what has become a golf mecca."

If the tournament leaves, it would be the second major golfing event to pull out of the Grand Strand this year.

The Kathy Ireland Greens.com LPGA Classic, also held in Murrells Inlet, will move to California next year.

"We just cannot afford to have a reputation of losing tournaments," McCamish said. "They are tough to get back once you lose it."