Myrtle Beach Golf News

It was late Saturday afternoon on a picturesque day in Myrtle Beach as six golfers laughed their way up the fairway after merging into one group on the final hole. After the last official putt dropped at the TPC of Myrtle Beach, all six hung around the green, chipping and putting for a couple extra bucks before reluctantly moving their party to the clubhouse to watch a Red Sox-Yankees game.

The beer was cold, the jokes all seemed funny and there wasn’t a care to be found, other than settling up enough side bets to confuse a hardened bookie.  It’s a scene that plays out at Myrtle Beach golf courses countless times every day

But for Dave Carlos, Rick Delisle, Jeff Kolodjay, his father Rob Kolodjay, Jorge Morgado and Jim Stefanik, their late April trip to Myrtle Beach carried more significance than most. A mixture of childhood friends and family, all six golfers grew up in Chicopee, Mass., population 54,693, and all were on ill-fated US Air Flight 1549, which plunged into the frigid Hudson River on January 15 after hitting a flock of geese.

Morgado and Stefanik are brothers-in-law, and Stefanik and Kolodjay are cousins, in addition to being former teammates on the Central Connecticut State golf team. Carlos grew up a few houses away from Kolodjay and attended Portuguese School with Morgado when they were kids. The group considered itself family before the crash, an event that solidified their bond even further.

All 155 people aboard the plane survived, a testament to the skill of Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, who is the only pilot to ever successfully dump a commercial aircraft in water, and considerable good fortune. The images of the plane floating in the Hudson are nearly as surreal as they are widespread.

The survivors stood on the Airbus A320’s wings with the New York City skyline serving as a backdrop on a brutally cold, winter day. The inauguration of a new president and the 24-hour news cycle make the months since the crash seem like an eternity for most people, but a man’s memory of facing his own mortality doesn’t fade as quickly.

“It really changes the way you think about things,” Carlos said of the crash’s impact on his life. “It really puts things in perspective for you. Things that bother you in everyday life, don’t really bother you too much anymore. As time goes on, I’m sure the effects of the crash will wear off, but we are out here having fun and if you miss a shot, so be it.”

A little over three months after the crash, Carlos, Delisle, the Kolodjays, Morgado and Stefanik were able to coordinate their schedules and fulfill their annual Myrtle Beach golf trip, the opportunity to complete a vacation that nearly ended in disaster.

 “It kind of makes whatever we do here much more important because we are looking at things a little different now,” Morgado said. “We kind of look at like we are an even closer pack of brothers than we were originally because of what we have gone through.”

What Morgado and his friends experienced in Myrtle Beach couldn’t have been more different than the frightening events of January. The group opted to drive down this time, eliminating any chance of airplane problems, and the April weather was ideal.

Legends Resort, the group’s annual base of operations, provided a three-bedroom condo and golf on the facility’s three courses – Heathland, Moorland and Parkland.

“I think the Legends Resort, as a whole, is the best place to stay in Myrtle Beach,” Jeff Kolodjay said. “I’ve come down 8 or 9 times, and we will never stay anywhere else. From breakfast in the morning to three championship courses, it’s unbelievable. “

Legends also arranged for them to play two of their offsite courses – Heritage Club, the 33rd ranked public course in America, and TPC of Myrtle Beach, the area’s only five-star layout. They also played a round at True Blue, one of the area’s most highly regarded courses, providing a top-shelf itinerary.

Martin’s PGA TOUR Superstore, a 60,000-square foot playground for golfers, gave each of them a $500 gift card, allowing them to replace the equipment, clothes and accessories they lost in the crash.

“That was fantastic,” Delisle said of the gift card. “That was something they didn’t have to do. It was icing on the cake.”

While the Chicopee six (only Jeff Kolodjay, who works in Norwalk, Conn., no longer lives there) enjoyed a complimentary trip, freebies weren’t why the group returned. The opportunity to relax with friends and play the game they love was the primary attraction.

“I think Myrtle Beach has it all,” Jeff Kolodjay said. “The best golf courses around, everything is centrally located, the restaurants are great and the nightlife is fun. The whole gig – everything is right there in front of you.

A crew from the new Golf Channel show, “Golf in America” filmed the group at True Blue and Heritage for a segment that will run at 10 p.m. on Tuesday, June 23. Despite the media attention, the group enjoyed a golf trip like so many others - razzing each other about bad shots, jokingly walking away as Carlos, the (self-proclaimed) worst golfer of the bunch, was about to tee off on a par 3, and enjoying life.

After 108 holes of golf, good food and several drinks over the course of four days, the group was still slow to leave the final green at TPC, savoring a trip that almost never occurred with friends some of them have known longer than their wives.

“There are just incredible people in this world,” Morgado said. “Everyone came to the plate and did things for average guys. It makes you feel special. What happened to me makes me appreciate family and friends a little more. I was always a high-paced guy, caring about work and running like crazy. (The accident) just puts everything in perspective. All that is irrelevant. Life and enjoying hanging out with friends and family is a lot more important.”

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