Myrtle Beach: 60 Miles of Sports, Sun and Fun

When choosing a sports event destination, perhaps the most crucial step is finding the perfect venue. But the ideal venue is just the beginning. The other key ingredient to a successful event can be described in one word: fun. Your potential participants want to play, both on field and off. In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, they can.

Welcome to Myrtle Beach

With that first step onto the warm, white sand, that first view of the sparkling Atlantic Ocean and that first ocean breeze, visitors feel right at home in the beautiful Myrtle Beach area. Traveling teams can join those who spend sunny days playing hard and making memories. Myrtle Beach has top-caliber competition venues alongside endless opportunities for laughter, excitement and joy on the ocean’s edge. The sports, beach, the sun, the attractions, the fun — it is all a part of the Myrtle Beach experience.

First-Class Facilities Make Everyone a Winner

Planning a sporting event is easier than ever with a wide selection of world-class venues. Sporting event organizers keep selecting the Myrtle Beach area as the home for their annual events. Their athletes and attendees are impressed each time with the area’s state-of-the-art facilities and family-friendly atmosphere. Competitive athletics like baseball, basketball and track and field are right at home in the Myrtle Beach area, which also can house non-traditional sporting events in places like the 100,800-square-foot Myrtle Beach Convention Center exhibit hall.

Coastal Carolina University

Fall 2012 marked the completion of a brand new 127,685 square foot Student Recreation and Convocation Center at Carolina Coastal University. The HTC Center includes a gymnasium that seats over 3,000 people for basketball, graduations and concert events and also includes a bookstore, locker rooms and offices. The HTC Center has a climbing wall, 1/10 mile indoor running track, weight lifting, cardio training areas, workout classrooms and locker and shower facilities. The recreation area and Convocation Center is divided by a large central concourse which serves as a great meeting space for pre-game activities.

Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium – Ashley Booth Field

This NCAA-certified track is made of a full-pour polyurethane synthetic surface with embedded texture. Its field is venue capable of hosting all Olympic-level track & field events. Complete with Daktronics video board and FieldTurf infield for football and soccer, Ashley Booth Field was renovated in 2013 and is ideally located next to Doug Shaw Stadium. The field surface is permanently lined for football, soccer and both men’s and women’s lacrosse. With bleacher seating for 300, lights, press box, concessions and a new scoreboard, Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium is the total package for any field sport or track and field event.

Grand Park Athletic Complex

This multi-use facility currently features seven lighted FieldTurf fields for baseball, softball, soccer, lacrosse, football and more. There are also two lighted youth baseball/softball FieldTurf fields, two youth baseball/softball natural turf fields and space for up to three full-size, natural turf soccer/lacrosse fields. Multiple concession locations and a six-lane FieldTurf batting cage are among the many amenities in and around the complex.

J. Bryan Floyd Community Center/Central Park

J. Bryan Floyd Community Center/Central Park includes two indoor, air-conditioned basketball/volleyball courts as well as meeting rooms and a community stage. The Central Park Sports Complex includes a natural grass soccer/lacrosse field, four tennis courts and three baseball/softball fields with 200- to 215-foot-long fences, dirt infields and press box.

Myrtle Beach Recreation Centers

The city operates the Pepper Geddings Recreation Center, Canal Street Recreation

Center and the Crabtree Memorial Gymnasium. Each of these facilities includes a full-size basketball court; the Pepper Geddings facility also houses a 25 yard, six-lane pool complete with Colorado Timing system.

NEW Myrtle Beach Sports Center

The Myrtle Beach area will soon have a 100,000-square-foot indoor sports facility that will expand sports tourism along the Grand Strand. The $12.4 million facility, slated to open in early 2015, will be located adjacent to the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. This new sports complex will include eight basketball courts, 16 volleyball courts, a café and retail area, an entertainment zone and a 1500-seat telescopic bleacher system. It will also be configurable for numerous indoor sports.

Ned Donkle Field Complex

This natural turf, multi-field baseball/softball complex is located in the heart of Myrtle Beach adjacent to Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium. In addition to the two adult and five youth fields, the complex includes batting cages, restrooms, concessions and press boxes.

North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex

North Myrtle Beach’s newest facility, North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex, offers a six-field baseball/softball facility that contains the following: four fields with dirt infield and 225-foot-long fence and two collegiate baseball/adult softball fields with dirt infield and 330-to 380-foot-long fencing. The soccer/lacrosse complex consists of eight natural grass regulation soccer/lacrosse fields (four with lights), officials’ room and a full-service concession stand.

Additional Facilities

In addition to facilities above, numerous city, county and private facilities are available offering baseball, softball, volleyball, gymnastics, martial arts, tennis, bowling, miniature golf and roller hockey. The Intracoastal Waterway and 60 miles of beaches along the Atlantic Ocean provide numerous options for water-based events, including open water swims, powerboating, windsurfing, JetSki competition, surfing and waterskiing.

Accommodations for All

Myrtle Beach area has a variety of lodging choices from one end of the Grand Strand to the other. The Grand Strand’s total tally of guest accommodations is more than 90,000, one third of which is hotel rooms. Sports event planners can find the ideal accommodations for any event, choosing from amenity-rich resorts and oceanfront high-rises to family-friendly condos. The 402-room Sheraton Myrtle Beach Convention Center hotel is ideal for groups whose events are headquartered at the city center, while more than 3,000 additional hotel rooms—most on the oceanfront or with ocean views—are within a mile of the Convention Center.

Off the Field Fun

For participants who want to maximize their options for sun, fun and entertainment, Myrtle Beach is the perfect choice. The city’s wide variety of family-friendly attractions, live entertainment, cultural offerings and nightlife makes it the heart of the Grand Strand.

Whether visitors like their attractions exciting or earth-friendly, Myrtle Beach offers options for fun and discovery. Myrtle Beach’s classic oceanfront amusement park, Family Kingdom, is home to a wooden roller coaster, Ferris wheel and dozens of other rides.

Race car fans can take a spin on the speedway or ride go-carts at Broadway Grand Prix, while the aquatic-minded will enjoy water parks with slides, wave pools and fountains for the little ones at Myrtle Waves.

A trip to Ripley’s Aquarium is a must for up-close views of sharks, fish and turtles – with hands-on experiences touching rays and horseshoe crabs.

Visitors can embrace the sports vacation theme and root, root, root for the home team — the Myrtle Beach Pelicans minor league baseball team — or check out the events and fireworks at various locations throughout the summer including downtown Hot Summer Nights events each Wednesday.

The great outdoors isn’t limited to just miles of beautiful sand and the sparkling ocean. A number of fishing piers allow anglers to snare that perfect catch and Myrtle Beach State Park offers miles of unspoiled beachfront, sand dunes and a maritime forest for camping, hiking and biking.

Then there’s the famous 1.2-mile Myrtle Beach Boardwalk, offering spectacular ocean views and a nostalgic step into memories of summers past. One of Myrtle Beach’s true landmarks, Peaches Corner, has been a community staple since the 1930s. It helped the Myrtle Beach Boardwalk earn a 2013 distinction from USA TODAY as one of the top 24 best boardwalks for food in the U.S.

Ultimate Competition, Perfect Relaxation

With first-rate venues, 60 miles of pristine beaches and countless activities and attractions, Myrtle Beach offers the ultimate area for fun and relaxation. A range of hotel options will please any event budget, and more than 1700 restaurants offer mouthwatering seafood and steaks to all-you-can-eat buffets. The Myrtle Beach home team stands ready to welcome its visiting teams. Visit them at MyrtleBeachSports.com to learn more.