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Columbia Business Monthly

The Business Narrative: An Ace for Kiawah Island

Apr 18, 2024 09:03AM ● By Donna Walker

The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort to Host 2031 PGA Championship

The PGA of America announced that The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort in Kiawah Island, South Carolina, will host the 2031 PGA Championship.

 

Additionally, the 2029 Girls and Boys Junior PGA Championships will be contested at The Ocean Course and Turtle Point Golf Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort.

 

The 113th PGA Championship, scheduled for May 2031, marks the third time golfers will compete for the Wanamaker Trophy along South Carolina’s coast.

 

The Ocean Course previously hosted the 2012 and 2021 PGA Championships, and will join elite company as just the ninth course to host three or more PGA Championships.

 

The PGA of America also conducted the 1991 Ryder Cup, 2005 PGA Professional Championship and the 2007 Senior PGA Championship there.

 

“We are ecstatic to bring the Junior PGA Championships and PGA Championship to The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort in 2029 and 2031,” said PGA of America President John Lindert.

 

Lindert added, “Past PGA Championships at Kiawah Island have provided no shortage of memorable moments and historic performances, all taking place along a breathtaking coastal setting. The Ocean Course’s challenging layout and rich history make it an ideal destination for our Championships.”

 

At the 2021 PGA Championship, 50-year-old Phil Mickelson became the oldest men’s major champion in golf history. He registered a final-round 1-over-par 73 to finish at 6-under-par and clinch the two-shot victory.

 

The 2012 PGA Championship saw a 23-year-old Rory McIlroy cruise to a record-setting victory. The Northern Ireland native posted a 6-under-par 66 on Sunday to finish at 13-under-par 275.

 

McIlroy’s eight-stroke victory surpassed the PGA Championship record for victory margin set by Jack Nicklaus in 1980.

 

The 1991 Ryder Cup proved to be a significant moment in the history of golf’s greatest team event.

 

Following an intense, drama-filled two days, the three-day contest came down to the final hole of the final match between Hale Irwin and Bernhard Langer.

 

With the U.S. holding a 14-13 lead and the match tied, Langer needed to win the 18th to capture a full point and secure the 14-14 tie for Europe to retain the Cup.

 

Following Irwin’s bogey, Langer’s six-foot putt for par narrowly missed, resulting in a 14 ½ to 13 ½ victory for the home team.

 

The Junior PGA Championships, two of golf’s major championships for juniors, continue to serve as a springboard for many of the PGA TOUR and LPGA Tour’s biggest stars.

 

Tiger Woods, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Speith and Justin Thomas competed in past editions while past Girls Junior PGA winners include Inbee Park, Yuka Saso, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang.

 

“We are proud to again be selected as the host course for the 2031 PGA Championship,” said Kiawah Island Golf Resort President Roger Warren.

 

Warren added, “The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Golf Resort, Pete Dye’s brilliant seaside design, will present a formidable challenge for the strongest, all-professional field in major championship golf. We are confident our partnership with the PGA of America and the local community will produce another world class event.”

 

The Ocean Course, designed by Pete and Alice Dye from 1989-91 and located on the easternmost end of Kiawah Island, boasts the most seaside holes in the Northern Hemisphere with 10 hugging the Atlantic and the other eight running parallel to those.

 

Although the course was originally planned to sit behind the dunes, Alice Dye suggested raising the entire course to give players unobstructed views of Kiawah Island’s coastline on every hole.

 

The Ocean Course has consistently ranked among Golf Digest’s 100 Greatest and 100

Greatest Public Courses in the United States, including 24th (100 Greatest) and third (100 Greatest Public) in 2023-24.

Guernsey Holdings Acquires 20 Zaxby’s Restaurants in South Carolina

Guernsey Holdings, LLC, a holding company that owns and operates a diversified portfolio of consumer-facing franchised businesses, announced the acquisition of 20 Zaxby’s restaurants located throughout South Carolina.

 

National Franchise Sales, Inc., the M&A firm for franchise restaurant resales in the U.S., represented Performance Management Group (“PMG”) on its sale of the restaurants.

 

Financial terms weren’t disclosed.

 

Guernsey partnered with existing management, Candice Anderson and Chad Ham, to acquire the restaurants from licensees Jim and Britt Poston, who started the business 27 years ago.

 

“We are excited to partner with the talented PMG management team and an exceptional group of employees,” said Mike James, founder & CEO of Guernsey Holdings. “We have particular expertise in building multi-unit franchised restaurant platforms and then driving growth. We look forward to leveraging that experience to continue Zaxby’s success.”

 

Zaxby’s is one of the largest quick service restaurant brands specializing in chicken in the U.S. with over $2.4 billion in system-wide sales and 922 restaurants.

 

Guernsey has owned and operated franchises within the Sonic Drive-In, Zaxby’s, Little Caesars, 7 Brew, Meineke, and Take 5 Oil Change brands.

 

Performance Management Group was one of the original licensees in the Zaxby’s brand in 1997. NFS was founded in 1978 handling resales across the U.S.

Midlands Technical College Announces Seventh President

The Midlands Technical College Commission said the college’s seventh president, Gregory D. Little, will replace Ronald L. Rhames on July 1.

 

Little is a veteran educator with almost three decades of experience across the Carolinas. The MTC Commission selected Little after four finalists visited campuses and participated in open forums in late March.

 

“Faculty, staff, and stakeholders in the MTC community provided generous and valuable feedback to commissioners,” said MTC Commission Chair Sandra Jackson. “That input was instrumental in our decision to hire Dr. Little, and we are confident that he will guide the college in future success.”

 

Little comes to MTC from the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education where he was acting executive director/president.

 

Other previous roles include vice president for Strategic Partnerships and Innovation for the South Carolina Technical College System and superintendent for Mount Airy City Schools in North Carolina and Lexington County School District One in South Carolina.

 

He comes from a family of educators and holds an undergraduate degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a master’s degree and doctorate in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

 

He and his wife, Julie, have been married for 23 years, and they have two daughters.

 

The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) assisted the MTC Commission’s search committee throughout the hiring process. In all, 58 candidates from across 30 states and a foreign country were vetted.

Be Ready: IRS Tax Withholding Estimator Helps Ensure Withholdings Are Correct for 2024 

The IRS encourages taxpayers to use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator to ensure they’re withholding the correct amount of tax from their pay in 2024. 

 

According to IRS officials, the digital tool provides workers, self-employed individuals and retirees with wage income a user-friendly resource to effectively adjust the amount of income tax withheld from their wages. 

 

The officials say the Tax Withholding Estimator will help taxpayers avoid unwanted results in 2024 if the refund for their 2023 return was too large, too small or if they received a surprise tax amount due. 

 

Benefits of using the Estimator

For employed individuals, withholding refers to the federal income tax amount deducted from their paycheck. Taxpayers can use the Tax Withholding Estimator's findings to decide whether they should fill out a new Form W-4 and give it to their employer. This process can, for instance: 

Ensure the correct tax amount is withheld, preventing a surprise tax bill or penalty during tax season, and

Decide whether to reduce upfront tax withholding, increasing take-home pay and potentially reducing any tax refund at the end of the tax year. 

 

When should taxpayers use this tool?

The IRS suggests taxpayers review their withholding at least once annually. For anyone who’s recently completed their 2023 return, now is an ideal time to do so. It's also wise to use this tool after significant life events like marriage, divorce, buying a home or having a child. 

When using the withholding calculator taxpayers should consider all forms of income, including part-time work, side jobs or the sale of goods or services commonly reported on Form 1099-K.

 

What records are needed?

The Tax Withholding Estimator’s results are only as accurate as the information entered. To help prepare, the IRS recommends taxpayers gather: 

Their most recent pay statements, and if married, for their spouse,

Information for other sources of income, and

Their most recent income tax return in 2023, if possible. 

 

While the Tax Withholding Estimator works for most taxpayers, people with more complex tax situations should instead use the instructions in Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax.

 

This includes taxpayers who owe alternative minimum tax or certain other taxes, and people with long-term capital gains or qualified dividends. 

 

Additional information

Tax Withholding Estimator FAQs

Paycheck Checkup.

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