Myrtle Beach

Spirit Airlines on Thursday resumed seasonal non-stop flights between Atlantic City and Atlanta and added a second daily non-stop from Atlantic City to Boston. Spirit, the only scheduled carrier operating from Atlantic City International airport, also flies from that airport to Chicago, Detroit, Myrtle Beach and several South Florida cities. The seasonal flights to Atlanta will end Nov. 7. The seasonal flights to Boston and Chicago will end Sept 4. – Paul Nussbaum

If you happen to be a linksaholic, then it's probably only a matter of time until you talk your better half into letting you take a golf vacation without her. Of course, it's bound to wind up costing you a four-star dinner and perhaps a layer of fresh wallpaper in the bathroom. But if you're the type of guy who equates nirvana with a crisply struck iron shot that manages to nestle within gimme birdie range of the cup, those tradeoffs are worth it. And as far as my wallet is concerned, the best bargain spot around is Myrtle Beach, S.C. With 44 courses, and more on the way every year, it's not hard to understand why the Grand Strand area - a 60-mile strip that stretches from just over the North Carolina border in Calabash down the coastline to Georgetown, S.C. - has been billed the "Golfing Capital" of the United States.

The towering-tall, sweet-shooting boys from Simon Gratz boarded a bus and left Philadelphia last night for a South Carolina resort town, an ocean vista and a chance to further their charge toward a national basketball title. Their basketball pilgrimage continues tonight in Myrtle Beach, S.C., where the nationally ranked Bulldogs begin their tournament play in the prestigious Beach Ball Classic. They will open against Socastee High at 9 p.m, facing the first of their four nationally regarded opponents.

Given the time of year, the major differences between this shore resort and the Jersey coast are about 20 degrees in the water, 10 degrees in the air and quite a few dollars in the wallet. In the last few years, my wife and I, in need of an early ocean fix, have flown south to this coastal land of rice, palmettos, alligators and Spanish moss. Our first visit in 1986 was unforgettable. Unlike early summer at the Jersey shore, where the air is warm and the water cold, we were met by the kind of searing heat that makes one feel so relieved to be at oceanside.

Mention "luxury resort golfing" in the Southeast and chances are you'll think of Pinehurst, in North Carolina, or Hilton Head, the barrier island at the other end of South Carolina from here. These are fabulous places indeed - if you don't mind spending big bucks. But what are the occasional duffers of moderate means to do? A lot of them usually head for Myrtle Beach. Over the last decade, golfers of average ability and income - which means the vast majority of those who play the game - have turned this booming beach area called the Grand Strand into the Everyman's-land of golf courses and golf-package vacations.

It was sometime during the morning of Day Four of a recent golf odyssey here - four days of dark clouds and persistent rain - that Jack, the Philadelphia lawyer, paused in the middle of the 17th fairway, grimaced at a fast-approaching black cloud and shrugged. "I think we can get these last two holes in," he said with foolhardy optimism. "Then we can wait out the rain in the clubhouse and play another 18. "And if the rain doesn't stop, so what? Hey, we're in Myrtle Beach. " Good point.

King Tom socialized with some area aristocracy on a recent Tuesday night and made like a royal Arnold Palmer in Washington Township. King Tom and company - actually Tom Reilly, 22, of Blackwood, and three friends - were perfecting their golf swings at Black Horse Bat & Putt, on the Black Horse Pike, which reopened last month after being renovated in a medieval mode. Reilly apparently felt at home at the 20-foot-high faux stone castle, complete with turrets, that dominates the 18-hole landscape.

More than six years ago, a Logan Township police officer and a Gibbstown police dispatcher were sitting in the Gibbstown police station, fielding calls and waiting out the night. About 3 a.m., the subject turned to golf and the so-called Copper Open, a two-day tournament held each June in Pitman for police officers, their friends, and their families. The officer, Chuck Gill, now Gloucester County sheriff, turned to dispatcher Anthony Gezzi and threw out a nice-weather wish: "Wouldn't it be fun to go to the Bahamas or somewhere warm this year for the tournament?"

More than six years ago, a Logan Township police officer and a Gibbstown police dispatcher were sitting in the Gibbstown police station, fielding calls and waiting out the night. About 3 a.m., the subject turned to golf and the so-called Copper Open, a two-day tournament held each June in Pitman for police officers, their friends, and their families. The officer, Chuck Gill, now Gloucester County sheriff, turned to dispatcher Anthony Gezzi and threw out a nice-weather wish: "Wouldn't it be fun to go to the Bahamas or somewhere warm this year for the tournament?"

Something about playing in the state of South Carolina brings out the best in the Shawnee boys' basketball team. Last week, the Renegades defeated a field loaded with nationally ranked teams to win the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach. In the 1992-93 season, the Renegades advanced to the tournament's final before losing to Philadelphia's Simon Gratz, 50-47. Gratz finished the season undefeated and No. 1 in the country in an ESPN poll. This season's success was perhaps even more impressive.

Spirit Airlines on Thursday resumed seasonal non-stop flights between Atlantic City and Atlanta and added a second daily non-stop from Atlantic City to Boston. Spirit, the only scheduled carrier operating from Atlantic City International airport, also flies from that airport to Chicago, Detroit, Myrtle Beach and several South Florida cities. The seasonal flights to Atlanta will end Nov. 7. The seasonal flights to Boston and Chicago will end Sept 4. – Paul Nussbaum

BASEBALL Team Record Records through Sunday. Last week's rankings are in parentheses. 1. Washington Township (8) 7-0 The Minutemen were flawless in the field in a 12-0 win over previous No. 2 Millville in the Grand Slam Classic final. 2. Gloucester Catholic (1) 7-2 The Rams ran into a likely future major-leaguer as Bishop Gorman's Joey Gallo used his 95-m.p.h. fastball to pitch a no-hitter in the final of the Bishop Gorman Eastern Classic in Las Vegas.

The Inquirer TOP 10     BASEBALL Team   Record Records through Sunday. Last week's rankings are in parentheses.   1. Washington Township (8)   7-0 The Minutemen were flawless in the field in a 12-0 win over previous No. 2 Millville in the Grand Slam Classic final. 2. Gloucester Catholic (1)   7-2 The Rams ran into a likely future major-leaguer as Bishop Gorman's Joey Gallo used his 95-m.p.h. fastball to pitch a no-hitter in the final of the Bishop Gorman Eastern Classic in Las Vegas.

Buoyed by Mike Handlan's five-goal, four-assist performance, second-ranked Moorestown snapped a 5-5 halftime tie and went on to thump host Montgomery, 15-6, on Friday in a Skyland Conference lacrosse match. The Quakers (3-1 overall, 2-1 conference) ran out to a 5-1 lead, but Montgomery battled back to pull even at intermission. Moorestown ended the match on a 10-1 run, with major contributions from Matt Olbrich (4 goals), Ryan Volosin (3 goals), and Drew Hillman (1 goal, 3 assists)

Buoyed by Mike Handlan's five-goal, four-assist performance, second-ranked Moorestown snapped a 5-5 halftime tie and went on to thump host Montgomery, 15-6, on Friday in a Skyland Conference lacrosse match. The Quakers (3-1 overall, 2-1 conference) ran out to a 5-1 lead, but Montgomery battled back to pull even at intermission. Moorestown ended the match on a 10-1 run, with major contributions from Matt Olbrich (4 goals), Ryan Volosin (3 goals), and Drew Hillman (1 goal, 3 assists)

Gloucester Catholic headed to Las Vegas this week in search of quality competition. On Thursday, The Inquirer's top-ranked baseball team found it, when Bishop Manogue of Reno, Nev., scored in the bottom of the seventh inning to hand the Rams their first loss, 3-2, in the Bishop Gorman Easter Classic. Gloucester Catholic's aggressiveness on the basepaths resulted in a 2-0 first-inning lead, without the benefit of a hit. After Pat Kane was hit by a pitch, Brett Tenuto walked, and both advanced on a double steal.

Freshman Brandon Stern's first-half hat trick allowed Cherry Hill East to build some early momentum, and goalie Brett Roseman stopped 13 of 18 shots as the visiting Cougars toppled 10th-ranked Clearview, 10-5, on Tuesday in Olympic Conference American Division boys' lacrosse. Jared Hand contributed two goals and three assists while Eric Anderson and Colin Roualet each scored twice for East (1-2 overall, 1-1 conference). Fifth-ranked Shawnee needed a solid effort across the board to pull out a 10-8 triumph in an Olympic Patriot match at ninth-ranked Kingsway.

Chris Jones ripped a bases-loaded, two-out triple in the top of the seventh inning, capping a late-game outburst that gave Bishop Eustace an 8-2 win at Camden Catholic on Wednesday in Olympic Conference baseball. Winning pitcher Keith Wallace also tripled in batting 3 for 4 for the Crusaders, who broke open a scoreless duel in the sixth. Also in the Olympic, Jordan Glover's two-run single ignited a five-run, sixth-inning rally, and Paul LaRosa pitched two scoreless innings of relief to send host Cherokee past Timber Creek, 7-3. Cape-Atlantic.

Millville and Washington Township are headed for a championship showdown in the Grand Slam Classic baseball tournament after each team won semifinal games on Monday. Millville squeezed past Williamstown, 5-4, at Washington Lake Park as Ken Dunn scored the winning run on a sixth-inning passed ball. The Minutemen plated a run in the seventh but left the tying run on second base as reliever Aaron Cox ended the game by a strikeout. Washington Township knocked off visiting Holy Spirit, 5-1, behind junior righthander Matt Long, who threw a complete-game three-hitter.