Great White Shark swimming off Myrtle Beach coast. He weighs more than 1,500 pounds

Summer brings warm weather, tourists and of course, sharks.

A 1,653-pound great white shark measuring 13 feet, 9 inches was tracked offshore of Myrtle Beach.

The large adult male shark named Contender pinged in the area at 11:25 a.m. May 18, according to Ocearch, a shark research nonprofit.

Ocearch named Contender after the brand of boats the nonprofit uses to research and conserve the world’s shark populations.

Scientists first tagged Contender along the Florida and Georgia coastline on Jan. 25, 2025.

He has been observed swimming as far south as off the coast of Vero Beach, Florida, and as far north as the Outer Banks, North Carolina, before coming up the Grand Strand coast.

Contender is the biggest shark Ocearch tracks, but he fits within the average white shark size of between 1,500 to 4,000 pounds and maximum length of 21 feet.

This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 6:00 AM.