Miles, Goings will be newest members of the Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Fame

Two men who helped elevate the reputations of and experiences at the two most iconic golf courses in Myrtle Beach are the newest inductees into the Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Fame.

Sandy Miles combined big ideas with a big personality to elevate the aura of Pine Lakes Country Club, while Phillip Goings became an icon at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club in 52 years of employment.

They comprise the seventh Hall of Fame class and will be inducted during a 7 p.m. ceremony on Sept. 17 in the Hall of Fame Garden at Pine Lakes.

Both men are being inducted posthumously. Miles died in 1995 at the age of 55 and Goings was 67 when he died in 2006. Both men’s family members will take part in the ceremony.

Sandy Miles

The Miles family owned Pine Lakes for 57 years until selling it to Burroughs & Chapin Co., in 2001.

Robert White, the PGA of America's first president from 1916-19, designed the course in 1927 as the Ocean Forest Club. Miles’ parents, Fred and Louise Miles, changed the name of the course when they purchased it from its developers in 1944 and the family enriched the course’s already rich history.

After serving in the Army, including a tour in Germany, Miles returned to manage Pine Lakes and served as both an operator and promoter.

He nicknamed the venerable design the “Granddaddy,” ensuring everyone knew that Pine Lakes was the birthplace of Myrtle Beach golf.

Under his direction the course developed a thriving membership and rivaled the Dunes Club as the area's premier social hotspot.

Miles perpetuated the club’s Scottish theme that reflected White’s roots. Course workers wore kilts or other Scottish outfits for many years and Miles had Scottish garb of his own.

It was Miles' idea to serve clam chowder at the turn and he also brought Rolls Royce golf carts to the course, marketing plays that attracted national attention to Pine Lakes and the area.

The club also won a settlement in the 1980s against Polo/Ralph Lauren Corp. to keep the clothing maker from selling Polo shirts adorned with an emblem similar to Pine Lakes’ crest.

Miles assisted with the launch of marketing cooperative Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday in the 1960s and sent a limo to transport some of the first package customers to the course.

Miles and wife Beulah had two children, Scott and Melissa, and Scott also served as president of Pine Lakes after Sandy’s death.

Phillip Goings

Goings welcomed all members and guests alike to the Dunes Club with his unique southern hospitality as the club’s longtime head caddie master.

Goings was employed at the Dunes Club from 1954-2005. He began working in the kitchen washing dishes and pots, busing tables and preparing food, and he cleaned shrimp and opened oysters and clams on the half shell for the raw bar.

After 20 years in the kitchen, former Dunes Club president Rudy Goldsmith realized his affable personality was better suited for the bag drop and spent the rest of his years at the club outside.

Goings is part of an iconic family at The Dunes Club. He and brothers Elijah, also known as “Kidnapper,” and Jacob, aka “Jake the Snake,” worked a combined 145 years at the club.

Goings lived his entire life in Georgetown and Horry counties and had a razor sharp memory. He never played the game. “I never hit a golf ball,”' he said in 2005. “I never saw no damn sense in it.”

His personality endeared him to Dunes Club members. Fellow Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Famer and former Dunes Club head pro Jimmy D’Angelo once said of Goings, “He treats everybody like they are the President of the United States … He's the world's best.”

He and wife Maxine were married for 42 years before his death and the couple had two daughters, Leta and Philecia, who graduated from Coastal Carolina University.

Miles and Goings bring the Hall membership to 19. The other members, inducted since the Hall’s founding in 2009, are General James Hackler, Cecil Brandon, Clay Brittain, Carolyn Cudone, Jimmy D'Angelo, Robert White, George 'Buster' Bryan, Charlie Byers, Paul Himmelsbach, Gary Schaal, J. Egerton Burroughs, J.Bryan Floyd, Edward Jerdon, Casper Leon Benton, George Hilliard, Critt Gore and Russell ‘Doc’ Burgess.

Hall members are selected by a committee of existing hall members and community golf leaders based on nominations through the committee members.

Those wishing to attend the 7 p.m. ceremony must RSVP by Sept. 13 to Susan Scarce with Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday at 843-282-2642 or susan@golfholiday.com.

This story was originally published September 5, 2015 at 2:03 PM with the headline "Miles, Goings will be newest members of the Myrtle Beach Golf Hall of Fame."