PGA Tour Drops Oneflight International as Myrtle Beach Classic Sponsor Amid Lawsuits
Why It MattersThe split shows how a charter operator's financial distress can quickly spill into its sports sponsorships, leaving partners exposed to reputational and funding risk when prepaid-deposit business models come under legal challenge.
The PGA Tour has dropped Oneflight International as a co-title sponsor of the Myrtle Beach Classic, weeks after the private jet charter company paused flight operations. The tour is seeking a different title partner for the South Carolina event. Visit Myrtle Beach will continue as sole title sponsor, and new tournament director Steve Mays said there will be no change to the purse or the tournament. The event returns to The Dunes Golf and Beach Club on May 13-16, 2027.
The split follows three federal lawsuits filed in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado against Oneflight and its founder, Ferren Rajput, alleging a Ponzi-like scheme. The suits allege Oneflight encouraged customers to make increasingly large prepaid, nonrefundable deposits for future flight hours while its liabilities for those hours exceeded its ability to deliver the flights. A filing by Five-Star Audiovisual Inc. states that Oneflight suspended services around Sept. 16 without notice and claims the company holds $223,000 of its money intended for future flights. A suit filed by Jeremy Ricks of California alleges Oneflight used customer funds to service obligations to earlier customers and to fund marketing and sponsorship campaigns for groups including the PGA Tour and the McLaren F1 team. A further suit alleges the firm retains $800,000 in cash payments and promotional credits for future use. The allegations have not been adjudicated.
SPORTFIVE, which operates the event, named Steve Mays tournament director effective immediately. Mays, who has more than 30 years of leadership experience, succeeds Darren Nelson and will oversee planning, operations, execution and growth of the tournament. He previously served as president of Founders Group International, overseeing 21 Myrtle Beach-area golf courses, and spent 13 years with Myrtle Beach Golf Holiday. "We're gonna move forward as the Myrtle Beach Classic with Visit Myrtle Beach as our title sponsor. There'll be no change to the purse or to the tournament," Mays said.
The partnership with Oneflight began in 2025. The purse is approximately $4 million. Previous champions include Chris Gotterup, Ryan Fox and Brandt Snedeker. No other changes to the format or field have been announced.
