MAX preps for go-karts, mini golf in Orangeburg

The track and golf course are located behind the entertainment center, which is on Red Bank Road near Interstate 26.

The go-kart track will include an eight-figure design with 20 go-karts, as well as a mini-track for younger children. The mini-track will have about five go-karts and will allow parents to ride with their children.

The mini golf course will have 18 holes with obstacles, including water challenges.

“We think it will be a positive thing for Orangeburg, especially for our kids,” MAX owner Johnny Murdaugh Sr. said. “Most of them do not have the advantage of enjoying something of this sort. This is why we do the whole gamut, as such. Maybe 10 percent of the kids here get a chance to go to Columbia.”

“The whole project is centered around the kids,” Murdaugh said.

Murdaugh is planning for the additions to open in the middle of September or October.

Connecticut-based MGC Developers LLC is the general contractor for the project.

“We are very, very excited to have an addition to our park,” Murdaugh’s wife, Thelma, said. “The children are very excited waiting for it to come.

“They come by every day checking to see. ‘Have you started yet? Have you started yet?’ We are just as excited as they are.”

Murdaugh Sr. said, “We are glad we are going to be able to do some things for the children of Orangeburg.”

“We invite everybody,” he said. “The more they support us, the more development we are going to get done. We still have some other things in our mind.”

The go-kart track and 18-hole mini golf course will be constructed with the help of a $5 million, 30-year guaranteed U.S. Department of Agriculture small business and industry loan.

Murdaugh Sr. noted there were some delays with the project, explaining that the company had to build two retention ponds on the property due to storm water drainage issues.

The 30,000-square-foot family entertainment center complex held its grand opening and ribbon cutting in September 2021.

The center offers an arcade, laser tag, trampolines, soft play, bumper cars, escape rooms and a spin zone.

The fun park also includes party rooms, a community/kitchen center, concession stand/restaurant and prize-redemption area.

Murdaugh Sr. said the center has proven popular.

“I think the biggest thing is that a lot of people still don’t know it is here,” he said.

The center is open Sunday and Monday from noon to 6 p.m.; Tuesday through Thursday from noon to 8 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from noon to 9 p.m.

For more information, visit themaxoburg.com or call 803-937-5959.