STAR ROOKIES TEEING IT UP
Big names set for Shaw Classic
They are superstars in their home countries and idols and mentors to a new generation of international golf legends.
And some of the best will be at this year’s Shaw Charity Classic, Aug. 29 to Sept. 2, for Year 6 of PGA Tour Champions play at Calgary’s Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club.
One of those superstars attending the tournament for the first time is Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke, says tournament executive director Sean Van Kesteren.
Clarke turns 50 — the qualification age for Champions Tour events — just weeks before the Classic. The rookie will compete for the top prize of US$352,500 at the three-round, 54-hole strokeplay tournament that features a total of US$2.35 million up for grabs.
The 2016 European Ryder Cup captain has won 21 international golf tournaments, and has been a longtime mentor to young golfers, including Rory McIlroy, also from Northern Ireland. Now 29, McIlroy met Clarke when he was 10 and, just last year, was the world’s top golfer for 95 weeks straight.
Another Calgary first-timer is American Davis Love III, one of the most successful players in the history of the game who continues to play, and win, on the PGA Tour, most recently capturing the Wyndham Championship in 2015.
The Shaw Charity Classic will also welcome back Bernhard Langer of Germany who has 37 wins on the Champions Tour, second only to another legend, Hale Irwin. Langer missed last year’s Classic so “we’re glad to have him back,” says Van Kesteren. Also returning to Calgary is Vijay Singh, the 55-year-old Fijian who prevailed at the Senior Players Championship on July 15. Singh has 63 wins worldwide, including 34 on the PGA Tour.
The world-class golf at Canyon Meadows draws between 40,000 and 45,000 on-site spectators each year while also being viewed internationally on the Golf Channel. But the event, says Van Kesteren, is also about growing the sport.
This year, 20-year-old Canadian golf star Brooke Henderson, with six LPGA wins already, is the featured guest at Women’s Day (Aug. 27). The sold-out event features nine holes of golf or a golf clinic with a PGA Tour Champions professional plus lunch with Henderson.
Two major junior events take place before tournament play: the Aug. 19 Junior Drive, Chip and Putt event at the Golf Canada Centre, 7100 15th St. S.E. is free and no registration is required. Kids can win a chance for a trophy from the tournament winner. And on Aug. 28, senior tour competitors will share tips at Canyon Meadows’ upper driving range. For information, visit shawcharityclassic.com/ junior-events.
The Classic, which won the PGA Tour Champions President’s Award for excellence in 2014, 2015 and 2017, has touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of Albertans off the golf course through charitable efforts.
The 2018 fundraising target is $10 million for 182 Alberta-based charities that help children and youth — an almost 20 per cent increase over $8.4 million raised last year. In the past five years, the event has helped raise $22.1 million.
“The patron group (local philanthropic businesspeople who launched the tournament) wanted to shoot for $10 million this year and I am confident we will get there,” says Van Kesteren, with donations already significantly ahead of last year.
This year’s official charities, which receive a direct tournament donation, are Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre, Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation, Calgary Police Foundation, Classroom Champions, Horizon Housing, Junior Achievement Southern Alberta, Kids Cancer Care, KidSport Calgary and The PREP Program.
The nine are also part of 182 charities included in Shaw Birdies for Kids Presented by AltaLink’s matching donation program where most of the $10 million will be raised.
On-site improvements were made this year to help ensure everyone from toddlers to grandparents is welcome and comfortable. Organizers have doubled capacity and improved access to handicapped seating at the 18th hole, while covering expanded bleacher seating on that green.
The KidZone in the Fan Experience area offers everything from a jungle gym to arts and crafts, etiquette lessons with service dog puppies and golf tips. There is a nursery offering a comfortable place for breastfeeding and diaper changing.
In the Bunker Lounge, visitors will find increased seating and upgraded covered tables with charging stations and adult beverage sampling from event sponsors. An expanded merchandise area will also sell Shaw Charity Classic souvenirs.