‘Bachelor’ star Ben Higgins talks golf tournament, Disney
Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions returns Jan. 21-24 to the Tranquilo Golf Course at Four Seasons Golf and Sports Club in Lake Buena Vista. And the timeshare company has reached an agreement with the Ladies Professional Golf Association to host the event through 2024.
“The Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions, our true Party on Tour, has been an incredible addition to the LPGA Tour schedule,” said LPGA commissioner Mike Whan in a press release. “We can’t wait to kick off our season with our friends across sports and entertainment for the next four years.”
The annual event, which debuted in 2019, features LPGA Tour winners playing alongside celebrities.
“What started as a wild idea has now become a truly special tournament that players and fans look forward to year in and year out, and we are honored to continue partnering with the LPGA to host this unforgettable event,” Diamond Resorts CEO Mike Flaskey said in a press release.
This year, the tournament will host 50 celebrity golfers, including country music star Lee Brice, “Narcos: Mexico” actor Michael Peña and Ben Higgins, who starred in season 20 of ABC’s “The Bachelor” after appearing in the 11th season of “The Bachelorette.”
Higgins, who was born and raised in Indiana, said he grew up loving golf.
“It is a sport that I think is unique because you can compete against yourself. You’re always trying to get better. It’s relaxing, you go out to the range and hit balls, just to let your mind go,” he told the Sentinel in an interview. “But it’s also something you can play, God willing, for years of your life. … It is the one thing now that I can compete in and my body doesn’t absolutely hate me the next day for it.”
The tournament is one of Higgins’ favorite reasons to make a visit to the Sunshine State from Denver, where he currently resides.
“If somebody said, ‘What do you want to do every year?’ I’d say, I hope this event exists every day of every year,” the 31-year-old said. “I love this location. This course is great . ... It’s scorable, but it gives you a good challenge.”
Higgins said the tournament
“I think the cool part about this tournament is you can walk into a room with a bunch of people who are famous and everybody can just be themselves.”
— Ben Higgins
will provide a “breath of fresh air” — as he’s currently prepping for the Feb. 2 launch of his book “Alone in Plain Sight” — and he hopes to be invited back to this “great experience” for years to come.
“I think the cool part about this tournament is you can walk into a room with a bunch of people who are famous and everybody can just be themselves,” he said. “You’re doing one thing that connects us all and that’s playing sports, competing, talking, sharing life together and making memories.”
The tournament will be a family affair, as his parents — Amy and David Higgins, who spend their winters on Sanibel Island — will be present. His dad will even be carrying Ben’s golf bag throughout the course.
Besides attending the event, Higgins hopes to visit Walt Disney World — where his parents once worked. But the trip to the Most Magical Place on Earth will be extra sentimental, as it marks the first time Ben’s fiancée, Jessica Clarke, will embark on a trip to the parks since her Disney-loving grandfather passed away.
“He had a whole room full of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse characters. He was a huge Disney fan, and she used to go to Disney with him,” Higgins said. “We’re going to go to Disney for the first time without him. I think it’s going to be fun, just like Disney is special, but also a little bit humbling just for all of us to know that he’s now gone.”
The Tournament of Champions will be nationally televised Jan. 21-22 on Golf Channel and Jan. 23-24 on NBC. For more information about the event, go to DiamondLPGA.com. To pre-order Higgins’ book, go to benhigginsbook.com.
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