Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Mates club together for golfing fundraiser
One conversation led to another and it quickly went from ‘10 of the boys keen to play’ to nine fourballs, ambrose ... The tournament was a hit, and Manning flew back to Abu Dhabi with plans for 2023.
Alone on the sixth tee, a well-used seven iron looks almost ominous.
It signals a closest to the pin contest with a difference. All competitors must use the tried and tested club for their tee shot.
Those who have only known the titanium clubs of the modern game sigh.
But this isn’t just any club. It’s Don Manning’s seven iron – the club he used when he aced the sixth at Blenheim Golf Club in 1996.
And this is the Don Manning Memorial Golf Championship.
Grandson Jeremy Manning started the tournament – almost accidentally – in 2022 as a nod to the man who taught him how to play.
Manning was coming home to Blenheim for Christmas from the United Arab Emirates and wanted to catch up with friends, but they didn’t want to “just go to the pub”.
One conversation led to another and it quickly went from “10 of the boys keen to play” to nine four-balls, ambrose.
The Blenheim Golf Club, where Don Manning was a life member until he died in 2020, was happy to oblige.
The tournament was a hit, and Manning flew back to Abu Dhabi with plans for 2023.
With a year to organise it, he went all in with on-course challenges and sponsors, including customised jerseys and a Don Manning Memorial beer.
“I really pushed the boat out for the second year,” Manning said.
The other closest to the pin challenge last year, on the third, saw a 10/11 handicapper camped out on the
tee box all day. He made closest to the pin bets with competitors as they came through. If the competitor won, they took his money, if he won he took their money, and that went to charity-of-choice, I Am Hope and its Gumboot Friday fundraiser.
The 2023 instalment, along with the dinner for 100 in the evening and its lively auction, raised more than $30,000.
Speaking from Abu Dhabi, Manning, who has already sold out the 2024 tournament this December, said it was going to be bigger again. But this year, some of the funds would go towards junior development at Blenheim Golf Club.
They just had to work out the “nitty gritty” details, like the split between the club and Gumboot Friday, and who would administer the golf club money, said Manning, who was keen to see and help “younger kids come through” the Marlborough golf scene.
He was in talks with sportswear company Tsumani again about providing customised jerseys, balls, gloves and maybe even bucket hats.
A live DJ would be back on the course, as would the specially brewed ChinChiller beer.
However, the Manning family was planning to host a special night-time event for VIPs and sponsors this year, before the shotgun start the day after.
This night-time get-together would again see a closest to the pin on the sixth, and a longest drive competition, but with golf balls that light up when hit.
Manning, however, said the tournament would be taking a break after 2024. He wasn’t saying he’d never do it again, though.
He said he actually enjoyed organising it, knowing it was for a great cause and “just the fact everyone seems to have fun”.