The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
140 golfers take shots at benefit for students
Lorain County Community College welcomed a couple of professional golfers and more than 140 amateurs Aug. 12 out to the links for its 29th annual Jack Nicklaus Scholarship Golf Benefit.
About 144 golfers set out at the Elyria Country Club along with PGA and Champions Tour professional Mark Calcavecchia, Long-Drive Champion Michael Zeigler, PGA professional Jimmy Hanlin and local radio sports talk show host Tony Rizzo for 18 holes to provide scholarships to LCCC students.
Tracy Green, vice president of strategic and institutional development for the college, said that in addition to the annual golf outing, the day also served as the 14th Ladies Luncheon which drew about 135 women.
“What it boils down to is that it’s all about scholarships for students,” she said. “A completely full field coming out for nothing but helping students go to school.”
Green said the annual events found their root in the friendship between golf legend Jack Nicklaus and former Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Joseph Cirigliano.
“(Nicklaus) said that he would only come (to the event) if we were going to
“This is the only outing at a college or university that is licensed to use (Nicklaus’) golden bear logo.”
— Tracy Green, vice president of strategic and institutional development for LCCC
raise money for something very important and what can be more important than people going to college,” she said. “This is the only outing at a college or university that is licensed to use (Nicklaus’) golden bear logo.”
She said the event has been going strong since then. The event has provided more than $879,000 in financial aid to LCCC and university partnership students, which is almost equal to the $1 million in the fund’s endowment.
This year for the first time the professionals will also be holding a clinic for high school golf teams.
Nicklaus last returned to his namesake event for its 25th anniversary in 2015.
Green said the Ladies Luncheon found its start
when the school realized they had the country club to their own for one day each year while people golfed, but nothing was going on inside.
“We said, ‘well how do we take advantage of having this facility,’” she said. “So that’s when we had a group of women come together and do another fundraiser
in the middle of the day, so we’re flipping the room constantly.”
She said she sees this event as the unofficial kickoff to the academic year.
“When this event hits, next will be our campus convocation when the faculty is coming back, and then the first day of classes,” she said. “On Aug. 26 we’ll be welcoming close to another 11,000 students back to campus.”