On Monday, EIL joined the McGladrey Classic tournament staff, host Davis Love III, Andy Pazder, Executive VP and Chief of Operations from the PGA Tour, 2014 McGladrey Classic champion Robert Streb, representatives from Sea Island and McGladrey, and other members of the media, for an enjoyable information session, roundtable discussions, and a fun putting challenge that benefited local charities.
The biggest news about the November 16-22 tournament is that presenting sponsor, McGladrey, is getting a name change. Andy Bosman, Principal, Chief Marketing Officer of McGladrey LLP, announced that McGladrey is adopting RSM as its common brand name. The new name reflects a unified global brand that encompasses its fellow firms in the RSM International global network and strengthens the organization’s position as the leading provider of audit, tax and consulting services focused on the middle market worldwide. The brand and new logo will officially launch October 26 and will be integrated into communication materials prior to the November golf tournament, which will be rebranded as The RSM Classic. So don’t be confused when the signs say RSM, it’s the same—actually, an expanded and improved—PGA Tour event.
Berry Collett, Director of Golf Maintenance, and Brannen Veal, Director of Golf at Sea Island filled us in on the challenge of preparing and overseeding two courses for the upcoming event, as well as maintaining the courses during the tournament, as this year golfers will play both Plantation and Seaside courses. While a daunting task, they’re going to be armed with twice as many volunteers working and are up to that challenge. They have no doubt that the courses will not only look beautiful but will provide the right conditions for tournament play.
Everyone expressed excitement over the increased field of players due to the two-course expansion and the bigger draw of the tournament as part of the PGA Tour Fex Ex Cup wrap-around season. Of course, the biggest thrill is the impact on the community and local charities. Birdies Fore Love has found tremendous success with McGladrey, resulting in more than $930,000 raised for children-and-family-focused charitable organizations worldwide last year alone, and more than $2.7 million in charitable contributions from the tournament over the past 5 years.
This year’s McGladrey Classic fundraiser for local charities is known as the Friends of the Foundation Challenge, presented by Nalley Automotive of Brunswick. Approximately thirty participating charities are 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations whose missions align with that of the Davis Love Foundation’s focus on children and families in need. The Friends of the Foundation is selling $20 raffle tickets for a chance to win a 2015 Buick Verano, which will be awarded during Tournament Week. Participating charities will receive 100% of their raffle ticket sales, and in addition, the Davis Love Foundation will disburse $50,000 to them based upon their percentage of ticket sales. See a list of participating charities and learn more at: mcgladreyclassic.com/charities/friends-foundation/.
Returning 2014 McGladrey Champion Robert Streb joined us before his busy weekend playing in the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Having the best season of his career, he is poised at 14th in the standings going into this final event of the 2014-15 PGA TOUR season. He’s looking forward to returning to The McGladrey Classic and the challenge of the increased field of players.
A charity putting challenge complete with driftwood and sand obstacles allowed Media Day participants to join Davis Love III or Robert Streb to compete to win money for their selected non-profit organization. It was a small representation of exactly what this tournament is on a much larger scale: a fun, competitive golf challenge with some major PGA Tour players, community involvement as a key component, and a strong commitment to giving back. Here’s to another year of exciting and successful tournament events--EIL is proud to be part of it!
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