Amateur golf tour makes professional donations
By
Tom Johnston, tjohnston@qconline.com
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If you hear someone talking about any golf tour, the first images conjured up are probably
those of an upper-crust group snobbishly walking down finely manicured fairways
at an exclusive course concerned only about what is happening in their little
world.
But if you're talking about the National City Bank Amateur Tour, the Quad-Cities' only
organized golf tour
for adult players, you had better paint yourself a different picture. Sure,
it's a bunch of guys gathering to play tournament golf up to 10 or 12 times a
summer. And for a couple of days they may be mainly concerned about straight
tee shots, accurate approach shots bombarding flagsticks and reading the subtle
contour. of greens in order to make some key birdie putts that could
help them win a tournament title.
But instead of cashing in hundreds of thousands of dollars, these guys -- a
group of over 100 comprised of both the blue- and white-collar work force in
the QCA -- are playing at local public courses more for weekly bragging rights
than the clubhouse gift certificates that serve as prizes.
The biggest winners, though, as a result of the not-for-profit National City
Bank Amateur Tour aren't necessarily the
golfers.
From the 2004 NCB Am Tour
season, the tour's
board of directors doled out a nice chunk of change to local charities, non-profit
organizations and other good causes.
Among those benefactors was The First Tee of the Quad-Cities, which received
$5,000 -- the largest single donation of the year. The NCB Am Tour board also made a $2,500
donation to help defray medical expenses of Tyler Swanson. The 20-year-old NCB
Am Tour 2003 Player
of the Year was seriously injured in a one-car crash in May of 2004 and is
still in rehab.
Jim Hasley, program director at The First Tee,
said his organization needs $70,000 annually to fund its programs that are
geared toward youth -- teaching the game and life skills to more than 1,300
kids last year.
``We're not trying to make money, but we're trying to come as close as
possible to breaking even every year that we can,'' said Mr. Hasley. ``These are the things that take the edge off that.
... This (donation) is one of our bigger lump sums.''
But Mr. Hasley says a donation such as this is
about more than money.
``It really does your heart good to see fellow golfers recognize their
responsibility to golf in general,'' said Mr. Hasley,
the godfather of Quad-Cities golf. ``That's what makes this whole thing go
around.''
And that's just one of the things that makes the
National City Bank Amateur
Tour a special
organization that stands out in the Quad-Cities. Their collective hearts are
bigger than some of their prodigious drives as shown by nearly $20,000 in
donations the last three years. Money raised from season tour memberships and
corporate and individual sponsorships go to those donations.
``We gave a $2,500 check to the Swanson family and wish we could have made
it for $250,000,'' said Chris Wilkins, who serves as chairman of the NCB Am Tour board and was touched by
a stirring thank you from Cal Swanson, Tyler's father. ``It's a great family, a
great cause and hopefully
No matter who is playing in the Tour
events, they are doing more than playing the game. They are always playing for
a cause. While that doesn't create so much of a problem, it does present a bit
of a dilemma.
``We kind of have an identity crisis -- are we an arm for raising money or
are we a playing tour?'' asked Mr. Wilkins rhetorically. ``We try to wear both
of those hats and sometimes they conflict. But for the most part, I think we
can accomplish our goals by just having a tour and using that as a way to raise money.''
Which is something Mr. Wilkins hopes the tour can do more of in the
future.
``There are a lot of needs and organizations that are good causes,'' said Mr.
Wilkins, adding he hopes the tour
can help out as many of those golf-related charities as possible. ``We'd like
to broaden our horizons for donations.''
Making strong donations is something the NCB Am Tour has been successful at as it has recreated
itself over the years. The plan four years ago was to establish a college
scholarship for local high-school golfers, but Mr. Wilkins said that concept
never connected.
``We'll find something that's worthy,'' said Mr. Wilkins, noting each year's
donations are based on what the Tour
can afford. ``We're in the process of trying to establish a nest egg to be able
to make some sizable donations.''
For a bunch of amateurs, though, they are doing pretty good at making some
professional-sized contributions to the community as a result of their golf
games.