Two months from today, the fourth annual McGladrey Classic, a PGA Tour, FedEx Cup Event begins. The tournament is operated by the Davis Love Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)3, on St. Simons Island. McGladrey, LLP, an international accounting and consulting firm sponsors the tournament which is held on the Seaside Golf Course, part of the Sea Island Company. The name Love is well known in Coastal Georgia as well as internationally. Champion golfer, Davis Love III, calls the Golden Isles home as did his father, Davis Love Jr., a renowned golf instructor and one of the founders of the Golf Digest Learning Centers. Davis Love Jr. worked at Sea Island as a teaching pro while mentoring and guiding his son in his career. The Love family was and continues to be a closely knit group. Davis’ wife, Robin, and their children Lexie and Dru, his brother Mark and his wife Lynn along with their children, Lowery, Lizzy and Anna all play a part in the family business. If asked, Davis will always put family first. He speaks of his father’s “investment” in his career as an expression of his love when writing his 1997 book, “Every Shot I Take”. It is this love of family and concern for other families that makes the Loves such a special part of our community.
One always thinks of money when watching a tournament. How many thousands of dollars per hole, what the purse is, how much money the winner takes home. But to Davis Love III, it’s not about the money. Four years ago when the McGladrey Classic first began, Love dove into the process of planning an event that usually takes two years to put together in a mere 10 months. His staff at the Foundation refer to it as a miracle. Teamwork is what it is all about and a leader, like Davis Love III, who believes in giving back to the community.
Patricia Shelnutt, Love’s financial manager, says that Davis “always believed in contributing and being involved in local charities.”, she continued, “Davis saw the erosion of family life in our area and was concerned about the youth and what their futures might hold.”. He began to talk with the PGA Tour about sponsoring a tournament here in Glynn County and worked with them to create an event, within the strict guidelines and boundaries of the golf association. Every PGA Tour event is hosted by a non-profit organization. In this case, The Davis Love Foundation, it’s team and many, many volunteers make it happen. All profits from these events are disbursed to charities chosen by the hosts that meet a strict criteria. The Foundation has continued growing the event and investing in Coastal Georgia through the Foundation each year the McGladrey Classic has been played.
Among the charities the tournament gives to are Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeast GA, Habitat for Humanity of Glynn County, United Way of Coastal Georgia, Special Olympics and Blessings in a Backpack. There are over thirty charities included in this year’s Birdies Fore Love. To find out more about this special opportunity to donate and contribute go to: http://www.mcgladreyclassic.com/. You can share in the fun of predicting how many birdies there will be in the tournament as well as give to the charity of your choice and be eligible to win an automobile, which is donated by Nalley this year. It’s a win/win situation!
Over the next few weeks I’ll be posting about other aspects of the tournament and giving my readers behind the scenes looks into what goes into making the McGladrey Classic the success it continues to be. Each year there are more players, each year more volunteers and each year the crowd of golf enthusiasts grows. All of this, carefully orchestrated and accomplished by a team I’ll introduce you to. Before I began my meetings with the group I had no idea what went into the production of such an event. You will be just amazed as I am!
One Response
-
Karwowski Says:
Surprisingly individual friendly website. Tremendous info readily available on couple of gos to.
