Fallen Oak at Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Saucier, Miss., will be the site of the Veteran Golfers Association’s National Championship on October 8-11, while the Washington (Iowa) Golf & Country Club, Kalona (Iowa) Golf Club, and Blue Top Ridge Golf Course in Riverside, Iowa will each host the National Disabled Veterans TEE Tournament this week. In 2018, Kearney Hill Golf Links in Lexington, Ky., will host the Girls Junior PGA Championship from July 9-12.
For the second consecutive year, the Veteran Golfers Association (VGA) will host its National Championship at Fallen Oak at Beau Rivage Resort & Casino in Saucier, Miss., on October 8-11. The tournament features a field of regional winners who qualified over the course of the year for the opportunity to play for the title.
The 2017 VGA Tour included more than 200 tournaments at military, public and private courses, with more than 2,500 veteran golfers participating. Like the tour events, the VGA National Championship features three divisions of competition: Veteran, Combat Wounded and Family. Within each division are four handicapped flights and an open handicap Women’s flight.
Wounded veterans and Purple Heart recipients will make up nearly half the field, and competitors will range from enlisted personnel to three-star generals.
“MGM Resorts International and Beau Rivage are very honored once again to host the VGA National Championship for military veterans who will travel here from all over the United States,” said Fallen Oak Director of Golf Rick Gehr. “For these players, this tour championship is more than a game or friendly match. Rather, it’s about the benefits they derive from the camaraderie and sportsmanship of competition, and we’re proud that our award-winning golf course and resort here in Biloxi continues to be their destination of choice.”
Founded in 2014, the VGA is a national non-profit organization offering U.S. military veterans the opportunity to enjoy competition and community through golf. Membership is open to all U.S. veterans—wounded, non-wounded, disabled, active duty and retired—as well as to their families, including parents, siblings and dependents who are at least 18 years old.
The VGA’s mission is to enhance the lives of veterans and their family members through the camaraderie and sportsmanship of golf. The VGA also focuses on Post Traumatic Growth initiatives to help veterans and families cope with combat-related injuries. Using golf as an alternative activity, these veterans can choose a more productive way to deal with the challenges that impact their everyday lives. More information on the 2017 tour and championship event is available at www.vgachampionship.org.
Veterans from across the country will be golfing at several Iowa golf courses during the National Disabled Veterans TEE Tournament this week, the Washington, Iowa-based KCII FM reported.
Disabled veterans will be instructed golf on Tuesday and Thursday at the Washington (Iowa) Golf & Country Club, Kalona (Iowa) Golf Club, and Blue Top Ridge Golf Course in Riverside, Iowa, KCII reported.
“This is the first time we’ve [offered an all-women’s team], this year,” said Event Director Kirt Sickels. “We’ve been trying to boost our numbers, to get our lady veterans there and out and be a part of the event, and we finally had enough that we got a team we’re putting together and they’ll be out there at Washington this year.”
TEE stands for training, exposure, and experience, not only in golf but in many activities. “We’ve got a lot of alternative activities this year,” Sickels said. “We’ve got bowling, we’ve got frisbee golf, we’ve got adaptive kayaking, adaptive biking. We’ve got horseback riding, we’ve got fishing. There’s a Wednesday night wellness that has some other activities that we’re going to highlight, some sitting volleyball, sitting tennis, and some other activities as well that evening.”
What started as a local event is now national, with 260 participants this year, out of over 400 applications the organization received. The TEE Tournament serves veterans with a range of disabilities, including amputees and those with post-traumatic stress disorder, KCII reported.
The PGA of America has announced that Kearney Hill Golf Links of Lexington, Ky., has been selected to host the 2018 Girls Junior PGA Championship. The 43rd edition of the Championship will take place from July 9-12, 2018.
“Our association is excited to bring the Girls Junior PGA Championship to the Bluegrass State for the first time,” said PGA President Paul Levy. “The most talented players have routinely showcased their abilities on what has become one of junior golf’s biggest stages. We look forward to adding to the growing legacy of this Championship at Kearney Hill.”
Kearney Hill Golf Links, designed in 1989 by Pete Dye and his son, P.B., is no stranger to prominent golf events. The Bank One Classic, a tournament on the PGA Tour Champions schedule from 1983-1997, was played annually at Kearney Hill from 1990-1997. Headlining the list of champions are World Golf Hall of Famers Gary Player (1993, ’95) and Isao Aoki (1994). Additionally, the 1998 U.S. Men’s and 2007 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championships were held at the City of Lexington-owned property, won by Tim Clark and Mina Harigae, respectively.
The Girls Junior PGA Championship also provides a final opportunity for junior girls to earn exemptions or points for next September’s 2018 Junior Ryder Cup, which will feature a 12-player U.S. team that will compete against Europe at Disneyland Paris.
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