Champions Retreat in Evans, Ga., to host Club Car Legacy hosted by Charles Howell III
BRASELTON, Ga. – For the first time in the American Junior Golf Association’s 30-year history, the AJGA will stage a national junior golf event in Augusta, Ga., thanks, in part, to a sponsorship agreement reached with Club Car, the Augusta-based golf car and utility vehicle manufacturer.
The Club Car Legacy hosted by Charles Howell III will be held at Champions Retreat Golf Club in Evans, Ga., July 7-10. The Palmer Island Nine will play host to the front nine and The Player Creek Nine will host the back nine.
“Club Car is excited to join the AJGA and Charles Howell to bring an event to our hometown that helps young players compete in a positive environment and advance to the next level in their golf careers,” said Club Car Chairman Phil Tralies. “We’re pleased to support the hopes and dreams of these young players while supporting the growth of the game.”
Proceeds from the tournament will benefit nonprofit golf-related organizations in the Augusta area.
Howell is an Augusta native who got his competitive start through the AJGA.
“Competing in AJGA events allowed me to test my game against the best junior golfers in the country,” Augusta-native Howell said. “I’m extremely grateful that Club Car and Champions Retreat Golf Club are partnering with the AJGA to give this generation of talented players an opportunity to showcase their skills at the highest level in my hometown.”
Howell, the 1996 Rolex Junior Player of the Year, was a four-time Rolex Junior All-American with the AJGA. He claimed nine tournament titles in his junior career before attending Oklahoma State University.
As the premier junior golf organization in the world dedicated to helping golfers ages 12-18 earn college golf scholarships, the AJGA will bring together 99 of the top boy and girl players from around the country for this 54-hole stroke play championship.
While Club Car is best known in the golf industry, where its golf cars, turf maintenance and utility vehicles are critical to course operations, the company’s multi-passenger vehicles, rough-terrain and off-road utility vehicles play key roles in a number of other industries and have a growing presence in the private market.
“We are thrilled to bring a national junior golf tournament to the golf capital of the world -Augusta, Ga.,” said Jason Etzen, AJGA executive vice president of corporate partnerships. “With Club Car’s support, we are giving our members in the Southeast Region another opportunity to showcase their talent for college golf scholarships.”
The Champions – Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player – each designed nine holes of championship golf at Champions Retreat Golf Club. This masterful 27-hole course is carved from 1,200 pristine acres of lush mature Georgiapines and century old hardwoods.
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf.
The largest Association of its kind, the AJGA has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of more than 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and more than 25 foreign countries.
Titleist, the AJGA’s National Sponsor, has been the catalyst and driving force behind the Association’s success since 1989. Rolex Watch USA, which is in its third decade of AJGA support, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2007, after 12 years of support, Polo Ralph Lauren became the AJGA’s second Premier Partner.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. More than 160 former AJGA juniors currently play on the PGA and LPGA Tours and have compiled more than 300 wins. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk, Stewart Cink, Davis Love III, Cristie Kerr, Pat Hurst, Paula Creamer, Brittany Lincicome, Morgan Pressel and Julieta Granada.
For more information, please contact Steve Ethun (sethun@ajga.org) in the AJGA Communications Department at (877) 373-2542 or visit the AJGA’s Web site at ajga.org.
Contact:
Steve Ethun, AJGA
(877) 373-2542
Bill Bryant, Club Car
(678) 366-3232
