CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA – September 16, 2008-Ashworth, Inc. (NASDAQ: ASHW), a leading designer of golf-inspired lifestyle sportswear, today announced it is supplying product to seven junior golfers from the Future Collegians World Tour (FCWT) who will be among a host of junior golfers from around the world competing in this fall’s sixth annual Honda International Junior Golf Championship in Japan.
The Clearwater, Fla.-based FCWT-a fall/winter/spring junior golf tour that doesn’t compete against the American Junior Golf Association’s (AJGA) summer schedule-was invited by the AJGA to participate in the 54-hole tournament, which will be held Oct. 24-26 at Wild Duck Country Club in City Ibaraki, Japan. The Honda International Junior Golf Championship Committee also has invited junior golf federations from Korea, England and Japan to represent their respective nations at the tournament. The teams include boys and girls ages 13 to 18.
Players are eligible to play in the FCWT if they have not yet graduated from high school and are 11-18 years of age. Players who have already graduated are eligible if they have not yet reached their 19th birthday and are not currently enrolled in college.
“The FCWT is one of our better accounts,” says Eddie Fadel, Ashworth Inc.’s President. “The FCWT has been a very good customer to Ashworth for the past five or six years. They continue to give us business any way it can, whether it be Ashworth, game caps for the kids or Sunice as a new product choice. We are thrilled to be associated with the FCWT and, in the process, to be building some positive momentum for the future of our brands.”
The products Ashworth will supply to the FCWT players competing in Japan are from the company’s Tournament Series product line, which is perfect for the Honda International Junior Golf Championship, since the tournament includes both male and female competitors. Ashworth’s Tournament Series product is designed for event business for which matching product for both sexes is required but needs to be appropriately styled for each gender.
The FCWT is honored to represent the United States at the Honda International Junior Golf Championship, says Jack Hopson, owner/founder of the FCWT.
“The FCWT selection process was designed to select male and female junior golfers who have played with distinction while participating in junior golf events over the last several years,” Hopson adds.
The FCWT Boys participants in the Honda International Junior Golf Championship are: Raymond Gillip II, of Las Vegas, Nev. (2009); Brandon Hagy, Westlake Village, Calif. (2009); Reid Martin, Mukilteo, Wash. (2009); and Sam Saunders, Albuquerque, N.M. (2010). The Girls representatives are: Danielle Kang, Oak Park, Calif. (2010); Lauren Salazar, Santa Clara, Calif. (2012); and Daniela Lendl of Bradenton, Fla., and Goshen, Conn. In FCWT play during the 2007-2008 season, this group of players combined to earn nine victories and 18 Top-5 finishes.
Here’s a closer look at each FCWT participant:
BOYS
–Raymond Gillip II is a fourth-year FCWT player. Gillip won the Bear Creek East Open in Dallas in March 2008 and posted three other top-5 finishes during the 2007-08 season, earning him FCWT All-American status.
–Brandon Hagy, a two-year FCWT veteran, won the Hunter Ranch Invitational in March 2008. The victory earned Hagy first-team All-American honors at the FCWT Annual Awards Banquet.
–Reid Martin began his FCWT career with a bang in May 2004, winning the FCWT Boys 11-12 National Championship in his first event. Now in his sixth FCWT season, Martin’s resume includes All-American Honors in 2005-2006 and Boys 13-15 Player of the Year in 2006-2007 thanks to four victories, including the Boys 13-15 National Championship.
–Sam Saunders won the University of New Mexico Open in April 2007 while competing in the Boys 13-15 division during his initial FCWT season. During the 2007-2008 season, Saunders advanced to the Boys 16-18 division and finished second in his first event, the Bear Creek West Open in Dallas. In April 2008, he returned to the University of New Mexico Open and captured the Boys 16-18 title.
GIRLS
–Danielle Kang won the Mission Hills Invitational in December 2007 after previous second- and third-place finishes in that event in 2006 and 2005, respectively. The rising junior has five top-5 finishes in three years of FCWT play. Only one of Kang’s finishes (a T6 at Bayonet in 2006) was not in the top 5.
–Lauren Salazar won twice during the 2007-2008 season-the Turkey Creek Open and the University of New Mexico Open-and had three other top-10 finishes. During the 2006-2007 season, she had six top-10 finishes and finished 18th at the National Championship.
–Daniela Lendl, daughter of tennis legend Ivan Lendl, is entering her fifth season on the FCWT. The rising sophomore earned the FCWT’s 2007-2008 “For the Good of the Game” award. Lendl also has won twice and has had six top-10 finishes, including a T8 at the FCWT National Championship.
The Future Collegians World Tour (FCWT), based in Clearwater, Fla., is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization committed to helping young men and women in their pursuit of earning a college scholarship through the challenge of competitive golf. Its purpose is to provide a venue of nationally ranked junior golf tournaments for the junior golfer. The FCWT offers over 50 tournaments nationwide. The FCWT Tournament Directors are all golf professionals who enjoy helping junior golfers take their games to the next level. Famed teaching professional Jim McLean has been the honorary chairperson for the FCWT’s Boys division since 2000, while LPGA Tour star Laura Diaz has been the Girls division’s honorary chairperson since 2003. Go to www.fcwtgolf.com or www.lauradiazjrgolf.com for more information.
Carlsbad, Calif.-based Ashworth, Inc., is a leading designer of men’s and women’s golf-inspired lifestyle sportswear distributed domestically and internationally in golf pro shops, resorts, upscale department and specialty stores and to corporate customers.
Ashworth is also an Official Apparel Licensee of Callaway Golf Company and Ashworth owns the Outerwear Apparel brand Sunice in Europe, the UK and U.S.A. Ashworth is also a leading designer, producer and distributor of headwear and apparel under The Game® and Kudzu® brands. The Game is a leading headwear brand to collegiate bookstores and Kudzu products are sold into the NASCAR/racing markets and through outdoors sports distribution channels, including fishing and hunting. Ashworth is also the Kentucky Derby’s exclusive on-site event merchandiser.
Contact:
Mary Beth Lacy at 760-346-6942 or email: mb@mblacy.com
