New McConnell Golf-sponsored event revives an old rivalry and features current players and alumni from UNC, Duke, N.C. State and Wake Forest
Durham, N.C. – McConnell Golf announced today that Treyburn Country Club will play host to the revived “Big Four Golf Challenge” on Monday, May 11th. The tournament will pit the four area ACC schools – UNC, N.C. State, Duke, and Wake Forest – against one another in a uniquely modified format.
The term “Big Four” was originally used to describe the four schools along Tobacco Road all within a 30-mile radius of one another, until 1956 when Wake Forest moved its campus from Wake County to Winston-Salem. In the early days of the Atlantic Coast Conference, the quartet staged such heated rivalries on the basketball court that it drove all four to national prominence – and through the years the neighborhood rivalry has spilled over into other sports, particularly golf.
While the concept of the Big Four Challenge has been around for many years, it has been nearly a half-century since the last golf challenge was played – and the popular “Big Four” basketball tournament has not been contested since the early 1980s. “The timing to revive this rivalry is perfect,” said Tag Wylie, Head Golf Professional at Treyburn Country Club. “The four golf teams have a break between the ACC and the NCAA tournaments. It is not like the teams will just take off and not play, so they may as well be competing.”
The format will allow each team to bring five players and 15 alumni. During the morning rounds each current player will be teamed up with three alumni in a stroke-play, 18-hole event. The best netball per hole of the alumni, plus the gross score of the college player, will count as the team score for the “alumni division.” The afternoon matches will be current players only, and will be a match-play event with a total of 19 points per match at stake.
“Promoting this type of competition is what McConnell golf is all about,” said Ray McDonald, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at McConnell Golf. “We are delighted to be able to host this event and hopefully it will once again become an annual challenge. That fact that alumni get to participate makes it even more exciting and should make for some great matches.”
About McConnell Golf
McConnell Golf (www.mcconnellgolf.com) offers pure golf for the true golfer as a privately held company offering unlimited access to world-class facilities and golf courses designed by legends Donald Ross, Pete Dye, Tom Fazio, and Arnold Palmer. Founded in 2003, McConnell Golf provides members a quality golf experience at any of its five award-winning courses: Raleigh Country Club in Raleigh, N.C.; Cardinal Golf & Country Club in Greensboro, N.C.; Treyburn Country Club in Durham, N.C.; Old North State in New London N.C.;and Musgrove Mill Golf Club in Clinton, S.C. All clubs are maintained and serviced to the highest standards with an emphasis on true golf, complete service and absolute quality. McConnell Golf offers individual club memberships, as well as innovative corporate and national/international memberships that deliver unmatched access to the top courses in the Carolinas.
Contact:
Ray McDonald, 919-922-4171, rmcdonald@mcconnellgolf.com
Martin Armes, 919-608-7260, martinarmes@nc.rr.com
